TC Submariner Review (V2 bracelet, gen insert)

[coolchu001]

I got this watch a few days ago. I know this watch caused quite a stir. In fact, BK has dubbed this case as the WM9 v4! I wasn't in the rep game when WM9 was in business, but from the looks of it, this particular case is very well made. I will do some side by side vs the TW. The TW sub needs a DWO and tube at the moment...

Here's the complete watch with gen insert installed on V2 bracelet.

Case:

The casing is nicely polished and cut. The edges of the casing isn't as sharp as the BK TW, but it feels more like my gen GMT's case edges.

The case engraving is correct for the model. The case back teeth also looks well defined. It comes with a protective sticker too just like a gen watch .

Although it has the rehaut engraving (which I really don't mine, barely visible at arms length), which some do not like, it can be easily removed. The serial is engraved at the 6'o clock position as well as between the case lugs. Members also pointed out that the serial numbers are changed from case to case. A member suggests that the last 3 digits are changed.

Here you can see the engraving between the case lug. It's not as deep or clean as a gen, but its much nicer than the engraving than the TW case. No misspelling here .

Bezel:

As pointed out previously, the teeth on the bezel is not as deep as it should for a V series. The TW bezel is slightly deeper, but again it's only noticeable side by side (we are talking about fractions of a mm depth).

The bezel takes gen inserts without mod. At first I found it was a bit difficult to snap in the gen insert, I resorted to using a nylon die from a watch case press. Once in, the insert stay secure without sliding.

The bezel lip is slightly above the insert.

The bezel assembly has gen construction just like the TW sub.

The bezel rotates quite nicely. It's firm but not too tight and has good consistency.

The stock insert is a bit taller than the gen insert. With the stock insert, the crystal appears to be shorter. They both snap in securely. The stock insert is not too bad in terms of printing and font, but the pearl on it is quite awful. A pearl mod or gen insert is a must.

Crown Guard:

I think this has one of the best <acronym title="Crown Guard">CG</acronym> out there. The shape looks very close to a gen V series. The length is correct (covers 1/2 the height of the crown). The cut is very clean and polish does not dull the edges.

Here you can see the cut is more shallow (the crown is further away from the bezel), which is one of the suggestions BK gave to George on future improvements.

Crown:

(pictured, TW, gen, TC)

The crown on the TC sub is excellent, I would even say you can skip a gen crown. It crown logo looks good and the shape of the top is flat just like the gen. The TW crown has a bit of curve to it.

Here you can see the crown also sits a tab bit higher than the TW. Only a few people would know this! But then again, this may be important to some.

Movement:

This particular watch has the swiss ETA 2824 movement. The winding is smooth, I haven't gotten a chance to test its power reserve since I've been wearing it since I received the watch. You can see this is a genuine ETA, the finish and engraving is very clean.

The movement is also mounted in a way that's different than most reps. There is a retaining ring that goes around the movement and the two screws on the ring hold the movement to the case; by turning it counter-clockwise, it backs out the screw while pushing the movement and dial tightly to the case.

Dial:

I wasn't planning to show a picture of the dial by itself, but the damn keyless got messed up after removing the crown so I had to take off hands and dial to get it fixed. Most say the dial is a copy of or actual WM9 dial. The dial does not have thicker surrounds at 12 6 and 9 unlike the TW dial.

(Gen GMT IIc, BK TW (PBdad), TC)

It is super-lumed and glows as bright as the TW dial (relumed by PBdad) as well as my gen GMT IIc. The hands are also superlumed, but unfortunately my second's hand isn't as bright as the others (TC is sending me a replacement second's hand).

Crystal:

The crystal is 1.8mm in thickness. The cyclops has the correct mag but the cyclops seems to darken the date. On the TW sub with the gen crystal, the date appears brighter. The crystal does not have etching at 6'o clock.

DW font and print looks very much like BK's DWO. I do notice it has a bit more gloss to it.

Bracelet/clasp:

The watch came with V2 SEL bracelet (which so also said its made by WM9 (or copy of) as well). The clasp is very nice, joints are smooth and clasp closes nicely. The crown logo is accurate and clean. The brushing on the entire bracelet is also quite nice. The shine is deeper than the noob bracelet, its closer to the brushed part of my gen GMT IIc's bracelet.

It has the EXACT same engravings as the WM9 clasp in my franken BK TW review.

The SEL is one piece. It's a step up from the noob bracelet that was on my franken TW. This bracelet fits the TW sub nicely (TC's v1 version was too narrow).

The SEL is also stamped. Pretty clean here, a lot nicer than burnt laser etching.

The SEL fitment itself is quite good, although not perfect. The SEL can be a tad wider (if you hold up the watch you can see a bit of the lug springs). The spacing isn't really an issue when worn. This is definitely an improvement to the SEL that was fitted on my TW sub in my previous review.

Conclusion:

IMHO the TC sub has a lot of potential since it can take mostly all gen parts without mods. The stock pearl on it is quite bad, so a gen insert or pearl mod is a must. The stock insert is also a bit taller than a gen insert making the crystal look shorter. The printing and font of the stock insert looks quite nice, its just missing a proper pearl. I can't be too picky, but the SEL can be improved, but until then I would say it's very acceptable. So far the movement is working quite well, and date changes occur within -/+ 5 mins at 24hr time. So in short, this would be a perfect rep if a gen insert, crystal and better SEL is installed.

I do like to comment on the service offered by TC. TC definitely needs to improve on communications with members/customers. Perhaps its due to the overwhelming response from the rep community but he has not been to responsive to questions for members including myself. I'm sure this would improve once TC irons out his supply and building process. The watch arrived a little over 2 weeks from the time I made the payment.

Edited February 19, 2012 by coolchu001

[the_rymeister]

Nice review and pictures buddy, looks great, this is deffinatly a positive step forward.

We have to give tc some slack as at the moment he isn't a dealer he's just a member helping us with a great sub he has found.

Great work Coolchu mine should arrive next week looking forward to it more now I've seen your review

[redwatch]

Wow!!! Excellent and very concise review! Thanks for taking the time to take so many pics!!!

[highoeyazmuhudee]

very nice!

[Guest zeleni kukuruz]

Thanks mr cool.

I think we all could say now that we have a realy nice sub in the game once again

For me, this one lookd much better then the TW sub, and for the rehult ingravings im not doing anything about them.

I have TC email and i emailed him tons of questions and he always emailed me back with answers and confirms, but i know that many many members out there that just pm him on the forums had very diffecult getting in contact with him, but im 110% that he will get back to each and everyone of them soon! He is in Taiwan right now i talked to him last night just give him a few days more

[FxrAndy]

Very nice review and good descriptive photos, i am not a modern rolly man but i could wear one of these!

[Tribal]

Looks really good to me.

How about installing the gen Insert?

Was it a straight fit?

It looks like it must grind on the upper side to sit recessed on the bezel.

By the way the bezel looks like the TW and WM9.

[Star69]

its sure the same fabric that did the WM9s or TWs - i don't understand why no other dealer offers them ?

i find TCs prices too high vs the absence of communication - at least the prices i got (600 for the parts) - sadly Prec Time is not around any more - he sold the watches as PT Supreme for around 350 Euro?

cheers,

Frank

[correctime]

Great looking Sub and a great/informative review. Thanks for sharing.

I'm glad to see someone that agrees with me regarding using the gen crystal.

To me, a rep/aftermarket crystal, even without the overly visable LEC and a seemingly exact cyclop mag just doesn't look and feel as right as the gen crystal does.

Wear it with pride brother.

Edited February 19, 2012 by correctime

[Guest zeleni kukuruz]

I dont know where you all get the prices from?

Mine complete v-series watch with the small eta was 438$ shipped with the bigger eta ad another 100$ so 538$ that is the prices i got from TC. And that was the price i payed!

[Star69]

I dont know where you all get the prices from?

Mine complete v-series watch with the small eta was 438$ shipped with the bigger eta ad another 100$ so 538$ that is the prices i got from TC. And that was the price i payed!

here is the list he sent me = $634

A. TC Submariner Watchcase with V-Series laser engraving. Price is US$200, valid until Jan 31, 2012. It comes with 1. the watchcase, 2. the caseback, 3, the bezel assembly, 4. rubber gasket (or so called o-ring) for sealing the caseback, 5. rubber gasket for sealing the bezel assembly, 6. TC's crown & tube, with tube already sealed with watchcase. Note the bezel assembly consists of 4 parts, the retaining ring, the bezel ring, an thin circular steel plate that works as cussioning between the retaining ring and the bezel ring, and the spring that makes the bezel assembly "clicks". The bezel assembly does not include bezel insert! Note the TC Sub watchcase is not perfect because the bezel ring teeth is not as deep as the late model v-series gen Sub. It is more like a 2002 k-series model.

B. Genuine Swiss ETA 2824-2. Price is US180, valid until Jan 31, 2012. It comes with Canon #4 Pinion, which makes the hands height same to Rolex 3135 hands height. It eliminates the ugly factor most replica Rolex looked "fake".

C. TC's 2824 Movement Holder. Price is US$20. It fits ETA 2824, Sellita SW200 or the Chinese clone 2824 properly into TC's watchcase, the included 2 generic Rolex style movement holding screws mount the movement securely in the watchcase.

D. TC's Rolex Font Date Wheel Overlay. Price is US$15. It sits on ETA 2824's own date disc perfectly. The Rolex font dates is sophiscatedly printed it actually rises a little bit with high gloss just like gen. A circle of absolute position indicator is also printed so a watchmaker could attach the date wheel overlay on to movement's date disc very easily.

E. TC's 2.0 mm Crystal. Price is US$35. It comes with a 2.8 mm Taflon gasket. The cyclops reads the date "almost" to 2.5x.

F. TC's Submariner Dial & Hands. Price is $100. It comes Super Lumed. I will offer this set at $50 for members who also buy A, B, C, D and E.

G. TC 93250 Bracelet, one piece end link. $30, valid until Jan 31, 2012. I will update this new version of this bracelet after CNY 2012.

H. TC's Submariner Bezel Insert. Price is US$15. Note TC's Sub bezel insert is not perfect because the pearl does not have clear coating like gen. But the pearl does lume as bright as the dial indices and hands. Nonetheless gen bezel insert is recommended.

Domestic members, shipping within CONUS is $5, USPS flat rate priority mail. Plus 2.9% PayPal fee. I will waive the 2.9% PayPal fee if you send it as personal means instead of purchase.

EU or International members please note, I will not be responsible for all custom fee, taxes associated with importation, or VAT. I will not be responsible for lost or stolen packages or packages delayed by the postal service or confiscated by destination's country custom. All International packages are shipped from China via EMS with a tracking number. The EMS flat rate fee is $15. Plus 4% PayPal international transaction fee.

[Guest zeleni kukuruz]

Same list that i got three weeks ago.

I payed for a fully asambled v-case sub + small eta with the v2 bracelet price was 438$ shipped to EU. It was shipped from UK on friday, so it should be here tomorrow latest thusday.

Btw, i sent him 470$ thought he diserved some candy cash

[Star69]

Same list that i got three weeks ago.

I payed for a fully asambled v-case sub + small eta with the v2 bracelet price was 438$ shipped to EU. It was shipped from UK on friday, so it should be here tomorrow latest thusday.

Btw, i sent him 470$ thought he diserved some candy cash

so he offers even shipping over UK ?

... but i gave up on him never got any response to my PM anyway i just ordered the 40mm Explorer after found out that it will take gen parts too - will cure the sickness for a while

[Guest zeleni kukuruz]

I think he will ship out of UK starting in april. Shipping from UK will be standard. Now he shipps from, USA, UK and China. Yeha his pm responses isent the best, he could need some work on that

[ArkoN]

how to get a gen insert? watch out TZ and TRF sale forums or is there another good way?

[watcher]

I bought just a case set and a DWoverlay from TC but one thing I noticed which may explain the dark date is that the overlay is not white in low light. In bright daylight it is fine but in lower light and at night it appears grey. The printing is excellent but sadly not the background.

I have a 3135 DW and will show the very clear difference in shade later when I get chance to photo side by side.

[woof*]

how to get a gen insert? watch out TZ and TRF sale forums or is there another good way?

Watch ebay daily, I bought a like new 16610 gen insert for 55$ shipped a couple months ago.

[clkcadet]

here is the list he sent me = $634 A. TC Submariner Watchcase with V-Series laser engraving. Price is US$200, valid until Jan 31, 2012. It comes with 1. the watchcase, 2. the caseback, 3, the bezel assembly, 4. rubber gasket (or so called o-ring) for sealing the caseback, 5. rubber gasket for sealing the bezel assembly, 6. TC's crown & tube, with tube already sealed with watchcase. Note the bezel assembly consists of 4 parts, the retaining ring, the bezel ring, an thin circular steel plate that works as cussioning between the retaining ring and the bezel ring, and the spring that makes the bezel assembly "clicks". The bezel assembly does not include bezel insert! Note the TC Sub watchcase is not perfect because the bezel ring teeth is not as deep as the late model v-series gen Sub. It is more like a 2002 k-series model. B. Genuine Swiss ETA 2824-2. Price is US180, valid until Jan 31, 2012. It comes with Canon #4 Pinion, which makes the hands height same to Rolex 3135 hands height. It eliminates the ugly factor most replica Rolex looked "fake". C. TC's 2824 Movement Holder. Price is US$20. It fits ETA 2824, Sellita SW200 or the Chinese clone 2824 properly into TC's watchcase, the included 2 generic Rolex style movement holding screws mount the movement securely in the watchcase. D. TC's Rolex Font Date Wheel Overlay. Price is US$15. It sits on ETA 2824's own date disc perfectly. The Rolex font dates is sophiscatedly printed it actually rises a little bit with high gloss just like gen. A circle of absolute position indicator is also printed so a watchmaker could attach the date wheel overlay on to movement's date disc very easily. E. TC's 2.0 mm Crystal. Price is US$35. It comes with a 2.8 mm Taflon gasket. The cyclops reads the date "almost" to 2.5x. F. TC's Submariner Dial & Hands. Price is $100. It comes Super Lumed. I will offer this set at $50 for members who also buy A, B, C, D and E. G. TC 93250 Bracelet, one piece end link. $30, valid until Jan 31, 2012. I will update this new version of this bracelet after CNY 2012. H. TC's Submariner Bezel Insert. Price is US$15. Note TC's Sub bezel insert is not perfect because the pearl does not have clear coating like gen. But the pearl does lume as bright as the dial indices and hands. Nonetheless gen bezel insert is recommended. Domestic members, shipping within CONUS is $5, USPS flat rate priority mail. Plus 2.9% PayPal fee. I will waive the 2.9% PayPal fee if you send it as personal means instead of purchase. EU or International members please note, I will not be responsible for all custom fee, taxes associated with importation, or VAT. I will not be responsible for lost or stolen packages or packages delayed by the postal service or confiscated by destination's country custom. All International packages are shipped from China via EMS with a tracking number. The EMS flat rate fee is $15. Plus 4% PayPal international transaction fee.

Was offered $505 big movement, $405 small movement. I think the 2824 is a better choice in this type of an investment

[6now]

Watch ebay daily, I bought a like new 16610 gen insert for 55$ shipped a couple months ago.

You're now a friend of mine for this Ebay reminder. Thanks!

[cib0rgman]

here is the list he sent me = $634 A. TC Submariner Watchcase with V-Series laser engraving. Price is US$200, valid until Jan 31, 2012. It comes with 1. the watchcase, 2. the caseback, 3, the bezel assembly, 4. rubber gasket (or so called o-ring) for sealing the caseback, 5. rubber gasket for sealing the bezel assembly, 6. TC's crown & tube, with tube already sealed with watchcase. Note the bezel assembly consists of 4 parts, the retaining ring, the bezel ring, an thin circular steel plate that works as cussioning between the retaining ring and the bezel ring, and the spring that makes the bezel assembly "clicks". The bezel assembly does not include bezel insert! Note the TC Sub watchcase is not perfect because the bezel ring teeth is not as deep as the late model v-series gen Sub. It is more like a 2002 k-series model. B. Genuine Swiss ETA 2824-2. Price is US180, valid until Jan 31, 2012. It comes with Canon #4 Pinion, which makes the hands height same to Rolex 3135 hands height. It eliminates the ugly factor most replica Rolex looked "fake". C. TC's 2824 Movement Holder. Price is US$20. It fits ETA 2824, Sellita SW200 or the Chinese clone 2824 properly into TC's watchcase, the included 2 generic Rolex style movement holding screws mount the movement securely in the watchcase. D. TC's Rolex Font Date Wheel Overlay. Price is US$15. It sits on ETA 2824's own date disc perfectly. The Rolex font dates is sophiscatedly printed it actually rises a little bit with high gloss just like gen. A circle of absolute position indicator is also printed so a watchmaker could attach the date wheel overlay on to movement's date disc very easily. E. TC's 2.0 mm Crystal. Price is US$35. It comes with a 2.8 mm Taflon gasket. The cyclops reads the date "almost" to 2.5x. F. TC's Submariner Dial & Hands. Price is $100. It comes Super Lumed. I will offer this set at $50 for members who also buy A, B, C, D and E. G. TC 93250 Bracelet, one piece end link. $30, valid until Jan 31, 2012. I will update this new version of this bracelet after CNY 2012. H. TC's Submariner Bezel Insert. Price is US$15. Note TC's Sub bezel insert is not perfect because the pearl does not have clear coating like gen. But the pearl does lume as bright as the dial indices and hands. Nonetheless gen bezel insert is recommended. Domestic members, shipping within CONUS is $5, USPS flat rate priority mail. Plus 2.9% PayPal fee. I will waive the 2.9% PayPal fee if you send it as personal means instead of purchase. EU or International members please note, I will not be responsible for all custom fee, taxes associated with importation, or VAT. I will not be responsible for lost or stolen packages or packages delayed by the postal service or confiscated by destination's country custom. All International packages are shipped from China via EMS with a tracking number. The EMS flat rate fee is $15. Plus 4% PayPal international transaction fee.

I believe that price was valid until the end of January after that I have no idea of the price.

[cib0rgman]

Same list that i got three weeks ago.

I payed for a fully asambled v-case sub + small eta with the v2 bracelet price was 438$ shipped to EU. It was shipped from UK on friday, so it should be here tomorrow latest thusday.

Btw, i sent him 470$ thought he diserved some candy cash

According to the List a Whole watch is $545.... plus shipping and paypal fees

[Guest zeleni kukuruz]

According to the List a Whole watch is $545.... plus shipping and paypal fees

I just checked my paypal again!

And like i said 470$ i sent Tc, but he changed my order from m-series to a v-series. Was there a price differance bettwen these two cases three weeks ago?

Maybe i got lucky

[clkcadet]

I just checked my paypal again!

And like i said 470$ i sent Tc, but he changed my order from m-series to a v-series. Was there a price differance bettwen these two cases three weeks ago?

Maybe i got lucky

I think the difference was the small movement?? Not sure

[Jkay]

Excessive email and PMs will demoralize and kill a small shop, but fanboys will never learn.

[giobo]

Of course the 2678 is cheaper guys c mon...

TC now only has the 2824 with the Vseries..To get the 2678 you must get the M series,which is as good as the TW