Tinstar 0 Posted October 1, 2010 Yesterday, my Renato came, and today, my Sub (from Timeshops) and DSSD came (from BK). First, I've got to say that BK is "da man"! Every bit as good as his word and quality ptoduct. We PM'd on Monday, order sent, arrived today on Friday. I'm very happy. Unfortunately, the two that I ordered from a company before discovering this forum (which were ordered first) have yet to arrive. Not good. Both of these watches are beautiful and I am really surprised in how good a rep can look. They have come a long way I would say. My DSSD was running right out of the box, but my Sub was not. I picked it up, turned it a few times, set the date and time, and it began to run...for a short while. I sat the two watches side by side, after wearing them briefly, and kept an eye on them. The Sub would stop...I would pick it up and it would start running...then stop...well, you get the picture. 21j and I'm worried. I unscrewed the stem, pulled it out, gave it a couple of turns, and it started to run. I left the stem out and it ran for about three hours and has stopped again. I think I now know the differance in a watch for under $100.00 and one that is over $300.00. I mean, I know that any watch can have problems, but I sure was hoping for better. I have not contacted Timeshops yet, as I thought that I would give it a chance, but it's not looking good. Oh well...two out the the three are doing great. I guess as far as averages are concerned, that ain't bad. I really love the Sub though and I hope that it may straighten itself out! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
NFleischer 4,355 Posted October 2, 2010 Welcome and good luck. You're right, BK is one of the best dealers but only sells Rolex. Any rep can have problems (gens too) but most people tend to stay away from the cheapie 21J models and go for the 'Swiss' ETA or the ETA clones. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Member X 91 Posted October 2, 2010 That's a bit of a sweeping statement there, Mr F lol :P Plenty of people stick to 21j watches over ETA or clone ETA - they're superb value for money if you're ordering a model with the same case as the $300 ETA version! It's a shame you've potentially got a duff movement, Tinstar - I would say wear it for a day and see how it goes. A couple of my cheapies aren't very happy till they've got a good wind on them, at which point they'll run well for the rest of the day. Other cheapies I can wear for a couple of hours and they'll go for the whole next 24 hours! It really is pot luck with the 21j movements, so if it doesn't fix itself with a day of wearing it, contact the seller to see if you can come to some arrangement I would also note, however, that even ETA and clone ETA movements can have issues. One of my clones was missing screws in the movement and gave up working, whereas my BK cerachrome sub is swiss ETA but only had a power reserve of <12 hours, and both have had to be serviced to get the best out of them! It's all part of the game, don't worry too much about it, nearly everything's fixable or solvable Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
phaedo 0 Posted October 2, 2010 I would say it sounds like you have not given it enough charge, hence it has stopped due to running out of power. Try wearing it for a day once it is running, it should keep ticking the whole time worn, and hopefully charge up by then too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dave47 6,562 Posted October 2, 2010 I agree regarding the Asian 21j's. My reps all have the A21j's in them and run quite well. In fact, several of them have a power reserve that exceeds 35 - 40 hours. The common denominator? I first wind them about 40 -50 times and then wear them all day, only taking them off at bed time. I've noticed that several have a remarkable power reserve. I've also read here and on RWI that a lot of collectors do prefer them than the clone ETAs because they're not as trouble-prone as the A21j's; that their slower beat (21.6) also saves wear and tear. Personally speaking, I prefer the A21's. Just my 2 cents based upon my experiences. dave I would say it sounds like you have not given it enough charge, hence it has stopped due to running out of power. Try wearing it for a day once it is running, it should keep ticking the whole time worn, and hopefully charge up by then too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Klink 0 Posted October 2, 2010 Good luck! If no success.. well, try maybe contact dealer.. : ) Life is Good! Klink Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
greg_r 83 Posted October 2, 2010 I agree regarding the Asian 21j's. My reps all have the A21j's in them and run quite well. In fact, several of them have a power reserve that exceeds 35 - 40 hours. The common denominator? I first wind them about 40 -50 times and then wear them all day, only taking them off at bed time. I've noticed that several have a remarkable power reserve. I've also read here and on RWI that a lot of collectors do prefer them than the clone ETAs because they're not as trouble-prone as the A21j's; that their slower beat (21.6) also saves wear and tear. Personally speaking, I prefer the A21's. Just my 2 cents based upon my experiences. dave Yep - I've owned a bunch of 21js over the years. Had very few problems - most have PR of 30 hours plus and are decent time-keepers. Sometimes you'll get one that's less than reliable, but in my experience that's fairly rare provided you're buying from a trusted dealer. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
NFleischer 4,355 Posted October 2, 2010 That's a bit of a sweeping statement there, Mr F lol :P Plenty of people stick to 21j watches over ETA or clone ETA - they're superb value for money if you're ordering a model with the same case as the $300 ETA version! It's a shame you've potentially got a duff movement, Tinstar - I would say wear it for a day and see how it goes. A couple of my cheapies aren't very happy till they've got a good wind on them, at which point they'll run well for the rest of the day. Other cheapies I can wear for a couple of hours and they'll go for the whole next 24 hours! It really is pot luck with the 21j movements, so if it doesn't fix itself with a day of wearing it, contact the seller to see if you can come to some arrangement I would also note, however, that even ETA and clone ETA movements can have issues. One of my clones was missing screws in the movement and gave up working, whereas my BK cerachrome sub is swiss ETA but only had a power reserve of <12 hours, and both have had to be serviced to get the best out of them! It's all part of the game, don't worry too much about it, nearly everything's fixable or solvable OK I guess I spoke too fast. Actually I have several 21J myself and they have been trouble free. I wish I could say that about the A7750's and even ETA's. If you can buy a watch with the same case and crystal as the ETA its a good deal. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Del 4,528 Posted October 2, 2010 Defo sounds like you haven't manually wound it enough to begin with, plus you weren't actually wearing it so it wouldn't auto wind either. Give it 20-25 winds at least and then wear it - it should be ok. If not then contact TS - they will take it back and fix or exchange. I've got quite a few 21j watches and they work great . Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dendo 93 Posted October 2, 2010 Funny thing is I have many 21j watches but the only one I had problems with was the Sub. Exact same issues Tinstar is relating. Tinstar - I agree with the diagnosis of a 'duff movement'. I have been patiently coaxing my Sub to keep wound consistently and not die on me - and it does for a while - then dies. Life is too short for this kinda shit..... Occasionally we get bad ones - most are wonderful. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tinstar 0 Posted October 3, 2010 MY BAD! While trying to get my Sub to run, I moved the hands around, reset the date, and turned the stem a few times thinking that it might loosen it up or move something, helping it to run. I swirled it around a few times. It ran for a few hours, which was better than a few minutes. Then, I noticed that my new DSSD watch from BK had stopped and this has the supposedly more reliable swiss movement in it. So I decided to look up "winding automatic watches" on the internet. I also wrote to Mark at TS. My last experience with "automatic" watches was back in 1971, when I bought a "self winding" Seiko when I was in the USAF. In order to get it going, you would shake it side to side, and then wear it. It was a great watch for several years. I have never had the newer automatics or screw in stems. I read some answers to my questions, Mark responded quickly, and you good people educated me. Bottom line...I did not know that you could manually wind an automatic! I turned the stems on the two reps approximately 20 to 30 times, and both watches have run all day long without a hitch! I wore my DSSD all day and it ran great! I had my Sub in my watch tower/display case and when I got home, it was right on time and running like a champ! Thanks to everyone who replied and offered suggestions and thanks to TS for a nice Sub for under $100.00 that looks great and actually runs great also. I learned long ago...you're never too old to learn! This forum is the BEST place for a replica education. Again, I say thank you! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Del 4,528 Posted October 3, 2010 Great news - well done! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dendo 93 Posted October 3, 2010 Yeah - great news. Del had it right - I was being a bit negative - sorry. Great it all worked out in the end. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
