The AP questions thread (All the questions you want to ask about AP but were afraid to)

[Dienekes]

Greetings fellow watch aficionados!

I've spent a lot of time reading your knowledgeable posts and feasting my eyes on pictures of great timepieces, be it gen or rep. And for that, I thank you all. I'm ready to order my very first rep and since it will be an AP RO, 15500 ST with silver/white dial, to be exact, today I wanted to ask you this question, with movement reliability in mind. Which one would be a safer choice:

JTIME

JTIME WATCH

jtime.io

or

JTIME

JTIME WATCH

jtime.io

I might ad, that the closet similarity of rep to gen doesn't bother me in the slightest. I want to buy a solid, reliable watch for me (as far as it its possible in the rep realm, obviously), not to fool anyone.

Kind regards,

Radosław

 

[Kettle1]

Greetings fellow watch aficionados!

I've spent a lot of time reading your knowledgeable posts and feasting my eyes on pictures of great timepieces, be it gen or rep. And for that, I thank you all. I'm ready to order my very first rep and since it will be an AP RO, 15500 ST with silver/white dial, to be exact, today I wanted to ask you this question, with movement reliability in mind. Which one would be a safer choice:

JTIME

JTIME WATCH

jtime.io

or

JTIME

JTIME WATCH

jtime.io

I might ad, that the closet similarity of rep to gen doesn't bother me in the slightest. I want to buy a solid, reliable watch for me (as far as it its possible in the rep realm, obviously), not to fool anyone.

Kind regards,

Radosław

Hi Mate,

That is a good attitude to adopt. Never buy the watch to fool anyone. The only fool is the person wearing the rep because they want to impress people. These are the people that will not fool anyone. Wear it for fun and just enjoy the hell out of it.

To answer your question, the Miyota is always the safest bet when it comes to reliability. If this is your top priority, then I would highly recommend it. Some refer to it as a work horse movement for that exact reason. Parts are cheap to replace and can be serviced very easily. On the downside the rotor can be noisy and doesn't have instant date change. If this bothers you, you can always ask a modder on here and they can silence this no problem.

On the other hand, the 4302 is a relatively new movement and has not been tried and tested enough to contest its reliability. However, it has instant date change and functions almost identically with its gen counterpart. An incredible movement and from what I have read, one of the best clones made. Personally I would go for the 4302 and perhaps, if something did ever go wrong, I would ask a modder if they could replace with a Miyota.


Good choice for your first rep BTW. IMHO its the best AP rep available. Enjoy it and wear in good health.

 

[Dienekes]

Hi Mate,

That is a good attitude to adopt. Never buy the watch to fool anyone. The only fool is the person wearing the rep because they want to impress people. These are the people that will not fool anyone. Wear it for fun and just enjoy the hell out of it.

To answer your question, the Miyota is always the safest bet when it comes to reliability. If this is your top priority, then I would highly recommend it. Some refer to it as a work horse movement for that exact reason. Parts are cheap to replace and can be serviced very easily. On the downside the rotor can be noisy and doesn't have instant date change. If this bothers you, you can always ask a modder on here and they can silence this no problem.

On the other hand, the 4302 is a relatively new movement and has not been tried and tested enough to contest its reliability. However, it has instant date change and functions almost identically with its gen counterpart. An incredible movement and from what I have read, one of the best clones made. Personally I would go for the 4302 and perhaps, if something did ever go wrong, I would ask a modder if they could replace with a Miyota.


Good choice for your first rep BTW. IMHO its the best AP rep available. Enjoy it and wear in good health.

Hello,

Thanks for your kind words and reply. I do own two watches with Miyota movements (9015 and 90S5). Good stuff, not so noisy in my case, but this might be watch/ case dependent. What baffled me a bit is that supposedly 4302 is based on 9015 (so I've read) and I don't know whether this means it is a dressed up 9015 or completely new movement (copy od Miyota with needed changes to make it look like gen AP movement).

Anyway, there's no clear winner, as I expected I need to ponder upon this. Again

Kind regards,

Radosław

 

[CHRISGT]

hello to all.
i am searching for the AP ROO models,26420 43mm,i think year introduced 2021.
I cannot find them in any TD,any help would be appreciated.

Thank u

 

[Kettle1]

Hi mate,























If your priority is reliability you can always rely on a miyota which is known for its reliaability and . Rotors a little but thee ate many

Hello,

Thanks for your kind words and reply. I do own two watches with Miyota movements (9015 and 90S5). Good stuff, not so noisy in my case, but this might be watch/ case dependent. What baffled me a bit is that supposedly 4302 is based on 9015 (so I've read) and I don't know whether this means it is a dressed up 9015 or completely new movement (copy od Miyota with needed changes to make it look like gen AP movement).

Anyway, there's no clear winner, as I expected I need to ponder upon this. Again

Kind regards,

Radosław

Hi mate, no problem and happy to help. For clarity, all decorated miyotas are dressed to look like the gen movement of the piece they are fitted to. However, for this particular piece your look at, there is a clone version of the 4302 movement and a Miyota version decoated to look like a 4302 movement.

Ponder away my friend. There is extensive info on this forum about all these movements. Just do your homework and you will prevail !

 

[critical_]

I have an almost new 15500 ZF v3 with the super clone movement. I am having an intermittent issue with the date and time setting function. I have a video that I can share but the written description is: Periodically when the crown is rotated to set the date or time, the watch will making a click noise and the date or hands won't move. Pulling or pushing the stem (depending on the function) and trying again generally addresses it. I have emailed watchmakers for help but haven't heard back. What should I do?

 

[Kettle1]

I have an almost new 15500 ZF v3 with the super clone movement. I am having an intermittent issue with the date and time setting function. I have a video that I can share but the written description is: Periodically when the crown is rotated to set the date or time, the watch will making a click noise and the date or hands won't move. Pulling or pushing the stem (depending on the function) and trying again generally addresses it. I have emailed watchmakers for help but haven't heard back. What should I do?

I am no watch expert but surely you need to have this serviced. You need reach out to a watchmaker for full service and regulation of the movement. Allot of these pieces I hear, regardless of movement reliability, gather dust and have ungreased components that can lead to issues.

 

[W47chl0v3r]

Where can I go to service all of my watches for fear of dust and proper greasing so that they can be COSC certified?

Can my watchmaker replace the parts so that the watch runs better than the one from Switzerland too for 1/20th of the service cost?

 

[critical_]

I am no watch expert but surely you need to have this serviced. You need reach out to a watchmaker for full service and regulation of the movement. Allot of these pieces I hear, regardless of movement reliability, gather dust and have ungreased components that can lead to issues.

I haven't been able to get a hold of any in the U.S. that can service this movement.

 

[Kettle1]

I suggest if there are no domestic watchmakers that can help, you get in touch with ap expert Legend or AMF who service/modify pieces. I cannot guarantee they can help, as they are very busy and may expect a meaningful amount of works/mods to justify allocating their time to the job but worth a try. It would involve sending the watch to asia but its prob your best bet by the sounds of things. Good luck sir and hope you get it sorted.

 

[critical_]

Kettle1: Thanks

 

[legend]

Greetings fellow watch aficionados!

I've spent a lot of time reading your knowledgeable posts and feasting my eyes on pictures of great timepieces, be it gen or rep. And for that, I thank you all. I'm ready to order my very first rep and since it will be an AP RO, 15500 ST with silver/white dial, to be exact, today I wanted to ask you this question, with movement reliability in mind. Which one would be a safer choice:

JTIME

JTIME WATCH

jtime.io

or

JTIME

JTIME WATCH

jtime.io

I might ad, that the closet similarity of rep to gen doesn't bother me in the slightest. I want to buy a solid, reliable watch for me (as far as it its possible in the rep realm, obviously), not to fool anyone.

Kind regards,

Radosław

Hi Radoslaw

I will tell you to go for the 4302. It can be made reliable for daily wear. The miyota is a cheap rattly movement, and is prone to hairspring issues. The upside is that it is cheap to replace, but then the inherent risks and issues of the movement does not change. Yes it is fairly reliable, but the 4302 can be made reliable too, with an instant change and the ability to take on gen parts (not all but some), I will recommend you buy the one with the 4302 clone movement. This is my opinion. I do not care for the miyota movement myself but accept that it is the movement of choice from an economical and reliability point of view for both the makers and owners. I only need to say 3 things: The faux decoration plates look cheap, the balance wheel is in the wrong place and the date change takes over 1hr typically. It depends on what you are after but if I am you, I will go for the 4302. No second thoughts.

 

[critical_]

@legend Your response wasn’t directly to me but the feedback resonates with me. I am looking to find a replacement stem, crown tube and crown for the 4302 (in a ZF v3). How do we source these parts from a reputable vendor? So far I have had no luck. That’s where a Miyota might have been a bit easier but a source for parts would be awesome.

 

[legend]

@legend Your response wasn’t directly to me but the feedback resonates with me. I am looking to find a replacement stem, crown tube and crown for the 4302 (in a ZF v3). How do we source these parts from a reputable vendor? So far I have had no luck. That’s where a Miyota might have been a bit easier but a source for parts would be awesome.

I will help you ask.

So you need crown tube, crown and stem for the clone movement 4302 yes?

 

[critical_]

I will help you ask.

So you need crown tube, crown and stem for the clone movement 4302 yes?

Thank you so much for the generous offer.

Yes, that’s what my trusted watchmaker believes is needed for the intermittent date and time change issue I noted above. If you feel I may need more, happy to overpurchase (to keep spares around) or if I can form a communication channel directly that would be helpful. I know you’re very busy and I don’t want to bother you unnecessarily. Thank you again in advance.

 

[Dienekes]

Hi Radoslaw

I will tell you to go for the 4302. It can be made reliable for daily wear. The miyota is a cheap rattly movement, and is prone to hairspring issues. The upside is that it is cheap to replace, but then the inherent risks and issues of the movement does not change. Yes it is fairly reliable, but the 4302 can be made reliable too, with an instant change and the ability to take on gen parts (not all but some), I will recommend you buy the one with the 4302 clone movement. This is my opinion. I do not care for the miyota movement myself but accept that it is the movement of choice from an economical and reliability point of view for both the makers and owners. I only need to say 3 things: The faux decoration plates look cheap, the balance wheel is in the wrong place and the date change takes over 1hr typically. It depends on what you are after but if I am you, I will go for the 4302. No second thoughts.

Hello Legend,

I do appreciate your input, for obvious reasons and thank you for your reply. I reckon I will go for the latest and greatest then

Kind regards,

Radosław

 

[Magic Mike]

Hello, one question which is the best clone of 15450 (37mm royal oak) I want to buy girlfriend's b-day. White dial would be optimal.
Used or franken are also an option and if in Europe that would be optimal. Advices please

 

[Caril]

Hello, one question which is the best clone of 15450 (37mm royal oak) I want to buy girlfriend's b-day. White dial would be optimal.
Used or franken are also an option and if in Europe that would be optimal. Advices please

The optimal color is be the color she would like to wear the most.

 

[Colemd]

just placed and order other a TD and received some QC photos does anyone know where to get the new quick interchange bands or does the clasp only have a quick release if anyone has this model I would love some feed back on the strap ? I also notice many complain the bezel is sharper on the rep vs the gen but These look pretty smooth.

 

[legend]

just placed and order other a TD and received some QC photos does anyone know where to get the new quick interchange bands or does the clasp only have a quick release if anyone has this model I would love some feed back on the strap ? I also notice many complain the bezel is sharper on the rep vs the gen but These look pretty smooth.

On this model, the watch should already have quick release on the straps and buckle both. If you are looking for quick release straps, I have the gen for this model, brand new, which I will putting up for sale soon. The colors on the gen and rep straps are rather different from what I see.
Take a look below on the color of the gen straps. But the rep is still a vibrant looking watch, which you should enjoy for the fun of it.

On bezel and case edge sharpness, you need to understand that on the modern APs, they can be rather sharp too. There is a very fine line between the edge line being crisp AF and a little too sharp and I think that the gen and rep makers both do well in this aspect, don't worry too much about it.