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Dusty Chalk

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I wore this today and got the Titanium clasp got all scratched up on a granite counter, but I fixed it right up with a green Scotch Brite pad.  Ceramic tile tables and granite counters play havoc with stainless steel bracelets.

 

So, I ordered another black NATO 20mm with red stitching for this watch too (my other one is 22mm so I can't use it on this).  I also considered buying a replica bracelet in stainless for $58 that I can just chew up and throw out when it's ruined.  If I brush the Ti clasp too many times it will wear down into the shallow engraved lettering - it's already been brushed many times in it's life by previous owners.

 

Also, I'm really happy with the lume, which you can see glowing bright with the lights still on.  

 

And it's running great - it only gained 2.2 seconds a day over the past 14 days.

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That one is 46mm, which is too big for me but probably suits a manly man like Jeff rather splendidly. There's a 42mm version too, which moves the date window to three o' clock. I definitely agree that it is one of the best watches they make from a design perspective. The lugs are long -- similar to the Nomos style -- which tends to be polarizing in terms of wearability, so best to try on the wrist to see how it feels to you.  

 

 

 

 

 

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Yeah, it is a 46 and it wears BIG.  I have been trying to wear more of my tiny little 40ish watches Sea Dweller and Seamaster as my wrists are a hell of a lot smaller than the last time I really bought watches and I think 40 makes more sense now.  This 46 seems pretty huge and unwieldy at this point.  

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I got to see both the Pelagos and the Black Bay today.  In all honesty, I think the Pelagos build is up there with my Rolex Sea Dweller and I would definitely own one of those.   The Black Bay was nice but did not really impress me nearly as much and it appears to plummet in value so quickly after purchase.  I have seen several less than year old going for around $2k.

 

I did actually really like a Chopard Monaco Historique that I looked at today.  All in house from the movement to the really overbuilt Ti case.

 

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The Pelagos is excellent. Unfortunately too big for me. They can be had for $2900-$3100 pretty regularly on the used market. I would take one over a SeaDweller any day. Also, the lume is the best I have seen.

The BBB is a great beater watch with an ETA movement that any competent shop can and will be able to service for a lifetime. I would skip the bracelet version and go with the NATO option - nice looking combo.

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I've about convinced myself to not get any more watches until I'm done with grad school, which looks like it'll be later in the year than I had expected.  Whatever I get will be a special gift to myself.  Anybody know if the Pelagos can be engraved on the back?  Never seen it done on titanium.  I didn't think to ask, this morning, when I tried one on and fell in love with it.  That is a very nice watch!

 

Titanium watches can be scratched so my best guess is they can also be engraved.

 

BTW, I picked up a new Hirsch Catwalk desert tan suede leather strap for my Explorer II.  Makes me want to go ahead and get that service dial and hands sooner than later, but I'm not due for a service for another 4 years and they wont do the replacements without doing a full service.  

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I'm sure you can find somebody independent to change hands and other parts without a full service.  I don't like the looks of that strap with that dial, though.   I mostly think that Rolex looks best on a bracelet.

 

I've already got Rick looking for hands and maybe a dial, but he's not sure how long it will take, and I'm not sure how hard he'll be looking so I sent him a reminder email.  I also told him I'd accept real Rolex hands with dead lume that I can have re-done, as long as I can save the original hands just in case.

 

As for the strap, I was a little iffy about the looks as well, but I was looking for something more rugged and outdoorsy looking, that could spare the bracelet some wear and tear.  I wore it like this at the watchmaker for half an hour while I looked at other straps, and it was really comfy this way.

 

So I pulled the trigger with the two free 20mm NATO straps for my Omegas (orange stitching for the PO, and white stitching for my Great White).  I have a 20mm NATO with red stitching on order for the Ti Seamaster Pro chrono, and it will look just like the one on my red Victorinox in the photo above (which uses a 22mm).

 

Most of my watches take a 20mm, so I might see if any of my other watches can use this strap, but I'd love to hear from others if they like this strap as much as I do.  

 

Another thing that proves that my father had the dial of the GMT Master replaced, in the late 1990s:  this is the GMT half an hour after being charged with a bright Led flashlight.  The dial is Tritium marked, and is easy viewable in the dark without charging, but this is quite different!  This Dial is marked exactly the same as the original Dial (I've looked in detail into this), but has 90s vintage lume, for sure.

 

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Like I was saying, some "tritium" lume can be charged up with a bright light to become even brighter than it is on it's own.

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I hope you let Rick know that you are a Jacob referral. :)  If Rick can't get you what you need when you want, I have another person I can send you to.

 

Yeah, the GMT Tritium seriously brightens with a nice flashlight.  You don't even want to see how bright the Explorer II became!  Super bright.

 

I remind him that you sent me every time we speak.  Thanks to you I found my perfect GMT II at Rick's last summer, and he overnighted it to me to have the Saturday before father's day. The year 2000 model was the first year for Superluminova and SEL, if I recall.

 

That was the same day my local watchmaker's aging customer agreed to sell me his Moonwatch after a two week silence, so I had to take both watches.  I bought the GMT II thinking the old man wasn't going to part with his Moonwatch, and then whammo, budget crisis!

 

BTW, I'd love to know about the alternate source you have, just in case, but I'm gonna give Rick a few days.  

 

I do wonder if a new service dial from Rolex for the Exp II would still say Swiss T <25, SWISS, or SWISS MADE at 6 o'clock.  I'm sure that it wont have tritium even if it said T<25, since they phased that out in the late 90's.  I suspect I'd get the latest superluminova dial and hands from 2010 or 2011, if I went through Rolex.

 

I'd really like to have a late 2000's Explorer II, if I could find someone to take mine plus cash. And it doesn't have to be a 2008-2011 with the 3186 movement either.

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My local PX has a Omega 2225.80.00 Seamaster that was a special order and returned. Bracelet is small and would need some links. PX is a authorized dealer and it has the warranty card. They are asking $2800 and I might be able to talk them down a bit. Sound like a decent deal or a pass? What do links cost?

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