watchman12345 0 Posted December 29, 2012 I've posted in a few threads about this watch, but wanted to put a few of my own thoughts together. 1) THE DEALER Wanted this as soon as possible so I went with puretime. The experience was OK, but they didn't answer my QC questions and just shipped which wasn't great. Anyway I'm happy with the end product so can't complain really. 2) THE WATCH This is the best replica I've gotten so far. It screams quality. The Case is very well made, and the crown and tube feel very good. I've never had a rep crown screw in so effortlessly. The crystal is domes sapphire with a very slight blue tint to the AR. It's marginal and the blue dial means it's pretty much unnoticable. Some people say the dome of the sapphire isn't enough and I think they might be correct. At times you can see the bend at the end of the hands (gen feature) which is probably because there is not a whole lot of doming going on. The movement is a pearlage decorated "Asia 2836"... I think it is a Seagul ST2130 in reality. No complaints so far, after one quick attempt at regulating ir runs 6/7s fast per day. Could probably get it tighter if I wanted. The date changes exactly at 12 and changes with a rather noticeable "CLICK" that doesn't seem to happen on other ETA clones or indeed the gen itself. It feels fine to wind etc, but is not as smooth as other ETA clones I've had of the gens. The rotor is slightly noisier too but you'd really need your ear to the back to hear it. The dial is really amazing. The blue colour and the way it changes with lighting is just beautiful. The lume dots are perfectly formed and the hands quite clean. Being super picky there is a few 1-2cm hairline marks but they need serious inspection with a loup to see. I couldn't photography them even with my DSLR. One of the hands has a slight mark at the edge too, but I must say the finish of the dial and hands beats any rep I've had hands down. On the super-nit picking theme, the date is indeed about 1mm justified to the left. It's marginal but it is the case. Also the lume is poor. I doubt it's super-lume, but saying that the quantity applied is so small that even the gen doesn't glow well. I've never held a gen IWC croc strap so I'm not in a great position to compare. The rep strap is nice, it's quite soft and well made, but I'd imagine still quite a bit away from the gen. There has been a lot of talk about the price of this watch. Your talking for $310+ shipping for the Asian version. Serious money. Is it worth it? I think it is. I've seen the Explorer II QC shots and general impression and I'm pretty sure I'd prefer to pay $50 extra to eliminate some of the issues. The quality is superb. I'm a happy camper with this one. So much so I am tempted to get the swiss version, although I may wait and see if they do a V2 and dome the sapphire even more. Pics; (iphone only unfortunately ) Thanks for looking! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
watchman12345 0 Posted December 29, 2012 Thanks, it's my favourite so far... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jonbummer 0 Posted December 29, 2012 (edited) great pic, great review! perhaps they might do a v2 or a boutique special Edited December 29, 2012 by jonbummer Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
watchman12345 0 Posted December 29, 2012 Wow that's beautiful... I think a lot of the others have open case-backs so that would put a stop to them. It's amazing what they can do these days. I have looked at a few gen forums and this watch is mighty hard to call based on pics. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
yawn 122 Posted December 29, 2012 mine is still stuck in puretime qc department -- been a month already ): i had some issues with this watch that markers on dial is not aligned with the white dot. I wasn't sure if this is caused by the deflection of the crystal, I asked them to replaced one and it seem the 6 clock marker is still a bit off =/ and now they got my hublot diver 4000m and the marker on dial and inner bezel is not aligned again! god this took forever. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
watchman12345 0 Posted December 29, 2012 I thought my 6 marker was off too on QC, but now that I have the watch it looks perfect. The macro shots really mess with your head, and then add to that the fact that they could be taken at a small angle and the domed crystal... difficult to judge! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
watch.aholic 538 Posted December 29, 2012 Lovely watch and excellent pictures.....Is the date wheel an inherent issue with this rep? I've not seen one specimen with centered datewheel. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
watchman12345 0 Posted December 29, 2012 Thanks. Yes I think the date wheel is printed slightly Wrong. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HWG 11 Posted December 29, 2012 Congrats on a great looking watch. I may have to consider this one for the collection. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Soldie 0 Posted January 10, 2013 Am awaiting mine from WI. Simple elegance. I am planning for it to be my everyday work watch. Great discussion.Soldie Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Prancuzas 0 Posted January 10, 2013 I'm also waiting this one, came from Andrew. It should be somewhere now at chinese fedex guy hands Now the only headache is the strap. People tell it's quite OK as for rep but comparing to the watch's quality itself - it just does not feel right. I would like to go with genuine croc below the 100usd mark but i find it quite hard to achieve. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Soldie 0 Posted January 12, 2013 Prancuzas, if you went croc, would you go black or maybe dark brown? Soldie Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Prancuzas 0 Posted January 12, 2013 black or brown i think it depends on your wardrobe - me myself i prefer brown shoes and belts, so all my straps are brown. although i think gen navy blue would be more similar to black one, so i would go black with this one. anyway i think it's a matter of personal taste. check google, on iwc.com forum one guy fitted brown santoni, looks good, also check repgeek thread, one guy fitted two piece nato and it looks awesome too. i also thought some shinny blue or black lizard would go well with the vintage look Sent from Calculator using CrashTalk6 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Soldie 0 Posted January 29, 2013 Got mine from WI. I can only say brilliant. I have been wearing it everyday and tho large, it is simply perfect. Need the alligator or shark strap. if on the fence- go for it. And, I think the blue strap is pretty nice. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Prancuzas 0 Posted January 29, 2013 Yup - go dark blue gen croc or go home Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
solkryssare 109 Posted January 29, 2013 Great review. I love this watch but I fear it will have to wait as I have Rollie and Tudor projects to tend to first. But its definitely on my list Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lightcurve 0 Posted March 24, 2013 Decision made, this is my next watch! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dinicol 0 Posted March 24, 2013 Very nice looking watch!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
