momo650 Posted February 26, 2011 Report Share Posted February 26, 2011 hi everyone. I'm new here and this is my first post. I wanted to get your advice on whether it’s worth the trouble or not to send my Pam 288 watch back for repairs based on the following. I ordered a Pam 288 and received it promptly last week. The watch is as expected and advertised. Everything is working correctly and I'm very impressed with the quality with the exception of these two issues. 1) The crown is extremely difficult to screw back on....to the point where the tips of my fingers hurt. If I don't add significant force then there is now way I can get the crown to screw on. I also don't want to end up stripping the threads 2) I have other automatic watches and when I shake to wind I don’t really hear anything but a slight noise of the watch winding. With the PAM 288, I think I hear something either loose or it's simply noisy when you wind it. Can other PAM 288 owners confirm they also hear something rattling or does my watch indeed have something loose? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hiker01 Posted February 26, 2011 Report Share Posted February 26, 2011 First off, WELCOM to RWG! Something is diffenitely wrong either with the crown itself or the tube.......I will send it back IMHO. It should screw-in smoothly, the way you describe it, it won't last long! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickey Padge Posted February 26, 2011 Report Share Posted February 26, 2011 First off, WELCOM to RWG! Something is diffenitely wrong either with the crown itself or the tube.......I will send it back IMHO. It should screw-in smoothly, the way you describe it, it won't last long! Yep, if it's like that now, it certainly won't get any better! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momo650 Posted February 26, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 26, 2011 Yep, if it's like that now, it certainly won't get any better! So I shouldn't worry about sending it back, this is common practice in the rep world? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hiker01 Posted February 26, 2011 Report Share Posted February 26, 2011 Not really! If it was QC'ed properly, that should have been caught easily! Sounds like it was drop shipped! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momo650 Posted February 28, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2011 Not really! If it was QC'ed properly, that should have been caught easily! Sounds like it was drop shipped! What does "drop shipped" refer too? I've seen it several times on these boards but don't know what it really means. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteM Posted February 28, 2011 Report Share Posted February 28, 2011 What does "drop shipped" refer too? I've seen it several times on these boards but don't know what it really means. For info like that there are some great stickies and guides for noobs that give explanations and guides to terms and other great info etc... I would really recommend you read these... But to answer your question Drop Shipping is a term used to describe an item which is not given any sort of inspection or QC of any kind...its usually sent direct without the dealer ever having seen it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hooky Posted February 28, 2011 Report Share Posted February 28, 2011 @momo650, I would not directly send it back to the dealer, because it does involve a slight risk of chinese customs and shipping risk. When a screw down crown does not easily screw in, it could also mean that there is some dirt or small steel dirt inside the crown. Most often that can be easily solved by a local watch smith. So if I were you I would first try that before sending it all the way back. Small problems, arrange locally, big problems, send back to China... Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momo650 Posted February 28, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2011 @momo650, I would not directly send it back to the dealer, because it does involve a slight risk of chinese customs and shipping risk. When a screw down crown does not easily screw in, it could also mean that there is some dirt or small steel dirt inside the crown. Most often that can be easily solved by a local watch smith. So if I were you I would first try that before sending it all the way back. Small problems, arrange locally, big problems, send back to China... Good luck! Thanks Hooky. I agree. I think what I will do is wait it out, perhaps find someone locally to take a look. At the end of the day if the only problem with the watch is the stiff crown than I should be grateful. Rather that than to be out of a watch thanks to Chinese customs or every worst, being scammed! The watch is absolutely great not to mention it extremely accurate. I wish I knew this forums existed years ago, everyone is so helpful. Thank you all for your advise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rangers158 Posted March 1, 2011 Report Share Posted March 1, 2011 The problem with the PAM288 crown is that it does not disengage from turning the stem when it is pressed in. In other reps, when you press in the crown to screw it in, the crown does not turn the stem. For PAM288 and even the AP ROO, the rep factory perhaps save cost and decided not to make the crown the way it should be. Hence, when you screw in, you are actually also turning the stem, winding the movement. If the movement is smooth, its not too much of a problem. However, for A7750, most of them are dirty and hard to wind in the first place. So you need to exert a lot more force to turn. This force and misalignment of the threads will cause the tube to strip easily. You cannot do anything about the crown, so best to get the movement serviced so that it will not take too much force to turn. Also use the technique to push the crown in and turn anticlockwise (unwinding the crown) until you hear or feel the threads click in. Then tighten the crown. This way, you can be sure the threads are aligned properly and will not strip it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momo650 Posted March 1, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 1, 2011 The problem with the PAM288 crown is that it does not disengage from turning the stem when it is pressed in. In other reps, when you press in the crown to screw it in, the crown does not turn the stem. For PAM288 and even the AP ROO, the rep factory perhaps save cost and decided not to make the crown the way it should be. Hence, when you screw in, you are actually also turning the stem, winding the movement. If the movement is smooth, its not too much of a problem. However, for A7750, most of them are dirty and hard to wind in the first place. So you need to exert a lot more force to turn. This force and misalignment of the threads will cause the tube to strip easily. You cannot do anything about the crown, so best to get the movement serviced so that it will not take too much force to turn. Also use the technique to push the crown in and turn anticlockwise (unwinding the crown) until you hear or feel the threads click in. Then tighten the crown. This way, you can be sure the threads are aligned properly and will not strip it. Thank you Ranger. Is ther anyone in particulare you'd recommend to service the movements? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rangers158 Posted March 2, 2011 Report Share Posted March 2, 2011 Got no experience with any watchsmith. Perhaps The Zigmeister or Domi. They are quite established and have great reviews. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteM Posted March 2, 2011 Report Share Posted March 2, 2011 Where are you based Mo? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momo650 Posted March 2, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 2, 2011 Where are you based Mo? I'm in Toronto, Canada. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteM Posted March 2, 2011 Report Share Posted March 2, 2011 I'm in Toronto, Canada. Contact Zigmeister mate...He is in Canada too So no customs issues and you have the master to do your work... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momo650 Posted March 3, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 3, 2011 Contact Zigmeister mate...He is in Canada too So no customs issues and you have the master to do your work... That's great...thanks PeteM. How do I get into contact with Zigmeister? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteM Posted March 4, 2011 Report Share Posted March 4, 2011 That's great...thanks PeteM. How do I get into contact with Zigmeister? He is member here first try a PM and explain what you would like his help with Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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