2531.80 replica without green lume?

[hobsontuba]

Sorry if this has been covered before, but a search yielded nothing.

I recently purchased a very cheap SMP rep for around 80 bucks, and as a very amateur enthusiast (hence the extremely low price point) I find it to be a great rep for my needs. The main problem for me was the dial indicies.

Whereas the hands and pearl had white lume that worked decent, the markers were an ugly florescent green color. I wasnt concerned with if they functioned or not (they didnt) but that green color ruined it for me, as it cheapened the look drastically. I sent it off to get relumed and they had run into a problem requiring the replacement of the dial. Im kind of fed up with this whole situation, and have considered buying a better rep with better movement while I'm at it.

Now from what I understand, all the replicas sold by the various dealers are all the same, which leads to my question- is there a replica of this model that doesnt have this ugly 'lume'? Of course another problem is that Im still trying to keep the price to a couple hundred dollars.

Currently, this watch appeals to me, IF it really has the ETA movement it claims. http://www.silix-prime.co/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=115_150_190&products_id=1629

Or are my only options to get it relumed or buy a gen dial?

 

[Om3ga_guy]

hobsontuba, currently all the SMPs have "poor" aka standard rep lume. Unless you find a factory superlumed model (which don't exist) or a modded piece in used rep sales, you will have to go the relume or gen dial route. The photo you are referencing on the Silix site is extremely outdated. Their current offering actually doesn't look like that and you only find out after you put the order in and receive your QC pics.

Should you go through a TD, the typical "Bond" SMP model available which all dealers carry is this:

http://puretime.co/product/seamaster-300m-chronometer-gents-blue/

Its a nice watch for the money, but like any other rep the watch needs lots of mods before it gets even close to gen. BUT the great thing about this one (over a cheaper $100 rep) is theres always the opportunity to upgrade to gen parts later given its an Asian ETA clone.

***Lastly, a good 2531 model (like you referenced) is also hard to find in an ETA movement. The only reps you see readily available of that generation are the WBK 21j pieces. 2531's occasionally come up in used rep sales though...just need to keep an eye out for them.

Rep vs. gen photo comparison

PT Rep:

Gen:

 

[hobsontuba]

Thanks for the info. It looks like I'd have to upgrade to the 2220 model as offered by puretime.

Luckily I had considered that particular model and looks like it will be much more favorable out of the box.

 

[drbollocko]

Yep as omega_guy says it's a common issue with reps, lume tends to tint on the greenish side, at the same time though Omega gen lume tends to tint greenish aswell, just not as profound as rep lume. Smps are a bit of a strange rep unfortunately, ...for such as simple design we've never really got the basics right, and better offerings were available years ago. You might be tempted to look into the smp chrono reps, which are better all round, better case and dial features etc, worth a look also.

http://puretime.co/product/seamaster-chrono-diver-blue-2008-updated/