automatico

I shy away from newer genuine rolex watches because of high buy in prices and no parts but have always liked vintage models with 1530 base movements (I owned them back when they were new in stores). That being said, the 1530 base watches also have a parts problem today...there are plenty parts around but the prices are absurd.

Example...I just paid $20.00 for a nos 1530 set lever with $3.75 written on the blister pack!

So...if the '1016' does not scratch the itch maybe a super nice 5512/13 or 1680 with MBK or Yuki case and fresh swiss eta 2846 etc would do. Since the case and dial are what shows, I would get high quality parts but older eta movements needing c/o are relatively cheap. As for the 1680...I like them with swiss eta quick set movements as opposed to genuine slow set movements. Grind the date notches away on the set bridge and no one will know it is a QS.

Imho today's new style of rolex vs vintage rolex = flash vs class.  

Take a few weeks or months to decide what you really like.

Brand.

Style...sporty or dressy.

Modern or vintage.

China, japan, or swiss movement, original or clone.

Quartz, manual wind, or automatic.

Bracelet or strap.

Plastic, MG, or sapphire crystal.

Etc, etc.

Narrow it down to about three, do not go on a buying spree.

Hope for the best but prepare for disappointment.

Maintain a sense of humor about watches in general and replicas in particular.  

The U shaped calendar spring goes in after the plate is installed...it goes in through the cutout in the plate. Be sure to put it back in the same way it came out as iirc one end of the spring is longer.

I could smart off and say you might read this guy's actual history but I will not.

Do not believe the media hype. I have talked to quite a few people who lived in Cuba during the Castro and Che era who are now living in Miami and other parts of the USA.

Look at the stem to see if it has a gradually tapered section behind the square part. If it does, this means it was designed to be pushed slowly into the movement without pressing the detent button.

Try it a few times and see what happens...sometimes it will catch and be Ok.

Something else I have seen a few times is a stem cut too short and it will not lock into place after being removed. If you want to check for this, unscrew the stem a half turn in the crown and try it. If it locks, remove it and cement the stem in place with Super Glue etc.

Note:

Sometimes unscrewing the stem in the crown will cause the crown threads to strip or strip the 'clutch' in screw down crowns. If the stem is too tight to remove and you heat the stem with a flame, the heat runs up the stem into the crown and melts the gasket.

I absolutely hate to work on these things but sometimes I do.  

Imho Che Guevara aka 'The Butcher of La Cabana' was a better man after Mario Teran got done with him.

Ex CIA guy Felix Rodriguez supposedly still has the GMT. 

Che 'gave it up' after he no longer needed to know what time it was.  

"Didn't know these phongs were so expensive."

I knew it but still can not believe it.

I would buy a cheaper Yuki etc case.

Why?

Because a replica will always be a replica just like a monkey in a tuxedo will always be a monkey.  

I use heavy duty green Scotch-Brite scour pads from the grocery store, aka 'pot scrubbers'. Just be sure to rub the pad straight across the bracelet to make an even grain and keep the pads away from crystals, inserts etc.

Also have a buff wheel similar to the 6085 above on a 1/2 hp 1725 rpm electric motor for rough bracelets etc.

A buff wheel on an electric motor is the way to go if you do a lot of refinishing. I get buff wheels at a machine tool supply store for about one fourth the Bergeon price. They are used to remove rust from sheet metal and come in different grades.

Bergeon is Swahili for 'your money is gone'.  

Having gone about 20 rounds with this no fitting sorry azz junque, I decided if the case neck is genuine spec and the watch is worth the trouble and expense...I buy a ST or Clark bezel kit.

The catch now is Clark is always out of stock and ST has gone up to about $90.

It's a never ending clooster fook.  

Chances are a genuine spec 6.0mm aftermarket case tube and used genuine crown will work. If the case is drilled for a 5.3mm case tube you will have to use a late model 6.0mm crown like used on modern sapphire DJ with a 5.3mm case tube.

Super nice watch!

"Where can we get these cases?"

I made a 1680 case using an MBK mid case, DW case back, polished ST/Clark bezel kit and it is nearly a dead ringer for this one.

DW case backs (at least the ones I have) are pretty good. The trouble is they come in two sizes...35.9 and 36.4mm od and some gasket grooves are also too shallow.

The 35.9mm case back fit my MBK case.

Catch 22...my MBK 1680 cases are made for 26mm dials...genspec are 26.5mm.

It looks pretty good but the lug holes might be too close to the top edge to drill out. The next one might be Ok though.

The bracelet looks Ok except for the half link.

Overall not bad.

Genuine or not...for $950 it should be solid gold and have GPS plus FM radio. These things were going for $150 a few years ago.

The last one I bought was $75 in about 80% condition although it was USA C&I, not swissy. The C&I bracelets were about $59 new in the early 1970s.

Compared to $950 for this one...Yuki's rivet oyster is a bargain at $169.

Most of them were pitched in a drawer or in the back of a closet years ago because they were hair pullers.

They are still hair pullers but now they are out of their drawers and out of the closet.  

I have an early no date timehead with sapphire crystal, 1.3mm lug holes, and swiss Eta 2836 that came with a solid link oyster but I wore it on a nato or velcro strap. It is an older model that says 'Original Roly Design' and 'Stawless Steel' between the lugs.

Still have 3 or 4 nos from 1999/2000 around here somewhere.

Sometimes I think I'm living in the Time Warp Looney Bin of Replicas because I have a 'collection' of nos replicas...36mm swiss Eta Air Kings, Exp I, 'River' SD, ihs GMT, Exp II, F520117 Noobs etc.

It's nice all right but I can not help thinking what happens when it needs parts or service on down the road.

Having owned my share of genuine high priced watchjunk throughout the years, I shudder to think how much it will cost.

"Dear Sir, we require a $7000 CA$H deposit before we can open your finely crafted timepiece, checks will not be accepted."   

"Oh yes, in answer to your question...the screw that fell off the front of your watch is only $425 but we require an exchange on all parts. Sorry, no exceptions." 

I'll wait on the Kenneth Cole look-alike for $129. 

Two things to consider:

1...Is it a genuine case?

2...Does it have blind or drilled lugs?

Blind lug genuine and replica cases should accept the same type of springbars...genuine or replicas of genuine. Generic single or double shoulder springbars can also be used...stainless steel, no brass.

Cases with drilled lugs need oem type springbars that go almost all the way through the lugs.

All should have 1.8mm tubes with .9mm tips. Submariner type springbars for modern blind lug models can be used in blind lug DJ if the tips will fit into the holes in the lugs and pass through the bracelet/hoods. They are a good choice for leather/rubber straps but thick straps will rub on the case and get scuffed or cut. Curved springbars will help with this and they can be curved by placing them one at a time in a spoon and pressing another spoon down on top of them.

I have fitted quite a few crystals on 5512/13/1680 replicas supposed to be 'oem spec' and almost always end up trying crystals from 3 or 4 different suppliers before getting a proper fit. The crystal retainer bezels from ST and Clark are usually pretty close to oem spec so most of the trouble is the crystal. I have used Clark 19 on a couple MBK projects with good luck but had to cut a hair out of the id of the crystal retainer bezel on one using a ST/Clark bezel kit (ST and Clark bezel kits are identical). On the last one I used a GS PA 462-66 and it worked Ok.

What this all boils down to is that many (if not most) of these projects do not go together without some machine work or parts swapping.

Something else...aftmkt crystals claimed to be 'oem spec' usually are not exactly 'oem spec' at all. Some are very close but others are not so I sometimes end up using an 'out of spec' crystal because it is a closer fit with an 'out of spec' case or bezel.

Chances are the set lever has slipped out of position. I have never worked on an Asian 3135 so that is about all I can say. Usually this leads to taking enough stuff apart to get to the trouble.

Hopefully nothing is bent or broken.

I avoid the A3135, A7750 etc because of no parts. If I could call 1-800-HKR-3135 and get them, it would be another story.

On rolex style cases...

If you need to mount the case from the back side you can usually mount it using a four jaw chuck inside the case. It will not damage the threads unless you really crank the jaws out or leave it too loose and allow the case to slip on the jaws...or it is a gold case.

If you need to mount it from the front side you can usually get by with using the four jaw chuck over a crystal (no bezel) to keep from scratching the case neck. This will work as long as you do not apply excessive tool pressure to the case and force it out of the jaws. Be careful not to apply too much clamping force to the case neck.

I have some stainless steel bezel blanks made out of 316 seamless tubing and can machine the id of one to press over the case neck with a crystal mounted if I need to...it takes a while to machine the id to fit so I usually skip it and just clamp the jaws over a crystal. I made one for late DJ cases but not for 5512/13/1680 yet.

The main problem with a four jaw chuck is set up time. A three jaw 'self centering' chuck is Ok for mounting something that will be machined from start to finish and does not have to be exactly on center for the first cut.

As for mandrels...you might make one out of aluminum with a flat surface to mount against the case front or back with a precision step machined on it that will fit inside the case with a post machined on it to allow mounting it in the lathe. Make a washer to go on the other side of the case with a hole bored through it for a bolt to screw into the mandrel with threads cut in it to clamp it all together. It may not be a super precision fit and you will have to use a four jaw chuck to mount the mandrel and case.

Most of my hair brained projects take longer to make the cutting tool, holding tool etc than to do the job.  

The eBay item number above is for a 1570 case. Put the number in eBay search and after it goes to the case, click on "See other items."

Two thumbs up! 

DW mia...

He is still on eBay with 100% feedback for 427 sales. 

Look for item number 231306589905 and go from there.

He does not have any V72 dials or cases listed right now though.

Imho Panerai153 hit the nail dead center on the head.

Most of this stuff is Junk (or Junque to ease the pain) and should tossed in the trash when it stops but since it cost $$, many want them repaired or modified.

...but there is always a catch:

DOA on day one.

No parts to fix it with.

Non fitting replacement parts when available.

Ultra cheapo case tubes, crowns, screws, and springbars.

Movements from the scrap pile sold as New! Swiss!.

'New' dry/dirty Asian movements that run and stop (if they run at all) .

Movements loose in the case.

Hands that fall off.

Dial markers that fall off.

Bezels that fall off.

Crystals that pop out or mounted unevenly.

Bracelets that literally fall apart.

Screws in bracelets that seize up.

Etc, etc.

So...

Anyone attempting to work on this 'Junque' better be pretty damn tough, good enough to fabricate and modify parts, have a sense of humor, and know how to say "NO!"

There are exceptions of course:

Good watches obtained by the luck of the draw (getting to be few and far between).

Noob etc watches made to a higher overall standard.

Ready to wear watches built or modified by someone who actually knows what they are doing...TC, BK etc.

Carefully assembled Frankensteins.

...and quartz Timex, Fossil, Citizen, Seiko etc.   

Thin case manual wind watches are hard to find hoods for. You will probably have to use either genuine hoods or modify aftmkt hoods to fit. Getting the hoods to touch the case and have the springbars line up with the lug holes can be a real problem because the hoods need to be longer from the springbar to the case than most aftmkt hoods that I have seen...just like in the picture. 

Many of these watches will have 14mm clasps and others may have 16mm clasps, either is correct.

Iirc some of the center links on the bracelets are not as wide as modern watches and will not work with later model hoods.

The TC has an Asian etaclone but you can swap the TC date wheel and genuine Eta H4 canon pinion etc over to a genuine Eta 2836 when the etaclone goes south.

The BK is ready to go with a swiss made movement.

I would go for the TC but I can exchange the movements myself. If you are worried about the TC Asian etaclone stopping and would have to pay someone to swap the movement, the BK might be the better choice.

Ceramic bezel inserts are not easy to get or swap out compared to aluminum inserts if one gets cracked or lost.