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Gen dial gen hands gen crown gen bezel Thanks to MMM for his magic!

I was never in to Rolexes (Rolexi?) much, but guess I caught the bug for a vintage 1665 Sea Dweller a few years ago. Saving up for a good case like a Yuki, Phong, etc. The bug also bit me when it came to the "Snowflake" Tudors. I'm not in to blue watches much either, but I'd LOVE a nice blue "snowflake" w/ a properly bleached bezel insert, a nice "bulbous" plexi and some modest aging by throwing the case around in a bag of coins. I sort of like the Tudor BlackBay (haven't seen one up close, which I should probably do before ordering one!), but also afraid to get called out by some "Rolex know it all"! If I do get a Blackbay I'm pretty keen on customizing it! Why not? A few things bother me about it though. I'm not a fan of the Snowflake hour hand yet it keeps the "standard Submariner" dial layout, why didn't they just do a Snowflake dial or use "needle" or Mercedes hands? IMHO those are some of the things that are sort of off and bother me a bit. So with a few mods I'd fix what I don't like! The beauty with a rep is you can do mods without too much worry, you mess up or don't like the results, you didn't loose much $ or ruin the resale of a watch you may want to trade or sell (something I've never done! I buy to keep!). I'd stick with "The standard Rolex/Tudor mods", maybe drill the spring bar holes all the way through like every Tudor & Rolex made prior to the Blackbay, how about a little VERY little aging (it's only been out for a few years, so I'd try for about 2yrs of wear?) using the "bag of coins" aging trick. I've gotta see the crystal it comes with... maybe I'd fit a more classic plexi that's higher & rounder? and the hands... gotta change the hands like I mentioned earlier. Maybe a Blackbay One homage... I do like the thin hands or can go with the classic "Mercedes". But where can I find a GOOD Blackbay One dial now? A few years ago when it was released/auctioned, there were several rep dials. Don't know about now. Last, how about a 7mm Rolex crown? or stick with the Tudor flower crown? I often prefer straps, a NATO may be a good fit. Although I sometimes switch around and wear a watch with a bracelet, like I do with my Seiko "Black Monster". Any input is GREATLY welcomed! Also, any tips on who has the best Blackbay at the moment? Or maybe case, dial, etc. After all of this I'm sure many of you are thinking why I don't just do a proper vintage rep/homage "Big Crown". Like a Tudor 7924 or Rolex 6538? To do it properly it would take $$$$. Like a case from Phong, Yuki, Ruby, etc. A good Blackbay rep can be had for the price of a Phong dial (I think!). Saving up to do a 1665 "Great White" later this year and hopefully a Tudor 9401 Snowflake... also craving a white dial PanAm Big Crown GMT with Bakelite (now plexi) bezel (even if it's a bit fantasy). Thanks for your time and help!

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I refuse to participate in this conversation! It would be admitting I have a problem. NO WAY...Rehab is for quitters!

Worn by me not Bond, but it is a 50th Anniversary Bond Seamaster.

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Something different

This just in... after NeckyZips spa treatment. Mated usually with a Ammo strap from my watch brother [MENTION=67006]erick.510[/MENTION].Thanks Fam! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

"Just to play Devil’s Advocate here, but when you have paid for all this fancy machining it’s still a Cartel case and may have a working HEV or the appearance of a working HEV that nobody outside a small number of deep water professional divers are ever going to need. Why not just put the money into a Ruby case set which is $400-450 and gen spec?" "For those of us using a modder for some or all of the work, buying better parts to begin with gives a better and more cost effective result." I agree. If you have to pay to have it done it is usually not worth the cost, especially on a cartel replica. Home made 'cheater' valves are not very expensive to make. The 316 stock to make one valve is maybe 25 cents. Probably less. Two drill bits are maybe $2 each. Figure them good for at least one job. A miniature carbide end mill to cut a flat O ring seat would be expensive ($20 - $35), another good reason for cheater valves. The carbide tool bit was around $5 but it is good for 30 or 40 valves. Cost to sharpen it now and then = $0. Since they are cheater press in valves there is no spring or O ring and no machining inside the case or anything. Can not add the cost of a lathe, drill press/milling machine etc unless you buy them for this job. If you figure wear and tear on the machinery, allow maybe $2 or $3. I have a few vintage type replicas I wear now and then and none of them are 'super replicas' or much better than the average higher grade replicas you see on occasion...not Canal Street Junk, but not professionally detailed examples either. I have needed to point out the 'tells' on just about every one of them when a self proclaimed 'rolex expert' looks at them. Most of these 'experts' are not as sharp as they think they are when they get away from the internet. For this reason, crowns a hair too high or too low have never been much of an 'issue' with me. No one ever notices it. For 'vintage' replicas, some 'issues' are: lug holes too close to an edge lug holes too small or too big wrong spring bars 'no hole' hoods on cases with lug holes lug holes chamfered on the outer side botched lug top bevels lugs ground too thin aka 'pointy lugs' botched CG mods crown too far from case when screwed down botched attempts to 'age' the case/bracelet on an otherwise high quality watch wrong beat rate (28800bph on a vintage model, I can handle 21600) date mag problems...low magnification, wrong offset, too high or low ratty date fonts or date not centered in window dials murdered by shoddy attempts to 'relume' or 'age' them botched bezel insert aging attempts hands out of correspondence (H hand on the dot, M hand 5 or 7 min off) hands mounted too low or high solid bracelet mid links where they should be hollow Oh yeah, 'Top Hat' crystals. I hate 'em. ...and many more Feel free to add to list.

Welcome to our community. Really you are better off answering most of these questions for yourself. Opinion is split on 2824 vs 3135, and which is the better replica is largely a matter of opinion. There is a list of our TDs here:- https://rwg.cc/forum/230-watches-clothing-parts-accessories/ I see you have only joined 18 minutes ago, I strongly suggest you spend at least a couple of evenings reading threads that interest you and gaining some knowledge on the hobby before rushing into a purchase. Experience has shown that those who don’t often have unrealistic expectations and end up disappointed and disillusioned, while those that take time to learn a little first generally have a more satisfying purchase experience. I have endless patience with people new to the hobby, partly because I was once new to this game myself. Our members will be happy to help you learn and understand and we do know how confusing it can seem in the beginning, but simply telling you “buy product X from this dealer” isn’t really helping you and anyone that is keen to do that is probably on commission, which we are not.

Just to play Devil’s Advocate here, but when you have paid for all this fancy machining it’s still a Cartel case and may have a working HEV or the appearance of a working HEV that nobody outside a small number of deep water professional divers are ever going to need. Why not just put the money into a Ruby case set which is $400-450 and gen spec?

"I guess that the piece holding it on the other side is made of brass..." The genuine spring appears to be steel of some type, maybe spring steel, can not tell because my oem valve is still in the blister pack. The spring being too soft may be why the Abay valves allow the watch to fog up...not enough tension on the O ring. If the Yuki spring is brass, it is probably because brass is soft and easy to punch out because brass does not make very good spring material. If a springy piece of steel is needed, maybe use the 'old reliable'...automotive feeler gauge material like I use to make case clamps etc now and then. It is tough, springy, cheap, and comes in many thicknesses. Drill the hole, file the slot, rough cut to size with tin snips or heavy duty scissors, then smooth up the outside edges. The slot will probably be rough going because it is so narrow so a full size piece of feeler gauge would be easier to work with starting out with it clamped in a small vise. My gauge stock is about 13mm wide x 85mm long so it is probably wide enough to make the spring crossways. Maybe start with .25mm or so and see how it works. Next, cut or grind it down to size after the hole and slot are finished and polish it if needed. The spring tension being a little too tight is Ok because I doubt anyone on the forum will try one out.

[mention=29372]capre[/mention] it's always a pleasure to admire this beauty ! My humble 1962 PCG interpretation

My PAM 127 on a amazing Corrigia strap. This is by far the best strap I have ever bought.