Lovecraft Posted February 14, 2012 Report Share Posted February 14, 2012 So I got my PO today, cleverly hidden inside a hideous alarm clock. It looks and feels quite nice. The pearl is off by a slight bit. The clasp opened by just pressing one of the side buttons and the bracelet made a pretty awful clinking noise. Also, the "half link" was very, very stiff and would barely move. Is that normal? I've taken care of the clasp and lubed the bracelet, but don't know what to do with the half link. The crown was fully screwed out when I got the watch. Don't know if it was sent that way of if unscrewed itself like I saw another member of the board had a problem with. It's very hard to screw in, and it makes the "winding sound" all the way in. Also, I don't think I was able to fully screw it in - looks like a 0.5mm gap between the case and crown. Is the stem too long? I've already ordered a new stem and crown. Do you think that will be enough? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cougar1 Posted February 14, 2012 Report Share Posted February 14, 2012 The bracelets can be a bit finicky, it may need oiling or even brushing down (or even slight filing at that link) to smooth it up, it is strange, but bracelets can be hit and miss on link finishing, it might be just some grit or just poor smoothing, try bend it fully over on this link and see how rough the finishing is? Is the clasp secure now? one side was perhaps just open? Is it needing both pushers to open it now or is it still opening with one? The crown issue, don't worry about the winding sound, check the crown is 'straight' on when screwed in? If it is slightly lopsided then it may be on its way to crossthreading already, but maybe this one isn't. Unscrew the crown again and next time before screwing down, screw the crown one turn or so anti-clockwise against the treads...(yes the opposite way it should be screwed in) ...until you hear/feel a slight 'click' (this will make sure the treads are lined up at this point) then screw down slowly clockwise and see if it's any better? I wouldn't worry too much about stiffness, it may just need a bit of silicon grease on the tube/crown threads to make the screw action a bit more fluid. Or it may be the spring action is stiff or stem is too long. How many turns is it screwing down when you do it? Is it like 1 or 2 or is it a more solid 3 or 4 turns? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovecraft Posted February 14, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 14, 2012 Fitted it's absolutely impossible to bend it over more than 1mm. I removed the pin though and put some lube in there, but it didn't help. I'm thinking it needs some filing down unless the gen part is cheap(-ish). I thought I had fixed the clasp, but it opens with just a push on one side again. I might have to open it and fix it, shouldn't really be a problem though. The crown is straight. I've only screwed on screw-on crowns the way you describe - because I'm paranoid about hurting the threads. Don't think it lacks grease - definitely feels like the stem is too long. Or possible too stiff spring action, no idea how it feels. It's 2-3 turns, but I have to press it pretty hard - much harder than I should have to. I ordered a new dial and stem/crown. The only question is if it will fix it. Would feel a bit dumb if I install a new crown only to have to send it back to China anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cougar1 Posted February 14, 2012 Report Share Posted February 14, 2012 Yeah, sounds like stiff spring, or long stem, the gen will most definitely sort it out, you were going down that route anyway, just a pity it happens out of the box, perhaps the stem needs to be cut a mm shorter, that can be tested on the rep stem/crown before installing gen. The bracelets can be a bit of a nightmare, the clasp issue could just be the pins not clipping in correctly, diver extension not closing correctly etc I'm not 100% familiar with the PO bracelet, as I always wear mine on leather or rubber, must get out mine this evening and have a look at it. It's probably an issue that can be sorted with a bit of fiddling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovecraft Posted February 14, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 14, 2012 Yeah, sounds like stiff spring, or long stem, the gen will most definitely sort it out, you were going down that route anyway, just a pity it happens out of the box, perhaps the stem needs to be cut a mm shorter, that can be tested on the rep stem/crown before installing gen. The bracelets can be a bit of a nightmare, the clasp issue could just be the pins not clipping in correctly, diver extension not closing correctly etc I'm not 100% familiar with the PO bracelet, as I always wear mine on leather or rubber, must get out mine this evening and have a look at it. It's probably an issue that can be sorted with a bit of fiddling. Yeah, probably. It looks a bit askew though - like the hole through the half link wasn't 100% straight. I'm going to look more into it though and see if it's the half link or the clasp attaching link that's the culprit. Either is about £30 gen, but if I can fix it myself I'll just do that. (Besides, I can't find the clasp attaching link on cousins). By the way, what was the problem with the end links? I can't really see anything off with them, maybe a slight gap to the next link? I remember seeing posts where people bought gens to replace them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WetWork Posted February 14, 2012 Report Share Posted February 14, 2012 Once you open up that clasp, you'll see the problem. It was the same one mine had I'm sure. The "hand bent" spring is the shoddiest part of the whole REP watch IMHO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cougar1 Posted February 15, 2012 Report Share Posted February 15, 2012 Yep probably the spring in the clasp not hooking and closing correctly, the end link issue was just abou fit and they looked abit shoddy compared to gen. Beware though of getting into gen bracelet parts, they add up fairly quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovecraft Posted February 15, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 15, 2012 Yep probably the spring in the clasp not hooking and closing correctly, the end link issue was just abou fit and they looked abit shoddy compared to gen. Beware though of getting into gen bracelet parts, they add up fairly quickly. Yeah, I know. If I get the half link, clasp and two end links - and possibly two clasp attaching links that's about 2/3 of what a whole new bracelet costs. That's unreasonably expensive... unless the new POs have the same bracelet and it could be considered a PO-franken-investment of sorts Wetwork, I haven't opened it properly yet but I will. I think the clasp looks fine though, so a pity they were lazy with the clasp spring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the_rymeister Posted February 15, 2012 Report Share Posted February 15, 2012 Is the spring for the clasp,sold separately ? Mine is the same only one button works properly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wet.Work Posted February 16, 2012 Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 Last two posts, I guaranty when you open it, you will find the spring bend itself is Ho Chi Minh garbage. Everything else is acceptable. I don't think they understand that the smallest little incorrect bend in one side at the bottom, causes the angle on that side to be completely different than the other side, which then has to do all the work. It's very annoying that after all the trouble to refine this rep, a part with a cost of maybe 5 cents bulk, IN AMERICA, MAX, brings it down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xmonger Posted February 16, 2012 Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 That sucks. Chinese QC...factories don't care, dealers care even less. I do not understand why they do not take 2 minutes to look the watch over before sending it out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cougar1 Posted February 16, 2012 Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 Any luck with a fix on this lovecraft? If all comes to all just ask andrew for another bracelet....he'll bend! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovecraft Posted February 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 To be fair I think they look them over both once and twice, but it would just take too long to locate and fix every little thing on all the different models they have. Honestly, most of us here are anal retentive bordering on the autistic - and we are cheap too, expecting perfection for a buck or two We are probably not easy customers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovecraft Posted February 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 Any luck with a fix on this lovecraft? If all comes to all just ask andrew for another bracelet....he'll bend! Yeah, I fixed the clasp - it seems perfectly fine now. The half link is still a problem though, but I decided I'll buy a gen one. It's $25 or something like that and I might as get it while ordering my hands (they are in stock now!) instead of bothering Andrew I'm sure he would have sent me a half link if I asked him though. Talking about the hands; I never quite understood how it interacts with the date flip and what I can do to get it correct. Do you know? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cougar1 Posted February 16, 2012 Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 Yep that is true, to be fair, the finishing and attention to detail on many rep bracelets is crap, they can get watch heads close, they can even get the bracelets to look close.....but the fit and feel of rep bracelets are not anywhere near gen, there are exceptions but it is rare. Even when somebody goes to the bother of oiling and smoothing edges and rebrushing and refinishing, there still always the issues with the sels, clasps etc....aftermarket straps are a godsend for rep buyers! Edit: sorry was slow posting...just reading your previous post now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cougar1 Posted February 16, 2012 Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 Right, that price isn't bad for the half link, it's getting into clasps is when is get expensive. Lets how it's fine once the link is in. Date flip, you mean set the hands manually past twelve and the date flips over? or not to set it between 10 and 2? .....I'm a bit slow tonight lovecraft, do you mean to just set the date? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovecraft Posted February 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 No worries, you are not posting slowly - I'm the one making multiple posts in one thread Yeah, I already decided not to get any end links or clasps or so on. If I do I'll rather get the whole bracelet (and I won't at £450). I have two nice leather straps, if not the right color right now. I'll get one soon - just have to decide if I want to go all black or black with white or orange stitches. I also talked with someone on here about getting me a rep rubber strap. We'll see what I end up using. I have to say my AT looks very different (in a good way) with the brown strap on. It's very nice indeed, should post some pics, but my camera sucks. Yeah, I read somewhere that people were struggling with having the date wheel turn at 12 o'clock - or during 11:45 to 12:15 or whatever. Maybe it isn't an issue at all and just something my brain made up from fragments of information here and there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cougar1 Posted February 16, 2012 Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 Yeah do get some pics up of the AT if you can....love AT's The PO bracelet is bloody expensive...even more than I expected...though it was cheaper, but maybe I'm thinking ebay prices. Either way if you go the strap direction....the PO is great on many straps, it's one watch that goes well with almost any strap....it's literally hard to ruin it. I personally like the contrast stitching with the po but it's subjective. I have white, so the white stitch goes great. Some aftermarket straps that go great on the PO are the hirsch heavy calf, dimodell polo anfibio, rios juchten leather....and almost any rubber strap. watchbandcentre.com in germany are superb for straps. I'm surprised on the date wheel issue, are you having problems with yours? Sometimes they change over at odd times just before or within half hour past twelve but that's normal. Sometimes they start engaging the flip over ten or 20 mins before, and the date can look a bit skewed at this point. By right it should be twelve dead on but even some gen omegas vary! My gen quartz smp clicks over dead on 12:35 AM.....silly watch! As long as yours is within half hour around 12 it's not too bad....if it bothers you the hands can be perfectly set by a watchmaker to hit twelve exactly. QC issues like this are common even at the factories in switzerland, so no worries!. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vandal.tbh Posted February 17, 2012 Report Share Posted February 17, 2012 My halflink does the exact same thing. I tried lubing it as well without any luck. I think I'm going to just replace it with one of the full links I removed. It could stand to be a hair looser anyway.. I think I mentioned it in my review. I also had a stem issue on the first one of these I received. But I think I had the opposite issue - my stem seemed too short. But Andrew was great about it and replaced mine with one that works great. Although with all the talk about the crown's I am very careful when screwing/unscrewing mine. I do notice it bind sometimes as I'm screwing it back in. I definitely see a crown/tube replacement in my future. I've heard it's cheap and easy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovecraft Posted February 17, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 17, 2012 Yeah, supposedly cheap and easy but I've read some threads where it didn't seem that easy at all. I guess we'll see once we get there Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovecraft Posted February 17, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 17, 2012 Yeah do get some pics up of the AT if you can....love AT's The PO bracelet is bloody expensive...even more than I expected...though it was cheaper, but maybe I'm thinking ebay prices. Either way if you go the strap direction....the PO is great on many straps, it's one watch that goes well with almost any strap....it's literally hard to ruin it. I personally like the contrast stitching with the po but it's subjective. I have white, so the white stitch goes great. Some aftermarket straps that go great on the PO are the hirsch heavy calf, dimodell polo anfibio, rios juchten leather....and almost any rubber strap. watchbandcentre.com in germany are superb for straps. I'm surprised on the date wheel issue, are you having problems with yours? Sometimes they change over at odd times just before or within half hour past twelve but that's normal. Sometimes they start engaging the flip over ten or 20 mins before, and the date can look a bit skewed at this point. By right it should be twelve dead on but even some gen omegas vary! My gen quartz smp clicks over dead on 12:35 AM.....silly watch! As long as yours is within half hour around 12 it's not too bad....if it bothers you the hands can be perfectly set by a watchmaker to hit twelve exactly. QC issues like this are common even at the factories in switzerland, so no worries!. Yeah, I like the contrast as well - but not sure I like the orange stitching (which would be the "correct" choice if I go with red numerals I guess). We'll see It shifts at exactly 12 o'clock, I'm just worried I might screw it up when shifting hands and wanted to know how it works so I can avoid it - or fix it if it happened. If it's really a non-issue then never mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the_rymeister Posted February 17, 2012 Report Share Posted February 17, 2012 Hi guys heres a link to my franken upo build, some info on fitting gen crown/tube keyless works faults and fitting gen dial and hands. Hope it helps If you need any info or help on the matter don't hessitate pm me.cheers Ryan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovecraft Posted February 17, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 17, 2012 Thanks, already read it through and through though and have it bookmarked It's a wonderful source of information, thank you a lot for putting it up! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the_rymeister Posted February 17, 2012 Report Share Posted February 17, 2012 Thanks, already read it through and through though and have it bookmarked It's a wonderful source of information, thank you a lot for putting it up! Not a problem buddy, the crow/tube and stem issues seem to be quite a common problem which is happening more and more frequently with the planet oceans. It's almost a standard procedure. Buy one send it back or brave it buy some tools and open your watch up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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