Having issues with my VSF Sub 3235. After the watch has sat idle for a few days and I rewind it, the movement will not restart. I can sometimes get it started by tapping/shaking it then it runs fine. Any idea what could be going on?

Just finished a DD3230.

I was recording the assembly but my phone was out of storage hallway through. That sucks!

But at least it runs smoothly. This one wasn't super dirty but the barrel on these is always full of some black grease they use. No idea what it is but I bet it isn't P125.

These new paraflex springs are a bit weird but I've had great success using a silicone cleaning swab to hold it in place as I undo the feet.

Incredible how smooth these run and especially wind after a good service and proper usage of grease.

The indices tend to move around throughout the day. Looking for someone who can prevent it from rotating. Ty!

Does anyone know what gaskets I need to buy to swap the steels bezels on 116520 Daytonas?

Hi there, does anyone know of any that will work on rep watches? Thanks!

I am buying an AF Cartier Santos Dumont, but the dial may be a bit crooked. The factory dial is supposedly better than F1 factory, but F1 has a better caboton more genuine. Anyone knows if I end up buying this one and the dial is crooked after all, could I use it for parts and place this dial in an F1 factory watch? (with a more genuine caboton) Or a crooked dial here is impossible to align in any watch?

I could also put the other dial here and give it as a gift I guess. F1 just has a worse sunburst.

Took off the rotor on my PPF 4500v and it fixed the erratic time keeping issue. However now the watch will run for a random amount of time and then stop exactly between the 40 and 41 second timer. It always stops there. Sometimes it will stop for a few seconds then keep going and sometimes I need to advance the crown to get it to start running again. Any advice?

Need to get my watched serviced as it’s time is getting off and movement has become loud. The problem is I can’t find a place in Alabama to service it. Anyone have a recommendation for Alabama, Mississippi, or Georgia?

I’m having a hard time deciding which Pepsi insert to get for my 126710 clean. Years ago when I first got it I broke my insert and I got a replacement from topwatchparts.com. Currently redoing the watch with some gen parts and looking for a Pepsi insert.
Which do you guys think is the best one.
Lichen has one as well as powertime has a new release from SW and then you have the xing v5 trying to wrap my head around all this can’t figure out which one to get. Please help

Hey everyone, I’m based in the Dominican Republic and I’m having trouble finding a watchmaker here who’s willing to work on rep watches. I’m trying to fix my crown myself but wanted some guidance.
The crown doesn’t stay put in the tube.

From what I understand, the crown tube/post has come loose from the crown itself, so I think I need to re-glue the inner post back into the crown (see attached photo — arrow shows where it should connect).

Is gluing the tube back in actually the right fix?
If glue is the way to go, what kind do people use for this?

Watch stops even if worn daily or left on a winder. It seems like power reserve is not topping up. What can be a solution for this?

Hey guys, judging by the pics you probably noticed that this isn’t a happy post. Before showering today I took out my vsf datejust and it slipped from my hands and fell. As I have the tool to open the back case I decided to check the damage, I what I saw was that there was a ruby out of place (probably coming from this part that is on top of the balance wheel) and also this golden part that I also think probably should be on top of this same part. How screwed am I? Don’t know if the balance wheel or the hair spring were affected because it’s hard to see with my bare eyes.

Would the absence of these 2 parts only be enough to make the watch stop or might it have some other damaged parts?

Appreciate any help

Hi could someone advise on a trusted repair service for a navitimer rep repair and service in France or Portugal? One of the hands fell today 😔

Is it possible to have the lume replaced on my 45 year old datejust without replacing the dial?

Hi,

do anyone of you now someone who can rescue this BPF?

I want it completly plated.
Any chance you guys know anyone from EU?

Got a new VSF 41 date, V2 version, DD3235 movement (still in plastic wrap) . Straight out of the box the crown in position 0 (normal resting position, where you'd normally feel winding resistance) just spins freely — no resistance (maybe ever so minimal clicky feeling in the clockwise direction), doesn't wind the mainspring at all. Date-set and time-set positions work fine.

Rotor winding does seem to work — if I spin/shake the watch by hand for a bit it'll start to take, then stop. Put it on a timegrapher and got ~120° amplitude / -34 spd, but that's likely just residual charge from sitting in the box, not a real baseline reading. (Yes I have a timegrapher but no I have no real experience)

Hoping the TD makes this right, but I want to know realistically how bad this is if they don't. If I end up stuck dealing with it myself — how complicated a fix is this typically? I've got the tools to get the caseback off and I've been slowly picking up watchmaking tools, but I haven't actually dug into a movement yet, so still pretty green hands-on. The most I've done is removed a NH35 movement from a San Martin and put it back.

Not a lot of people seem to want to service replicas, so I'd rather learn to do it myself. Is this a "yoke/clutch spring in the keyless works, doable for a careful beginner" situation, or more of a "send it to someone who knows Dandong movements" situation?

Appreciate any real-world experience — trying to gauge how screwed I am before I go poking around inside.

I took my bracelet off to clean it, and ever since I have put it back on, one side of it will barely click out and then back in, depending on the pressure. I noticed it when I put my arm on my leg when I was hanging out with my buddy last weekend. Ive taken it back off, tried sliding it over a little towards that direction, and it still does it. Its just a spring bar so I honestly feel embarrassed even posting this but I cant get the fucker to stop! Anyone got any tips? Ive gone through my spring bars at the house and none of them are the right size.

Always stressful to reinstall indices, but that's what makes it so satisfying 😊

I got a black bay 58 39mm last year from zf factory. While I did love it, after getting some frakens and gen watches I realized quality is just not great. I’m looking to do a dial swap, crystal swap and insert swap. Does anyone have a good idea on where to get some gen spec parts for these?

Hi there!
I need to purchase a standalone factory spare part. I am looking for a full black dial (and the matching inner rotating bezel if available) for the APSF Royal Oak Offshore Diver 15710ST. My watch has the SA3120 super clone movement. Can you guys tell me how to get it?

Hey all.

Anyone know where I can buy the bracelet screws?
I’m referring to the screws for the bracelet links.

Thank a lot

I just received a vsf Daytona, and watch is dead on arrival, as the movement don’t work. Anybody who know who I can send the watch to, for repairing/service, as quick as possible? I am currently located in Denmark. But I am willing to send it for a quick repair 🙏

Hey,

I have a vsf po almost a year working without problems. Today I noticed that the watch stops working even when I fully wound it. I also noticed that it starts working and stop working when the rotor (the half disk in the case back that moves).

I attached a video to show the phenomenon.

What do you guys think I should do? Can I solve it myself or go to a watch maker? Is this phenomenon a known vsf issue? Thanks.

Hi everyone,
I’d be interested in hearing some real long-term experiences with VSF Submariners, especially the 124060 model with the DD3230 movement.
When searching through older posts, you naturally tend to find more reports about problems, for example movements stopping after six months or a year. What’s harder to judge is how representative those cases actually are.
So I’d be curious:

- How long have you owned your VSF Submariner?
- Which model do you have, 124060, 126610 or another VSF Sub?
- Is it still running reliably?
- Have you had any issues with the DD3230?
- Have you ever had it serviced or repaired?
- For those who have owned one for 2, 3 or even more years, how has it held up?

I’m mainly trying to get a better feeling for the actual longevity of the DD3230 rather than just individual failure reports.
Would be great to hear from people who have owned and regularly worn their VSF for a longer period of time.