automatico

"I hate, hate and hate the spring on these models as they are 3 pointed pieces that totally need to come off as opposed to gate fold springs that just lift up while remaining attached to the top." I made a 'special tool' out of a small plastic paint brush handle to r/r the cussed ETA round keepers. After sizing the handle down to just a hair smaller than the OD of the keeper spring and flattening the end, lightly drill a dent in the center of the handle leaving an outer edge that turns the spring. Horotek makes a Novodiac tool (p/n 03.001) for $35 or $40: I can not understand why anyone making common movements would opt for some of the goofy springs/keepers out there over a simple, foolproof Incabloc type. I know why (has to be $$) but can not understand it. ETA has a shock assembly like the Incabloc (Etachoc) but they still use the horrible little Novodiac spring in some movements. "As with tuning fork models they too have big big problems as mine could never be regulated." I have had my share of tuning fork Accutron problems too and that is why I wear an Accutron II 262 kHz quartz model instead of a 'hummer'. Watch Nostalgia is fine and dandy...until you wear it.

"Great video!" It is informative all right but if someone spends that much time dicking with an ETA 2892 they will starve to death...unless they charge $500 for a tune up. Imho. I have known three (3) bonafide pro watch repair guys that are capable of that kind of work but they could not afford it (takes too long) and the customer can't either. So...since I work mostly on 'trader junk,' I'll make a guess as to what is wrong with the ETA in question: 1...Magnetized. Maybe. 2...Dirty or oily hairspring. Maybe. Something is making the watch run too fast and the two things above are common culprits but usually cause more gain per hour than 4 minutes. Check the reserve by removing the autowind assembly (to get it out of the way and save wear on reversers when hand winding), then hand wind it 35 or 40 turns to see how long it runs and check it in 24 hours to see how much time it has gained and if the balance motion appears to be much more sluggish than when fully wound (a little bit can be expected). When hand winding, turn the crown until you can feel the bridle slip in the mainspring barrel to make sure it is slipping because if it is sticky or not slipping it will cause the watch to run fast when fully wound because the MS can not slip to release tension on the time train. Sometimes a weak mainspring will not supply enough power to give the balance a good 'kick' and this can result in a short, choppy 'kick' also causing the watch too run fast. Btw...did you see any dark specks on the cap jewels at all? If so, they have to be removed and the hole jewels also have to be super clean. Rub the cap jewel over a business card etc to remove any residue after cleaning it, before oiling it. Oil only the cap jewel (about 2/3 of its area, centered) and lay the hole jewel/setting on top of it, put it in place, close the spring/keeper. Harder to do than oiling the balance staff where it pokes through the hole jewel then setting the cap jewel on top of it but that is not the proper way to do it imho because the oil can travel away from the hole jewel. It stays on the cap jewel a lot better. When it is running after being fully wound, see if the balance has good balance motion (degrees of motion) and if the balance is 'frisky' and has a good 'kick' or 'lazy' with a weak 'kick' and not a whole lot of motion. A lazy 'kick' can result in gaining time because the balance starts to 'short stroke' and not give a full 'kick'. If it is 'kicking' too hard and fast it will run fast. Four minutes gain in an hour is not a whole lot so the problem ight be hard to find compared to gaining 20 minutes per hour etc. Troubles like this are why I usually wear an Accutron II.

"VR 3135 movement on hold..." The 15010 case will accept an eta 2836/rlx 3035 but a genuine rlx 3135 or genspec (in dimension) Asian 3135 will mount too far toward the front of the case putting the stem in a bind. Have a 15010 case/blue dial and if I ever make a runner out of it, I'll probably go with a swisseta 2836 with dwo.

The watch looks great! "Overlay to me is the hardest part!" You Are Right About That! One example of my dwo hassles (one of many)... I have been putting off installing a dwo made for a DJ 42 onto a Bulova Precisionist/Accutron II movement to make a gold case DJ 36. Q...Why would a regular DJ 36 dial and dwo not work? A...Because the dial seat and dial opening in the case are too big for a standard 27.9mm DJ 36 dial, had to go with a 30mm OD DJ 42 dial with the date window set to the right a bit more than a 27.9mm DJ 36 dial. Note...The DJ 42 dial was made to order with applied Romans on a cream white dial with no outer minute track. No way to get it with the standard DJ 36 date offset because the dial company uses ready made DJ 42 dial blanks. No minute track because quite a bit of the outer edge of the dial is covered by the case and this would partially cover the minute track. I have not stuck the DJ 41 dwo to the Atron II movement dw yet because I am considering making a date 'window frame' to apply to the dial so I can use the original A-tron date wheel. The A-tron dw is offset to the right about .5mm+/- more than the DJ42 dw so if I file the DJ 41 date window out a little to the right and mount the frame, it might work Ok. Besides that, the A-tron dw is just a hair below a more or less permanent spacer on the A-tron movement and the DJ 41 dwo might be too close to the dial. At least the numbers turn in the same direction on both of them. The A-tron date number size and type are very close to the rlx numbers so it will pass. The date window frame will be a hassle to make because it is so small and delicate but it would probably be worth it. I figure on using a spare dial of some kind with a date window and file the inside out to the same size as the A-tron window, then rough cut it out leaving some extra metal all around it and cement the frame to a piece of the donor dial for support and finish out the frame, then soak it in acetone to remove the cement. Paint it and stick it on. Nothin' to it. Yeah sure, that is why I have been putting it off. Believe me, I have given some serious thought lately to scrapping the gold case (29 grams 18k = $1220 minus about 10%). Btw...ST wants $4500 for a DJ 36 case. Spend an extra $3300 so a regular dial will work? Nah. "The watchmaker who serviced the movement seems to have overoiled the ratchet wheels of the ETA 2836-2. Or they were defective from the start, but then he should have replaced them. Either way, the rotor spins a bit when winding the movement in a completely flat position. The watchmaker insists that this is a common ETA problem (which is not entirely false, but you can fix it) and that everything is fine. As this is not a significant problem I will be using the movement as is and have it serviced by a dude I was recommended after a year or so." If the reversers are Ok and not worn out, you can clean the reversers in naptha (Ronsonol lighter fluid etc) and let them dry. Next, you add a small drop of fine watch oil to a few cc of naptha and soak the reversers in it a few minutes, remove them, and let them air dry completely. Clean the rest of the autowind assembly while you are at it and put it back together taking care to properly oil the jeweled reverser pivots in the plates and the intermediate wheel where it turns on its axle. This usually fixes them...usually. Eta recommends a high $$ LUBETA v105 lube concoction but you can usually get by with the homemade version...usually.

"The case is designed for an ETA 2836. Now, from what I understand, the difference between the ETA 2824 and the 2836 are in the movement height and the speed at which the date changes. The latter I don't care about for obvious reasons." The thickness difference between the 2824 and 2836 is because of the extra thickness of the day of the week disc and calendar spacer thickness on the 2836. An eta 2836 with the date works removed will display a slightly taller hour wheel, sweep second post, and canon pinion than a 2824 thereby allowing more room for the hands above the dial. This can be a big help on some projects. You may also consider the 'beat rate'...an eta 2824/36 runs at 28800 beats per hour where the old Smiths watches probably ran at 18000 bph or 21600 bph. A 'fast beat' 28800 bph movement will not look right in an old watch that is supposed to have a lower beat rate. "The movement height, however, makes me think. I understand that this is in principle important because you want the crown hole in the case to line up with the winding stem hole in the movement (sorry if I'm messing up the terminology, is this hole in the movement called the keyless works?). No, the mechanical parts...set bridge, set lever, winding clutch etc are the 'keyless works.' Substitute 'setting and winding parts' for 'keyless works' to make more sense. "But does this lining up not depend strongly on the thickness of the dial?" Not really. Dials are usually .3mm to .5mm thick and this does not make a lot of difference. The critical difference is the distance between the top side of the dial when mounted on the movement and the center of the hole in the movement where the stem goes into the movement...the stem needs to be centered in the case tube hole in the case when the dial/movement combo is mounted in the case. If you put a spacer or thicker dial on a movement to lower the stem hole in the case, it will in effect also make the hands closer to the dial. Visualize it. "In my case the dial is domed a bit, so I suspect that the movement, if fitted flush to the backside of the dial, is slightly to high in the case. I am thinking I might need a spacer, but if I start messing with spacers then I might as well buy the cheaper ETA 2824, which is smaller in height?" A domed dial's thickness compared to a flat dial's thickness depends on how the outer edge of the dial is made. A dial may be relatively flat around the edge and domed toward the center...this will not make the movement mount lower in the case. In other words, it depends. "Drilled-through lug holes: do watch makers do this or are they going to kick me out of the store?" "I find it would suit the tool watch look of the watch perfectly and it's convenient of course." This is specialized work, not for the uninitiated. Many watch whittlers will say they can do and end up ruining the case. I can do it successfully (most of the time) but not on anyone else's watch. My past mistakes prevent me from working on anything that does not belong to me...a hard earned lesson. "What do I need to do to get the watch waterproof? Ideally to 10ATM. Do I need to grease the gaskets? Also the ines in the threaded crown?" Cases type like the DJ type case in your top picture have three main places that may leak: 1...Crystal. 2...Case tube\crown. 3...Case back. Going through WR procedure steps one at a time takes too much typing but you can find all the info either in this forum or scattered about on the internet. Most O ring gaskets can get by with high grade silicone grease. If 'lines' = threads. They need a small bit of lubricant to prevent galling and corrosion. I use Krytox 205 on case threads and gaskets. People with a lot of $$ use Fomblin. $170.00 +/- About $25 or $30 on average

"if the choice of movement is your concern, in my opinion you cannot go wrong with a genuine eta." Very good advice imho. I have had good luck with swiss etas for many years. They began getting very good when the 2450 series was introduced in the 1960s, then the 27xx a little later on, and 28xx models came out in the early 1970s. Many replicas come with Asian 2824 or 2836 eta clones and they are usually Ok for a while. If you plan on keeping the watch, be on the lookout for a genuine low mileage swiss eta at a reasonable price to replace it with sooner or later. If you do not need it you can always sell it. The rolex look-alike movements are much like Asian eta clones...usually Ok for a while but there are no parts available and the genuine rolex parts that will fit may run the cost up past the worth of the watch in a hurry. Swatch Group Ltd. (makers of eta movements) is trying to slow down or stop movements and movement parts being sold to supply houses but with so many 'parts watches and parts movements' around they are not going to make much headway for many years to come. Swatch is following in the footsteps of rolex watch co who has been cutting off parts a little at a time for 20+ years and all they have basically accomplished is making many rolex owners mad because it limits their choice of going to an independent repair shop or getting skinned by an 'official' rwc repair outfit.

RF: "I wondered this too but I strongly believe that it's due to volume and interest. The large wholesalers are filling a larger demand for replicas of newer rolexes so they get more updates and quality. The market for accurate vintage replicas is a tiny portion of the market for newer rolex. At least this is what I think is the reason we won't get perfect cases from them. The scary thing is that one by one the vintage replica case makers are disappearing. NTD Trading in California stopped selling over 4 years ago (but her website is still up so I wonder why she is paying for it. Phong does not answer any emails, at least to me. And his son's website is completely gone. So that leaves us only with Rubywatch and MQ in Vietnam for good cases. That is why I'm desperately trying to reverse engineer a 5513 case for CNC file uploading in case we never have a source." I believe you are 95% right. The other 5% will remain a mystery. I have some pretty good 55xx/1680 cases and really do not need any more but I will always wonder why the case makers do not put the last 10% worth of effort in to make the cases more realistic. Looks like some have gotten worse, crystal fitment on the latest JK cases for example. I also doubt, same as you, that there is much demand for 'top gun' vintage watches or cases from mainstream buyers, they want modern watch replicas and are happy with today's offerings. The vast majority of the buyers probably do not give a hoot about replicas of 40 year old watches. Looks like Yuki has no more replica vintage cases on his site. All I saw are some oem omega cases for the goofball cal 1012 and three rlx 1500 cases...two being rotted out pretty bad. Vintage case pickins are gettin' thin.

I have had good luck with three suppliers of 55xx/1680 aftmkt bezel kits: 1...ST 2...Clark (eBay) 3...watchman408 (eBay) When I bought them a few years ago they all supplied the same kits...matte finish and a very good fit. Now watchman408 says his rotating bezel is polished. Have not purchased any new kits in 4+ years. You need a good digital caliper if you do not already have one to measure: 1...The case neck (28.2mm). 2...OD of the crystal after it is mounted on the case. 3...ID of the inner (crystal retaining) bezel. The crystal should be a light friction fit over the case neck. If it is too tight it may crack when pushing it down on the case neck by hand. If the crystal is too loose on the case neck the inner bezel may seem to be too tight at first when starting to press it over the crystal. Hopefully the inner bezel will adequately seat the crystal on the case neck after it is mounted. You just have to lift the inner bezel with a razor blade etc a hair to see if it is tight enough. Be careful not to let the sharp edge of the blade scratch the case neck. The crystal OD after it is mounted on the case should be .1mm to .15mm larger than the inner bezel ID. Much more than that will crack the base of the crystal. Pressing the inner bezel over the crystal out of level can also crack the crystal even if the dimensions are correct. There is no way to describe how the proper bezel being pressed over the crystal will act/feel during installation. It depends on tools used, parts used, and experience. Flimsy plastic press cups can allow the bezel to get out of level especially if the post they are mounted on is small and/or the cup itself is thin. If the crystal and bezel measure out Ok but the inner bezel seems to stick before it seats you can coat the friction surface of the inner bezel with dishwashing liquid to slick it up. Just be careful not to let it go anywhere else on the watch...dial etc. This is not an 'official pro tip' but many 'pros' do it to prevent scratching the crystal sidewall. After you get it all back together, thoroughly rinse the bezel area. If the case neck is not 28.2mm or very, very close you are going to have trouble. From the MBK sticky in the rlx section: Note 10-6-16...IF the case neck is oem spec 28.2mm and IF you need a new bezel assembly...here is what I found (usually) works: GS PA 462-66 crystal and ST/Clark etc bezel kit IF the ID of the inner bezel is 30.2mm. The 28.2mm case neck and 30.2mm inner bezel will not crack the crystal when pressing it on because it is not a real tight fit on the crystal while at the same time the crystal will not pop off or leak in day to day service (although I have not tested one below about 5 atm/70 psi). GS crystals are precision made and always the same spec unlike much of the inconsistent junk scattered all over the internet. The PA 462-66 is a domed crystal that has the sidewall coming straight up about 1.7 to 2.0mm above the bezel insert. You also have to make sure the bezel washer does not cause the rotating bezel to bind. The washer needs to fit over the small lip on the inner bezel (if there is one, it is there to keep the sharp washer away from the crystal) while not sticking out over the outer edge of the inner bezel or it will bind the rotating bezel. Many (if not most) aftmkt bezel washers are out of spec in my experience. I have tried this same setup with a GS PA 462-67 crystal and the inner bezel was too tight. Also measured a couple MBK inner bezels and they were both 30.15mm id...not much difference but they can be pretty tight with the GS PA 462-66 crystal. Matter of fact, I broke a new PA 462-66 with a MBK inner bezel on an MBK case a few days ago. It leaked and I had to look down through the outer edge of the crystal with a 10x loupe under bright light to see the hairline cracks. I found that ST/Clark rotating bezels will accept oem spec inserts and they snap in correctly...many aftmkt inserts and insert seats in bezels are out of spec.

"Like everything else, the more you learn, the more you realize you don’t know" That is certainly true. The more I learn, the less I know for sure, and the dumber I feel. One of the great mysteries (to me) in the replica watch world is why cartel vintage rlx case makers can not will not make accurate cases. Noob, ZZF, ARF etc. have very good modern replica cases and a complete running watch from them will cost less than an empty 'replica connoisseur' vintage case that sells for $600 to $1500.

Q..."How good is a Yuki (dial) if compared to the Cartel one really?" A..."The cartel dial isn’t terrible, but the lume pretty much is, fakes are never identical, it is simply an impossibility from a production point of view, never mind cost constraints." I agree. Lower tier cartel watch lume is probably the lowest grade lumey toon stuff they can get...about one step up from glow in the dark lipstick. Yuki dials are almost always better than cartel dials in my experience. I have a few assorted Yuki dials from 6 or 8 years ago up to 3 or 4 years ago and most of them are pretty good. One exception is a pair of '5512' dials with ratty printing...the letters look like ''''''''''''" under magnification, not a solid line, and the letters appear dimmer than usual because of the segmented lines. Also have a Yuki '5512' dial with very good letters but the lume has a green tint to it that looks a bit too green for me. Otoh I have another Yuki '5512' serif dial that is as good as any aftmkt dial I have owned. I had a woody for 5512s a while back. Have a higher $$ 1655 dial (can not remember where it came from) that is not much better than the average cartel '1655' dial and have a Phong '1655' dial that is very, very good. The higher $$ dials can be hit or miss imho and the best aftmkt dials that I have came from 'IG44' but that seller is long gone. Basically, with dials it's the luck of the draw and how critical you are. "The good ones are so close that only a very few can tell and usually under close inspection and magnification, but there always will be differences." True. I have one genuine Lemrich 'Mk I' 1680 dial and if you compare it to a very good aftmkt dial you can see a difference but mostly due to it being 40+ years old, the lettering etc on a very good high $$ aftmkt dial is very close. "Can the ETA one be installed on the 2183?" If you mean a common Miyotaclone 2813...not without cutting the dial feet off. "When you're starting out in this hobby everything looks great and no matter what you buy, you wear it proudly." Thanks to RWG (and Nanuq) I am becoming a seasoned repliker collectiker. Now I wear my quartz submareener after dark instead of in broad daylight.

"...on the same boat looking for Omega Parts on the bay..." I know what you mean. I have used up almost all of my omega 5xx and 7xx parts with no more in sight...at a reasonable price that is. The quick set models where you push/pull the crown to advance the date have a problem with broken setting parts and spare parts have just about dried up. Have one old ruffy dress type ygf front loader 'watermaster' and was going to change it over to a no date model because of missing parts but can not find an affordable case, been looking for a year or two. Found a dial right away but no cases out there. No Mo Oh-Meega Parts.

"To my surprise I found the glass was glued to the case." Next time you have a '1680' apart, measure the diameter of the case neck, it should be 28.2mm (5512/5513/1680 are all 28.2mm). If it is 28.2mm, it means the case neck is oem spec and any oem spec crystal/bezel combo should fit. I had problems with crystals fitting properly on my DW '1680' cases because the case necks are 28.1 give or take. I ordered a few assorted non genuine 127 crystals and tried them with different inner bezels until I found the closest fit. Then I had to trial and error fit the rotating bezel to the inner bezel because they are hit or miss when you mix them up. It was a hassle but I got by without using any glue. The Sternkreuz XS303.430 crystal should be oem spec or very close.

The replica business is a closed business. Closed to outsiders. I have a friend who knew quite a few 'importers' etc over the years and he went to NYC quite a few times to buy genuine fashion watches and check in with a couple of his 'importer' friends. His importer friends could get anything he asked for but it would take a couple or three months to get them...most of it came in containers. Forum members have always heard that 'the good stuff' is not available in the USA. Not so, it depends on who you know just like everything else, and my friend knew 'The Right Guys'. New replica 16610 with new swiss etas (no movement parts junk) were less than $200 depending on quantity (sapphire crystal, hollow mid link bracelets etc). At this time, nos and new swiss 28xx etas were still available in wholesale lots. Same watch with etaclones were about $100 depending on how many you wanted. This was about 6 or 8 years ago. Lower tier 16610 types with good dials, solid mid link bracelets, Asian 21 jewel ST16/NN/DG 2813 etc were $35 or $40 each if you bought 50 or more. Higher grade GMT types with DG 3804 or submariner types with ST16/NN/DG, hollow mid link bracelets, sapphire etc were $65...same cases as the swiss eta models. These guys had anything you could imagine...silberstein, AP, breguet, cartier, longines, omega, IWC, patek, you name it. He gave me a lot of his 'leftovers' and I still have an Alain Silberstein and a rose gold plate over SS AP manual wind model and both are well done with very good dials etc. How much did this guy spend in order to get to 'Know the Right Guys' and get the right prices? Probably $300 to $500k Where are 'The Right Guys' now? One is claimed to be DOA due to a car accident...a common ploy when they drop out of the business. Another was busted with about $3 million in bogus watches/purses etc in his warehouse in NYC, it made the major newspapers 6 or 7 years ago. He bailed out and went back to China. Where are all the 'leftovers' now? Gave a lot of them away, threw a lot of them away etc, etc. Where is 'the friend' now? In and out of jail, currently out. He made a lot of $$ but spent most of it on high priced lawyers and back taxes. What did I get out of it? A lot of very good stories that no one would believe. Like the time we bought 32,000 watches (iirc, might have been 36k) in one whack and had to rent warehouse space and hire a couple crack'hos to sort them out. Or the one where my friend and his 'new partner' bought 13,000 watches and the 'partner' stole them and took off with them in a trailer. My friend's 'partner' put the money up with a bad check, then stole them. I was not in on that deal. And the guy in Miami FL who tried to beat me out of $12.5k by sending junk watches instead of new watches...took me a while to get it back. How about the one about a wholesale guy in NYC who sold 'store returns' quartz fashion watches for $30 for a snow shovel full? They were piled up all over the floor of a room in his warehouse. "They just need a battery." I still have a couple shovels full out in the garage. Ha! See what I mean about no one would believe the stories? My advice? Fergidaboudit.

"They can bearly keep the place running!" I know what you mean. We can barely keep the bears fed...since they closed the vacation roads to Yankees. Wait a minute! That was not PC. I take it back! Nanuq: "Now what we need is a real controversy to get the juices flowing again." Sogeha: "No we don’t, I’m sick of you Yanks telling us what we want." You cant blame me. I'm 51% Irish, 47% England & Wales, ...and 2% BS.

"At 74 years old you’d think I’d give it up." Never give it up! "You’ve been around long enough to remember. I bought the bezel in 2011 or 12, but not from ndtrading. The vendor was Mark something, like Mk. III or something. Or maybe I’m confusing the name with the bezel. A Mk. II, or Ml. III bezel." I do not remember who it was either. I am sure the aftmkt suppliers could make replacement bezels as good as yours with no trouble but they continue making mistakes for some reason. The virus has closed us down around here and I saw where they are keeping the Smoky Mountains closed through April 30. I can see the Smokies out of our back windows, I'm about 15 minutes from the mountains and 30 minutes from the National Park. Do Not feed the bears...unless you want to be bear food.

"This is for the oldtimers on this board." I guess I qualify, 5-16-07. "Just wondering if anyone recognized this bezel." I have a Phong '1655' case from around 2010/2011 and it has a bezel with 'thin line' numbers but in the same font style as in your pics. I looked on a few rlx websites and bezels similar to mine were from around the late 1970s/early 1980s...probably. Yours looks more like an early 1970s style. Genuine or not I do not know but it is very good. Otoh I have a cartel '1655' from maybe 4 or 5 years ago that is 90% as good as the Phong case except for the case engraving and bezel numbers. The cartel dial is almost as good as many higher $$ rep dials too. I tried a genuine GMT/1655 movement with genspec 1655 dial in the cartel case and it will fit after machining the case a little bit but the dial is too small...27.3mm for genspec vs 28.0mm for the cartel dial. The genspec dial just barely fills the dial opening. Could put a 1575 GMT 'quickie conversion' in it with the cartel dial and have a cool fly-by 1655. 'Fly-by' GMT/1655 = looks good outside and under the hood but not under the dial. There are a lot of them out there, especially now with rlx parts cut off. This site always has a lot of genuine 1655 for comparison: https://www.hqmilton.com/timepieces/references/rolex-1655 'Fly-by' GMT/1655 info: https://rwg.cc/topic/168977-building-an-mbw-sub-shortcut-rlx-156070-gmt-conversions/page/2/#comments

"I recently picked up a Mathey Tissot Type 20." It's hard to beat a Tissot considering what you get for the $$. Here is a pretty good deal on one: eBay item number 383505535068

I sent RickFlorida a reply by PM and here are the basics: Afaik the thickness of the calendar spacer is the only difference, and there are two or three different spacer thicknesses...date, GMT etc. and no date models do not have a spacer at all. The only difference in the 1520 and 1570 is the flat hairspring on the 1520 and the overcoil hs on the 1570, the plates are basically the same. For example, you can swap a 1525 date movement into a case made for a 1575 date movement since everything except the escapement is the same, date works and all. The main plates are basically the same except for hack vs non hack. Hack movements have a groove machined in the main plate for the blade type hack lever to lay in with a threaded hole for the haklev mounting screw. "Are all 15XX movements 28.5mm by 5.75mm without a date?" According to my rlx manuals all 15xx no date movements are 5.75mm thick. The only way to get super accurate measurement info is to find a 15xx movement with an oem spec dial and measure them with a precision digital caliper. There is a step on the outside of a 15xx movement and you need to take that into account as well as noting how thick the step is and how far the step is from the bottom of the movement etc. You need to do this yourself and not depend on second hand measurements. In other words, 'you have to see it in order to measure it.' "...what is the thickness of a 26mm rolex dial for submariner?" Most oem vintage dials are .4mm+/-.

"...maybe the 1530 had a date function or something?" It was probably a 1535 date (6.30mm thick) because the base 1530 no date is 5.75mm thick.

"Call me a kid, but I like knowing that I'll still be able to tell time after the EMP attack from a rogue separatist group that's sure to follow in the fallout from the pandemic." Maybe get a rolex with an 'EMP Resistant' Syloxi balance spring just to make sure. https://mb.nawcc.org/threads/when-is-a-tangled-hairspring-unsalvageable.153147/

"don´t forget vratislavia conceptum" Thanks! I added links to them.

I like chronographs but mechanical chronographs give me the willies so I am a quartz chronograph guy now by default. Back when parts and service were cheap and easy to get, mechanical chronographs were Ok but not now. The problem is most of today's quartz chronographs are the modern style like Seiko, Citizen etc and I like the 1960s/1970s styles, especially two register chronographs like I saw at motorcycle races and in automobile racing movies. What's out there? 'Undone' offers a cool selection of 'racergraphs' but I like clunky cushion cases so I passed on them. https://www.ablogtowatch.com/undone-urban-vintage-chronograph-watch-review/ The 'Belmoto Track-Day' is sharp but pricey. Had to pass. http://www.ablogtowatch.com/retro-racing-inspired-belmoto-watches-founder-magrette/ The 'Autodromo Prototipo' is Ok but it is pricey and has a Plain Jane look about it. Pass. https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/autodromo-prototipo-review The 'Goodspeed Petrol' is a smack in the face but it makes me smile and the price is right but I passed on it. https://silodrome.com/goodspeed-petrol-watch/ The 'Geckota' C1 two register line of chronographs is the style I like and they have the Seiko V64 mecaquartz movement (mechanical start/stop/reset) but they have a goofy brand name so I passed. The name sounds like a species of duck. http://www.ablogtowatch.com/geckota-c-1-racing-chronograph-watch/ Found the 'Drift Pro Am' that looks just like the Geckota and has the Seiko mecaquartz movement so I bought one. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Drift-Pro-Am-DR1786-Black-White-42-mm-Chronograph-w-Black-Leather-Nylon-P-315/164138916774 Edit: Did not know about this brand. Thanks to marsupilami, here they are. CHRONO RAPIDE S.13: https://vratislavia-watches.com/language/en/chrono-rapide-s-13/ CONCEPTIUM: https://www.pinterest.com/ck0976/vratislavia-conceptum-heritage-chronos/ I like them!

"So I am wanting to do a 5513. My question is, are the cartel cases all engraved as 1680's?" I have them both ways. My newest one is stamped '5513' and is made for a 26.0mm dial and '21 jewel' miyotaclone. Another older case is marked '1680' and is made for a 26.5mm dial and Eta 2836 but the slightly oversized no date dial is signed '5513'. My guess is whatever the basic case is made to be...most of the time that is what it will have engraved between the lugs. Most numbers are lightly laser engraved and can be sanded off in a few minutes. I would be more concerned with lug hole location (not too high or low) and the case neck being oem spec 28.2mm. Another thing is if the case back gasket is mounted in the case or case back...genuine 5512/13 and 1680 gaskets mount in the case back. The 1665 cb gasket is mounted in the case. Most 'old standard' cartel 55xx and 1680 cases have the gasket mounted in the case, newer models may be in the case back. My newest (about 4 years old) '5513' cartel case has the gasket mounted in the case. It really does not matter but many cartel 55xx and 1680 cases with gaskets mounted in the case may have a shorter 'skirt' on the case back where it screws down against the case where cases with the cb gasket mounted in the case back may have a slightly taller skirt making it look a bit more 'genuine'. "It bothered me more that the case is too thick and the crown is in the wrong place." The crown being too high or too low on the case depends on what the case was made to be (55xx or 1680), what movement it was made for, and any compromises/errors during design/machining. Very few 'observers' will notice this because these things (in genuine form) are 50+ year old designs and most people have not seen one up close. My older and newer midcases are fairly thin...both 5.6mm thick at the crown and 9 o'clock, the older cases all have grooves for case clamps/screws, and the lug holes are centered so they look Ok when drilled out. Both old and new cases have 28.2mm case necks so oem spec crystals and bezels will fit. All have the case back gaskets mounted in the cases and the older cases have a better overall finish. The older cases are 15+ years old from back in the 'Abay' days...complete watches with brand new swiss Eta 2836 for $159 delivered. Crazy Sale! price was sometimes as low as $99. Hard to believe the same basic case with the gasket in the case back and a good set of letters/numbers can go for $600 to $1500 today. Crazy!

"But at any rate, building a 7032 isn't a cheap proposition." They sure ain't cheap now. I can not look a Monte Carlo in the face since I paid $275 for one that looked like new September 4, 1997 at a local pawn shop, also bought a like new tooter 94010 with b/p for $425 on June 6, 1998. I keep records going back 35+ years but it makes me feel dumb when I look at the records now because it seems like I sold everything too soon even when I got the price of the day. I had a lot of tooters in the trading days and did not even write most of them up. Did not write rolex watches bought for parts up or most quartz watches under $100 either. Got a genuine mid size Cartier Tank Francaise on a steel bracelet at the trading table in October 2005 for $100 and it's a wonder I wrote it up because quartz watches like that went across the table every weekend...Concord, Ebel, Cartier, quartz tooter, etc. Still have two tutone quartz Ebel Sport Waves from back then...one was $40 and the other was $0, a trader gave it to me because the dealer wanted too much to put a battery in it and local watch fix-it shops would not touch it. Have a couple 1911 tutone quartz models from back then too. I always liked Ebel watches, Ebel made Cartier Santos Tank watches under contract back then, probably some other models too. I still have 15 or 20 1960s/1970s Bulova dressy '333' Oceanographers with 10k gold bezels in a box marked 'OO'...probably because they were not worth very much. I found one for sale on eBay just now for $333.33. One dollar a meter. Looks like they have come up from the depths. "Wonder if a ST-19 would work?" Good question. Valjoux 7734 Date 14''', Dm= 31.0mm, Do= 31.3mm H= 6.65mm F= 1.25mm T= 2.5mm 17 jewels f = 18000 A/h power reserve 45h The basic Val 7730 was the Venus 188 starting out, Valjoux renamed it and added the date along with a three register 7736 model etc. 　 7750 ND/D/DD etc. 13.25''', Dm= 30.0mm, Do= 30.4mm H= 7.9mm F= 1.9mm T= 3.0mm 17/25 jewels f = 28800 A/h power reserve 46h The 7750 is basically a quick set automatic three register Val 7736. ST19 13.75''', Dm= 31.0mm, Do= 31.3mm H= 5.85mm (dial plate +0.4mm, Fig.3) F= 0.5mmmm T= 1.8mm 19 jewels f = 21600 A/h power-reserve 51h Basically a souped up Chinese Venus 175.

"Cracked rotor, how does that even happen?? Must have been some crazy temperature variation or else someone forced in an axle that didn't fit." Chances are it cracked when someone staked the new axle to flare the rivet, the axle is not a very tight fit in the rotor so smacking the axle too hard probably did it. The center part of the rotor is springy and may be a little bit brittle. "I guess your decision depends on how much you want to keep the watch, or if there's a special lady who might want it." True. I do not want to keep it, rather make a few buck$ on it. My wife wears an Apple watch and does not want it. She said: "Automatic watches are for Kids". My feelings are hurt.