automatico

They are fine watches but after paying what I paid for mine...I simply can not see that kind of $$ for one today. I did not sell all the good watches...bought a 'like new' stainless Universal Geneve Polerouter with original bracelet in May 1994 for $60USD. Still have it and it would probably sell for close to $1000 today. I loaded up on Zodiac Sea Wolf dive watches but the absolutely horrible snap on case back kills them. It takes a sledge hammer and a wedge to get the case back off.

I have a friend who has been a jeweler for 30+ years and he has an old Hermes engraving machine and correct numbers/letters that will do the job but I can't get him in gear to do it. I took some unsigned DW cases to him a while back and he looked them over and said he would let me know about it. Since then he said it was not worth the trouble because of all the set up on each end of the cases etc. Having to engrave two rows on each end of each case is quite a job on an old machine like the Hermes because you have to change the letter/number dies out for each row plus centering the case for each row. If he did agree to do the job, I probably could not afford it. The numbers/letters inside rolex case backs appear to be stamped so he could not engrave the case backs to match anyway. Also, the 'montres rolex sa' is done in an arc and the Hermes is a straight line machine.

I had two of them in the past...paid $40 for one and $75 for the other. One was stainless and one was black pvd over steel. Yacht timing rules have changed so the countdown times are no longer valid and they are nifty collector watches but I sold mine years ago. Saw a black one on WUS in May 2013 'like new' with box and hang tag but the selling price no longer shows. IIrc they had Lemania 5100 base movements in them. I used to have a few Heuers...Pasadena chronograph, Cortina chronograph, Camaro 2 register chronograph, two Regattas, one quartz diver in a big thick case from the 1980s before TAG Heuer along with some I did not write down. Now all I have are a few quartz TAG Heuer dive models and a T/H 1000 automatic diver missing the signed silvertone Eta 2824 winding rotor. I paid $5 (!!) for the Camaro in November 2004 and traded it for a 5500 Air King in December 2004. Not a real smart trade looking back. I still have the AK and although they have come up a bit in price I doubt it will equal the Camaro. A watch trader friend bought out a TAG Heuer/Movado dealer in 1997 and he had a lot of nib Heuer chronographs for around $200 each and I did not buy any chronographs...I bought a steel Movado with a Zenith 36000bph automatic movement and a bunch of TAG Heuer quartz diver models. I sold all the quartz TAG Heuer divers to GM and Toyota car salesmen in a flash! The guy who wound up with the Movado still had it a few months ago asking $200, $50 more than he paid me for it 15+ years ago.

I learned this the hard way...when a package leaves your home country, you have little recourse. UPS and FedEx are better than using the home country's postal system but they are very expensive. I lost two watch cases sent back to China a couple years ago by US Mail so from now on when I get something that is defective I eat it and move on. Besides...you never know if it was lost, stolen, or sent to a bogus address supplied by the dealer. My guess is many dealers do not give out valid addresses. Some suspect China mail service throws a lot of the incoming mail away so they will not have to worry with it. UPS and FedEx actually try to deliver the packages. That's why they charge so much.

Some projects go wrong over and over and over. I'll work on them a while, put them away for a while, then start again. This is the story with my 1655 project, 18k aftmkt case 'DJ' project and a few others. I figured they would be long term projects and they are. If and when they are finally done, it will be worth the time and effort (Upside)...but not all the wasted $$ (Downside). Much like a 'money pit' house remodeling project but on a small scale. Your 6542 is exceptional in execution and classy in appearance. A lot of trouble but a fine job all around. 'Quickie' project go wrong too... I tried to put a quickie project together last week and things kept going wrong as usual but I was determined to finish it...'1680' with 1570/75, Yuki dial, DW(!) case. The movement c/o went Ok except for two things: Dropped all the train wheels etc on a carpet after cleaning them. Lost a bridge screw (found it). Finally got it all together and when on the home stretch discovered the dial feet were a little bit off causing the edge of the dial center hole to rub the hour wheel on the 3 o'clock side...also putting the date a hair too far to the right in the window. I bent the dial feet a little bit a few times to try and move the dial over to the left but when I pushed the dial down on the mvt it just straightened them back out. It did move the dial far enough to stop the rubbing but it is not as it should be. I put it together as is and decided to live with it. It's always something. Maybe the next one will be better.

Been there. Done that. Almost... I had the same problem a while back with a DW '5513' case...that is really a more or less 1680 spec case. The genspec Yuki 5513 dial was 26.0mm but the dial window opening is also 26.0mm because it is made for a 26.5mm 1680 dial. The 26.0mm 5513 dial is the same size as the dial window opening and mounts about .8mm below the dial seat (!). The .8mm figure is about the same as the thickness of a 1575 date wheel spacer. Ah-Ha! So...I bought some aluminum flat washers...31.75mm od x 17.55 id x 1.25mm thick...minimum quantity 25! and proceeded to make a spacer 26.5mm id x 27.5 or 28.0mm od x whatever I need to sand it down to (probably .8mm). All went well after spending an hour roughing it to size, and then on the final cut...the cutting tool caught the fragile spacer and made a figure 8 out of it. I gave up. For now anyway. Fast forward to today... I have an MBK 1680 case (that is really a 5513 spec case!) that I am putting a 26.5mm genspec Yuki dial and 1575 in. Sounds pretty easy. But Noooooooooooo. Although the 25.4mm dial window is a bit small for a 1680 dial, the dial window opening can be opened up easily. But it has a shoulder cut in the dial seat to accommodate a 26.0mm od 5513 dial! Because of this shoulder, the 26.5mm 1680 dial will not mount correctly on the dial seat and the stem will not center in the case tube. It's diabolical. So...I had to cut the dial seat shoulder out to 26.7mm on the lathe, after spending an hour shaping a damn cutting tool for the job. Tomorrow I will cut the dial window out a hair to allow a little bit more dial to show and remove any burrs left inside the case. Maybe...

From what I have seen... First class condition white, silver, or gold regular DJ (36mm) quick set dials go for around $100 to $125USD. Dials for steel cases are more in demand right now. QS OPD dials go for about the same but they are not as much in demand. Black, blue, and gray dials may go a bit higher but black and blue dials are very easy to damage and many dials will show scratches etc. This should be reflected in the price. Fancy 'computer' etc dials may go for double the price of regular dials. Slow set 'pie pan' DJ dials sell according to condition...very good condition may go for $150 to $200 or more. Ratty dials will go for much less. Slow set OPD dials are not much in demand and will go for $50 to $100 or so. Dials for tutone models may go higher because the market is full of silvertone dials with silver markers and gold marker dials are not as plentiful. Dials with one missing dial foot will be discounted quite a bit. Dials with no dial feet will usually not go for very much except for projects etc. eBay 'bin' prices might be higher than the numbers above but if you look at what actually sold, most do not go at high 'bin' prices.

I know how you feel... Big watch forums like WUS and TZ are breeding grounds for Watch Loonies. The problem is the Loonies detract from the few posters left who actually know what they are talking about. The fate of VRF is similar...they used to be friendly and knowledgeable with a sense of humor. Now it's just a Loonie Bin full of nutty Dial Experts...and S.T.M. I sold a nib Oris 'Big Date' to a TZ Guy a few years ago... He put a WTB on the Sales Corner (aka mine field) wanting an Oris BD and I told him I had one along with the reference number and price (one half retail). He wrote back that he tried one on at a local AD with the same reference number as mine and he liked it so he would buy mine. He paid and I sent it. He wrote back and said it was bigger than the one in the store. I said it was the same reference number and the same size watch. He said Ok but it looked smaller in the store. (??) I figured it was over. Wrong! A few days later he wrote back that it quit running and 'needs a new battery'. He wanted his $$ back. It was an AUTOMATIC! I told him to forget a refund because I had a No Refunds To Idiots rule. I have a similar story about a TZ Loonie who bought an 'unworn in box' AK 14010 from me and sent it back without notice after posting a half dozen pictures of it on TZ showing off his 'new AK'. He claimed my 14010 AK was smaller than the last 14010 AK he had...he had posted pics of it too. Another TZ Loonie thought my nib watches should be sold to him on consignment because...what if he sold one and the buyer brought it back in a condition too rough for him to resell again as new? I told him I was born on a Wednesday but not last Wednesday. Etc, etc...

You're right about it being too thick. As for the crown guards, you might be able to make 'pointed crown guards' out of them. The whole thing looks sorta out of whack to me. I finally took the time to flatten out the case sides on a DW 1680 case where they are rounded like a DJ...it was not nearly as easy as I thought it would be. I filed on it for an hour with a small flat file then gave up and went with a grind stone on a Dremel tool, then finished it off with Cratex, 400, 600, 1200 wet or dry sandpaper and finally Simichrome paste. It looks a lot better but it was quite a job.

Has anyone tried a rouhelena 5513 case? They are $195US and look pretty good except for the sawed off crown guards. eBay item number 321325481899

They are outstanding! ...and I am a vintage watch guy. Sure would be nice to have a 93150 with this attention to detail.

I have owned quite a few replica watches and came to the conclusion a long time ago that a large percentage of them are junk. That being said, I've had the best luck with older style watches with stamped bracelet clasps and pressed on bezels...acrylic and sapphire DJ, 1016. etc. Diver styles with rotating bezels are more trouble with inner and outer bezel fitting problems and now the new 'glide lock' clasp has introduced a whole set of new problems. Simpler is always better, especially with replicas. Don't get me started on Asian movements...

There are no tricks to working on a 15xx rolex movement...they are just a basic swiss automatic movement. Where the trouble comes in is dealing with the balance assembly/hairspring etc, same as with any mechanical watch. If you do not feel comfortable handling the balance assembly plus remove, clean/oil, and replace the cap and hole jewels...leave it alone until you get more practice. I have a basic rolex 15xx tip sheet/oil chart from RWC if you want a copy. I'll have to send it by mail though. Other things you need to be able to do: Oil the pallet fork/escape wheel teeth. Work with Duofix jewel settings...horrible little sobs until you get the hang of them. Remove and replace the mainspring. A good idea to replace it with a new swiss made ms. Look at the post I made about the 15xx on the thread started by 'juicemouse' on March 3. The worst thing about the rolex 15xx is the current parts situation.

The problem with many 15xx rolex movements is high mileage and low maintenance and you can not easily tell just by looking. A few things to look for on a movement that is still together and running: 1...Rounded teeth on the red anodized reversers. The teeth should be squared off and all red with no aluminum showing. 2...Worn teeth on the intermediate winding (transmission) wheel. This is the goldtone wheel that runs between the two red reversers. They do not cost much but often show a lot of wear. 3...The movement plates under the winding rotor should not be scored from the rotor rubbing them. Rub marks are a sign of a worn rotor axle, rotor weight loose on the axle, or a broken jewel. 4...Screw heads are an indication of how much a mvt has been worked on and/or how careful the repair guy was. This does not indicate problems in the rest of the mvt however. 5...Rust anywhere, and it usually starts around the setting parts because of a bad crown. Look at the set bridge, stem etc. 6...On the dial side...look closely where the mainspring barrel arbor runs in the main plate. There is no bushing or jewel and the arbor will wear the hole in the plate out of round if it the mvt has not been c/o every now and then. There is no easy fix for this if the hole is worn and it can cause the ms barrel to rub the plate and give a low running reserve. 7...If the movement is where you can see it running...see if the balance motion is 'lively'. 'Lazy' motion can be a sign of a dirty mvt. hairspring dragging on something, weak or broken ms etc. Sometimes it can be caused by the second hand rubbing the crystal, hitting the minute hand etc. 8...See if there is still a fair amount of resistance on the crown when setting the time. Very little friction is a sign of a loose cannon pinion, easy to fix but also easy to screw up. 9...Make sure the mvt runs in all positions and has lively balance motion in all of them. Lazy motion in one or more positions is usually the hairspring rubbing or a worn or broken balance staff or jewel. 10...Watch out for movement plating 'blistered' from harsh cleaning solution, it may run Ok but it will always look bad and be worth a little bit less $$. 11...Look for black 'specks' on or down inside the movement...it is dirt. 12...If the mvt looks real good and runs Ok...it is usually Ok. 13...Do not believe the old story "I just had it cleaned" unless you really trust the seller because this means about as much in a buying situation as the guy who has a dead quartz watch for sale that "Just needs a battery." Otoh...in reality, the appearance of a watch mvt can not tell the whole story. I have an old blistered 1520 with screws that look like they fell out of the Gate Hinges of Hell and it runs like a Champion. A nice 1520 is probably worth around $1000US and a 'ruffy' is worth less.

Going by what used genuine T/H go for, why not go for a nice used genuine? Lots of A-racers, Link etc around. Beware of T/H S-El (Sport Elegance) models being sold as 'Link' models.

Confession: I have a grand total of 8 assorted DW cases for projects etc, four '5513' and four '1680' (I hear you laughing). I just wanted to say this: They all are the same internally...all are made for a 1570/75 DATE movement and 26.5mm dial. In reality there is no DW '5513' case, at least in the examples I have. I tried a 1570/75 with genuine 26.5mm 1680 dial in every one and they are all the same. I also tried a 1520 with a 26.0mm Yuki '5513' dial and in every case the dial does not touch the bottom side of the 26.0mm dial seat for two reasons: 1...The dial and dial window opening are the same size (26.0mm). 2...The dial mounts below the dial seat in the case and does not touch it.. The cases are machined to hold the movement in place without the 26.0mm '5513' dial touching the dial seat. The 26.5mm 1680 dial with thicker 1570/75 movement fits into the case as it should with the dial touching the dial seat. Some of the mid cases are a bit thicker than others but all are the same internally...they all are 1680 spec cases. I have been at war with these cases for two years and finally took the time to try movements in all of them. They are still good for 1570/75 1680 and Eta projects with the addition of a Clark/ST bezel kit and crystal plus a good case tube/crown combo. I still hear you laughing...

I bought a couple old pocket watches at the local flea market with the UT/Eta 6497 for less than $20US each so keep an eye out for old pocket watches for 6497 parts. One was a swiss made Elgin and the other was a Baylor. Thousands of pocket watches with the UT 6497 were made in the 1960s and 1970s and I suspect quite a few made it to the UK. They are not very popular today and the prices tend to be low. Asking $75 for the shock assembly is $50 or $60 too much imho. As for the A6497...I bought a new A6497 powered wristwatch for $99 a while back to get a movement for a project so a complete A6497 must not be very expensive.

The best replica watches are made one at a time by 'modders', not purchased from dealers etc. For example, I have a 15200 that I got from a former member in Canada that he put together using: A 'like new' complete genuine 15200 case. Genuine dial. Genuine hands (modified). Genuine date wheel. New old stock Eta 12892 (chronometer grade, c/o a few years back). I added a black croc strap, oem spec springbars, and steel replica buckle. Who was it? Hint...too bad he is Stil not around. No one can tell it is a replica/Frankenstein because it is all genuine on the outside. You can tell it is not 100% genuine by the direction the crown has to be turned to advance the time...and you can hear the ball bearings in the winding rotor. So what's the catch? It cost about $700 to make. Imho... For 'custom made replicas'...TC and WM9. For 'store bought' replicas...some of the better DJ and no date Explorers.

IG44, DW, MQ etc = Hell-of-a-way to run a business imho. Say what you want to about Yukiwatch but they run a good business.

Stilty and I sent parts back and forth between the USA and Vancouver and sometimes it would take two or three weeks for him to get a package from me but when he sent something it always arrived in a week or so. We never had anything lost out of probably 20 mailings.

The reliable 1016, my two cents: In my experience there is only one fix for a replica 1016...a fresh swisseta 2846 or some other suitable swisseta 21600 movement. I have worn (or tried to wear) watches with Asian '21 jewel' movements and only two types give good service...Sea-Gull ST6 and ST16. Never had much luck with DG and NN Miyotaclones...usually low power reserve and/or erratic timing. Some members have had good luck with Asian etaclones but I do not like them very much either. Why? Because I c/o most of my watches and would rather spend time working on a swisseta than an Asian etaclone that may break down with no parts available. The Sea-Gull ST16 is basically a Miyotaclone with a Seiko type Magic Lever winding system. The Magic Lever winding system is more efficient than the Miyota 8215 type of winding system and keeps the mainspring wound with less daily activity. The dial and hands from a DG or NN Miyotaclone should fit a Sea-Gull ST16...I say 'should' because you never know with these things.

L&T is right, it's the details that make the higher grade cases. I will always wonder why the case makers make thousands of identical cases, all with the same set of flaws, and not just make flawless cases to begin with. They could if they wanted to.

Paper dials are Ok. A lot of older character watches had paper dials stuck over a brass dial plate. I have a 1970s Wonder Woman watch (Dabs & Co) and the dial still looks like new. It was printed with dots like newspaper cartoons. Elgin Watch Co recalled thousands of pin lever watches in the 1960s from drug store etc displays because they would not sell (Timex killed them) and they put paper character dials over the original dials and sold them under the Bradley Time brand name. Look up Dabs and Company Super Hero watches.

I am not in the EU (USA) but I would guess there is not a very big demand for 'oem spec' replica rolex cases, bezels etc now mainly because they are available from Yuki and others at more or less 'reasonable' prices. Otoh suppliers of 'high grade' vintage 'oem spec' replica cases (their names and complaints are not hard to find on RWG) sell basically the same cases as Yuki etc with better letters/numbers at two or three times the price with about the same quality...and many times far worse quality. So...in order to be successful selling vintage rolex 'oem spec' replica cases you would have to be able to sell them at a lower price than Yuki ($500US plus/minus) and have consistent quality. As for making headway into the 'higher grade oem spec' replica case market (J&W etc) all you would have to do is offer the same cases with dead-on letters/numbers. In other words, your cases would already be good enough and your major goal would be to supply consistent accuracy and quality. This is relatively easy to do because it's not rocket science...it's CNC science and CNC is a mature technology. After HiHo tried to get high grade 5514 cases made we learned two things: 1...The cases can be made economically and in very high quality. 2...You can not trust the manufacturers. So again...in order to make the cases from scratch, you will need: 1...High quality 304 stainless steel sheet metal. 2...A punch press to punch out the case/case back/bezel blanks. 3...A high quality CNC machine and accessories. 4...A first class engraving machine (Gavograph IS200/IS200TX etc). 5...Someone qualified to program and operate the equipment. 6...A Gomer to polish parts, run errands etc. You could run the whole show out of your garage and guys 5 and 6 would be part time. Guy 5 might need to be someone in manufacturing who knows the ins and outs of CNC. In our small town I know three guys who are CNC wizards and they learned it making parts for drag race car engines. Like I said...it's not rocket science. Shortcuts: 1...Have a stamping company make the case/case back/bezel blanks...a flat washer/hardware stamping company etc. 2...Buy 304 seamless stainless pipe with the correct wall thickness and saw the case/bezel blanks out. Case back blanks should not be much of a challenge. 3...Buy cases in GZ etc that are close to 'oem spec' and finish them with your CNC machinery. This is probably where many of the 'high grade' cases start out anyway. Your first case may cost $40,000 but case number 200 may cost $100 or less (200 X $400 = $80,000). You would stay sold out for quite a while at $400 each if you maintain top quality. You would soon corner the market because the 'hit or miss' case guys are not going to get much better. Oh yeah...you also have to stay out of jail.

Yeah, my intense dislike for rolex the company (not the watch), leaked out on that one! Ha! Anyway, I see hand work as a small percentage of overall production as my guess is most parts of the watches are machine made and most of the labor is confined to operations that can not be performed by robots...yet.