Tonight's Constellation

Secrets of the night, revealed.

Cartier Lady Tank Solo Restoration Works

An associate lamented that a Cartier Tank Solo, which he purchased for his other half many years back, was in need of servicing and he was quoted in the region of RM2,000 by the Malaysian SC. For a watch that had seen better years previously and that would cost circa RM8,000 new these days (or RM4,000 in its current condition), it would seemed to be a fool's errand to spend half of its value to put it back in shape.

I called a watchsmith that had previously assisted on some premium pieces, and found that he had since relocated overseas. I asked if he could assist to take a look at this piece, and he agreed to assist accordingly. Courier with insurance was soon arranged; and with zippy effort, a return courier was soon sent to my home.

The Tank had been duly-serviced and kept good time now, and beautifully-polished such that it looked much better compared to the tired-looking piece that was sent to me some time ago. It had regained its classiness and looked ready to adorn its mistress' wrist for many years to come. Enjoy the pictures hereafter.

And best of all, he had charged me a buddy price such that this restored Tank watch only cost RM300 all-in. And I ain't kidding about that.

Ball Engineer 2 Genesis : New Shoes

I ordered this custom-assembled Ball Engineer 2 Genesis during Ball's 50th Anniversary model launch late last year. It came with bracelet or leather strap options; and my plan was to order the bracelet and swap it with a leather thereafter.

After the watch was sent from Swiss, I would soon find out that finding a matching strap was not as easy as initially thought as the lug size was at a rather rare 21mm. Prior to the watch's arrival, I had ordered a calf leather in blue dye, which ought to match the Genesis rather nicely. However, due to the strap being a 22mm, there was a little resistance when paired to the watch. Not a deal breaker, but the search for a good matching strap continues.

Without a good strap and not wanting to scratch the bracelet, the watch was left largely unworn in the watch winder. Searching a 21mm watch strap with good, soft leather proved to be an interesting process. I went to quite a few shops and the options were either 20mm or 22mm, both of which was not the best fit.

Expanding my search through the social media, I was offered a new IWC 21mm soft calf leather strap, which was initially meant for a Flieger. I thought that there was no harm purchasing it, as I could retro-fit the strap to my Archimede Flieger A if it proved to be not suitable for the Ball Genesis. The straps above soon came vide the courier, and I wasted no time in putting on the new shoes on the Genesis.

Lo and behold, the IWC Flieger strap was a great fit paired with the Genesis. The width was a perfect fit, the leather was soft on the wrist, and it looked as though it was meant to be paired in this manner right from the factory floor.

I am generally satisfied with the current setup, and it would looked as though the Genesis could earn some actual wrist times after the wrist shots above. What do you think of the Genesis' look above, dear readers?

Rolex : 1st Price Increase for 2017

Well, it should come as no surprise that Rolex would have price increases from time to time, but the 1st price increase from the Malaysian RRP would take place from Monday, 16th January 2017 where the prices would increase by approximately 7%. Therefore, it ain't surprising to find Rolex fans hitting the ADs to net their fave Rolex watches, prior to the actual price increase. In fact, I was informed by one of the ADs about a month back, with regards to the scheduled price increase, no thanks partly to the depreciating local currency.

I duly-passed on the information then, which was how I found myself seated at the AD to assist a family member to pick up a piece of Datejust diamond in rose gold, over 2 dials- silver or rose gold. With a RRP : RM43,070 prior to the price increase, I was offered the piece at RM40,800 as a final purchase price. Rolex being Rolex, it would likely be an easy flip with minimal depreciation should one decides to flip it in future. Of course, the Rolex sports watches would then to retain their prices better due to the bigger demand. 

The final selection came to this piece, and a very handsome piece at that.

The AD informed me that they were also expecting 2 pieces of Daytona Ceramic- in black and white, and that they would be letting those go at circa RM72k - RM75k, quite a hefty premium compared to the Rolex RRP. I also spotted a Rolex Sea-Dweller Ceramic or SD4K in the glass case, which was going at RM38k without discount. And that is my personal favourite Rolex piece.

A Quick Flip : Omega Speedy Moonwatch Pro Hesalite

I have always been a fan of Speedy in its various guises, and this was one of those occasions whereby I happened to be at the right place at the right time. I saw a boutique that had 2 pieces of Moonwatch Pro - with hesalite crystal and sapphire crystal; and the salesperson recognised me as I had previously bought watches from their shop before. She showed me both pieces, and made me an offer that I couldn't refuse : if I could take both pieces, she would persuade her boss to give me 30% off the listed price. 

Now, I have been offered 30% off Omega diver watches prior to this, so it was't exactly something that made me fell off my seat. But discounts for Speedy was generally very little as the pieces moved off shelves pretty quickly, so I took heed there. I told her that I could not take both pieces then and there; but that if they could indeed give me the 30% discount, I would take the hesalite piece and consider the sapphire piece as my next purchase. She made a quick call; and next thing I knew, I have a beautiful Speedy Pro on my wrist.

But that was not the end of the story. I posted a pic of the Speedy as per below, and a fan whom had been looking for the hesalite piece contacted me vide Messenger and made me an offer towards the piece. Less than 24 hours since I got the Speedy, the monies spent plus a cool 5 grand profit, speedily made its way back into my pocket. A win-win situation indeed.

Lum-Tec Accessories For Sale : 24mm Straps and 22mm Deployment Clasp

Well, I was looking through my watch accessories' cabinet earlier and found some watch straps that could do with some real wrist time rather than being kept in solitude in the cabinet. So here goes :

1) 24mm Lum-Tec black leather strap (red threads) with quick-release lugs, matched with Lum-Tec buckle @ RM130.

NB : Normal price for strap (USD39.50) and buckle (USD12.50) at Lum-Tec, now letting go cheap for clearance.

2) 24mm Lum-Tec rubber strap with Lum-Tec buckle @ RM110.

NB : Normal price of this strap and buckle combination (USD39.95) at Lum-Tec, now letting go cheap for clearance.

3) 22mm Lum-Tec Deployment Buckle @ RM100.

NB : Normal price of this deployment buckle (USD34.95) at Lum-Tec, now letting go cheap for clearance.

First Post of the New Year

Happy New Year to all my readers!

The last 2 months had been rather hectic, what with the year-end closing and business travels, so I have not had much chance to venture into my blog and update my posts. I did read through the e-mails that readers sent over- a few selected ones I had replied (I was always interested in the ones asking for opinion on watches that they were buying soon), many more I had to wait until I have more time to answer individually or generally vide the blog here.

There had been some additions over the months, and some quick flips too. Times are getting more challenging for the Malaysian economy, so I gathered from managers of the watch shops that I frequented, that locals were not really buying these days. But due to the heavily-depreciated MYR currency, the tourists especially from China and Singapore, were on a buying spree and would wallop a few pieces per person. Va va voom...

Just a quick shot at the state of the winder tonight- there were 10 watches residing in there, but only 5 could be see in the dark of the night. My son says that they looked like stars up the skies. How many of the 5 could you identify correctly?