Pam 088 GMT stopping

[smithy37]

Can anyone help please?

I receied my Pam 088 GMT from Davidsen this morning and was blown away by it. Unfortunately, the second hand appears to be catching the GMT hand at certain times of the day, causing the watch to stop.

My success rate with new rep purchases is pretty bad, so I am used to having to send them back, just wondered if this might be an easy fix and save me having to post back to Hong Kong.

Last thing I want to do is void the warranty.

Any advice is well received.

 

[Tubbs]

Bloody hell! bad news, I assume Davidsen does his own Q/C or is this the advantage of going direct to Hong Kong and saving a few quid? Cannot believe he'd miss something as simple as that, although you did say he modified and fitted the hands himself.

You'd think the GMT hand would have been checked on rotation and the minute hand would have been wound fully past 24 hours to make sure everything ok. Sound just like a simple mistake, but doesnt help you.

Unlucky, hope you get it sorted :?

 

[smithy37]

I do kinda feel a little unlucky. I don't think I have made one single purchase without one problem or another. Hey-ho, welcome to the rep world!

In Davidsen's defence, this problem only appears between 4.10pm & 6.00pm. It also occasionally passes under the hand without fouling. So, I don't think he can be blamed for an intermittent problem that only appears every 24 hours!
I am going to monitor it and see if it might have 'worn' itself in. Wishful thinking perhaps?

I have emailed Davidsen and he has passed his apologies on to me. He suggests I look to have it repaired or send it back. It does sound an easy fix for someone in the know, unfortunately, that rules me out :lol:

I will keep you informed as to which route I go down. One thing is certain though, I am getting a dab hand at sending things back to China! :lol:

 

[Drulee]

smith37, you aren't going to believe this but... you guessed it, I have an 089 GTM that did the same thing - not a DSN though. I just finished opening it up, taking out the movement with dial attached (only my 3rd time doing this), removing the seconds hand, and re-seating it. Before re-assembling it, I installed a new titanium bezel that I had ordered from DSN. His latest bezels are the best I've seen, really low profile (this is v.3 for his ti bezel, v.2 seemed to only last from March 09 to June 09). Anyway, back to the re-assembly, after winding and shaking awhile, everything has gone normally for it. The GMT hand has passed the seconds hand a few times without problems.

 

[smithy37]

smith37, you aren't going to believe this but... you guessed it, I have an 089 GTM that did the same thing - not a DSN though. I just finished opening it up, taking out the movement with dial attached (only my 3rd time doing this), removing the seconds hand, and re-seating it. Before re-assembling it, I installed a new titanium bezel that I had ordered from DSN. His latest bezels are the best I've seen, really low profile (this is v.3 for his ti bezel, v.2 seemed to only last from March 09 to June 09). Anyway, back to the re-assembly, after winding and shaking awhile, everything has gone normally for it. The GMT hand has passed the seconds hand a few times without problems.

You are a braver man than me. I chickened out as I didn't want to invalidate any warranty. To be honest, there were a couple more problems with mine. The date wheel didn't change automatically (worked by the crown though) & the hands slipped when trying to adjust the time. I suspect a keyless works issue, as has been well documented with A7750's.

A bit too diffucult for a novice like me, so I sent it back completely untouched!

Just gotta sit tight and wait for it to come back. It has easily become my favourite watch!

 

[Drulee]

Actually the 089 has no warranty. It is probably one of the best deals I've come across on the forums. I wasn't even looking for an 089, but I wanted a GMT movement for an 088 I was piecing together (that's another story which introduced me to watch repair). Eventually I gave up on trying to locate a GMT movement, and posted about my lack of success on another forum (which will remain nameless ). Well the next day a member PM'd me telling me about the 089 he had, that he would sell me to remove the GMT movement from for $120. This was one of those Ultimate types with everything right about it (correct dial, sapphire, nice crown, very nice crown guard, engraved not etched fully titanium case back and better than average lume), but since the seconds hand would stick on the GMT hand and as the case and bezel had a bunch of scratches on it, he discounted it heavily. He also suggested I remove the movement and sell the case and dial to lower the cost paid for the movement, I agreed. Well by the time it arrived, I had read more about the A7750 GMT and didn't really want to risk ending up with a dead movement, so I decided to see what could be done to repair the 089.

Well I searched the forums and started some thread regarding cleaning up the case and fixing the seconds hand/GMT hand problem. Before I worked up enough courage to tackle the seconds, I had re-finished the case and bezel and it turned out great. I really started to like this 089, so to try and improve it, I ordered another (I had ordered one for my 240) DSN low profile bezel and put it on while I had the movement/dial out for fixing. Let me tell you this 089 hybrid case looks sleek now, especially compared to the other Ultimate/Best 089 offerings - I am going to post a bunch of pics once I've finished building another light box.

Next I fixed the seconds hand problem and put everything back together, this watch now gets the most wrist time of all my PAMs. I even had a custom olive strap made just for it (by BlueRadish). Since I decided to keep the 089 intact, I scrapped the 088 project and decided to order a DSN 088 and took advantage of his discount for two watches by ordering a 228 with it. And now I'm in this lousy situation with one great looking watch that doesn't work and one lousy shiny purple dialed watch whose movement runs great - just trying to figure out which road to take regarding Davidsen. I haven't opened any of the cases on these watches as I don't want to void any warranty DSN may honor.

 

[smithy37]

You are the inspiration I need. I am dying to tackle a watch repair, but felt it foolish to try to fix something that was beyond my novice hands & still in warranty!

I have an old Omega PO that I bought from a scam site. The crown has stripped, so this is going to be my experimental donor.

Wish me luck!

 

[Drulee]

Good for you! I find that when I'm tackling a watch, I've got to concentrate so much on what I'm doing, that anything else weighing on my mind just goes away. So it's a good way to take a break from other things in life

Whatever you do, don't ever try to force something (unless you're trying to put a bezel back on ) And invest in some basic tools, including, if you don't have them already, a set of good quality screwdrivers (not those el-cheapo ones), toothpics (not the really cheap flat ones), Rodico (very useful), fine tweezers (plastic and metal) air blower, lint free cloth, some small clear plastic containers and I found that one of those plastic compartmentalized bases with a domed clear plastic cover to be essential. I'm probably forgetting a couple of things, but you get the idea.

There are some great tutorials and hints on this site, and their search system is a lot better than other forums I've used, so make use of it.

Good luck, and expect to destroy the occasional movement when you first start, so buy some really cheap watches to practice on.

 

[bolo33]

I was just going to start a thread in regards to anyone ordering the DSN 088. Hmmmm....what to do now????

 

[smithy37]

I was just going to start a thread in regards to anyone ordering the DSN 088. Hmmmm....what to do now????

The watch is beautiful and has easily become my favourite piece. Don't be put off by the problem I have/had. This is totally normal in rep culture. The savings you make over a genuine far outweigh the cons of the occasionally sticky movement.

My advice is go for it. Alternatively, wait until I have mine back and I have taken some killer pictures of it.

 

[smithy37]

Re: Pam 088 GMT stopping - Returned but problem still there

Well, I received my Pam 088 GMT back from Davidsen today. I was all excited because I finally had my prettiest watch back. The joy, however, was short lived. As soon as I opened the package the time was reading 4.20pm. This was around the time the watch used to stop. A coincedence, I hoped. Unfortunately not!

Yes, I have it back and every 24 hours it stops at 4.20pm. The second hand is still catching the GMT hand as it passes over (around 4.20pm, surprise, surprise).

I am gutted. What a wast of money sending it back & inevitably I am going to be without the watch for another 3-4 weeks and out of pocket further.

What do you suggest I do. I was quite concise and clear in my descrition of the fault, so I cannot blame a break down in communication. I attached a letter with the returned watch detailing the problems (there were two other issues that have been resolved).

I have emailred Davidsen asking what I should do next, but I would appreciate some input here. Should I let him try and fix it again? Seek compensation? Or, just ask for my money back?

 

[Drulee]

Oh man, I'm sorry to hear that. So basically, there's no doubt he just sent the one that you returned back? Couple of questions. Did you manage to send it registered to his PO Box? And where are you located? (never mind, I see you're in England )

I'm glad I decided not to return my 088, and just had it fixed locally. I've got it back and everything is looking good. Still don't know what I'm going to do with the 228, though, and after hearing the way he handled you problem, I don't really want to spend any money on shipping.

As it seems that it is only the seconds hand that needs to be re-seated, and perhaps the GMT hand nudged up a bit, I would look for a local watch smith. It will probably cost around the same as shipping would. Let him know this is what you want to do and ask how he thinks you should be compensated. I have a feeling he will just ask you to send it back, but you can always try.

 

[Tubbs]

Oh deary me! shocking!

Personally if it is indeed a fast/cheap fix, local watchsmith all the way! if the rest of the watch is good and your happy with it, then a local watch smith would be the same as shipping costs approximately (as Drulee has mentioned).

Except, I know you can be there in 20mins, pay your cash (but you know its going to be fixed!) and return all good and wearing your watch in an hour at most! (make sure you book it in for around 4.00pm, this way you will see the fix! :shock: )

Then ask DSN if he would be happy to re-imburse your watch smith costs, £10/15approx?! service & reg whilst your at it! or simply give you an email discount voucher off another purchase! :lol:

Its not all bad, just ruddy frustrating!

 

[smithy37]

Thanks Drulee & Tubbs for the words of encouragement. I was devestated yesterday, but seem to have gotten over it today

I have spoke to David and I am going to send it back. I think from what I am reading, he is going to send a new one to me when I let him have the tracking number of the one going back.

There were other issues with the watch. A slipping crown & the date didn't change automatically. Both of these issues have been resolved, it is just the watch stopping at 4.20pm that is the bummer. So it looks like he has fixed some of the problems, just not all of them.

I would look at a local watchsmith, but finding one who will work on a replica is very difficult. I have had the big heave-ho from two all ready. That is why I am building my tool collection up so I can tackle simple fixes myself.

One day, I should be an expert at this :lol:

 

[Tubbs]

Smith, I thought that watchsmith that you sent your brother in law's Blackbird too was a good source?

 

[smithy37]

I rang him and told him the problem and he point blank refused to work on it. I guess he has gone cold on the idea. Pity really.

I have sent it back to Davidsen again. It has so many airmiles now I am sure it will be uprgraded to first class on it's way back. He is going to send a replacement and a croc strap with a deploy buckle as compensation. Can't say fairer than that.

 

[Tubbs]

That will be the same strap I managed to blag in addition to my rubber with deploy.

Black crock with deploy and white stitching, permanent marker the way forward! :lol:

 

[smithy37]

Black wash in die will probably work better. At least it won't wash off!

 

[Tubbs]

Your talking me here Mr. Smith and the marker was at hand!

It wont be on long enough to rub off!