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Explorer project It all started when I was looking for an ETA movement on eBay. I stumbled across a listing containing a 2846, DJ case, bezel and a rep Explorer dial. That was my very first encounter with the vintage Rolex Explorer. In the end I successfully won the auction and soon had the parts. I sourced a few things I needed for assembly here I posted it on RWG http://www.rwgforum.net/topic/137946-my-first-project-1016/?hl=%2B1016 When I got my first 1016 I realised that a 36mm watch fits my small wrist (16,5cm) so much better then a Submariner or GMT. It is way more balanced out, it’s more subtle, less blingy and lighter. And during the following weeks I started my research on the 1016. I became fascinated with its history, the fact that Ian Flemming wore an Explorer 1016 and could be Bond’s “real” Rolex in the novels. Ian Flemming with his Rolex Explorer Ian Felmming’s 0.59mil Explorer, unfortunately it was serviced in the 90ies But other famous people like the Rolex Explorer too. like f-king Matt Damon Badass Jon Hamm or Mr. Bloom, a known Vintage Rolex collector About one year later I realized that I had to improve certain things. The bezel was bothering me since it was shaped incorrectly, so whom do you call? JMB! But then I found more things that were incorrect so I ordered one of his 2836 and 2824 cases as well. Movement I had great difficulties finding a correct movement for the case in the first place. Most people simply use a 2824 but since that is a high beat movement it was no option for me. LHOOQ told me I could use a 24** series ETA but since that is very old parts getting more and more difficult to source. I ended up using an ETA 2789, it is a lowbeat movement and the predecessor of the 2824. Also during service (done by myself) I added a hack lever since this was introduced in the early 70ies and I prefer hacking movement. When I was ordering parts for the movement I realized that some parts are obsolete, e.g. getting a fourth wheel with the correct height was not possible anymore. So I ended up finding another donor watch, this time with a 2782 movement with has the correct height of cannon pinion, hour and forth wheel. And it has the same KIF shock absorber Rolex uses, so now it should be up to Rolex standards in regard to shock resistance. You might ask why not a gen 1570? I thought about that but in the end I decided against. In general I don’t prefer gen movements in vintage Franken (there are exemptions). You have high acquisition costs, the service is more expensive and the main reason: parts are getting more and more difficult to get. Case I decided to use the 2824 case since it has the higher crown position and a better caseback. http://www.rwgforum.net/topic/143544-semi-budget-explorer-1016/?hl=%2B1016 here JMB compares the 2836 and the 2824 case Against other people’s believe I think that the JMB case is the best option out there. I don’t like the 16000 cases and especially not the 1601, they have a different caseback construction with a flat gasket, the 1016 has a groove in the case with a O-ring gasket, just like the JMB case. http://www.rwgforum.net/topic/134440-1016-explorer-frankens-why-not-a-16000-case/ LHOOQ’s splendid comparison of the different cases For me his case was a good starting point but needed a good mount of modding since it is a replica of a sapphire 16220 Datejust. Compare the cases and you will see that the sapphire DJs have much thicker, beafier lugs and shoulders which is a huge tell for not only me. top to bottom: modded JMB case, standard JMB case (prototype nr 2), genuine 16014 case The JMB has a 18kt punch on one lug which can be easily remove with a bit of sanding, then its crown is a bit recessed in groove. I sanded down the sides but you have to be careful because when you remove too much metal there your crown will sit to far in and touch the bezel. The case tube was removed, the hole drilled out and tapped with the correct M3X0.35 thread. I installed a new 24-6020 tube with the proper tool for that – I had to learn the hard way why you should get the appropriate tools for that . I had plenty of crowns to choose from. collection of 6mm crowns some are rep and some gen I picked out a nice example with the nice crimping marks on the back that only vintage one have. And another note here: guys please remove the old gasket on these old crowns and treat it with a nice new one. Mine had a gasket that was like hard plastic; do you believe that will make a watch waterproof? can you see the fine crimping marks on the inside? After I had one case done as a prototype I knew how to file the lugs so they become thinner. This is a very difficult thing, because when you file down the top of the shoulder it’s angle and twist of the surface will change. If you are not very careful it will look awful. Best way to do this is trying out on a spare case you have and always comparing to good high-resolution reference photos. Now the lugs have a far gentler curve, don’t have that sudden drop like the 16220 has, are pointier but not like the 1601. And also the lugholes are better centred and closer to the tip, like the original. During my research I noticed small changes in the case proportions, mine is correct for a late 60ies to mid 70ies model. Also the caseback was turned on a lathe, the brushed part is supposed to be smaller in diameter. The case got a bit of vintage treatment, it was treated with coins, steel wool and a steel brush and then buffed a few time in a row. But some scuffs are already genuine scars that tell a story. scuffs and marks are scars that tell a story The brush of the lugs were done like described in an official RSC manual. With the new greased gaskets it was no problem to have the watch pressure-tested to 100m. And yes, I’ll go swimming with it. Engraving For me no case is complete without decent engravings. I’ve spoken to a few engraving firms in my town about how I could get this done and unexpectedly I good very good response one even told me that he already has done similar jobs (hm…). Great help from a fellow RWG mate to get the font 100% correct (the font was achieved with photos of the correct era engravings, again here you will find a lot of differences). the 2841*** serial number puts it into late 1971 no long E middle stroke The fantasy markings on the case were removed and then brushed. In the end the engravings were done on a machine from the 50ies that was used for this kind of job. Contrary to some people’s believe the lug engraving is not stamped nor is it done with a rotating graver. the engraving process Bezel There is only one choice: JMB. His bezels are precisely machined to gen specs. During my built I went to a few vintage dealer and watch fairs here and studied gen 1016s. The bezel is spot on for a polished model. The bezels on eBay that are listed as genuine… I would not buy them. Crystal I keep this short… I machined a superdomed T22 which looks nice, but unfortunately superdomed plexis are prone to scuffs because of their shape, and mine has fine hairline crack around the bottom. Maybe one day I’ll make one again. For the meantime I have mounted a genuine service T22 I got for little money. And let me tell you, there is no obvious difference between the GS and a genuine service crystal, I have both here and maybe I can do a comparison one day. In the end it fits the serviced look. comparison: left 1016 case w/ service crystal right 16014 case w/ superdome T22 Dial At the beginning I wanted to use the MBW dial I had but soon I had to realize that it was simply too big. I tried to sand it down but eventually the SWISS MADE text was covered partly by the rehaut.
So now I needed to find a decent dial. A good read is LHOOQs “1016 dials I have know” http://www.rwgforum.net/topic/128339-1016-dials-i-have-known almost all rep and gen dial listed Soon I learned that finding a nice dial was a real challenge. At that time Yuki only offered the dials with the awful numeral’s spacing, Ingod only had the Spacedweller dial, NDT is overpriced imho as well as MQ. I started to search on eBay and VRM almost every day. As there almost no dials available I convinced myself to spend a little more money on a genuine Luminova dial which I ordered at a known vintage spare part dealer. Sadly this one went missing in the mail, last status of it was in the dispatch facility only 50 miles away L even though I got refunded it was anther setback and the project was stored away for a few months. On day I got in contact with mahand, he got in a few new dial with the better spacing so I placed an order. After a few weeks I had his dial but it simply fell through the rehaut opening, it was too small. So I sent it back and got a refund, but still no dial in sight. Then I heard that Ingod could get his 1016 dial without the Spacedweller text, so I ordered my next dial. During the next week a “reprint” dial surfaced on eBay from India, I won that one two, having such a bad experience I knew I couldn’t let that go. It was very nice example and I gave it to Denimhead: http://www.rwgforum.net/topic/161631-simplicity-and-function-personified-explorer-1016/?hl=%2B1016 So now I had 3 rep dials at home and I thought I’m happy to use one of these when one day a low priced supposed-to-be genuine dial appeared on eBay. Instantly I shot an email to my friend LHOOQ to get a second opinion on it, I did not want to burn cash on that. When I got a position reply from him even with a reference photo of a genuine dial I bought it only 2 hours after the auction was uploaded to eBay. You now might think that I was lucky… one day later the same vendor uploaded another Explorer dial, which I instantly bought as well. After a short conversation I heard a satisfying story and that he still had 3 dials left. I can’t tell you much, but the parcel came from Geneva. it’s all about the dial There are a few non- gilt dial variations: FFHS, Frog, long crown, modern crown and two service dials. Service dials might not be the most sought after dials in the vintage world as most collectors believe in Tritium, however in an early stage I thought that a white Tritium dial or a Luminova dial would be cool, but I don’t like vintage trimmed and lumed watches that have the glowing “vintage lume”. I like the idea of having a nice vintage watch that is still fully functional and the lume is great, after hours of darkness I can still read the time in the early morning hours without any problem, thanks to genuine Tritec SuperLuminova and fineDD. I believe they are the current service dials as they are already have the Rolex engraving on the back which tells me that they were produced after Rolex started to do them in-house. Rolex engraving and ref. number on the back And given this fact I don’t believe that there are any genuine 1016 service dials with “SWISS” or “SWISS MADE”. Hands After I got this far with the dial I needed to get the best hands available so of course I placed an order with TC. The hands are short and are not 100% correct for a 1016. Study pictures of genuine Explorers closely and you will notice that they have longer hands. However often Explorers get fitted with 5513 hand that are shorter and since I heard that 1016 are discontinued at Rolex SA they use the regular 1570 hands. Bracelet Early 70ies Explorers were supplied with a folded 7836 bracelet, it too was my choice since I already have a modern bracelet on another watch. the production year stamp you’ll always find upside down to the Rolex text It does not have the fixed endlinks mounting, I decided to use WSO 580 since other like 258s are difficult to get. Some people might say that a 7836 only goes with 280/380/258 endlinks, but according to a Rolex Service catalogue 580s are correct as well. a fresh and unpolished clasp Nice and correct coronet on clasp, the 7 famous adjustment holes and of course the correct 32-20681 springbar with the little holes on the tip. Spring bars are 24-9293, the correct short type 2,0mm bars. I got them cheap but I would not spend a great amount on these as the springs might be worn. http://www.rwgforum.net/topic/148586-1016-springbar-comparison-gen-vs-aftermarket/?hl=%2B1016 LHOOQ’s comparison of springbars for the Explorer 1016 I like how you can see the rounded tip on the edge of the lughole However after quite some time now I am not sure if I really like the folded bracelet. When I look on my wrist the bracelet appears very flat almost 2Dish, so I might source a gen 78360 or mount my gen 93150 (I’d prefer its Fliplock clasp for swimming anyway). But I have to note that the watch is so comfortable to wear on a Jubilee bracelet. Conclusion It was a great experience putting this watch together, I learned a lot about Rolex and modding. Is there anything I can improve? At the moment couldn’t say what. A domed crystal might look sexy but I’ve found it being a bit impractical. The only thing would be a different bracelet. Thanks Thanks to LHOOQ a guy who is willing to share his knowledge and who answered a lot of my questions. His pictures inspired me a lot. And many thanks to JMB, he sourced a lot of parts, did a great job and acted with such a patience, because I had a lot of questions and helped me getting the parts to Europe. Without him this build would have been a lot more difficult and expensive. And special thanks to blue, without you this watch would be not like it is now. Thank you automatico for your supply of parts and knowledge about servicing movements. And thank you Jaques for your contribution, the meeting in Paris and your hospitality.