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I had a few hands from Jensen that didn't fit, but he immediately send me replacement hands. Just mentioning this so you don't try to 'force' the hands onto the posts or scratch the dial if they are too loose. It's possible you received a bad batch if they don't fit. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Exactly @mrsoundman ! That was my point and the whole reason I posted this. Model paint for the most part is acrylic so you need to seal it and still it's just paint and will wear much easier than the chemical based paints used in a simple sharpie marker lol we use the gold version of this marker for marking stainless tooling that we send several thousand feet below the seabed to drill rock.. so it's a tad more durable than acrylic paint ? im not crapping on what this guy is doing, but yea I inquired about getting one done for a watch I'm building my brother (don't want to buy a gen insert to give away lol) and when he came back with it having to be removed (which is expected and quite easy for someone who's done it before) but for the majority of people who feel better sending it out to be removed, it becomes a pain in the ass. Then ship to Singapore, turnaround on his end is 2 weeks for his 99.99% platinum (which is impossible for this application) as there are only a few ways you can plate or coat non metal ceramics and plastics, one is electroless plating which would involve submersing in an etching bath that would ruin the polished surface as well, then you have sputtering which is the process of applying plating in a vacuum chamber and quite costly equipment (not worth it for this application) then you have electroplating which cannot be completed unless the electroless plating is performed as a means for the materials to adhere to in the plating process, then finally you have spraying which is taking a powder form of a metal and basically brazing the material (no go with Plastics) and I can't see this with ceramic due to the high melting temp of the 6 platinum group metals being between 1770deg C and 3050deg C, it's actually unlikely that even Rolex uses pure platinum as a plating on ceramic. I can see if the service included an insert and then you send your old one back etc.. but $290 is steep for "plating" as only the GMT will need the cleaning up of the edges (again visible under 10X not the eye unless really really looking for it) anyways that's just my 2 cents worth from 10 years of experience with precious and noble metals and a Phd in mechanical engineering. In my eyes with my gens next next to the "sharpies mod" lol it's much more worth it than giving someone almost $300 usd or more after having someone else remove it etc.. in which you are half way or more to the cost of a LN insert , just to make it look the same as spending an hour with a $8 marker that is nothing like the "old school" model paint mods..

First of all, thank you for tolerating the numerous posts regarding this build. The whole build process is detailed here http://www.rwgforum.net/topic/176345-6538-build-progress-movement-discussion/ When I joined the forum, I always thought certain vintage Rolex models were out of my price range. I have been wearing a Rolex since 1987, but just bought a new one every few years and traded in the old one. I found this place doing research for a new Rolex; this was near the end of 2013. So initially I was just looking for information about the new models and stumbled on this forum and figured I could try out some rep models for minimal cost and figure out which gen I would buy. So over a few months I tried about every modern Rolex I liked the looks of—found out I really do not care much for modern Rolex’s. One thing happened that I did not expect, I became part of the community and started participating in discussions and became friends with some of the members here. I really had no idea that I was diving into a new “full time” hobby. As time went on I became more fascinated with the vintage models that members were building and displaying. This led to a few of my own vintage builds. Made some mistakes and had many learning experiences but have been mostly happy with the results. My wife notices how much peace and joy I get from being part of this community and the hobby and actually encourages the “watch thing” as long as I do not go into details about builds as that puts her to sleep. She thinks it is funny that I am a WIS… No one ever really notices my watches. About once of year I run into another WIS and talk watches but really as most of you know this hobby is for yourself and these communities. One of the models that really grabbed my attention was the 6538 Big Crown Submariner, always thought to be too expensive for me to ever afford. Mainly I am talking about Nanuq’s, CC’s and more recently Dbane’s builds. My first real reading as a kid was Ian Fleming’s Bond series and 007 and his 6538 have been favorites of mine for a very long time. I tend to like watches that are simple with no dates and minimal text/distractions. So I did some research and figured out to do one right it would take some knowledge, a lot of help, and it could easily exceed the cost of a nice gen Rolex. Being that I had never worn one, I decided to start with a more conservative approach and bought a nice modified HR 6538 to see how she felt and looked on the wrist. I was pretty much hooked from there. Right away I started doing more research and developed some connections with some of the great members here who had completed these builds. Developed a build plan and a spread sheet to track costs, and then started sourcing parts. Dbane helped throughout this process as for the most part I still an unsure at times of the authenticity of parts and what part is correct for what model. I am learning but always good to have another opinion. It took a while to source all the parts… Dbane is really responsible for putting this together. He has helped me throughout this project. He did the case shaping, the beautiful bevels, lumed the hands, had the movement serviced and did the complete assembly. He is an amazingly skilled and intelligent person who seems to take great pride in whatever he does whether it is building watches or handmade speakers. I have nicknamed him the “case whisperer”. Thank you my friend! Thanks to CC33 and Nanuq who shared their knowledge and experience freely and whose builds were initially responsible for the inspiration. This project was only possible because this forum exists. Specs: Minh Quy case set (mid case, bezel, case back) shaped by dbane and custom engraved by NeckyZips—serial number is period correct but has significant value to me. Genuine spec real gilt dial—hand produced by the nameless one Classic Watch Parts hands lumed by dbane Genuine cal 1030 movement fully serviced Genuine NOS 8mm crown, tube and stem Genuine T-17 dome plexi Genuine MKII long 5 insert. Genuine 7206 bracelet restored by Classic Watch Parts . Thank you so much for being here and for all the help on this project. I really find much enjoyment spending time and sharing with you. This is really the culmination of all the years of collecting watches and my time here so far. Needless to say, I am very happy with the way she turned out. The dial and hands reflect light like no watch I have had. Truly a work of art. I think Mr. Bond would approve. Pics coming from my phone:

Hope you all like my freaky:)

You can find it easily also here in Italy, just google it Inviato dal mio iPhone utilizzando Tapatalk

gen crystal can get fit on a DW as stated above. bezel needs to be opened up and crystal needs to be shimmed as it is too loose on the rehault. I had 3-4 of em done in texas but others can do it.

Thanks for sharing. Just ordered mine

Very great thread @altesporsche ... thank you VERY MUCH Though I dont have any ceramic bezel (I'm stucked on vintage and "early modern" watches so only metal inserts) I really appreciate the informations you provide here. Sharing experience is a great and very honorable behaviour. So it seems you work in subsea engineering ... oil & gas or else ? If YES you could be interested by the 16800 COMEX I'm building for my elder son (oil & gas instrument engineer in Norway) ... I'll create of thread about that build as soon it's finished, possibly next week.

Rolex Daytona by Tyler David, on Flickr

This beauty has made its way up and down the West Coast since taking life here. I was fortunate enough to take possession of her this morning.

New here.Just wanted to share.see what people think.

OMG I love this. May I ask where do you source the hands from ? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Gen bracelet, v72 dial. Love it Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Hey Rich take a shot on the raffle!

Wise words.

PM sent mate! And an all time fav in in the Steinhart lineup out in a limited edition, you never see these for sale although I know a few guys who have them no need to wonder why. OH yea I bought it! And you guys ain't getting it........................ These f**kers where on back order for ever!

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A Gerald Genta community meeting. Despite thinking so, apparently not all of the attendees were penned/sketched by Mr. Genta! What a party!

Lolo, mine says hi "There are more than 1 road to Rome...."

KW ceramic with Hfac matte dial and hands and JF short straps of course. Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

Creamy goodness never gets old I tread softly along the fine line separating raving insanity and lucid moments of ingenuity. The issue is I've no idea which is which mostly.

Hey glad you guys gave it a shot ! It is actually dead on with the silver on the GMT insert and the LV and LN Gen inserts I have. Good call on the cleaning with alcohol, to ensure a good bond. And in all reality even even if it wears after a while or anything, it's super easy to reapply. To be honest aside from the small champhered edge in the Indices (hardly visible to the eye) this takes the GMT and the LN to Gen look and well aside from the Green ceramic in some lights it also helps the rep LV as well. Looks awesome fellas ! Glad I could be of help to the community. Now if only we had a good green insert for the LV's things would get really interesting and save people the $1400 for a gen LV insert.

Directly over the paint that was there. Sharpies have a really good bonding agent in them and hard to remove when dry.

Here are some comparisons for the V6S compared to the gen half regular V6S and half painted. 30 50 and 40 are painted and the indices between, but the 10 side is unpainted and original V6S colouring

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For me... I could have picked up some nice gens for what I've spent in this hobby, but to me, there's not a lot of fun in doing that. I'd rather spend the time to research a build, understand the history of such a piece, hunt down the parts and see what I can put together with my own hands and tools. I have an appreciation for what I have on my wrist, and I know what went into it. In terms of cost... I think that's all relative, right? I have more than I'd like to admit into my Patek builds, but the amount is a small fraction of what the gens would run me, and that's if I could find examples as clean as the ones I've put together. For me, maybe that's the other facet; building something that's not the most accessible or available in gen form. And sometimes... It's about pushing the limits; to see how close or accurate a build can get. In the end, only you can justify what makes sense, or what doesn't. If it makes you smile every time you check the wrist... If you look back on a build with no regrets... I think it's nothing to worry about Life's short... We should all do what we enjoy doing!

Back when AP took chances -- for better or worse. Not taking chances is the worse option in this short life

Flight time

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43mm diameter beauty

Imho if you load off this amount of money on the other parts such as case and with a lot of more gen stuff, it's a no brainer using that dial. Get a good one. Also maybe check with the correct serial and get the correct Mark dial too for the according serial number of the case. Minh Quy, Ivan whatever floats your boat but find a good one. Can't wait to see it done.