z80 Posted July 18, 2007 Report Share Posted July 18, 2007 I'm a big fan of the "TW Best" reps, and have been for a while. The China ones just don't seem to have a good of a feel to them. I sill have my TW Best Day Date and if you compare it to a CN one you can really see the difference. Is there still a source for the TW stuff? If anyone knows please clue me in, by PM if necessary if the source is semi-secret. I know Watchmaker9 ships from TW, but I hear he is inconsistent. I'm hoping that isn't my only choice. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
By-Tor Posted July 18, 2007 Report Share Posted July 18, 2007 They can be found. I just reviewed very, very nice TW model of the GMT Master. Check it out: http://www.rwg.cc/members/index.php?showtopic=35969 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jfreeman420 Posted July 18, 2007 Report Share Posted July 18, 2007 I do remember most of my reps being shipped from TW back in the day. I usually dealt with River or Sean. I emailed Sean not too long ago and he is still in business but no longer on the board. I agree that the TW reps do have a better feel. I still have an old day date and the bracelet is the best I have seen. The genuine sapphire crystal is thicker than any other and the dial and date mag are perfect. China is innovating all the new super reps. They have taken over the market leaving TW in the dust. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eunomians Posted July 18, 2007 Report Share Posted July 18, 2007 It's funny that you mention this topic. I've been wondering myself what has happened to the good ol' TW Best reps. There were indeed a lot shipping out of TW a few years back. Maybe the island had a serious crack down on rep makers? Maybe they've been eclisped by the fakest city on earth (Shenzen) and the boutique makers in Thailand? Who knows. What I do know is that there were some great reps that came out of good ol' Formosa. My favorite was the Sapphire SD that I should not have sold years ago. Oh well, you can't have 'em all now can you (or can you ). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
By-Tor Posted July 18, 2007 Report Share Posted July 18, 2007 TW Rolexes may be more inaccurate than their Chinese counterparts. I was always skeptical about the TW models... and wondered why people praised them so much... until I got one for a review. Despite the inaccuracies they have much more substantial feel. The Chinese version just feel cheaper and more "plasticy". And Chinese still haven't figured out how to make a deep, metallic rehaut and good crystal for the Rolex sports reps. Not even close. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pugwash Posted July 18, 2007 Report Share Posted July 18, 2007 Isn't the 28k 3717 a TW rep? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elprimerozen Posted July 19, 2007 Report Share Posted July 19, 2007 I would love to see a "steelfish TW best" version...or a "PAM Ferrari TW Best".....and then we can have a talk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eunomians Posted July 19, 2007 Report Share Posted July 19, 2007 Isn't the 28k 3717 a TW rep? You might be right! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
z80 Posted July 19, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 19, 2007 Well, I'm out to upgrade my Day Date and get a new one, but my biggest beef against the CN ones is the clasp, it's marked "Steelinox" on every Day Date out there. My TW one is marked 18k on the clasp like it should be, since there are no SS Day Dates made. On Watchmaker9's site the stuff he pictures is definately the TW stuff.. I just hate spending that much when I shouldn't have to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jfreeman420 Posted July 19, 2007 Report Share Posted July 19, 2007 The biggest problem with the new day dates is the clasp. The genuine rolesor clasp has a spring loaded hinge that you lift by the Rolex coronet to open it. The replicas snap shut. This is very annoying to me. I have seen a one on silix's website that looks like it has the spring loaded hinge and puretime has one too. They seem to only come in SS though and not gold. I can say that aside from the weight and the snap shut clasp the one I bought from trusty for $208 was pretty good. The gold color was spot on and it had a good dial. The other shortcomings of the replica day dates is the case size. This is too big of a flaw to overlook IMO. They watch that I bought from trusty was only 36mm. I have worn the new genuine day date and it sits much larger on the wrist. Probably a 38mm. The case on the gen is also much thicker and I think they wiegh around 200 grams. I wish they would make a 1:1 day date. I love this watch. I stick to my masterpiece now. Much larger and heavier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rek001 Posted July 19, 2007 Report Share Posted July 19, 2007 JF, you make a very good point - a few days ago I was in Tourneau trying on a beautiful SS DateJust with dark blue dial and it had such a nice presence on the wrist, I couldn't figure out why it looked so much better than my crappy rep. Now I know why, I'm positive the gen is bigger. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted July 19, 2007 Report Share Posted July 19, 2007 For a DateJust and DayDate, the gen is 36mm excluding the crown. The larger appearance/feel for the DD is a substantially heavier case (due to precious metal case construction), which is also thicker and has more substantial lugs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted July 19, 2007 Report Share Posted July 19, 2007 Note: Newer case sizes may be larger in diameter- But this would be applicable for the new models recently debuted at SIHH 2007 (I'm currently researching that). Edit: Looks like there are no changes for the DJ/DD's for '07; only the new Milguass comes in a 40mm case... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jfreeman420 Posted July 19, 2007 Report Share Posted July 19, 2007 I know the presidents are advertised at 36mm but some of our dealers advertise them at 38mm and I have even seen 37mm. The official measurement is 36mm not including the crown. I must say that even the vintage models wear larger than the replicas. I had a 1981 single quick model that I wore regularly. The old datejusts were 35mm and I have a feeling that the DJ cases are used for the rep day dates. Another anomoly with the genuine presidents is that their cases are thicker than the reps. This makes them sit higher on the wrist and wear larger as well. the braclet on the new models is also thicker and a bit wider which also adds to the beef of the watch. I cannot stand to wear the rep day dates. Surprising the makers haven't made an effort to improve such a huge selling watch. One last difference that hasn't been mentioned is the bezel. The bezel on the 2005 to 2006 models is a bit thicker and has more of an angle to the slope thus the crystal sits a bit higher. This also makes the watch appear to be larger than it is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted July 19, 2007 Report Share Posted July 19, 2007 JF- I agree 100%. The bezel does make a very big difference! Overall, there are a number of different factors that could influence the feel or appearance of size of a watch. Also... Some of the rep cases are cut differently than gen... Which also impacts feel/appearance... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manuel Posted August 10, 2007 Report Share Posted August 10, 2007 Does anybody have a TW BEST datejust? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dvn Posted August 10, 2007 Report Share Posted August 10, 2007 @z80 - Can you post your TW Best DD? I have been waiting for a good and accurate DD for as long as i have been this forum and i have not been able to find one yet? So who has the best DD anyway? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chronus Posted August 11, 2007 Report Share Posted August 11, 2007 Isn't the so-called "MBW" AP Royal Oak Jumbo really a TW Best? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manuel Posted August 11, 2007 Report Share Posted August 11, 2007 Isn't the so-called "MBW" AP Royal Oak Jumbo really a TW Best? Indeed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.