I got a Noob v7 no date ceramic, which was very very close. The only thing I noticed as an obvious tell was the bezel numbers, which are filled with a white metal on the originals, and they're just regular steel on the Noob.
I also like that side of it. It reminds me of nothing more than the homebrew software scene back in the 80s, people taking the originals, taking inspiration from them, and seeing what they can do with those designs. I think as long as no-one's sellign them as originals they're interesting enough in terms of the culture of horology to justify their own existence.
I might be extending it out a bit too much here but back in the 17th and 18th centuries when clockwork was just being worked out, there was apparently a lot of this sort of stuff. Some clockmakers would be super secretive about their technologies but once they released the clocks, other clockmakers could buy them, half inch the designs, then put them in their own clocks. Homebrew!
I could be wrong but I think the ceramic bezel numbers are PVD platinum. I remember reading about it when I got the ceramic GMT. It was supposed to be quite a complex process to get right. The texture is very nice but it can be scratched.
Sounds about right - it really pops compared to raw steel, and that ceramic looks so clean compared to the old metal bezels. I really dig the aesthetic.
I got a Noob v7 no date ceramic, which was very very close. The only thing I noticed as an obvious tell was the bezel numbers, which are filled with a white metal on the originals, and they're just regular steel on the Noob.
I also like that side of it. It reminds me of nothing more than the homebrew software scene back in the 80s, people taking the originals, taking inspiration from them, and seeing what they can do with those designs. I think as long as no-one's sellign them as originals they're interesting enough in terms of the culture of horology to justify their own existence.
I might be extending it out a bit too much here but back in the 17th and 18th centuries when clockwork was just being worked out, there was apparently a lot of this sort of stuff. Some clockmakers would be super secretive about their technologies but once they released the clocks, other clockmakers could buy them, half inch the designs, then put them in their own clocks. Homebrew!