automatico

I would keep it as is because it is unique. The E may have peeled off after it was pad printed on the dial. Sometimes the dials are so slick the printed letters/markers come off or slide out of place.

Yep it's wrong. Should be MAD SWISS.

"This also came to an end when they ceased production of the traditional submariner case and began production of the bulky new style case with the ceramic bezel that practically does nothing for me!" I know what you mean about today's modern chunky tuna cases. I have a few submariner style cases from back in the 1990s/early 2000s and they look pretty good but all have 60 click spring wire bezels and are made for 'press into a gasket' MG/sapphire crystals and plastic movement spacers. They are Ok for low ball projects but do not compare with the cases that came with better grade watches in the era of the noobmariner etc. A few dealers still offer 16610 type watches that are probably better than ever but I have not seen one up close. Mary Watch has a 'JF Factory' 16610 but it comes with a semi reliable 3135 clone. At least with an etaclone you can swap it out with a swiss movement when it goes south. Can't do this with the 3135 clone...the dial feet/hands will not fit an ETA, plus you would need a DWO for the ETA. It would be nice to have a few nos TC submariners. Not NOS4A2 submariners. You have to go to Christmasland to get them...

Dealers... I remember all the guys you named plus my favorite...'Paul' from Pam111/Abay etc. He was a character, always delivered what I ordered, included a 'Birthday card' and sometimes an extra gift of some sort. Who from back then can forget his $159 and $99 'Crazy Sales!' Last I heard from him was 12 or 15 years ago when he sent a picture of himself in a miniature Mercedes. I remember Eddie Lee posing on his motorcycle (Honda CX 500/650 iirc) reminiscent of Prince in Purple Rain (Hondamatic CM400A). Still have a few watches from 'River'...a couple sapphire 'lug hole' SD and one Ex II. I got a 'cream' dial somewhere for the Ex II but never put it on the watch. That might still be a good project. I never bought anything from Neil but read his witty and often insulting posts...insulting only to the posters who had it coming (most of the time). Word is he went RIP but do not know for sure. David Wong (DW) was Ok too but he has dropped under the radar. Wish I had bought a few of his Daytona cases. Then there was Watchlover David aka WLD. He started out Ok but got in too deep and stiffed a few buyers...maybe more than a few. Bought a few watches from a guy in Chicago back in the RWCC days (Replica Watch Collector Club), one of the first replica forums and a few years before TRC, but can not remember his name. There was a guy going by the name 'Cal' back then and I bought a few of the steel Ex II and GMT with working 24 hour hands, the first with working 24H hands that I had seen, probably 1996 or '97 (Asian NN/DG mvt). Still have a couple around here somewhere. An added bonus back then was the 'swiss' watches I bought had new swiss ETA movements, no ratty etaclones or half and half junk like today. As for the current dealers, the only two I have used in a the past few years are Reggie and Mary, both were A-1.

"Do you know who could do the smooth plain bezel..." Just about anyone who can make small precision parts on a lathe. I use 316 seamless tubing to make bezels. Also have some 904 but use 316 most of the time...very little (if any) real difference. A machine shop friend got the tubing and cut it into slightly oversize bezel blanks that I cut to the finished size. (I no longer take in outside work because I have been down that rabbit hole too many times. Anyone who has done this type of work will understand.) "...and where I could find the GMT vintage dial with hands?" You need to know: The movement brand/type. Dial seat outer diameter so the dial will fit in the case. Then look for a dial/hand set that will work with your movement and case combo. Good vintage 1675 type dials are harder to find and usually more $$ than modern GMT dials. Many modern GMT cartel dials are pretty good but most cartel replica 1675 dials are not very good. It is also a good idea to use case clamps and screws to secure the movement in the case rather than a plastic spacer. Many cases do not have a groove (or notches) cut inside them to accommodate case clamps so the groove will need to be machine cut. You can cut notches inside the case by hand using a Dremel tool with a small, thin cut-off wheel but you may need to practice on a scrap case first. If you do not remove the crystal...put a couple layers of masking tape on the crystal inside the case to protect it. Cut-off wheel example: eBay item number 362461547044

My guess is Brando simply pried the rotating bezel off with his fingers and left the watch alone. You can push the rotating bezel to one side and pull up on the other side to remove the rotating bezel by hand on most of these watches. This is why posters on genuine rlx forums complain about losing rotating bezels on submariners etc. A small smack on a door frame and off they go. Sporty watch gold rotating bezels can just 'fall on the floor' because the soft gold wears away where it snaps over the crystal retainer bezel, especially if the owner turns the bezel a lot. Sometimes they pop off when shoving a hand in a tight pocket etc. Older models had spring wire retainer bezels and they hardly ever fell off. Spring wire bezels are a better way to go imho but snap on bezels are easier to r/r...and they can $ell more bezels. As for putting a smooth bezel on the watch in place of the crystal retaining bezel...it would probably look better but you may have to get one made. I have a couple submariner type 'lug hole' cases and ordered a few different dials from Raffles Time to put a project watch together with a smooth bezel, 'California' dial, acrylic crystal, and unsigned 7mm crown but never finished it because I can buy a similar watch on eBay for $100 or less now. From 'My watch of the day' blog':

"I have also reached the station in life where I don't give a $hit about being nit-picked/called out." Me too, a long time ago. I used to have to decide between an MBK '5512' Frankenstein with a 1570 and an MBK '5513' F-stein with a 1520 until I swapped the 1570 for an ETA 2879 and took the '5513' apart. Then I had to decide between the MBK/ETA '5512' and a $150 cartel '5512' with a Seagull ST16 that I stuck together. The cartel/Seagull usually wins because the whole watch is worth about 20% of the MBK and killing it would not hurt much. The MBK/ETA '5512' is put away with the '5513' parts for now. I mostly wear an Accutron II 'Moonview' so I removed the automatic winding guts from the cartel ST16 and manually wind it (about 30 cranks) every morning even if I do not wear it for days at a time. Thirty cranks in 30 seconds = about 30 hours running. A manually operated watch winder...that's a new concept! Alert the media! It will put quartz watches out of business!

"I also find it interesting that everyone accepts this is how MB wore his watch. I assume he pulled the bezel off for the film. Makes you wonder if it was pulled off again for the sale." From Robb Report: Brando was said to have been told to remove his Rolex, but refused, saying: "If they’re looking at my watch, then I’m not doing my job as an actor." though he did remove the watch’s bezel. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/long-lost-marlon-brando-rolex-tour-5-cities-hit-auction-block-1225070 https://robbreport.com/style/watch-collector/marlon-brandos-apocalypse-now-rolex-gmt-master-2857936/ From 'UNIQUE WATCH': Trade Marks: Method Acting. Mumbling. Difficult to work with. During the filming of ‘Apocalypse Now’ Brando detested Dennis Hopper so much he refused to shoot any of his scenes with him. Delays in production led some to nickname the film ‘Apocalypse Later’. Brando's Godfather DJ... https://robbreport.com/style/watch-collector/the-godfathers-watch-marlon-brandos-rolex-datejust-heads-to-auction-2849758/ Pics from HODINKEE

"I swapped out the glass too, but will have to go back to the old crystal as the tension ring does not quite make the dial." If the crystal is acrylic and "the tension ring does not quite make the dial' means the reflector is not quite wide enough...GS makes a line of acrylic armored crystals (press in type) that have extra wide reflector rings. They are called Wide-Tite (WT). Sizing example...if the crystal seat in the case is 30.0mm, you need a 30.1 or 30.2mm crystal, probably 30.1mm. The wider the crystal seat, the bigger crystal OD you can get by with...a 33.0mm crystal seat will usually accept a 33.2mm OD ET or WT armored crystal. If a 30.1mm crystal seems to be a little bit loose in a 30.0mm crystal seat, you can apply a thin coat of epoxy or crystal cement to the crystal seat before pressing the crystal in the case to hold it in place. W-T example: https://www.esslinger.com/gs-watch-crystal-wt-wide-tite/ GS brand ET and WT crystals are the same except for the wider reflector ring on WT types. Specify reflector color when ordering. 'White' = chrome. 'Yellow' = goldtone. GS round crystal types: http://www.ofrei.com/page810.html I never found the Waltham watch mentioned above.

"This guy is the Sherlock Holmes for Vintage Rolex and Panerai." If someone can make up a Daytona this close to genuine, imagine how easy it is to make passable 55xx, 1680, 1016 etc watches with so many rlx 15xx movements around. I have said for years that there are probably lots of Frankenstein 55xx etc being passed around as genuine. Genuine dials have been a problem but now some reproductions are close enough for the average common sense aficionado. I will always wonder about rolex freaks who fully accept service dials then starts shaking and peeing down their leg when they see a first class reproduction dial...assuming they can tell the difference. None of my replica 'vintage' watches would fool anyone except maybe a greenhorn yard sale buyer and this is on purpose so the watches do not end up being sold as genuine. I stick them together to wear now and then because I like the 1960/1970 style rlx watches. Q...Why replicas? A1...Because I would feel like a fool paying today's prices for a 'genuine' example that might not even be 80% genuine. A2...Can't afford much more than a 4 digit DJ or AK anyway. A3...No parts/high part prices. "I believe he was the guy that helped expose "Orchi" of TRF fame." I remember 'Orchi'. He sure had a lot to say about his watches. Now I know why.

"Wow! and the auction house still sold it, unbelievable!" For 78,000 Euros!! Shazam!! Gone in a Flash!! Wonder how much the next guy pays for it? "I wonder what forum the watch was originally born on" Me too. Someone probably made a lot of $$ on it. The V72A, V72B, V72BC, 722, 722-1 Daytonas all have Breguet hairspring balance assemblies (p/n 722). Seems like that would be very hard to find today. Here is a complete V72 on eBay at $3000 with three days to go: eBay item number 333269329354 I do not know if it is Live or Memorex, I'm not boned up on them. Note...it went for $6099.00 plus $35 shipping on 7-21-2019. Here is another one with the (722) balance assembly and the other high $$ parts missing for 'only' $6500. eBay item number 223468877851 What is sad is that I missed one for $1600 in 1995. A friend who worked in a rolex AD sold it to a traveling circus... "Sell us your old rolll-ex! your ole paaa-tek philll-ippe! etc." They staked out in a motel room and advertised on the radio for a few days, then moved on to another town. I used to talk to Burley Bullock at watch shows, he was one of the first guys advertising to buy watches on the radio. He went on to form the IWJG. (BLB RIP May 2008)

This fellow did his homework. The Memorex Daytona: https://perezcope.com/2019/07/16/vintage-daytona-scandal-in-monaco/ Maybe it is Maxell...

"...I think the end-bars as opposed to the endlinks is a cool look!" Some bracelet info: https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/rolex-oyster-bracelet-historical-perspectives I used to see smaller manual wind rolex watches now and then with Bonklip bracelets. You see them on military type watches too. https://corvuswatch.blogspot.com/2011/11/untold-history-of-bonklip-watch.html

From a current WTB post: "I’m after a Rolex jubilee datejust clasp for two tone watch..." "Gen or rep?" "Either depending on price." Almost all replica clasps have 6 adjustment holes and genuine clasps have 7 so if this is important, go for a genuine clasp or maybe find a replica clasp with enough room for a set of additional holes. I have drilled an extra set of holes in a few clasp caps but there is usually not enough room for them on most 6 hole replica caps because of the way the holes are spaced. I drilled the extra holes by clamping a spare clasp cap to the clasp I wanted the extra holes in and drilled through the holes in the spare clasp to keep the drill bit lined up and keep it from breaking. The holes are 1.0mm iirc, check to be sure. You can also put a genuine 7 hole clasp cap on most replica 'Z' blade sets to make a passable clasp if you run across just the cap. Genuine jubilee and oyster bracelets will accept the same clasp but the reference numbers can be different...or not. Most replicas are probably made the same as genuine so the clasps should interchange between jubilee and oyster. Fyi... I have an original genuine 1980s 19mm SS/18k jubilee bracelet and the clasp has the same reference number as an original 1980s 20mm SS/18k DJ bracelet so you can not always count on the clasp to identify the exact type of bracelet it came from. You can use a 19mm bracelet on a DJ etc made for a 20mm bracelet and the bracelet will not wear the insides of the lug tips away. You will need the correct bracelet hoods (end pieces) though. I have seen quite a few high mileage DJ, OPD, AK, submariners etc with the insides of the lug tips worn from the bracelet rubbing against them for years. The looser the watch is worn = more bracelet flop and more lug wear.

"But for the money I don't think a franken with an eta 2836-2 movement can be beat..." I agree 100% but it took me a long time to figure it out. Nice DD and 5508! I've had a rlx 1556 since 2014 but no dial, case etc. It's full of diamond dust/Cheeto chips etc because the guy I got it from busted diamond melee out of gold rings over the drawer where the movement was stored. I never c/o the mvt because I have not needed it but it looks good. The pecker heads scrapped the case and bracelet!! With a good case, dial, bracelet and 28xx ETA...you can crank out a real nice DJ. So I gathered up the stuff to make a tutone DJ semi-stein but TT went out of style about that time. "when you switch from 15xx to ETA, did you clip the dial feet and use stickers?" On one '1016' with a 1570 in a genuine rlx 16220 case (put together in 1997), I used a genuine rlx 1016 dial so I packed the dial away after taking the watch apart. Another '1016' from 2008 had an oem spec aftmkt dial so I cut the dial feet off and put the dial along with an ETA 2824/2846 'combo movement' in a JMB case. I made a movement spacer tall enough so the dial could be cemented directly to the spacer. On the MBK '5512', I used a Yuki oem spec dial and kept it as/is for now. When I put an ETA in the MBK case, I used the dial that came in it with dial feet for an ETA 28xx. I used a cleaned/oiled nos ETA 2879 movement with the MBK dial, ST hands/case tube, ST/Clark bez kit, GS crystal, and genuine crown. The 2879 runs fine but does not keep time like a fresh 2824/36. My guess is plus/minus 15 or 20 sec/day depending on type of activity. The winding rotor is on a bushing, not a ball bearing but I doubt that matters very much. The MBK '5513' Frankenstein' case is stored away and the 1520 rlx movement is apart for c/o. The DW '1680' Frankenstein is still packed away in a box since March 2014. There is also an MBK '1680' F-stein that I did not mention...it was put together and taken apart but never worn. I cut the dial window out a hair to accommodate a 26.5mm oem spec dial and was going to leave the movement and dial from the DW '1680' in it but removed them after trying them for fit...the genuine dial/mvt worked fine in the MBK case. Then I put the mvt/dial back in the DW case. I also machined a genuine 'like new' 162xx case to accept an ETA 2836/2846/2879 etc in 1997 but never used it (I cut the dial seat about .4mm deeper in the case). Looking back, I should have left it alone because 162xx cases are bringing good $$ now. I still have the 'like new' 16220 case from the other '1016' and It would make a super nice '1016' if someone like R-jack detailed it into a '1016' and put a rlx 1570 and genuine dial in it. 162xx cases: I bought a few 'like new' 162xx and 152xx cases at watch shows in the mid 1990s when buyers were picking up steel sapphire DJ/OPD for converting the movements to Day/Date and putting them in 18k cases. They sold the steel cases and bracelets to get rid of them. Times (and prices!) sure have changed. Maybe tutone will come back in style.

I posted a while back that I was considering removing the genuine 15xx rlx movements from my 4 digit 'vintage Frankenstein' watches. Well, I finally removed the rlx 15xx movements from all except one. Q...How do I feel about it? A... Much better. Q...Why? A...Because it removed the inherent problems of having a $1500+ NPFU movement in a $350 watch: It cost too much! Don't drop it! Keep it dry! It's fragile! No Parts! I did stick a nos ETA 2879 in one Franko MBK '5512' and now it is a 'No Worries!' watch and can be worn without wondering if the last smack against the door frame knocked the finicky Breguet hairspring out of whack, broke a rotor jewel or something. I have gone full circle from Genuine! rolex watches for 40+ years to Frankensteins for a few years and now down to Plain Jane Replicas from now on. I still have a few genuine rlx watches to ignore so I am not lonely. Ha! Besides that, when someone asks the standard question "Is that a 'real' rolex?" I can proudly say "No, but it does have a gen-u-ine crown." Q...What is the one to go? A...A DW cased '1680' with a 1570 and original Lemrich Mk 1 dial (whatever Mk 1 means, I read it on VRF). The mvt/dial are in the DW case to protect them until I find a genuine 1680 case laying in the road. I look every day, so far I have found one Fossil watch worth maybe $5. Q...What have I learned? A1...A replica is a replica and should not be overly expensive. A2...ETA 24xx and 28xx are more rugged than rlx 15xx. A3...Some replica cases are First Class. A4...VN etc high grade cases with ETA movements can make First Class Replicas. A5...Most clone movements are junk. Q...Are there exceptions to the 'A replica is a replica...' rule? A...Yes. Q...What? A...A Rolojack for example and others that 'go genuine' after a few years of wear when the market allows it because of a shortage of 'originals'. Imho that time has come.

"I been looking for a cartel 93150 for ages on m2m. Can these be sourced any other way than buying a whole watch?" Some MBK watches had pretty good 93150 bracelets so you might put a note in WTB and see if anyone has one left over when they swapped the 93150 for a folded or rivet bracelet. Some MBK bracelets had hollow mid links and some were solid so state which one you want. I have seen many types of 93150 replicas, some good and many not so good. The worst have solid mid links and blind holes in the screw links (the hole does not go all the way through the link), and do not have a rivet in the Z clasp where it connects to the clasp cap. They are pretty bad but other versions can be much better. Next you have the choice of an '8 holes in a row' vintage clasp cap (with or without the bracelet holding crimp), or the 4x4 modern clasp cap depending on the 'age' of the watch. Otoh you might have to do what I did...make one out of 2 or 3 bracelets. You can go to Bing to see all the different types:. https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=pictures+of+rolex+93150+bracelets&qpvt=pictures+of+rolex+93150+bracelets&FORM=IGRE

"Fake watches are for Fake People." Maybe Yes. Maybe No. I sorta doubt it myself...unless the fake watch is on a politician. Steven Wright: The other day somebody stole everything in my apartment and replaced it with an exact replica... When my roommate came home I said, "Roommate, someone stole everything in our apartment and replaced it with an exact replica." He looked at me and said, "Do I know you?"

I have also used a toothpick between the dial and hand with clingwrap or watch paper between the dial and toothpick when lowering/straightening a bent hand. When straightening hands: First check to see if the hand is mounted level on the CP or hour when. If not, correct this first while making sure the hands are not pushed down too far on the CP and hour wheel. Minute hands are easy to mount out of level without noticing it. I use wide, flat nose tweezers and put a layer of 'Saran Wrap' thin plastic food service cling wrap around the hand to protect it. Good idea to also use a layer of wrap or a piece of watch paper between the dial and hands if you are working close to the dial. Vigor Prideline TW752A tweezers are good for hands if you can find them. You can make flat nose tweezers out of the regular type by cutting the tips off and slightly rounding the sharp edges leaving them about 2mm wide at the end. The wider ends will not put a scratch or dent in the hand like pointed nose tweezers are prone to do. Luminous material can be a problem if the hand needs to be bent very much...watch for cracks or the lume rising up out of the hand. Some modern hands have the lume applied on the back of the hand in one wide stripe and this type seems to be fairly durable depending on age and type of lume. Older = brittle.

"...been looking for the best possible looking base Rolex GMT ll that's reliable." I am not very familiar with later models of rolex but am familiar with etaclones and China GMT conversions. Cases, bracelets, and dials do not cause much trouble so movement reliability is the main concern. China etaclones are Ok if you get a good one to begin with. One good thing about them is you can swap out the etaclone for a swiss ETA if or when the etaclone gives out. Today's China GMT conversions are generally Ok but earlier examples with adjustable 24H hands might not be as good. Basic etaclone GMT rule...the less you adjust the 24H hand, the better off you will be. The China GMT conversion should work on a swiss ETA when/if the time comes to swap the movement out. Maybe someone with more experience with these movements will post some info.

"And yet the value of vintage rolexes is still quite strong even at the lower end where I generally hunt." Agree. I have snagged a few pretty good rolex buys in the last few years but they were not mainstream models. One was a gold top 6694, one was a manual wind no date model, and one was an older 17 jewel (1520) 5500 AK. Otoh I looked on eBay at sold 6694 just now and they are going for around $1100 to $2500 so that's not too bad at the lower end of the prices. I paid $500 for the gold top 6694 and the owner threw some other watchjunk in with the deal so I ended up with about $400 in it but it needs a case tube, crown, crystal, and clean/oil etc = about $500 when finished with crystal, gaskets, spring bars, strap, buckle, ST case tube, swiss Générale Ressorts mainspring, and a good used crown, c/o is free. It probably sold for $250 or less when new. Gold top vintage rolex watches were said to have around 80 microns of gold on top of the case and the bezels were solid gold, usually 14k. The gold case top was a gold cap soldered on the steel case similar to heavy gold fill...you can see the edge of the gold cap on the bottom of the cases. They seem to hold up for many years with no wear through unless some Gomer buffs the gold off the case. A lot of older watches had 20 microns of gold plating on the case, a few were 40 microns, and watches with heavy plating usually have the thickness stamped on them somewhere. Today the better brands are usually 10 microns or less and some cheaper brands are 'flash plated'...you can rub the plating off with a Fabulustre polishing cloth in two or three swipes. Here is a 40 micron rolex case: http://www.passions.com.sg/v2/watch/rolex-30mm-c1960s-oysterdate-precision-ref6466-yellow-gold-40microns-plated High quality Générale Ressorts mainsprings come in many swiss watch brands. A few US GR mainspring suppliers: Cas-Ker Inc Esslinger And Co Jules Borel & Co Otto Frei Some may market them under a supply house brand or other brand name.

"...I'm always amazed about your knowledge of cases and movements Rick!" Thanks, I appreciate it! The bottom line (imho) is the 40+ year accumulation of 'useless knowledge' gained from my watch hobby is really not worth much in today's world outside of this and similar forums. The mechanical watch seems to be going the way of the dinosaur as the current generation shuns traditional watches for I-phones and smart watches in their early $$ earning years. Maybe mechanical and/or vintage watches will catch on later in life but who knows? By then they may really cost a fortune. As for younger 'watch nuts' wanting to go into the repair trade, things are not rosy at all as the 'Big Name Brand' watch repair business is swinging toward 'corporate watch repair' as can be seen by the latest rolex move to cut off parts to almost all of the remaining independent US repair shops that work on rolex watches. Since most brands have already gone or are in the process of going this route, repair guys will have to go corporate, go AD, or go independent and swap out batteries and quartz movements to pay the rent while searching for mechanical watch repair parts. Forums like this one are unique because a large percentage of members know a lot about watches in general where the average 'brand forum member' usually only knows a little about certain watch brands...mostly reference numbers, movement caliber designations, and production dates, along with their most important questions of all...What's New? Are they available yet? Who has one? How much are they? Everyone wants a rolex but almost everyone wears a Timex. (or Citizen/Seiko/Fossil etc)

Random '1016' movement/case combo Q & A from messages and posts: Q...On mounting of the gen 1570 on the 2824 case in terms of diameter it works, but not sure about the height. A...The distance from the stem center line to the dial is the critical measurement...then add the thickness of the dial. Most genuine vintage rlx dials are .40mm plus or minus, replica dials may be a little bit less. Q...Is there a specific spacer that assures a correct placement of the movement or is it trial and error? A...In the projects I have done using an aftmkt 15xx rlx case with a rlx 15xx movement, I did not need a spacer IF the case is made for a date or no date movement and that is what you are putting in it. You can read about using a spacer between the movement and dial on MBK 55xx/1680 cases when using a no date rlx 15xx movement above. An RWG friend (Stilty, from Canada) had some special ETA to rlx case spacers CNC machined about 10 years ago and later Yuki had the same type of spacer made and they are still available. Q...Do you always have to use the stamped metal dial spacer on ETA's when it has nothing to do with spacing the dial away from the date wheel? A...The spacer is needed to level the dial. I stuck an ETA 2836 with 26.0mm dial without the calendar spacer in a Yuki '5513' OEM spec case and the stem does not line up. A little better without the spacer but not much. Besides that, the dial flops around on the movement because the spacer also holds the dial level. in cases made for a 15xx movement, I needed an OD type spacer to fit an ETA 28xx movement in the case because an ETA movement is 11.5 ligne size and a 15xx rlx is 12.5 ligne size (1 ligne = 2.2558291 mm). I make spacers out of brass flat washers on a lathe and cut them to fit the movement OD and case ID. Some standard brass cartel watch spacers will do the job. I also make some of the spacers with a shoulder that comes up higher than the movement plate so I can stick the dial to the spacer when using dials made for rlx movements without dial feet and do away with the flimsy stamped metal ETA spacer. Fyi...I bought a nos Eta 2879 day/date movement and it has the calendar spacer made on the movement plate, not a sheet metal spacer. They will work in cases made for Eta 2836/46 and have the 21600 beat rate that is close to the rolex 1520/1570 19800 bph...but they are not good for 5512/13 projects in genuine spec cases because they will be too thick like an ETA 2836/46. Imho, most cartel DJ 16200 type cases are better suited to ETA 36mm DJ/modern sapphire explorer etc. projects than '1016' projects especially if they do not have 'through and through' lug holes because lug holes are very hard to get right when drilling them in blind lugs. When using cartel cases you can also have trouble fitting a 2836 in a case made for a 2824 or putting a 2824 in a 2836 case...plus drilling lug holes. I did a '1016' project using an early genuine rlx 162xx case with a 1570 and it turned out pretty good and although the case is not exactly 1016 spec, it is very high quality and looked fine. There is also plenty of metal around the lug holes to drill the holes to 1.25 or 1.3mm without getting too close to an edge like some of the cartel cases. A genuine rlx 160xx case might be closer to a 1016 than a 162xx case but you would probably need to use a calendar spacer etc. like with an MBK 55xx/1680 case when using a rlx 15xx movement. I never tried it so I do not know for sure. I still have my JMB '1016' with a combo 2824/2836 movement and it has been fine. The combo movement I put together seems to run Ok but like all ETA movements in my experience it needs more active wear to keep the running reserve up compared to a rlx 15xx movement. I drilled/tapped the JMB case to put a standard 6.0mm case tube in it so it would accept a standard 6.0mm crown...I used a replica crown on it though. Random comments: I have used Eta 2836/46 movements only in cartel/MBK cases that were made for Eta 2836/46/DG etc movements. Externally the 2836 is basically the same as a 2846. So...I tried a 2836 with 26.0mm dial in a Yuki 5513 genuine spec case and it would not work because the movement is too thick and the stem will not line up in the case tube...it is too far toward the back. A 2824 would probably work but I did not try one. Note...the movement still has the dial spacer so removing it will make the movement thinner but probably not thin enough. The movement/dial combo I tried in the Yuki OEM spec case was from an MBK '5512' and they use standard Eta 2836 movements with the calendar guts removed but with the calendar spacer left on. The details on the MBK cases are at the top of this sticky. If you wanted to use an ETA 2846 in a Yuki 55xx it would probably be like my JMB '1016' project where I had to use a set of 2824 plates with 2846 running gear (escapement etc) plus center wheel/hour wheel/canon pinion. HellofaMess unless you like taking Eta movements apart, mixing parts up, and putting them back together. Besides that, since the movements had no service history and had been handled, I also had to c/o them both. In rlx 1016, 55xx projects... "I could sell my 2846 and get a 2824 to get a thinner movement." The 2824 = wrong beat rate and the center wheel/hour wheel/cp may be too low, making the hands too close to the dial. The bottom line is... Projects like this always turn out to be trial and error unless you are working on a standard project with known parameters. If a 2836/46 is too thick, you either have to go with a 2824 (wrong beat rate), a combo 2824/2846 movement (hassle), or a thin Eta/A Schild etc. of some sort with the 21600 beat rate. Early rlx 15xx were 18000 bph but most are 19200 bph and 21600 bph is close enough (for me anyway). Like I said before...It's a HellofaMess (on a very small scale). Otoh look at the bright side...by the time you get finished, you will know more about vintage rolex projects than 95% of RWG members...for what it's worth. Ha! Yuki adapter: https://rwg.cc/topic/116411-yuki-eta-2824-adaptor Dial with no dial feet: https://rwg.cc/topic/183724-dial-with-no-feet 6610 Explorer: https://rwg.cc/topic/189330-rolex-6610-explorer-with-a-r-e-a-l-gilt-dial-pure-beauty/ DJ 1600/16000 info: https://rwg.cc/topic/192376-datejust-160016000/

"Startime has also bezel assemblies, but I don't know the quality." ST and Clark bezel kits were exactly the same a couple years ago but do not know about now. Both are high quality and accurately OEM sized...they also have a matte finish that can be polished away in a few minutes. Have read that WSO can be hit or miss. Mostly miss. Cartel cases can be OEM spec for the case neck (28.2mm) and standard bezel kits will work but many are not OEM spec and this can lead to a lot of trouble. My advice is to measure the case neck OD first before spending a lot of $$ on a 55xx/1680 project. If it is off much more than .1mm you may have a lot of trouble getting a proper fit. Getting proper tension between the crystal retainer bezel and rotating bezel can be a real hassle too so as soon as the crystal and crystal retainer are installed, snap the rotating bezel on the case without a tension washer and see if it turns with no tight spots. Tight spots can usually be removed by putting fine polishing compound on the parts and turning them back and forth until they smooth out. Btw, one of the worst bezel fitting jobs was on a genuine 1675 using all new genuine parts so there is no guarantee that using genuine OEM parts will be a hassle free fit. Always press down lightly on the rotating bezel when testing the turning friction or using polishing compound to prevent undue wear on the bezel parts that provide the snap on fit. After the bezel fitting is finished and the rotating bezel is finally mounted, continue to lightly press down on the bezel when turning it to lessen the tension between the rotating bezel and crystal retainer by compressing the tension washer. This also prevents wear to the mating surfaces as mentioned above. I would guess that about half of my bezel fitting jobs were trouble free but some of the others turned out to be a time consuming hassle. This is not meant to discourage anyone but to say that ill fitting rotating bezels are not out of the ordinary. The next hurdle is bezel inserts...

"Just because it's a Phong doesn't make it a franken- more like just a replica..." The goat has a good point. A Frankenstein project needs a genuine case or movement. It takes genuine guts or skin to qualify as a 'stein imho. Dials... Some of the 'affordable' genuine dials are so bad that I would much rather go with a reproduction on a replica or Frankenstein watch. I have read long diatribes on rlx forums against dials accused of being Fake! and next, the same posters are falling in love with a ratty original dial that looks like moldy swiss cheese on a Ritz cracker (genuine swiss cheese). The day after that they are swooning over a 'service dial' that is not much if any better than the average $150 reproduction. Bu-bu-but it's Genuine! Genuine!...in a 45+ year old watch with half the guts swapped out including some generic parts thrown in and a $40 HK bezel assembly. Not to mention case corrosion so bad that they have to take it off to whizz. Next they discuss in minute detail microscopic differences in font, letter spacing etc that no one in their right mind would notice or care about. It's insanity. In my humble insane opinion...