zenith: Improving A Panerai Replica – Converting A 7750 Into 7753

Panerai Replica – PAM 196

Is it possible to make a Panerai replica run better? Of course it is, and that's not comnig only from me, but also from the almighty (from a horological point of view at least) ZigMaster. For those who don't know who Ziggy is, think of him as a horological prodigy, who's able to fix or mod any kind of replica movement. And that's exactly what he did here, he took a Luminor Panerai Daylight replica, fitted with a heavily modded ETA 7750 and transformed it into a 7753.

So, just to clear some stuff up before we get into it, this article is not only about how to make a Panerai replica run better from a mechanical (performance) point of view, but also about how to make the Panerai Daylight replica look closer to the original. I wrote something a little while back about the PAM 196 replica and you can read the article here .
Basically, this Panerai replica uses a modded 7750 (which, by the way, has also been used by Panerai in a lot of their gen watches) but this exact modding of the movement gives it away as a fake (ironic, huh?). From what I know and I could be wrong, of course, there is no Asian equivalent of the 7753, instead they add a couple of gears to the Asian 7750 and these exact gears make the date wheel sink in – the tell-tale of the fake. The 7753 movement has the date and a pusher to quick set it, located at 4 o'clock, whereas with a 7750, you can set the date via the crown. When you see a Panerai replica or any other kind of rep for that matter, described as having an Asian 7753, it has nothing to do with a genuine ETA 7753.
That being said, let's see Ziggy working on his Luminor Panerai Daylight replica aka PAM 196 replica.

Panerai Replica Transformation By Ziggy

The goal is to make it more accurate by doing some serious part swaps and making serious modifications. This isn't light surgery, but if you can stand the sight of oil, you'll enjoy it. And you'll see just how complex this Panerai replica is and generally, replica watches really are.
There are a number of problems regarding turning an ETA 7750 into a 7753. You'll definitely have to transfer over some Asian parts to the ETA for one.
You need to take the calendar mechanism and bridge from the Asian to the ETA. This is because with the Asian, the calendar bridge has been tweaked to fit the transfer gears of the 30 min timer.
There's really nothing to worry about here. If the bridge fits, then you're ok. The 30 min gears and bridge are totally reliable as far as the movement is considered.
The bridges are the exact same – there's just some extra holes for attaching the new 30 min gears. The sub-dial posts aren't long enough, 30 min, 12 hr, running seconds, all. This is because the Asian has been pushed to extremes in trying to be a 7753. The space between the dial face and the movement is bigger to allow for the 30 min timer bridge and its gears.
The question is, will the gears of the Asian then fit? The 30 min, the 12 hr, and the second wheel need to be moved over from the Asian to the ETA. The 30 min timer is no big deal, it fits on the Asian bridge which will also move to the ETA. Now with the 12 hr counter, there be a hitch – it supposed to sit on the ETA's main plate. The second gear is probably the biggest issue though. It's supposed to fit in the center of the movement and its engaged by the third wheel as well as the escape wheel. All the measurements need to be just right with all the parts of the Asian, so we'll see.
Luckily, everything works out and the Panerai replica 's ETA and Asian components are in fact interchangeable. As my neighbor's teenage daughter would say at this exact kind of moment – YAY!
The total time this would take to do is about four hours believe it or not. In terms of cost, well, I worked out a deal with the owner since this was after an experiment. But if were to start doing this for people, basically doing a serious overhaul of a movement, it's a ton of work so it's hard to say. I'd definitely keep the gutted 7750 and maybe cut you deal.
Incidentally you can start calling this new movement the Ziggy 6500. But I don't want to take all the credit – the watch owner, who shall remain nameless, donated its body to chronology and should receive some recognition.
So with all the parts removed, a new movement must now be constructed.