Watchmeister

For those who are getting impatient look at the bright side. How long would it take you to save up for the gen? Although I haven't owned a gen VC overseas for quite a while (it has actually been made in various forms for quite a while) I can say that V2 was an excellent copy and hopefully this latest version will be too. I wear my white V2 reasonably frequently and can't wait to see the new V4 black version. I do, of course, have a spare black dial from v2 just in case I like that one better. But patience can be a virtue. And yes, the SW would be every bit as good as the ETA. Interestingly, this was my first order from Jay and I hadn't heard about the delays. Well, it will get here when it gets here. No worries. That is why we are here.

Wear it well. I remember drooling over this watch as well. Now it gets no wrist time though.

I prefer to think of it as "homage".

Another satisfied customer. Now get your but over to the collector's gallery and buy from one of them. The state of the art Submersible with proper date font and cyclops shoudl cost you around $250. But if you want perfect buy gen.

I am curious as to whether the Pilot in that batch was an EL Pilot. I have one on the way and would like to throw it into the next batch but don't want to ruin it by putting AR on top of AR.

I am with Pug. The rep movement will most likely have the correct bridges but not full double barrel movement. You can dream though. The Chinese now make a tourbillon that is more reliable than the Swiss. Hope springs eternal.

High end reps have existed for quite a while. That hasn't changed. What has changed in the last 18 months is far more professionalization in the rep industry. Factories have upgraded their equipment to include better CNC equipment. Factories and/or large dealers are now regularly investing the upfront money to buy the gen, taking comments from dealers and trying to get it as good as possible the first time. With the larger runs necessary for more complex watches even the factories do not want to be stuck with somethig they can't sell. I will always be thankful to Honpo for being the first to recognize that their market (Japan) would pay $1,000 for a really good rep. I used to resort to having a Japanese speaking member write for me to source their product. Now it is largely available thru others and their is plenty of great product they don't have. From an industry perspective, second generation reps now have more subtle improvements rather than having to redo a completely wrong dial or wrong case size. That perfect SMP, Fiddy or whatever only came about after numerous generations of relatively simple watches. To get an HBB with all its parts or Cousteau with solid rotating inner bezel and correct pushers (aesthetically and functionally) in one shot is years ahead of where the industry was 2 years ago. Wait until we see those 8 day movements later in the year. Now all they have to do is improve QC.

Certainly sympathetic to that point of view. But look at the bright side - you can still buy many of the original reps that got you excited for the same or less than for what they were previously offered.

J- I understand the point of view and you can still do that with MBW's, DW's etc. In fact MBW's are now cheaper. But it is a much larger world now with greater variety available and that is a good thing. We have finally moved out of the good reps only available for watches of $4,000 or less (vintage Rolex exception). To have the opportunity to buy a rep of a $6,000 Cousteau or $10,000 HBB Mellow Yellow is a fabulous opportunity (if it is something you want of course). And the aesthetics are good enough that it makes ,modifying well worthwhile if you want to make it a lifelong keeper. No heirloom - but you didn't spend $10,000 either. On the vintages I do want to build a real collection but I am still waiting for 42mm and 44mm non-manual wind watches to become vintage.

I posted at least one source from Ebay somewhere here a few months ago. He has a fair number of 17j Swiss (true Swiss). I have been buying in groups of 5 or more and paying $150-$175 each. You will have to find it as I am on vacation.

I have had the benefit of seeing a good chunk of that collection in the flesh and am hoping to see it again soon. Hey Ubi- Had to tell you naked chicks rock. I'm gone for the next 10 days or so. I know you will miss me.

Actually I think the cost of the gen is incredibly relevant. When people say I am not going to buy a $400 Asian rep of the Cousteau but a gen instead which gen are you referring to? Are you planning on outlaying $7,000 for the gen or are you going to buy a $1,000 gen which bears no resemblance to the watch you originally wanted? I am very happy with my Cousteau as it functioned perfectly out of the box. In spite of that I am going to the next step and doing relume and a movement swap. I will be into it for close to $700. So for 10% of the cost of a gen (okay maybe 12%) I will have a properly serviced fairly accurate rep which I will enjoy and happily wear anywhere (except an AD, of course). I know there are people here who can afford the gens but play with reps as a hobby but, by and large, I don't think you ended up here to buy a $7,000 gen. And yes, I guess we set ourselves up but then again had you ever seen reps of the various new brands before these price increases? I know Asian based reps are infuriating but this trend will only increase. ETA movements other than the most basic automatic workhorses which the Asian movements copy flawlessly are only getting harder to get. And wait until you see the new movements they are working on to duplicate proprietary movements. Here are suggestions: either make more money, buy fewer reps or hope they get cheaper in the second hand market. I for one think we are in the golden age of reps. Super reps, whatever that means, have been around for quite a while. MBW or equivalents are readily available. New reps come out every week. Buy what you can afford/want and enjoy the ride.

If you are contemplating getting one to swap with a Swiss movement do get the older movement version. It is cheaper and I believe the hands should fit directly on without any modification. Old 7750's were bad movements but their parts directly swap onto Swiss 7750's unlike the new hi-beats.

Yes on the Mellow Yellow. Look at the link in my post up above. I have been to the store who commissioned it, examined the gen and actually chatted with the owners. It turns out it is very easy to commission an exclusive in the gen world. Simply commit to 20 pieces and decide how big you want the exclusive to ultimately be. In that case it is 99 pieces. They did 20 on the first run and have sold more since.

The term "super rep" is pretty funny. Around here half the time it refers to a super rep. The other half the time people are using it tongue in cheek for an overpriced Asian movement-based aesthetically accurate rep. But this one is a super rep.

D- Can't wait to see it. Mine is still trapped in customs. Wear it well and you must post pics as soon as you get it.

The first batch is largely sold out. I will be shipping as many as I can in the next couple of days. For those who have a slot with Rob they will be shipped for sure. I will apologize in advance if I miss any individual orders. They are not forgotten. On Wednesday I am headed out of the country for 10 days so no one freak out. I have your crowns and they will get to you. I am hopeful I can get them all out. I am going to order my second and last batch while I am away as there are no longer any left for me. If anyone else wants in please send email to watchmeisters@gmail.com. This has been a success as all have payed promptly. I look forward to seeing the modded results. And for all those 1.2 guys I am making one last ditch effort to see if he has any remaining 1.2's. The seller's english is not very good and my Turkish is worse. So I am going to resort to pictures to try and explain it. Much thanks to my Watchmeister teammates who have been very helpful to the process. Arch, where is the pic?

Very sorry to hear that the non-daggers are now Asian as well. It does make you treasure the older swiss needle movements. I know mine are because they have all been serviced. But I haven't bought a new one in a couple of years. It appears that ETA's are quickly becoming a thing of the past unless you have a $1,000 for a Swiss 7750 movement. The volume of "super reps" is increasing. The volume of ETA movements is decreasing. You figure it out.

Actually it wouldn't surprise me if those numbers were fairly accurate although I would guess that some portion of the $75-150k would be closer to the 75. In that income bracket you may well know what you like but don't have the discretionary income to swing more than one gen. I think we would all be very surprised at the number of folks who have put $10,000 or more into this "hobby". I long since figured out that I could have bought a number of gens for all the money I put into this hobby. But where is the fun in that. Tally ho!

Check out his other limited edition watches celebrating the Company's twentieth anniversary. Yellow is hot. : http://www.eastcoastjewelry.com/limited_edition.htm

Pug- You have finally given in to market forces. Super reps are here to stay and I for one am ecstatic. Sometimes prices are good and sometimes bad. But at least ou have multiple interesting choices. The VC Overseas, irrespective of which version you buy, is a fabulous rep of a $7,000 watch priced at around $300. The Pilot Chrono priced under $400 is an excellent rep of a $4,000 watch. The HBB at $400-$700, qc issues and all, is a fairly good rep of $7-12,000 watches. Anyone who has been around and struggled to buy their first MBW or DW for $400-500 and then dumped in hundreds more knows that better reps have never been more accessible. You just have to pick what you want more carefully. On the price increases, of course we don't like them but don't forget that the dollar has devalued by 30-40% depending on the currency over the last two years. Although prices have risen in all currencies for whatever reason the most common currency is dollars. Ultimately, if demand falls so will the prices. In the meantime we just have to be more intelligent about our purchases.

I can't wait to get mine. I have the new one with a spare other color dial coming and already have the old one with the other color spare dial as well. Could be a fun to mix and match. And then I will still have to decide which one gets the Chieftang double AR coat crystal. IMHO, it makes the watch.

I wonder why case ceramics are so much more difficult or expensive versus the bezel? In any case it reinforces my satisfaction with the Mellow Yellow. I will be revealing mine with a nice surprise in a couple of weeks when I am back in country and can snap a few pics.

The lume is the make or break for me. If you have ever walked onto an elevator after lunch on a sunny day with someone wearing the same watch you will know what I mean. No one notices that improper "A" but when your watch glows too green or white ...