Watchmeister

Couldn't agree more. Love that Pencil lead tint.

I consider the 195 a contemporary. And now many companies are using ceramic in lieu of DLC. Loving that case though. Can't wait to see the final project.

R- If you are not happy with the color matching on the crown you get shoot me a PM. I think I have a PVD automatic crown from that year which should match up in color nicely. As you probably know the greyer color is a result of the more primitive TiAlN coating which was used up until 2000. More contemporary PVD models usually use DLC coating.

You guys are my heros. Best of luck and have a great time.

L- Much thanks for he kind thoughts. It has been a great year. Looking forward to next year. - Kruz

Much thanks to Lanikai and the Deep Sea Team. A great review. It is fun to learn about the history and I know how much work it is to line up rep pictures to match gen pictures as closely as possible. What a great watch!

I would suggest posting a picture or link.

Pho- I will check for your address. I was hoping to ship yesterday but just got back from abroad so I will be shipping the first round of paid up folks in the next day or two. ATB- Kruz

Urwerke has a huge cult following among WIS. It just will never be properly replicated. They don't sell enough of the gen to ever develop a strong enough potential consumer base to care. If I were to ever win the Lottery it is one of the first watches I would buy - in gen of course.

Laz- Thanks for the warning. I have to agree that this is not a watch for long-time Rolex wearers. It is a watch for those who used to wear Rolex and then got used to Panerai, Breitling, etc. and whose Rolex collection no longer get any where time. As a big watch wearer, I will say it is the first gen rolex I have considered buying in a number of years. I too see that the general Rolex community has already rejected it. They now come up well below cost all the time on TZ and watchnet. - Kruz

It looks fantastic. I always enjoy your posts

I will wager there is no price out there (other than for a watch which simply never comes up) which will not be lower in March and even lower in June. IMHO, you are best off saving your pennies until well into the New Year (at best).

Here are a couple of close-up movement shots I have archived. Now what do you think.

Great tutorial. Much thanks for sharing this. Happy Holidays.

FGD- Absolutely fabulous projects. Each one a fabulous piece in its own right. Congrats! By the way I am loving the 004 sharkskin combination. That Kevin Wong is stunning.

Lume on the 127 should be C-3 superluminova (better quality green lume).

Very nice. Can't wait to see the finished projects.

I didn't know V had made a ti cg. My rule is t-48's for rep cases and gen crowns for Jimmy and gen cases. Both combos require the least case work. And if you are talking about the ti crowns offered on ebay they are only accurate for the PAM 36 and other very early ti PAM's (if there are any).

I will add them over time. And yes, although I am certainly not in Tanofoglio's league I do have too many watches.

Thanks for the kind words. Part of my problem with rep collecting is I develop a sentimental attachment irrespective of whether they get wrist time. The funny thing is that I have a much easier time letting go of gens. Ziggy- Both the boxes and watches should look very familiar. You may have seen them all at my house but I suspect a large percentage of them have seen your house once or twice. By the way, looking forward to the next batch of projects.

I would guess there are a couple of issues: 1. Many folks think of Mont Blanc as a pen company - not a watch company and so it is not afforded much respect 2. Gens can be purchased at huge discounts immediately after issue 3. Just not a respected name in the watch community in spite of having some very nice watches

Great pics. Thanks again.

Mission accomplished.

Well, I can't say I have that many other reps. Many past ones sold or given to friends. The majority of this year was spent building frankens and buying a gen or two. I am about to go buy my first couple of reps in quite a while...if I can get the dealer to return my emails.

I was looking through a bunch of watches and came upon a number that all brought back fond memories of the last several years on this forum and its predecessor. It struck me that many have real sentimental value and an interesting story and that is one of the things that makes this hobby so much fun. And yeah, you guys are the other half the fun. Most of you anyhow - So I snapped a couple of quick pics and thought that some of the older members would get a kick out of memory lane. On the top row are treasures such as Ubi's first self-made vintage PAM which he was kind enough to put on my wrist when we had the opportunity to get together, the first "deco bezel" ever decorated by Ziggy, and unique Cortebert based vintages from Watchmaster and VDB. And yes, the mysterious Watchmaster does exist. In fact, back in the day you could even call him and say hello. On the bottom row (going way back when) are an original Finepics PVD 09 (before the unfortunate implosion) and of course the classic Josh 36. Next up: If you look carefully you will see the first MBW rework ever done by Ziggy when we were determined to figure out how much that rework should really cost. A great white lovingly assembled by Ubi which just appeared at my door. Another MBW which I had sent to Archibald for experimental purposes which than mysteriously came back with numerous gen parts and the infamous vintage overlay installed. In fact, all three have that overlay and they work. I just wished someone had told us that no two MBW's are built the same. Also in that box is a DW which actually still works and one of the very few "Palp" modded seconds at 6 Daytonas. By the way, it still works too. On the top is one of the first Ziggy lumed 2006 Cousteau's which actually has Repaustria's one-off caseback. You have to love a watchbox with work done by Ziggy, Rep, Palp, Ubi and Arch. Next Up: Millionaire's Row: All these were bought back in the early days when I thought you could spend a $100 and get an accurate rep of a $100,000 watch. And of course I still have the famous $1.2 million Patek Sky/Moon as a fond rememberance. Still haven't figured out how to change that battery. Happy Holidays to all and of course big thanks to Ziggy, Archibald and Ubi who have always been partners in crime, ever so generous and helpful through all the trials and tribulations of watch collecting.