There have been loads of issues with these movements so I’m not necessarily surprised to learn the line was discontinued.

IIRC the movement is a drop-in replacement for the equivalent ETA and Sellita. If this is the case, why not take the Zodiac to a local watchmaker and have them do a movement swap?

 

There have been loads of issues with these movements so I’m not necessarily surprised by the fact that the line was discontinued.

IIRC the movement is a drop-in replacement for the equivalent ETA and Sellita. If this is the case, why not take the Zodiac to a local watchmaker and have them do a movement swap?

Yeah, I've read about others doing that kind of swap. Sadly, being Australia that kind of stuff is almost universally very expensive. The only saving grace for me is that I didn't pay for the watch in the first place, so I've not experienced a financial hit in that regard. I really struggle with the idea of paying several hundred dollars for a service or replacement movement 🤷‍♂️

 

That’s a real shame not only for the obvious reasons but also because the aquamarine dream is probably their best modern watch. These need to stay around.

 

Interesting. I had my ZO9283 repaired by FG Service in the US when mine broke last year, which they did under warranty. They didn't say what they did for the repair, so it's possible that they just stuck a 1-11 in there and sent it back. The 3-13 was an absolute piece of hot, flaming garbage. Nobody outside of FG and Zodiac knows exactly what the failure rates were, but I would guess 20%+. There's a reason why they sh*t canned it after like two or three years of production.

FG Australia absolutely has 1-11s or 1-21s which they could easily swap in if they wanted to. They are ubiquitous and are used by a bunch of microbrands. You can also just buy them yourself on eBay.

I would under no circumstances pay anyone to repair a 3-13 that's already broken once. If you want to do it on the cheap, get a PT5000 or Seagull ST2130 and have somebody swap that. PT5000s and 2130s are both like $50.

The standard would be a Sellita SW200, or you could put a 1-11 in there if you wanted to. They both cost about the same. I'd go SW200 over 1-11, for the winding if nothing else. STP movements have the winding refinement of a cement mixer.

If my ZO9283 breaks again, it will be getting an LJP G100 swap. Those are about $250 instead of $180 for an SW200 or STP, but you are removing any possibility of the winding train issues that are inherent to the ETA-2824 and all of its various clones. The G100 is size compatible, but it's not an ETA clone. From my understanding, it's heavily based on Miyota's 9000 series movement architecture, and is a uni-directional winder like those are. You also get a huge jump in power reserve from the G100 vs. any of the ETA clones.

 

Interesting. I had my ZO9283 repaired by FG Service in the US when mine broke last year, which they did under warranty. They didn't say what they did for the repair, so it's possible that they just stuck a 1-11 in there and sent it back. The 3-13 was an absolute piece of hot, flaming garbage. Nobody outside of FG and Zodiac knows exactly what the failure rates were, but I would guess 20%+. There's a reason why they sh*t canned it after like two or three years of production.

FG Australia absolutely has 1-11s or 1-21s which they could easily swap in if they wanted to. They are ubiquitous and are used by a bunch of microbrands. You can also just buy them yourself on eBay.

I would under no circumstances pay anyone to repair a 3-13 that's already broken once. If you want to do it on the cheap, get a PT5000 or Seagull ST2130 and have somebody swap that. PT5000s and 2130s are both like $50.

The standard would be a Sellita SW200, or you could put a 1-11 in there if you wanted to. They both cost about the same. I'd go SW200 over 1-11, for the winding if nothing else. STP movements have the winding refinement of a cement mixer.

If my ZO9283 breaks again, it will be getting an LJP G100 swap. Those are about $250 instead of $180 for an SW200 or STP, but you are removing any possibility of the winding train issues that are inherent to the ETA-2824 and all of its various clones. The G100 is size compatible, but it's not an ETA clone. From my understanding, it's heavily based on Miyota's 9000 series movement architecture, and is a uni-directional winder like those are. You also get a huge jump in power reserve from the G100 vs. any of the ETA clones.

We'll see! Lots to think about - cheers.

 

I had a couple of these and they never worked correctly, so I can understand why they put them out to pasture......

 

That's really disappointing. I hope you find a solution for your watch! I'd also rather look for a replacement movement than accepting Zodiac's 50% offer. The design and color of the Aquamarine Dream is really special and wouldn't be that easy to replace.

 

Another vote to swap it with a Sellita SW200. Worst case, if money is of concern, a Seagull clone as mentioned.

If no reasonable AND competent watchmakers in your area, you could always ship it to one.

 

Another vote to swap it with a Sellita SW200.

Or ETA 2492. That's what I did with my Sea Dragon.

 

Ugh...I have always been a little leery of parts availability with micro brand watches, but I had not considered someone like Fossil would abandon their own movement!

 

It's not like it's an exotic style of movement...in this case it's a good thing they gave up on those POS STPs.

 

Get a used ETA or Selitta mvt form the Bay and have it swopped, you will be happy for sure...

 

It's a shame, really, on both ditching the movement and repair quote.
Mine comes with STP 1-11, and no problems so far, so I'll probably go with this movement as a replacement .
Please keep us updated with your decision and outcome. Best of luck!

 

I’m sorry that happened. The 3-13 was junk and a real hit to the Zodiac reputation. It’s unfortunate, because they have a lot of great designs, like the Olympos, the Super Sea Wolf, and they do an awesome job with colors. But, hard to recover from the 3-13 mess. I echo the idea of grabbing a replacement movement. Again, I’m sorry that happened. Total BS.

 

They couldn't just swap in a 1-11? That's pretty crap that they can't service a 2 year old watch.

Rumor has it the 3-13 is a Seagull ST2130 in disguise.

STP3-13

reference.grail-watch.com

 

That seems like a Cop Out to a problem they caused selling defective movements. At 75% off, maybe I would consider it, but just maybe.

Have you reached out to Zodiac/ Fossil HQ versus Zodiac Australia to see if they would stand behind your 2 year old watch? Maybe they would offer you a better fix for what you have by replacing the movement with a functional option.

Otherwise, I would replace it with a Sellita or ETA equivalent and keep that watch going. Good luck getting it fixed.

 

Confused. The response says nothing about the movement being discontinued or movement parts being unavailable. It says the watch reference was discontinued. Perhaps other service parts specific to that model like crown, hands, or gaskets are the issue?

 

On the cheap? Replace with a compatible Chinese movement, PT5000, or ST2130.
Worth going up-spec? LJP G-100, or a NOS ETA 2824.
Avoid like an STP 3-13? Sellita SW200

 

Is the stp 1-11 a bad movement compared to the 3-13? What is the difference between the two ? I thought the 3-13 was their high end with swan neck regulator

 

I think the 3-13 was supposed to be a step up from the 1-11 as you say but turned out to be unreliable. The 1-11 is closer to the sw200. I'm sure others here will know more and will elaborate.

I've had a 1-11 for about 2 years now, on holidays, swimming, off roading, nights out, daily wearing, plenty of knocks, etc. and had no issues. Pretty solid from my individual experience.