H factory 176M...dead after 3 days...

[zivadavis]

i bought a 176M from one of the TD here and it arrived in about nine days from when i ordered til it landed at my door in the usa...far from my first rep and far from my first Hfactory piece...i already own a 177L, 026k, 219L(or maybe its an M) all from Hfactory and the same TD and run perfectly....i have at least 12 other reps or homage watches all of which are running and keep good time except for one cheapie $99 127 which was ok for what it was and has now been thrown into the parts/salvage bin after the crystal shattered unexpectedly one day after a cg screw fell off.....so this isnt my first rep and i have had fairly good luck so far except for one homage and the 127 mentioned above


the box the 176M arrived in was in perfect condition and the watch was impressively and securely packaged/wrapped....the watch is amazing looking in fit and finish with it running perfectly with the low beat movement it has and it kept excellent time....i wore it the next day after winding it up that night to make sure it would run....next morning it was matching the time on the atomic clock i had used to set it, so after changing out the usual rep strap that was way too small for me with one i bought from one of the newer strap makers here i put it on and wore it to work....

the watch guys all noticed it and several non watch folks complimented it....i was in watch heaven as i have a thing for base models.....this watch has it all at least for me>>>titanium case, well made, keeping perfect time (for a watch without a secondhand), blazingly bright lume, etc...i was very happy with this watch and hands down the best out of the box/off the shelf non modded rep i own

on day 3 i glanced at my watch and realized it was showing the same time from the last time i had glanced at least an hour earlier....i thought "crap it's dead".....so i did the palm tap and bam it was up and running BUT it stopped again about three hours later.....tried the usual manuvers to kick start it and nothing worked....the watch is now dead in the water and nothing will get it to even run....the balance wheel will sort of move but stops in about 15 or 20 seconds....i did notice the movement is loose in the case and will rattle if the crown is pulled out as if to set the watch

so heads up and fyi gentlemen (and gentlewomen) the 176M i have is also having the same issues the 177M is having....i have zero watch repair skills and even fewer watch repair tools....i have a local guy who is willing to work on reps but isnt that familiar with them and doesnt stock parts for them....he does excellent work but is new to the rep world so i am going to send it to someone here in the usa for repair who has expericnce with these watches......

i have read the other threads regarding the 177M.....so let me ask the experts here who have more experience and patience with this sort of thing:

1) which usa based watchmaker would you use?

2) should i get the low beat movement repaired or just scrap it and have the movement replaced with a new high beat movement?

3) if i replace the movement what kind/brand sould i replace it with?

4) any other suggestions?


thanks in advance for your advice, guidance, and help

 

[slimslim]

try katt? if it was me i would swap the movements. if you like the watch just put a good one in it. sorry i have no idea what to put in it but there are photos around of a new pam movement. being sold as a replacement movement. the tin foil hatter in me thinks they put junk in the nice cases and are selling good mvmts to replace the junk...hont just put up an ad with the new stuff. take a look...

 

[Kutio]

Sorry to hear another H-fac failure! I'm still waiting for my 005, 026 to fail.

Totally swap the movement mate! It will be cheaper even.

Helenrau has the high beat asian for less than $50

 

[mfb2007]

Sorry to hear another H-fac failure! I'm still waiting for my 005, 026 to fail.

Totally swap the movement mate! It will be cheaper even.

Helenrau has the high beat asian for less than $50

+1...ordered a high beat 2 weeks ago and it's working great in my 111H.

Is there a tutorial on how to swap the bridge?? Is it as simple as unscrewing the 3 blue screws or more involved?

 

[RobbDizzle]

I'm in the same boat with my 177L...I'll throw my opinion in...

1) which usa based watchmaker would you use?

2) should i get the low beat movement repaired or just scrap it and have the movement replaced with a new high beat movement?

3) if i replace the movement what kind/brand sould i replace it with?

4) any other suggestions?

1) Katt or Vac

2) Personally I won't waste time or money on another lowbeat.

3) Ideally one of the new platinum-plated 6497-2 that the TD's are selling for about $150 shipped.

4) Alternatively, I'm thinking about trying to source a highbeat 111J movement, or even buying a sterile 6497 from Getat for $35 plus shipping and either just putting it in there (regardless of how bad it looks wit an open caseback) or buying it and swapping the sterile bridges for the branded ones from the dead lowbeat.

Honestly i'm leaning towards buying and swapping, because I'd love a platinum 6497-2 but I love the watch too much to let it just sit. If I get REALLY impatient i'll just swap the movements and worry about the bridges later. Of note, the cannon pinions will need to be swapped too for the superlumed hands to work with Getat's movement...something that isn't a problem for the platinum-plated 6497-2.

 

[zivadavis]

thanks for the advice gentlemen!

i will swap out the movement per your advice.....as well as contact katz and/or vac to discuss the "project" and go from there....the getat movement is very tempting as i dont really care what the movement looks like through the display as long as it runs correctly....i know its very important to a lot of rep owners for the movement to be as accurate in appearance to the gen as possible but for me its mainly function that is most important.....i will see what the watch makers suggest and what they have on hand to replace the movement...i know he is slow at times due to his volume but its no big deal for me to order a movement or two from getat as he has always delivered quality goods at reasonable prices

i am more concerned with the face and whether it runs and keeps accurate time on a consistent basis...99.9 percent of the folks in my daily world who might ask to examine the watch don't and won't have a clue what they are looking at and always oooo and aaaaah just from the fact that the movement can be viewed via the display back...they even do it with my sterile getat base 44mm and sterile getat 111 style 44mm...i rarely take a watch off to show any movement whether a gen panerai or a rep....i just flash a "wrist shot" to them and that usually satisfies the curious who ask "to see the watch"

i dont mind spending the $ to get it done right the first time with a movement that will work

 

[silay]

what is the diffrence with the new pam 176 h from davidsen?

 

[ponerai]

legendary ''H''
actually ''H'' can dyed your eyes with perfect finish on watch
case and glass and especially dial
but material ?
not legendary for me
some TDs want to make ''H'' famous
and they are fighting for price. winner is buyers. but someone need quality
noob's pams of course better than H
and Im sure we'll see better better from others in future
by the way... pam 187 from Noob is amazing I like it

what is the diffrence with the new pam 176 h from davidsen?

big difference. H is legendary just this

 

[honeybear]

I have a H-factory Pam 111M that was DOA, even though it was working when the did the timing test. This is my first Pam, so it was kind of a bummer.

Anyhow, it's working its way back to my dealer in China for a hi-beat upgrade, and for them to repair the low-beat movement. I'll let you know what happens.