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Hi guys! Today I’ll be reviewing the Rolex Deep Sea Sea Dweller (DSSD) Ultimate. I want to preface this review by saying that this is my first review on this forum. I’m a relative newbie when it comes to reps, but I have been a lover of fine watches for many many years. Being new to this there may be things I fail to cover or simply do not know, so please don’t hesitate to ask me other questions. And I am always open to suggestions on how to make my reviews better and more valuable to others. Background: I am not a Rolex enthusiast. In fact, I don’t care for the looks of most models of Rolex watches. There are a very few of them that I like, but the DSSD is certainly one of them. I love the look of this watch. It’s hard to pick out exactly what it is that makes me like this model when I do not like most Rolex watches. The ceramic bezel, the caseback, the rehaut and the face are some of the things I like most about it. I have never seen the gen of this watch in person, so my only comparison to the real thing is through photos and YouTube videos. The Dealer: I purchased this watch from Andrew at Trusty Time. He has been outstanding to work with and I plan on leaving a thorough review of my experience with him on his section of this forum later today. Please check it out if you plan to purchase from him. Here is the link to the watch I purchased: http://www.yourtrust...roducts_id=6579 This is the detailed description of the watch copied from the website: ROLSD017 - Deep Sea Dweller SS Blk Asia 3135 Ult V The Ultimate Version of DeepSea ...Same Deep rehaut as Genuine. Crisp Engraving within Lugs, Excellent Pearl and Lume on Dial... Correct 10 on bezel.....Updated Bevelled Edge Date Window....Parts interchangeable (Except Dial and Movt) interchangeable with the Genuine. Made with a Genuine watch as Sample... MOVEMENT: Swiss Eta 2836-2 Movt CASE DIAMETER: 43mm THICKNESS: 17.5mm DIAL COLOR: Black Dial, White Dot Markers, Blue Lume on hour markers and needles and Bezel Pearl. CASE MATERIAL: Solid 316F Stainless Steel BRACELET: SS Oyster Brushed Bracelet with New Design Divers Extension FRONT GLASS: Dome Sapphire crystal BACK GLASS: Solid case back with Titanium Seal, 2 piece case back BEZEL: Full Ceramic Bezel With sandwich numeral insert (modded to Correct "10", bezel RLACC01001, maintaining the Ultimate V's Pearl). Unidirectional rotating Bezel. HACK MOVEMENT: Yes CLASP TYPE: Flip Lock DATE INDICATOR: At 3:00 position (set via crown, beveled edge date window) OTHER REMARKS: Close 6 and 9, one-piece screw down crown with o-ring with thick crown tube (same size as genuine). M Serial numbers and model numbers between lug and rehaut. Waterproof from factory to 5 atm...50m Ordering/Shipping: I ordered this watch (along with a Panerai reviewed elsewhere) on Jan 13th through Andrew’s website. I received a confirmation email immediately. I received QC photos on Jan 15th. The watch arrived on Jan 28th but it had spent a full 5 days in the possession of customs at JFK, so taking out that delay the order-to-receipt time was 10 days which I consider to be excellent processing time from China to the US. The watches came well packaged. Each had a rubber bezel/case guard, was wrapped in thin plastic sheet, then folded up in a lot of bubble wrap and placed inside a thick Styrofoam box. The Styrofoam box was shipped in a standard cardboard box. You could drop this package off a 10 story building and the watches would be fine. First Impression: Talking the watch out, I carefully cut away the plastic film and removed the rubber bezel guard. I was amazed at how nice this watch looked in my hand. The quality of the appearance, and the fit-and-finish of this watch was way better than website photos or QC pictures could represent. This is a beautiful watch. I find myself sitting there like an idiot just staring at it. The watch is heavy and has a very solid feel to it, which I like very much. The top of the case and bracelet are brushed while the sides are polished. This contrast gives it a nice, quality appearance. The ceramic bezel is gorgeous. It is very shiny and the numbers and hash marks are crisp and clean. The case back is awesome and is one of the reasons I bought this watch. I thought that maybe the titanium alloy back would look cheesy in person, but I was wrong. It looks very cool. The band also looks very good. All of the links swivel nice and freely without having a loose feel to them. The Solid End Links (SEL) fit nicely into the case. The clasp works well and is easy to operate and adjust, but this is the first place I noticed a slight lack in quality. More on that later. Here's some photos: Further Investigation: The Crown - The first rep I purchased had a serious issue with the crown and the stem not engaging the movement correctly, so I had to send it back. So the first thing I did was to pull the crown out and test it. The crown unscrewed from the case very smoothly, and had a very solid feel. The crown pulled out nicely and had a nice tactile “click” at each position. Manually winding the watch (in the first position) is smooth with a nice resistance to it. Setting the date (with the second position) was also very nice with each day clicking by with a little snap at each change. The hands also operate very smoothly and without any slop when adjusting the time (at the third position). The Rolex Crown emblem (I think there’s another name for this, but I can’t think of it) looks good on the tip of the crown, and the grooves around the side of the crown are crisp and nicely machined. The Bezel - I then checked the operation of the bezel. It turns nicely without the very stiff resistance I’ve felt on other bezels. Not too tight, but not too loose. The clicking sound as you turn the bezel is also nice. I know it sounds strange, but I’ve turned some bezels and the clicking sounds hollow and tinny which gives an impression of cheapness. This bezel does not have that. The ceramic on the bezel is a deep polished black with a very high-gloss shine to it. I was concerned about the numbers on the bezel looking sloppy on the edges where the white meets the black, but with the naked eye, they are razor sharp. I’ve noticed that some pictures that are blown up very close will show some very slight irregularities, but this cannot be seen with the naked eye. The pearl also looks well constructed. It is perfectly centered in the triangle at the top of the bezel. It is raised with a tiny steel tube and filled with the lume. The top of the lume is rounded and polished and despite its tiny size, looks well made. The grooves around the outside of the bezel are also very nice. I will admit that this is one area I can tell the different between the rep and the gen. The gen’s grooves seem to be more precisely machined with sharper edges. However, in person they are so small that I think it would be very difficult to tell the difference without a loupe. With a high-res photo comparison, this will be one of the parts in which you can see a difference. The Case Back – Like I’ve mentioned, this is one of the things I really like about this watch. The dark titanium alloy back is held to the case with a stainless steel ring. It has a unique look that I’ve not seen on any other watch. The ring has engravings along the edge with “ROLEX OYSTER DEEPSEA – SEA-DWELLER 12800 ft = 3900m” written on it. The engraving is relatively deep and black in color. I don’t know how accurate the font is to the gen but it is crisp and spaced evenly between the edges. The grooves around the bottom edge of the ring are sharp and look well machined. The Bracelet – Like I mentioned earlier, the bracelet is brushed on the top and bottom and polished along the edges. It has nice quality feel to it. There are small screws holding the removable links vice pins, which made sizing the bracelet very easy. I was very careful in removing the pins because I didn’t know what the quality would be like. But when they were out I took a good look at them and they appeared to be solid and well made. The bracelet on the wrist is very comfortable and did not pluck the hairs off my arm like so many other watches do. The Clasp – The clasp on the DSSD is very cool. It folds down on itself and secures with an authoritative snap. Then a smaller clasp folds over the edge of that one to hold everything secure. On mine, this second clasp has a slight defect as can be seen in the photo. The top right arm of the clasp is bent slightly outward and leaves a small gap from the edge of the larger clasp. I think that I could probably wrap it in cloth and tap it lightly back in place with a hammer, but right now it doesn’t bother me very much. I also don’t want to risk damaging it so that it doesn’t work. If anyone has had experience with anything like this before, I’d appreciate your advice! This clasp has a very cool “Glidelock” feature where you pull out the top of the clasp and pull the end of the bracelet in and out for fine adjustment by 1.8mm lengths. Pushing it back down engages teeth in the clasp that holds everything steady. It works very well. It is designed for divers to quickly adjust to the thickness of a wetsuit sleeve, but it also works extremely well to fine tune the precise fit of the bracelet. The very edges of this “glidelock” clasp are not machined very precisely and have a sloppy edge to it. This would be extremely hard for anyone who is not specifically looking for it to notice. The fold out parts of the clasp is probably the one area of this rep that I think could be improved. The build quality is fine, but the printing of the Rolex emblem looks very cheap. You can judge for yourself in the photos. This concerns me very little because the only way anyone would ever see them is if I removed the watch and handed it to someone to inspect. Even then, I’m not sure it’s bad enough to immediately draw attention to it. The Crystal – The crystal looks beautiful. It is not as “domed” as I had anticipated, but it is slightly domed when looking at it from the side. Visually, the crystal sits perfectly. However, if you run your finger around the edge of the crystal (where it meets the bezel) it is not seated exactly flush. I had heard that this was common with this rep, so I was looking for it. Had I not read about it, I may have never noticed. I think that this might be able to be fixed with a case press, but that’s just a guess. Anyone else who’d like to chime in on this, please do. I may try to fix it in the future but as it is now, no one would ever notice this in a million years. Before I received this watch there was some question of whether the rep or the gen had the small “Rolex Crown” etching on the crystal. Well I’m here to clear that up. They both do. It is very, very difficult to see with the naked eye, but if you hold a powerful flashlight at the right angle, it’s there. I managed to catch it in one of the photos. It’s hard to see, but when you can see it, it looks well done. The Face – The face of this watch is gorgeous. It’s very simple which I like. I’m no expert, but everything looks nicely aligned and positioned. I cannot speak to the accuracy of the fonts, but the quality is excellent. Everything is crisp and clear. The lume has a nice blue color when freshly charged, but is not very bright. There are really three levels of brightness on the lume of this watch. The brightest is the hour markers, then the hands, then the pearl. I charged the lume with an extremely powerful aviation flashlight (185 lumens) for 30 seconds. The hour markers were adequately bright and the hands were also adequate but noticeably dimmer than the hour marker. The pearl was barely lit at all. If you wanted to mod this watch, I would say the lume is the first place to start. However for me, it’s not that much of an issue. I will probably leave it as is for some time. The lume also dims down to nothing within about 30 mins. My attempt at the lume shot (I need to get better at these!) The Fit – I have exactly a 7” wrist. I’m not sure how that fits in to the world-wide average, but I feel my wrist is average to slightly below average. The watch looks very well proportioned on the wrist to me. Unlike some of the larger watches such as U-Boat and Panerai, I would imagine that just about anyone could wear this watch without it looking too big in diameter. I will say that the watch is fairly thick and if anything, the watch sits up high off your wrist. But it’s no show stopper. You’d have to be analyzing it to notice this fact. Conclusion: I spent $408USD on this watch. Considering the gen costs more than $10,000USD I’d say I hit a gold mine! I’ve heard that Rolex watches are among the most widely (and cheaply) repped watches around. Even people with gen watches are constantly asked if their watch is real. However, this watch screams quality. I think just about anyone who wasn’t a Rolex enthusiast or AD who took a close look at this watch would have to determine it was real. The watch is absolutely beautiful. The things about it that are not accurate are so minor that they almost don’t warrant notice. I am very happy with this purchase, and very happy with my experience so far with Andrew at Trusty Time (www.yourtrustytime.com). Again, if there’s anything in my review that wasn’t clear or if you have any additional questions I can answer, don’t hesitate to ask. I hope you've all found this review informative and helpful!

Hi guys! Today I’ll be reviewing the Panerai PAM177 on the rubber strap. I want to preface this review by saying that this is only my second review on this forum. I’m a relative newbie when it comes to reps, but I have been a lover of fine watches for many many years. Being new to this there may be things I fail to cover or simply do not know, so please don’t hesitate to ask me other questions. And I am always open to suggestions on how to make my reviews better and more valuable to others. Background: I am new to Panerai’s. It has only been in the past few months that I’ve gained an appreciation for their simple but elegant beauty. Some of the things I looked for in picking out this watch were a sandwich dial face with superlume, a small seconds hand, and an exhibition back. I really like the PAM-386M as well and I will probably end up purchasing that one down the road. I have never seen the gen of this watch (or any other Panerai for that matter) in person, so my only comparison to the real thing is through photos and YouTube videos. The Dealer: I purchased this watch from Andrew at Trusty Time. He has been outstanding to work with and I plan on leaving a thorough review of my experience with him on his section of this forum later today. Please check it out if you plan to purchase from him. Here is the link to the watch I purchased: http://www.yourtrustytime.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=37_49&products_id=8784 This is the detailed description of the watch copied from the website: PN177NRU1 - Pam 177 N TI/RU Black Asia 6497 21600bph H Factory Best!!! Pam 177 N Series Upgraded!!!... Platinum Plated Bridges/Dagger Swan Neck Regulator Movement!!!!..... Made with a Genuine as Sample... Original C1 + C3 Super Luminova on Dial ..The Best 1 : 1 Pam to Date .. Swiss Quality Colourless AR Coating ...No Mods Needed.. All Parts Directly interchangeable with the Genuine. Immediate Delivery!!!!! MOVEMENT: Asian 6497 Manual Handwind Movement, Platinum Plated Cortes de Geneve Decoration on Bridges, Correct Shape Dagger Swan Neck Regulator, 17J, 21600bph CASE DIAMETER: 44mm THICKNESS: 15mm DIAL COLOR: Black Dial, Black Subdials, Numeral/Stick Hour Markers, Original C1+C3 Super Luminova Applied on Markers and Needles CASE MATERIAL: Full Solid Titanium Case 1:1 (Same color tone as genuine) BRACELET: Rubber (Antidust Quality) strap with Pre V Titanium Buckle FRONT GLASS: Sapphire Crystal Colourless AR Coated as per the Genuine. Done by Vendor who does for Swiss Genuine Brands BACK GLASS: Sapphire Display Case Back, Individual N Series Serial NXXX/800 nos and Matching Individual BB nos , Every Serial Number is Individual Engraved with Individual Scan Film, Not by Running Computer Program CLASP TYPE: Titanium Tang Buckle OTHER REMARKS: Water Resistant, No Recess Central Pinion, Polished Head flushed Lug Screw, Flush Polished Head Lever Pin, Notch for Bezel Prying at 5:00 Ordering/Shipping: I ordered this watch (along with a Rolex DSSD reviewed elsewhere) on Jan 13th through Andrew’s website. I received a confirmation email immediately. I received QC photos on Jan 15th. The watch arrived on Jan 28th but it had spent a full 5 days in the possession of customs at JFK, so taking out that delay the order-to-receipt time was 10 days which I consider to be excellent processing time from China to the US. The watches came well packaged. Each had a rubber bezel/case guard, was wrapped in thin plastic sheet, then folded up in a lot of bubble wrap and placed inside a thick Styrofoam box. The Styrofoam box was shipped in a standard cardboard box. You could drop this package off a 10 story building and the watches would be fine. The watches came well packaged. Each had a rubber bezel/case guard, was wrapped in thin plastic sheet, then folded up in a lot of bubble wrap and placed inside a thick Styrofoam box. The Styrofoam box was shipped in a standard cardboard box. You could drop this package off a 10 story building and the watches would be fine. First Impression: Talking the watch out, I carefully cut away the plastic film and removed the rubber bezel guard. I was amazed at how nice this watch looked in my hand. The quality of the appearance, and the fit-and-finish of this watch was way better than website photos or QC pictures could represent. This is a gorgeous watch, especially the movement, and I am extremely pleased with this purchase as my first PAM. Here are some photos: Further Investigation: The Crown - The first rep I purchased had a serious issue with the crown and the stem not engaging the movement correctly, so I had to send it back. So the first thing I did was to pull the crown out and test it. Unlocking the crown with the lever proved to be a good first impression of the quality of this watch. The lever was tight, but not overly tight. I pulled it out and wound the watch. The winding of the movement had a nice resistance to it with an almost inaudible vibrating sound as the watch is wound. It has the feel of quality. I then pulled the crown out to the first click which had a solid tactile snap to it. The hands turned smoothly without any play when adjusting the time. The Case – I absolutely love titanium. I couldn’t have enough titanium parts on my mountain bike when I raced them in my 20’s. They were strong and light, but I also loved the color and texture of the metal itself. This case is made of titanium and has a high-quality look to it. The one thing I will admit is that fingerprints and smudges are harder to wipe off than on stainless steel. The case is nicely machined. All the lines are precise and sharp. The crown guard looks solidly constructed as well. The screws that hold the crown guard to the case look to be high quality stainless steel (maybe I’m wrong about the SS part, they could be polished titanium). There are screwed in bolts that hold the straps in place vice the normal spring bars. I also like this feature a lot. The Crystal – The crystal looks very nice and has a nicely colored AR coating. There are some Panerai’s that have a big rounded looking domed crystal. Some people may like that look, but I purposely avoided it on this purchase. I don’t like how much they distort the face (particularly the numbers) when viewed from off-angles. I can see how this may be something that some people find interesting, and maybe someday I will too, but this watch has a relatively flat crystal. The crystal seats uniformly around the entire front of the case’s bezel. The Face – The face of this watch is very nice looking. As with most Panerai’s, it is very simple. I cannot speak to the accuracy of the fonts, but the quality is excellent. Everything is crisp and clear. It has numbers at the 12, 3 and 6 o’clock positions and a small sweeping seconds hand at the 9 o’clock position. Every other hour has a simple hash mark at the hour marker. One of the specs for my search in this Panerai purchase was the sandwich dial. For the newbies out there like me, this just means that instead of having one face with the numbers lumed onto it, this watch has two separate faces sandwiched together with the numbers cut out and the lume in between. The lume on this watch is outstanding. It glows extremely bright (much brighter than it looks in my photo) and lasts for a couple of hours. Here's my attempt at a lume shot (I need to get better at these): The Strap – The watch I bought has the rubber strap with “Officine” on the bottom part and “Panerai” on the top part. The strap seems very tough, but also flexible. I have a rep Bell & Ross that has a rubber strap that is very stiff and wants to push the watch away from the wrist. This strap fits nicely and comfortably right out of the box. The buckle is also machined from titanium. It is nice looking but the edges are a little too sharp. Normally sharp edges would be a plus, but these seem just a tad too sharp and catch on the strap a little more than it should. It has a nicely engraved “Panerai” on the top. I’ve seen a photo of a titanium Panerai on the forum that had a nice black suede strap with black stitching. I plan on buying one to alternate with the rubber strap on this watch because it looked so nice. If anyone knows where I can find a good deal on one please let me know! The Movement – This is where this watch really shines in my opinion. I love looking at a nice movement through a crystal exhibition case back. I started off looking for an automatic Panerai, but once I saw the look of this manual wind 6497, I changed my mind. The photos on the website and the QC pics do not do this movement justice at all. I was concerned that the movement would look cheap in person, but it does not. It looks very nice and I couldn’t be happier. My only complaint is that under extremely close scrutiny, you can just make out some fingerprints on the bridge. I plan to remove the back and clean these off very carefully with a q-tip and tiny amount of alcohol. I don’t plan on touching any other surface, but if this is not recommended, someone please let me know how I should go about this. You can see for yourself the beauty of this watch's movement in the photos. Trust me when I say that it looks better than even these photos make it look. There was an option for an 18,800BPH version of the movement that was $70USD cheaper, but I was told the 21,600BPH movement that I chose was more reliable in the long run. I doubt you could tell much of a difference in the beat rate between the two, being that the seconds hand is so small, but I didn’t want to skimp and purchase what might be a lesser movement. I chose the 21,600 movement, but in all likelyhood, the 18,800BPH movement would have been just fine. I will say it swings around so smoothly that you cannot see any beating of the seconds hand. The watch back has the words “OFFICINE PANERAI – BB1446039 – OP 6725 – TITANIUM – (OP LOGO) – (PAM FISH) 300m - N106/800” nicely engraved on the edge. The engravings are relatively deep and very sharp. The back crystal looks nice as well. The Fit – I have exactly a 7” wrist. I’m not sure how that fits in to the world-wide average, but I feel my wrist is average to slightly below average. The watch looks very well proportioned on the wrist to me. Unlike some of the larger Panerai’s, this 44mm looks just about right. Some of you with smaller wrists may shy away from the bigger watches, but I think this one is a nice compromise. It’s a large watch with a lot of presence, but it does not look awkward or out of place on my 7” wrist. Conclusion: I spent $288USD on this watch. I’ve found the gen selling for around $6700 online. Panerai is not as well known a brand to the general public as other watches, so I doubt most people will even know what it is much less whether it is rep or gen. But something I do believe is that anyone looking at it will recognize it as a beautiful watch. I would not hesitate to take it off and show someone the movement either. Overall the fit-and-finish of this watch are outstanding and well above my expectations. I am very happy with this purchase, and very happy with my experience so far with Andrew at Trusty Time (www.yourtrustytime.com). Again, if there’s anything in my review that wasn’t clear or if you have any additional questions I can answer, don’t hesitate to ask… I hope you’ve enjoyed this review and have found it helpful!

Hey guys, I'm actually in the market for a Planet Ocean, but I'm waiting until the ceramic bezel version comes out. Since that could be some time, I'm looking to buy an SMP 300M to hold me over. I've found two that I am interested in, but I'm having a hard time deciding. I was hoping that some of you may have some insight or advice on these two. Both are from Joshua: Omega Seamaster Professional 300M Chrono OMSE 00111 (http://www.1-pc8838.com/000omse00111-300m-2008-chrono-blue-a7750-updated-p-9106.html) A7750 with Updated Dial Omega Seamaster Professional 300M OMSE 10002 (http://www.1-pc8838.com/omse10002-seamaster-300m-professional-blue-swiss-28242-upda-p-6805.html) Swiss ETA 2824-2 also with updated dial As far as I can tell, the chrono is beautiful with the single exception of the pearl. It seems terribly off center. The non-chrono version seems nice, but it has the happy feet, which I believe is incorrect on the raised logo like this one has. It's not pictured, but I'm also not as happy with the case back on this compared to the chrono version. However, I can get the Asian clone ETA for $70 less on this one. I've read some reviews here and they are helpful, but I'm still unsure. If any of you own one of these or know something about them, please let me know. I'd also just like to hear your personal opinions too. Thanks!

Hi guys! Today I’ll be reviewing the Omega Planet Ocean 42mm Ultimate with the Orange Bezel. I want to let everyone know that if you haven't read it yet, another RWG member, Wetwork, wrote an extremely thorough and informative review on the Planet Ocean. It goes much farther in depth than this review so if you are in the market for one of these watches, do yourself a favor and go read his review as well. Background: Omega is my favorite watch brand. Maybe James Bond had a little to do with it, but I also love the design of a lot of their models. I discovered how much I like the Planet Ocean (PO) during a visit to an Omega Authorized Dealer (AD). I was actually there looking at a Seamaster Professional, and the bright orange bezel of the PO caught my eye. I tried it on and that was it - I was in love. The Dealer: I have purchased 3 watches from Andrew at Trusty Time. He is an outstanding dealer with exceptional customer service. This is actually the second PO I received from Andrew. The first one had an issue with the stem where it wasn't engaging the movement correctly. I emailed him the day I received it and informed him about the problem. He immediately asked me to send it back and told me he would replace it with a new one. This is the new replacement His communication is top-notch. He replies to emails within hours, and most of the time within minutes. He is courteous and helpful, and I highly recommend buying from him. I will be writing another review for him in his section of this forum later today. Please check it out if you plan to purchase from him. Here is the link to the watch I purchased: http://www.yourtrust...roducts_id=7064 This is the detailed description of the watch copied from the website: OMG0155 - Planet Ocean 42 Org Bez SS/SS Blk Swiss2824 Ult Made with a Genuine Watch Completely Dissected.... 1 Full Year in the making......Finally ..The Ulitimate Best 42mm 1 : 1 Planet Ocean... Correct Omega Logo.. No Happy Feet, Purple Tone AR Coating ..Same Tone as Genuine . MOVEMENT: Nickle Plated Swiss Eta 2824-2 Automatic movement, 28800bph, 25J, Insginia Rotor Option Avail : Asian 2824-2 25J, 28800bph (Gold Movt Only).. Less USD 50 CASE DIAMETER: 42mm - With Correct 20mm Lug Width THICKNESS: 14.5mm DIAL COLOR: Black Dial with Great Lumed Stick Markers, White 6/9/12 Numeral Markers, Correct Omega Logo - No Happy Feet CASE MATERIAL: Solid Stainless Steel 316L, Correct HE postion BRACELET: Brushed SS Bracelet With Diver's extension, Correct Planet Ocean Engraving on Clasp FRONT GLASS: Sapphire crystal Correct Purple Tone AR coating as Per Genuine BACK GLASS: Solid Case Caseback With Insignia Logo and Anticounterfeit Print, Serial Numbers (818668988) BEZEL: Orange Uni directional Rotating Diver Bezel HACK MOVEMENT: Yes CLASP TYPE: Double Deployant Folding Clasp/Buckle DATE INDICATOR: At 3:00 position OTHER REMARKS: Water Resistant Correct HE Valve Placement Serial Numbers (8188668988) engraved Back of Lugs near 7.00 position Ordering/Shipping: My original broken watch was delivered back to Andrew on Feb 2nd. I received a confirmation email the same day it was received, along with a photo of the watch. I received QC photos for the replacement watch on Feb 4th. The watch was shipped on Feb 6th and arrived here on Feb 10th. Overall, it was very fast processing time from China to the US. As usual, the watch came extremely well packaged. It was wrapped in a thin plastic sheet, then folded up in a lot of bubble wrap and placed inside a thick Styrofoam box. The Styrofoam box was shipped in a standard cardboard box. You could throw this package against a brick wall and the watch would be fine. First Impression: As soon as I saw the watch in my hand I couldn't help but smile. In my opinion, the PO is one of the most beautiful watches around and this rep really is beautiful. The look and feel of this watch is outstanding. I would have thought this was a gen watch if I didn't know any better. I literally can't stop staring at it. The fit-and-finish of this watch is way better than website photos or QC pictures could represent. Really, these photos here don't quite do it justice. The watch has a good weight and a very solid feel to it. The case has a mix of brushed and polished surfaces which looks really nice. I know it's a matter of personal preference, but I like the orange bezel a lot. It really pops against the purple/blue tint if the AR. Here are some photos: Further Investigation: The Crown - Like I said earlier, the first one of these I purchased had a serious issue with the crown and the stem not engaging the movement correctly. This one works perfectly. Also, the first one had a grinding feel when I unscrewed the crown, but this one screws in and out silky smooth. Manually winding the watch (in the first position) is smooth with a nice resistance to it. Setting the date (with the second position) was also very nice. The hands also operate very smoothly and without any slop when adjusting the time (at the third position). There is a Helium escape valve on the opposite side of the case. I tried to turn it, but it seems fixed in it's position. I think it may be sealed to keep the water resistance of the watch. The Face - I'll let the pictures speak for themselves, but it's very nice. The background is a matte black and all the numbers and hour markers look nice and sharp against it. I've read that some people have issues with the Omega logo being too close to the word "Omega". It looks perfectly positioned on the one I got. The numbers in the date window center up very nicely. The watch has a sapphire crystal and a really nice looking AR coating. It has a nice purple/blue color that I've tried to capture in the picture below. The Lume - The lume on this watch sucks. The good thing is that lume is not that important to me. I know that most people feel differently so if you're one of them, the first mod you should make is probably be the lume. I held the watch up to a bright light for a full minute, but couldn't get a good picture in a dimly lit room. I had to turn the lights completely off in order to see it, so my picture isn't very good. The lume is the standard pale green color. It is fairly bright right off a bright light, but dims very quickly and will be non-visible in about 5-10 minutes. The Bezel - I already said it, but I'll say it again, I love the orange color of the bezel. In these up-close photos, you can see what looks like some streaky texture on the insert, but in person it is not visible. The bezel is uni-directional and has a nice stiffness to it. It's stiffer to turn than my DSSD, but it's not too stiff. It takes 120 clicks to get around the face. One small complaint I have is that the triangle on top doesn't line up precisely with the center of the 12 o'clock marker. It's just a hair off on either side. It is barely noticeable, but if you look hard you can see it. Something else I noticed when I was examining the photos is that the "2" and the "0" of the 20 are not aligned with each other. They seem to be tilted in toward each other slightly. All the rest of the numbers line up with each other. I don't know if this is common with this version or if it's just my specific watch. You can see it in a few photos above. Another big gripe with this rep is the pearl not being centered in the black triangle. As far as I can tell, this one looks pretty close to perfect. The Bracelet - I love the Omega bracelets; this one especially. The top is brushed and the sides are polished. The links have a nice rounded form to them and it fits comfortably on my wrist. There's only one link that binds a little and that's the half link. I will probably take it off and clean and lube the pins to see it that helps. If not, I'll probably replace it with a full link. The clasp is a nice deployment clasp with opposing buttons on the side to unlock it. The engraving on the back of the clasp looks really nice. It's a little hard to get it to click shut without pushing the release buttons, so that's what I do. Once it's on it holds securely. The clasp also has a smaller deployment clasp on the other side to fit over a wet suit. The engraving on the inside of the clasp also looks nice. The Case Back - This was one part of the watch I was pleasantly surprised with. The photos I've seen of the back make it look cheap. It isn't. The pattern around the Sea Monster is really nicely machined. The Sea Monster itself looks really nice. The "anti-counterfitting" logo is also nicely engraved. I think the "Planet Ocean" engraving could be a little deeper, but it's sharp and looks nice regardless. The standard serial number is nicely etched in the 7 o'clock lug. The Movement - I ordered this watch with the Swiss ETA 2824-2 movement. Someone asked me if it was a genuine "Swiss" ETA. I have no idea how to tell. I took some photos of it so that some of the more experienced folks can chime in. The rotor is labeled "Omega 2500", but it is a thin metallic sticker with the wording and some design. On mine, the sticker was not centered very well on the rotor, and some of the glue that holds it on seeped out of the top. I'm planing on removing the sticker and cleaning the rotor off soon. The Fit - I have a 7' wrist. I took 3 full links off the bracelet and it fits pretty nicely. I opted for the 42mm version of this watch but I think I could have pulled off the 45mm version as well. The 45mm probably would have had more presence, and it definitely would have demanded more attention. However, now that I have it I am very happy with the size of this one. Conclusion: I spent $318USD on this watch. Considering the gen costs more than $4,000USD I’d say I got a huge bargain! In my opinion every watch enthusiast should have one of these. The watch is absolutely beautiful. As with all reps, it has it's flaws, but they are minor and do not detract from the beauty of this watch. I couldn't be happier with this purchase, and I'm extremely happy with my experience with Andrew at Trusty Time (www.yourtrustytime.com). In fact, I'm placing another order for the Tag Aquaracer 500M with him right now! If there’s anything in my review that wasn’t clear or if you have any additional questions I can answer, don’t hesitate to ask. I hope you've all found this review informative and helpful!

Anyone know where I can pick up a nice black suede strap with black stitching for my PAM 177 at a reasonable price? Thanks!