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Diver Dave

PAM 288 Super Rep review

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Diver Dave

I managed to order and receive from my favorite TD (Mary) one of the PAM 288's, and it's a beauty, Now I do not have a Gen to compare it to (and I am sure that there are somemof you who can see flaws), but I do have a few Genuine Panerai watches here to compare the finish level to, so here goes with a little review.

 

Backstory: I ordered (and reviewed) a Pam 522 a month or so ago, and it was (is) stunning. As a pilot I like to wear a chrono at times, and loved the sandwich dial. After it came I figured out that I couldn't wear it to work, as there's no way I could afford a Gen platinum watch, and I carry clients on my airplane that can afford them. So... I decided to order a 288 (which is a stainless steel case in the real world), and which is a watch that I "can" afford in a Gen. I just choose not to.

 

So, I ordered from Mary, she rejected the first one for bad power reserve, which took a week, and then got a second one. QC pics, payment, and then six days to CONUS.

 

Just opened it up and it's stunning.

 

Case: Polish is perfect. No waves, just looks great.

 

Back: Engravings are sharp, no obviously visible tells. Comparing it to my Gens: Impossible to see any quality difference.

 

Dial: Stunning. Not the sandwich like the 522, but still: it's a beauty. Again, compared to my gens, I can't see any obvious quality difference.

 

Crystal: Clear, with no AR tint.

 

Functions: All functions running perfectly. winds well by hand without any friction, self winding is silent, chrono resetting perfectly, and starting and stopping well. Showing good regulation on the Timegrapher.

 

Movement: The 288 has been repped with the Seagull ST19 with a self winding module added, and with a an A7750 movement. The reviews I have seen shows that the A7750 rep is a better quality rep in several ways, so that is what I selected. I haven't opened the back, so I cannot speak to finish or cosmetics of it. Unlike the 522 it's a solid back, as per the Gen so I can't peek.

 

Band: it came with a very good quality deployant Crocodile band replicating the original that's provided with the Gen. The only flaw is that it's cut for a maximum wrist size of about 7 inches. That (barely) fits me, but I'm not a Croc sort, so I put on a nice leather that I had. It's 2mm too narrow but still looks great.

 

 

Opinion: I know watches, and have a multi-box collection of Gens. My respectful opinion is that if I were handed this watch and was told that it was a Gen, even as a Gen Panerai owner myself, I would not be able to tell it was a rep. It's that good. I am very impressed.

 

This is a watch that I can wear to work, and not be made as wearing a rep. I LOVE the 522, really, but I simply can't pull it off. I can pull this off, and will.

 

Price of these is high enough to be something that you'll think twice about buying. High $400's for one, which is high for a rep, but reasonable with the quality level shown.

 

Without a gen to compare to, I cannot describe any tiny flaws, but I'd be interested in our savants pointing out anything obvious.

 

 

Hope you enjoyed this. My 522 will be on the block for sale as soon as it comes back. There was a tiny movement glitch in the ST19 and it's back for servicing. When it arrives home I'll put it up on M2M.

 

 

Dave

 

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Edited by Diver Dave

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HeavyKrush

Beauty Dave. Nice review and sweet pics. Wear it in good health.

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Dendo

Is this a 'latest' version, or the same version we all bought three or four years back, and voted it 'rep of the year'?

 

Its a great watch - sold mine over time - enjoy it!

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Callumz

Looks great Dave!

What's the case size on these 47mm?

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Diver Dave

Is this a 'latest' version, or the same version we all bought three or four years back, and voted it 'rep of the year'?

 

Its a great watch - sold mine over time - enjoy it!

 

 

No clue, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was what you had. I've only come over to the dark side in the last year, before that being purely a Gen collector so the older history is a bit of a mystery to me. It's stunning in every way though.

 

 

Dave

Edited by Diver Dave

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Diver Dave

Looks great Dave!

What's the case size on these 47mm?

 

 

I think 45mm? It wears very well, a bit bigger than my normal Gen 1665 Sea Dweller, but not objectionably large. I have a small wrist (7 inches) and it's just right "for a PAM" on my wrist. It's extremely comfortable. The Croc strap not so much, but the soft leather transforms it.

 

Dave

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Diver Dave

 

 

Yeah... I can't tell if it's the same rep or not. Back markings are different serial number, and I dunno if they do random numbers or not.

 

Thanks for the link.

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Diver Dave

Beauty Dave. Nice review and sweet pics. Wear it in good health.

 

Thanks Mate. I'll be wearing it full time for a few months and I'll post a long term review after I break it in.

 

 

Dave

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grb

It's a great piece, 45mm case but the thing that's wrong is the strap and buckle. It usually came with a 26mm croc with 20mm deployant buckle

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mysterio

Is this a 'latest' version, or the same version we all bought three or four years back, and voted it 'rep of the year'?

 

Its a great watch - sold mine over time - enjoy it!

 

It's the old(er) version with the A7750. Better than the old ST19 version.

 

It's a great piece, 45mm case but the thing that's wrong is the strap and buckle. It usually came with a 26mm croc with 20mm deployant buckle

 

The watch in the picture is using an aftermarket strap.

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Diver Dave

It's a great piece, 45mm case but the thing that's wrong is the strap and buckle. It usually came with a 26mm croc with 20mm deployant buckle

 

 

It did.

 

Read my review.

 

I took the strap off right away and replaced it with the one that I'm wearing it with now. I'm not a crocodile strap fan.

 

 

Dave

,

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Cubic Hare

My 520 should arrive tomorrow. I should have waited for your M2M.

 

Nice watch Enjoy.

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Diver Dave

My 520 should arrive tomorrow. I should have waited for your M2M.

 

Nice watch Enjoy.

 

 

Yeah... i thought at the time to mention it to you, but I didn't think it to be ethical to write a review and then flog the item being reviewed based on it.

 

I sent it back for adjustment in any case, it should be back shortly. The seconds hand was jumping 20 seconds backwards when the chrono was started, and for a Seagull to do that is just wrong. It'll be back in a bit, and I'll sell it then. it's an absolutely beautiful thing. I love the dial on them. Really, I have thought about taking the cases and dials and swapping them.... I won't though, although I wish Panerai would use the sandwich dial on a stainless cased chrono.

 

Let me know when yours arrives so we can compare notes.

 

Dave

Edited by Diver Dave

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Diver Dave

Well it passed the "can I read my watch in a dark hotel room in some stage time zone at 5:30AM when I have no clue where I am or what time it is" test.

 

The lume was easy to read just before sunrise after having been in the dark all night. No expectation otherwise, but I just wanted to check. That's an essential feature for my lifestyle.

 

 

Really liking this. The way the strap lays from the wire lugs of the Radiomir case contributes hugely to the wrist comfort level.

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