TC Elabore 2824 Yacht Master 16622 First Look

[Thrasher]

How do you know? For me its a glorified asían ETA, made in the USA. The TC Sub I got me had a problem in the keyless, it was replaced brand new (TC sold -not replaced for free- another "elabore" ETA from which the replacement keyless work came from) and now it's broken again and the crown is slipping.


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I dont think so, I think a majority of parts are made in the USA and assembled in the USA so it may be better I hope, at least cleaner??/

 

[lgking]

So Jonathan, when you informed TC of your situation and dilema regarding your watch...what was his response...?

Originally Posted by jonathanw
How do you know? For me its a glorified asían ETA, made in the USA. The TC Sub I got me had a problem in the keyless, it was replaced brand new (TC sold -not replaced for free- another "elabore" ETA from which the replacement keyless work came from) and now it's broken again and the crown is slipping."

 

[ddbomber20]

Saw the Gen at an AD for the first time today and now my opinion that this is a super rep is confirmed. absolutely everything is spot on and nobody except an AD could tell it is a rep i think

 

[SerafinWatch]

Saw the Gen at an AD for the first time today and now my opinion that this is a super rep is confirmed. absolutely everything is spot on and nobody except an AD could tell it is a rep i think

except the model currently sold at the AD is totally a different model.
bright lights do their part. In my elevator with full bright lights (and shiny metal) I cant even distinguish between my rep sub and gen sub.

 

[lgking]

I did happen to visit a 'second-hand' shop (non AD) about a month ago that had in stock a 2002 L-Serial 16622, and while wearing my TC did a quick 2 minute comparison. While the Rolex felt more 'substantial' in my hand, you could hardly see a difference with the naked eye. The salesman said that his looked to be about the same year as mine.

 

[jonathanw]

I have three TC watches and the crown on two (LN & LV) broke within days so I had it replaced with a new Genuine crown and a WSO tube. Then prior to my YM getting here I bought a new genuine crown and WSO tube but the Yachtmaster crown is solid as a rock for me!

Thats a shame! I will then buy a gen crown and tube too..

Im sorry to hear about your bad luck but for most people TC watches work great and is very very good quality. Whenever you have anything that's assembled by hand, there will be mistakes occasionally but that doesn't take away that his watches are still head and shoulders above every other rep OTB of the same model

Never doubting the quality and detail of the Rep is top notch! however the movement is no way an Elabore grade, its the same as an Asian ETA. the rep itself is superb, no doubting nor denying that.

Is the keyless works spontaneously breaking or are you removing the stem from the watch?

it arrived broke to the first buyer, he had it fixed by his watch smith by having TC sell him a complete "new" TC Elabore movement , the watch smith took the keyless from the new TC movement, and put it into the broken TC Sub, he sold it to me, it arrived directly to MY watch smith which told me its broken again...

I dont think so, I think a majority of parts are made in the USA and assembled in the USA so it may be better I hope, at least cleaner??/

Cleaner... maybe, we can only hope for that! I always have all my reps serviced before using, even cheap A23Js... I don't think TC has a clean facility where he himself assembles the movements.. Im sure they must be assembled in a dirty factory too.

So Jonathan, when you informed TC of your situation and dilema regarding your watch...what was his response...?

Originally Posted by jonathanw
How do you know? For me its a glorified asían ETA, made in the USA. The TC Sub I got me had a problem in the keyless, it was replaced brand new (TC sold -not replaced for free- another "elabore" ETA from which the replacement keyless work came from) and now it's broken again and the crown is slipping."

I dont know as I am the second buyer.

 

[Raddave]

@jonathanw maybe your keyless isnt messed up, maybe the crown clutch is the whole problem ?

 

[jonathanw]

@jonathanw maybe your keyless isnt messed up, maybe the crown clutch is the whole problem ?

Could be, I would have to send it to an expert like Domi or misekped. Still, the hand movement while setting date / time is an instant tell, so IMHO every good rep should have a yuki 3135 cause A3135 are unreliable, the issue is the added cost. Yuki will only take gen hands and gen DW, plus the cost of the yuki itself and the service...

 

[Raddave]

............Still, the hand movement while setting date / time is an instant tell, ...

You mean the rotational direction of the hands vs the crown direction ?

 

[jonathanw]

You mean the rotational direction of the hands vs the crown direction ?

Yes exactly, fortunately this is a closed caseback and I always say I bought it used for a steal price with broken R3135 and had it replaced by a cheaper overhauled R3035 (hand / crown movement identical to ETA)


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[Raddave]

Yes exactly, fortunately this is a closed caseback and I always say I bought it used for a steal price with broken R3135 and had it replaced by a cheaper overhauled R3035 (hand / crown movement identical to ETA)


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Now im confused........i thought you had a TC 2824

 

[sawalke4]

I was going to keep quiet given the reputation TC has, however I feel the need to speak up. After reading the blog and all the rave reviews and pics in this thread, I decided to go ahead and purchase the watch because I wanted an out of the box rollie that needed no modding. After waiting and anticipating for 2 months my TC YM KH arrived. The watch is definitely well constructed and the dial is phenomenal, however I was disappointed in a few things. My bezel had tarnish stains in several locations. Not the sandblasting pits as described but discoloration in the metal. Not too noticeable but once you observed the watch you could definitely see it. Also the Rolex coronet logo on the clasp appeared to be stamped from a darker brass like metal and then plated. It looked like some of the plating had worn through and the brass below was showing. Again not too noticeable but definitely apparent. How could the bezel tarnish pass QC and be missed while hand assembling the watch? Does TC really hand assemble each and every watch? Because it's his hobby and it gives him pleasure... I'm not so sure. I have a strong suspicion he contracts a third party watchmaker to do some assembly of the watches. Which is what he did for mine. Any one of us would reject the watch if we got QC pics from one of our TD's. The watch is nice but the clasp is substandard. I also have a feeling this "elabore" movement is nothing more than an A2824 with a TC datewheel that has been regulated. IMO this watch is certainly a nice rep but does not live up to the hype of this thread.

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[mocca]

Now im confused........i thought you had a TC 2824

Lol I am confused too. I thought it was the TC 2824 that was broken

 

[SerafinWatch]

I was going to keep quiet given the reputation TC has, however I feel the need to speak up. After reading the blog and all the rave reviews and pics in this thread, I decided to go ahead and purchase the watch because I wanted an out of the box rollie that needed no modding. After waiting and anticipating for 2 months my TC YM KH arrived. The watch is definitely well constructed and the dial is phenomenal, however I was disappointed in a few things. My bezel had tarnish stains in several locations. Not the sandblasting pits as described but discoloration in the metal. Not too noticeable but once you observed the watch you could definitely see it. Also the Rolex coronet logo on the clasp appeared to be stamped from a darker brass like metal and then plated. It looked like some of the plating had worn through and the brass below was showing. Again not too noticeable but definitely apparent. How could the bezel tarnish pass QC and be missed while hand assembling the watch? Does TC really hand assemble each and every watch? Because it's his hobby and it gives him pleasure... I'm not so sure. I have a strong suspicion he contracts a third party watchmaker to do some assembly of the watches. Which is what he did for mine. Any one of us would reject the watch if we got QC pics from one of our TD's. The watch is nice but the clasp is substandard. I also have a feeling this "elabore" movement is nothing more than an A2824 with a TC datewheel that has been regulated. IMO this watch is certainly a nice rep but does not live up to the hype of this thread.

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thank you very much for you input. I always had this feeling after spending 1500$ on a franken of the tc sub v6. I was thrilled when the new yacht master from tc came out, but I was very skeptical if its worth the money. So no more blind buys (even if its called tc or noob or j12) thanks to you.

 

[Raddave]

I was going to keep quiet given the reputation TC has, however I feel the need to speak up. After reading the blog and all the rave reviews and pics in this thread, I decided to go ahead and purchase the watch because I wanted an out of the box rollie that needed no modding. After waiting and anticipating for 2 months my TC YM KH arrived. The watch is definitely well constructed and the dial is phenomenal, however I was disappointed in a few things. My bezel had tarnish stains in several locations. Not the sandblasting pits as described but discoloration in the metal. Not too noticeable but once you observed the watch you could definitely see it. Also the Rolex coronet logo on the clasp appeared to be stamped from a darker brass like metal and then plated. It looked like some of the plating had worn through and the brass below was showing. Again not too noticeable but definitely apparent. How could the bezel tarnish pass QC and be missed while hand assembling the watch? Does TC really hand assemble each and every watch? Because it's his hobby and it gives him pleasure... I'm not so sure. I have a strong suspicion he contracts a third party watchmaker to do some assembly of the watches. Which is what he did for mine. Any one of us would reject the watch if we got QC pics from one of our TD's. The watch is nice but the clasp is substandard. I also have a feeling this "elabore" movement is nothing more than an A2824 with a TC datewheel that has been regulated. IMO this watch is certainly a nice rep but does not live up to the hype of this thread.

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pics?

 

[sawalke4]

thank you very much for you input. I always had this feeling after spending 1500$ on a franken of the tc sub v6. I was thrilled when the new yacht master from tc came out, but I was very skeptical if its worth the money. So no more blind buys (even if its called tc or noob or j12) thanks to you.

Yes no problem. I think when people spend >$500 on a rep it's easy to put blinders on and convince yourself how good it is but any rep has flaws. IMO It's better to stick to standard reps and enjoy them for what they are.

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[sawalke4]

pics?

You can see around the 10 and in the middle of the 0 it appears to be dirt. This was in several other places around the first like the three ticks and to the left of the triangle. It is not dirt it's a tarnish in the texture of the surface. On the coronet you can see the dark metal underneath the silver.

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[R2D4]

Yes no problem. I think when people spend >$500 on a rep it's easy to put blinders on and convince yourself how good it is but any rep has flaws. IMO It's better to stick to standard reps and enjoy them for what they are.

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Owning a TC is just the beginning of a journey. Some people don't understand that. Those who buy a TC are buying a base watch to build upon from one guy who does this for a hobby. There is some marketing behind this too, which I think people put too much stock in, when making the decision to buy. It's not the the best sub, it has the potential to be the most accurate Sub. I get some of the frustrations of those who spend so much and have a non working watch arrive but that's part of the game.

Having said that, I couldn't agree with you more about buying a cheaper one and enjoying it. It's a better starting point IMHO.

 

[Thrasher]

I think they are great watches for 1/10th the price (LN & LV & YM) and if we do some mods or have to make some improvements big deal, For me I like to learn and build , even if my hands aren't steady enough, the more I try the better I get and the more involved I get the more I understand, Sure we have doubts about TCs operation but the guy has a lot of positives that no one else has. If your unhappy with his watch send it back, tell him it didn't meet your expectations, Ask for repairs, replacements or a refund, if we don't ask we wont get. Supporting TC is one thing but we don't help him with blind loyalty, I have complained about my bad crowns and got free TC parts for my Sea Dweller. He is very busy but I think fair. Hostility will get you know where only direct facts and asking for a solution.

 

[JoeyT]