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BEWARE: ‘New’ VSF Panerai Stock

Rupert Fripp

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27/3/21
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An update from me, here’s a pic from the TD the movement inside the 616 in question (left), next to another 616 (right) he has:

The TD claims the watch on the left is V1, the second is V2.

However, the watch sent to me for QC had an exterior of V3, due to flat subdial and 3 layer carbon.

Am awaiting fresh QCs
 
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KOT1917

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Thanks! This photo is side by side, they perfectly show the small external differences between v1 and v2 ... This is not in the meop.bridge about movements, it will need to be supplemented with this ifenformation, perhaps
 

Rupert Fripp

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Thanks! This photo is side by side, they perfectly show the small external differences between v1 and v2 ... This is not in the meop.bridge about movements, it will need to be supplemented with this ifenformation, perhaps

Interestingly, this was the exterior of the watch with the V1 movement. I believe this is clearly a V3 due to subdial?
 
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Dreadleg

Do not accept unsolicited offers
23/9/10
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Hi

So I managed to order the PAM 438 and 1661 from the new vsf stock thats recently become available. I know very little about all the differences in movements.

Can someone tell me if this is the newer movement from my QC of the 438?

THanks
 

KOT1917

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Hi

So I managed to order the PAM 438 and 1661 from the new vsf stock thats recently become available. I know very little about all the differences in movements.

Can someone tell me if this is the newer movement from my QC of the 438?

THanks

Looks ok. Specify GMT 12 or 24 hours?
 

KOT1917

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Despite all the rumors that this stock is related to the "return of the VSF", I see a certain stock of models, many not popular (like the old DUE), damaged ones that were rejected earlier and also hybrids from parts so old that we even forget managed about them.
Considering the additional cost, I would be doubly careful in this attraction.
 
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Dreadleg

Do not accept unsolicited offers
23/9/10
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Thankyou. this is the dial photo.
I have a vid too but cant seem to upload it.
Not quite sure what you mean by GMT 12 or 24 hours?



 

Teamjlf

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Replica oblivion…
Thankyou. this is the dial photo.
I have a vid too but cant seem to upload it.
Not quite sure what you mean by GMT 12 or 24 hours?




GMT 12 hour means the GMT hand is essentially locked to the hour hand, they move at the same speed so you can only have a 12 hour time difference you can measure, good for different cities within same country as an example.

GMT 24 hour means the GMT hand moves at half the speed of the hour hand giving you an AM / PM indication. The GMT hand with move 1 full rotation v the hour hand moving 2 full rotations. This is best for international time zone monitoring and the dial of the watch will usually have a 24 he scale to facilitate this.

in saying that, I have 2 x VSF PAM GMT watches.
1 x PAM 719 Pole to Pole GMT - GMT hand moves in sync with hour hand so it funactions as a 12 hour GMT only.

1 x PAM 531 GMT. This is supposed to be a 24 hr GMT watch but VSF couldn’t pull it off with the rep. It functions only as a 12 hour GMT with the GMT hand moving in sync with the hour hand - same movement as the 719. The dial does have the 24 hr scale as per gen, but the movement does not function as per GEN.

Hope that helps.
here is the link to the 531 VSF watch I have.
24 hr markers but 12 hour GMT function…..V2 9010.

https://trustytimewatch.io/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=37_51&products_id=17724
 

DkHelmet

Getting To Know The Place
21/7/20
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Southeast PA, US
Are we sure VSF actually closed? I'm cruising around the TD new releases and a bunch of VSFs keep popping up. If the standard MO for a TD would be to take the order and cash, then pick up for QC, then a factor shutdown should essentially zero all stock.

There's too damn much floating around. I just GL a Due, which isn't that popular and couldn't have been sitting in a giant pile in a TD "just in case". TDs can't be cobbling together from parts, and who would be sitting on a pile of various dials and movements, all unassembled?

I'm honestly just curious.
 
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austenier_callande

Getting To Know The Place
12/9/21
37
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Probably people think the idea of a factory which makes watches and gets raided and etc has an idea of it like a traditional factory, when realistically it is more likely to be a loose collective of individuals, watchmakers, and suppliers. It's rare that they are actually raiding an entity and shutting it down, maybe some of the individuals get in trouble or some of their stock or suppliers stock in parts gets seized or temporarily interrupted. They can switch to new suppliers and new workers, share machines, etc. Or even just wait for the cursory attention to dissipate. Chinese product/copyright law is very accommodating and really designed to appear to be doing something while actually being rather unimpactful. Hence why its big news when watchmaking machines are actually dismantled or destroyed.

If they really wanted to make an impact or shut these factories down they easily could, but they really do not care and even profit from them both on a individual, provincial, and national level. There is no incentive for them to do so. Likely they even just go and have a chat to the ringleaders and ask them to stop or slow production for a while or ask them to obfuscate it better.

There are even foreign companies specifically employed by foreign watchmakers that operate in China and try to identify these factories, their suppliers and workers and locations, in a systematic manner.

If anything does happen, its usually to "one link in the chain" rather than the entire network. Which can be replaced in time, depending on its level of importance. Further to that, all these networks are pretty much interrelated. Pretty much every factory know and talk to each other on a high level at minimum for the purpose of price fixing. Obviously it can be assumed that they share resources when necessary too.

This part is not so true about watches but may be of interest either way. Replica fashion and watches exist often in a situation where there are three classes, what they produce for the Chinese market which is generally unconcerned about quality (this is different in the watch area where most Chinese consumers DO care), what they produce on a mid-level, and what they produce on a high-level. The high-level version is constantly at risk of being TOO GOOD so they will intentionally not fix flaws or even put them in on purpose. If they have no flaws, then you wont buy the V2 and V3, and etc. The competition is largely artificial.

The same goes for TD, they are just running a business.
 

austenier_callande

Getting To Know The Place
12/9/21
37
5
8
Most likely 90% of VSF was totally untouched, perhaps some of their supply lines were damaged or their machines confiscated and they are making do with a cheaper alternative borrowed or bought from a "competitor". Perhaps they even never got shut down and just had some of their watchmakers poached or left. Maybe their leaders got a talking to and just sold their partial stock to another company. It is never as simple as the marketing or the TD explanation (who are sometimes just people even just purchasing on Tao or Wx) and are just relaying the lies they are told.