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A few months ago I set out to build a PCG 5513 from '62-63 using a gen PCG mid case and cal 1530 movement: http://rwg.cc/topic/183778-pcg-5513-project-v1#comment-1465646 I have been using an old set of 5513/12 hands until I could find the period-correct hands; hands that had the flat hour hand rather than the curved ones Rolex started using since the mid '60's. To be frank, I've looked high and low and simply could not find them anywhere. Further, even if I did find them, I suspect they would have been extremely expensive. Well, I looked in my parts bin the other week and realized I had a spare set of gen hands I acquired some time ago. Luck would have it that the hands were flat!!!!! WTF. I guess i did something good in another life. This saved me a lot of time and money! Swapped them in this afternoon. Finally she is complete. Specs: Gen PCG 5513 midcase from 1963 ish Gen cal 1530 movement Gen 700 Twinlock crown/tube Gen flat hands Gen bezel assembly Gen kissing 50 "long 5" insert Gen T19 superdome 3,6,9 "silver gilt" dial by he-who-cannot-be-mentioned Gen 7206 bracelet

Messing with the Big Gonzo while the rest of the plane slept.

Come on....this is getting ridiculous with these builds. My interpretation: "Hey guys let me show you these pictures of my build of parts you will never find a single one of let alone all of them in one place. But don't worry, I have them all and assembled them into a watch that will make you hate every watch you own. Here look, look look at these pictures in super high resolution taken with my 40 million mega pixel camera with all the perfect angles and lighting. That's right, breath it in. Scroll through each one and open them all up individually and zoom in and really appreciate how amazing what I have done is. Now stare down at the crappy TC on your wrist which you thought was cool because you added a gen insert. Can you feel what I'm feeling...that's right, your watch sucks, it's a turd." :-) I don't even know what else to say dbane. That thing is like staring at Jessica Simpson pictures from the Dukes of Hazzard movie. (Note no other pictures of JS just those). I'm in awe and envy of what you've created. It's freakin art not a watch.

Some notes on the build: List of ingredients: Cartel 1675 21j, folded oyster, not shown. Clark crystal Clark bezel ring Factory faded serif insert Flat case back M2M gilt chapter ring dial Raffles small GMT hand The case was thinned a bit but I didn't go too far into it because it would be pretty easy to mess it up. I marked out the profile of the PCGs and cut them in then re-polished using a small polishing wheel and green polishing compound. Took about an hour to get it all right. The cartel case lends itself to PCGs but with the case being chinky and the CGs being short, you wind up with PCGs that are a little chubby. Can't really be helped and it's really one of the many "that'll do" moments you'll have when building a 1675 under $500. Now you can go with a phong or yuki case, but you're approaching gen DJ money at that point. I've drilled the lug holes for the Rolex 2mm spring bars as well. The dial was positioned and held down with dial dots, and it was a bit touchy, but it's on firm now. The dial came from a m2m deal and I don't know where it originated. The plate is stamped with the Singer logo which is a nice touch. The dial was only a few microns larger than the case so it fit perfectly, nail-bitingly so. Hands were installed with my hand press, everything cases up. I tinted the lume to match the dial. The crystal fit like a dream, and the bezel set needed some sanding but after a little work I pressed it over the crystal, all snug. The insert is a pre-faded insert I got from eBay and it looks the part. I'm not a big fan of the bleached inserts because they always look modified. This one is lightly faded and retains that gen look. Pricey at $50, but to me it was worth it.

I think it boils down to semi-wealthy craftsman, tinkerers and people with disposable income. It's the pursuit of happiness, for many it looks like sourcing the exact parts, haggling, trading and cobbling them together expertly gives great pleasure. Look at that stunning PCG that DBane just built, complete with cal.1530 movement. I think there's a sense of pride in it, I know there is for me and my 5513 which is garbage by a lot of standards but yet I've had offers (before they were told what it was, or if I was just phishing for compliments for $12,000 to $17,000) Still need a good 7206 for it and a less broken insert haha (but hey it's a well faded gen MKII)

Hi! Sorry for the bad pics, but do you guys think this is a gen t19?

It's a service T19 profile. But tough to say it's gen. Seems about right if I had to guess from those 2 pics. At the base of the crystal, you may be able to see the concentric rings under the right lighting. After market xtals tend to be more "solid".

That is simply beautiful!

It makes my gen Nastymariner look like a wart on an ill frog.

[emoji632]

My vote goes to@droptopman's gen 5513. But here's one of mine: And another:

You can put a 700, 702 or a 703 crown and tube assembly in the cartel subs- just remove the old tube, re-tap the hole and install the new tube. I put a 702 crown and tube in my cartel 5513

Not worth it unless you plan to keep it for life or acquired the parts a long time ago when they were reasonable. To hard to sell if you decide you want a change. Lost my *** on every single build. Even when you know the market and acquire parts at fair prices, it is just to hard to recoup. One build I spent 8k on and sold it for 6. Would have made more back if I parted it out, but did not want to tear down a project that took a year to put together. I really appreciate the guys who can take stock reps and modify them to look good but for a reasonable budget. As I improve my watch modding skills this is a really fun part of the hobby and one that makes more economical sense. Pretty much done doing high end builds. They are fun to do but generally illogical. This is why I switched to collecting vintage gens instead. At least I know they will continue to increase in value and if I decide I want something different gens are much easier to move. And at the end of the day, a gen is a gen, especially vintage.

That is why you need this Sent from my LG-H901 using Tapatalk

I've been sick the last week, but no matter how tough it is lying in a hospital bed. Something like this cheers you up more than chocolate and flowers...

So sick!!' I want it Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk