Choosing my first PAM, what a dilema :-)

[jayce996]

hello guys,

By a huge mistake, i discovered the Panerai world and all its amazing watches and prices :cryingbadly:
Then i discovered this REP world and decided to offer myself a wonderful watch at an affordable price :laugh: (~300€ shipping to France)

But after few weeks of reading, searching, looking at pictures and using some amazing stuff such as the PAMGUIDE, i arrived with a closed list of 8 watches over the 175 referenced, youhou !!!
The list is now composed of:
PAM001 Luminor Marina
PAM111 Luminor Marina
PAM312 Luminor Marina 1950 3 days automatic with date or the PAM328 with steel wristband
PAM359 Luminor Marina 1950 3 days automatic with date (with all numbers)
PAM366 Luminor Marina "Fu" (no date)
PAM498 Luminor Marina "Fu" 1950 3 days automatic with date
PAM510 Luminor Marina 8 days

you must know that i have, let's say, a small wrist and i'm currently wearing a TWSTEEL TWA202 (45mm) which is good looking on my wrist, but a bigger watch may be too much, so i've volunteerly remove the 47mm for my first PAM (and may reconsider this later on).

By looking at the reviews, mostly the 359 come out as one of the best quality rep available but i'm not very fan of all the numbers, my personal preference would go to the PAM312 or the PAM498 which has the date, the seconds, only the "9" & "12" & the "Fu" symbol and the 1950 case.
arghh it's so hard to decide, it may not be the only PAM i buy, but for the first i would prefer to do the right choice :laugh:

So guys, you're the experts in this domain, could you give me some advises helping me to finalize my choice? because then after come the mechanism (Seagull or not, from this manufacturer or this one, from this web site or this one...) all of this is so deep, so complex but also so cool

thank you in advance for all your help
(then after will come the topic of which wristbands, from where, etc etc, but first i have to buy the watch :whistling: )

 

[pure b]

I would go for a handwind model, you can get yourself a superrep then for €300 shipped.

Would opt for the 390, 366, 417 or 111

 

[d4m.test]

By choosing 12 and getting 7 You´re about right Just don´t resist, they will come to You anyway. Doesn´t matter which one You get first, just choose 2 different ones on the first order (forget about just one).

 

[jayce996]

@pure b:
thank you for the advise, i'll remove from your list the 390 as it does not has the second which i quite appreciate.
i keep the PAM366 which is beautiful, the PAM111 i'll add all the "boutique" ones 411, 414, 416, 417, 418, 419, 432, 434 depending on the offer at the moment
@Daywatch:
buying 2 watches directly is a very good idea, but my wife may not see this idea as good as i see it ;-)

so what i keep from your feedback is that i should reduce the choice to manual winding watches first.

 

[jayce996]

in this case, the only remaining watches are:
PAM001 Luminor Marina
PAM111 Luminor Marina
PAM366 Luminor Marina "Fu"
sadly with the manual winding i lost the date mechanism, but as said by so many, this is just one watch over so many to come

 

[ALE7575]

I would reduce my choices to:
PAM111, PAM 312 and PAM 359

PAM 111 you will get good offers (bargain) although maybe you will not receive the best available version obviously.
PAM 312 and 359 if you get KW Seagull NON-inverted version you will have very good price with the best quality

Boutique could be a very good choice too. Nice prices in old versions (always super reps)

ALE

 

[Thrasher]

My vote is for the 312 but at the same time.. Why not a 388?

 

[h5tuu]

Either the 111 or 312 from the list you've posted. Maybe consider the 586 from KW too, I plan to try it soon .

 

[d4m.test]

@pure b:
thank you for the advise, i'll remove from your list the 390 as it does not has the second which i quite appreciate.
i keep the PAM366 which is beautiful, the PAM111 i'll add all the "boutique" ones 411, 414, 416, 417, 418, 419, 432, 434 depending on the offer at the moment
@Daywatch:
buying 2 watches directly is a very good idea, but my wife may not see this idea as good as i see it ;-)

so what i keep from your feedback is that i should reduce the choice to manual winding watches first.

If You choose the 111 "Bargain" You could add an automatic - and save on WU fees and shipping. Research fast on how to keep Your wife happy, You´ll need it Just 2 PAMs are never enough - and than there are all other brands to discover....
The ceremony of handwinding is just classic and may become a fine ritual in the right mindset. They are very reliable as well but tick away loud, it could keep You awake at night.
In todays rush-hour imho sometimes an automatic is just more practical plus I wouldn´t discard different case-type models like the submersible 243/382 or 187.

 

[jayce996]

do you mean that the PAM manual wind watches are noisy? that we ear easily the tic-tac of the seconds louder than with the automatic models?

 

[d4m.test]

do you mean that the PAM manual wind watches are noisy? that we ear easily the tic-tac of the seconds louder than with the automatic models?

Yes, they are comparatively loud on the wrist (automatics You cant hear) or in a silent room at night (for many it´s part of the charme and the fun), it´s not the tick tack of the seconds, it´s the tick tick ticklety tack of the movement resonating in the metal case.
This is certainly not a reason for not getting one, it´s a reason for getting others too.

 

[JMMC]

Well, on automatics, from time to time, you can also hear the rotor spinning on a quiet enviroment, wich also sounds weird (reps sound even louder, since rotors come bone dry hbbbbt. I do not know what is worst... LOL

 

[jayce996]

OK thanks for all this information.
I may start with the well known and recommended as the one for starting with , the PAM111 as it fits also my criteria.
now one step after another, i can see on Torobravo or Puretime or intimewatch models from V1 to V4 and prices from 200$ or less to more than 400$.
which one do you recommend me?

 

[parklanephil]

When I started collecting I really didn't see the love for Pams, then I got my first and it was all downhill.
Enjoy the ride and welcome to the obsession.

I think the order of mine was:

193
359
005
3646 D
111
3646 C
443
512

And it continues

 

[kazn]

111 is a great choice. I've just received my 111 from Toro. I got the v3 with incabloc MOD with a4697 movement . Must say it's very very well made for its price. One small thing is that the movement inside looks quite dirty (you can see grease thumb marks ...etc). Planning to get it serviced and water tested anyway so all good

 

[Boristhespie]

I've been looking at the Pam111 too. Just dont't jnow whether to go for the deal on the Noob v4 or not. Not sure about the v3 vs v4 debate I have read loads but still no clearer as to which on to go for and why?

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[lolo1972sg]

Just get a 111 as a first rep. Grease it well (and use a dust blower to blow off any dirt when you open the back case) and it is good to go for ages. Can't go wrong.

 

[Boristhespie]

What grease to use?

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[jayce996]

i've found the PAM111 N V4 NOOB 1:1 BEST EDITION ON BROWN CALF LEATHER STRAP A6497 WITH Y-INCABLOC on http://watch-station.co/ for 210€ shipping fees included.
Has anyone already order from this TD?
This one seems to be the cheapest offer for the V4 version?
GO?
**UPDATE** i understand now why they are so low in price: no warranty, nothing provided except the shipment of the watch, then after it's all sent to Saint Lucky God. don't know if this is a good choice at then end...

 

[steelrain45]

What grease to use?

Sent from my SM-T810 using Tapatalk

KY lube......just kidding! :laugh:
Lighter oil like Moebius 9010 (synthetic) and thicker ones like D5 or 9104 (synthetic). I usually use just these 2 for everything even though ETA recommends a lot more. Don't want spend too much money on something that I use only once every 5 yrs. Do note that these oils have a shelf life of 2~3yrs (natural oil) and 6yrs (synthetic).