rmcsherry

One? I've got two - one for each wrist The Gruppo Gamma dial has made me think again about my project

Amazing work, G - I love what you've done with the watch, the dial engraving looks incredible with your finish, and the work that's gone into reshaping the case / modifying the second hands etc. has really paid off. Well done, can't wait to see the next round of modifications!

Great combo. A bit of edging paint on the sides of the strap, and you're done - glad I could help out!

Here's a gen 6152 image which clearly shows remnants of wax on the dial from filling the engraved text. ...it also shows the rather unusual bezel construction that prevents any fiddy-based homage from being accurate!

One word - unbelievable! Congratulations, it doesn't get any better than that.

Glad to help. The results aren't perfect - if you spend longer painting with an airbrush, the sky's your limit! As far as I know, the vintage Panerai dials used a white oil-based wax for the text - I've used what was to hand, but some old material houses still stock the original white watchmakers wax. Giving it a wipe with turpentine makes the wax thinner (a constant thickness around the letters, rather than a very thick concentration in the middle).

This is a straight-forward tutorial to respray an engraved dial (for those of you who bought any dials from my previous project). Here's a couple of dials that were ruined during painting - All you have to do to remove the old paint is to use Acetone (nail varnish remover), and a cloth. It might take 5 minutes to remove, but it should come off easily enough: ...if it doesn't, soak it in acetone for a short while, and remove the paint with a soft edge (a finger nail will do!): Once the paint has been removed, you'll still have the wax in the engraving. There are 2 methods to remove this - to use a needle to carefully remove any wax (don't scratch the dial), or to heat gently with a lighter from underneath - hold with pliers, and remove any excess with a damp cloth. You should now have a plain brass dial with engraved text. Pick your paint (a matt spray, or even car body paint will work well): ...if you're really feeling fancy, an airbrush will give better effects - I'm yet to buy one! Give the dials a few light coats of paint - you can always use brown as a primer, and black as a top coat to give a slight-browness to the dial: You'll now have a painted dial. To fill the text, use a white wax crayon, and rub in a circular motion over the text: ... the excess wax can be used with a cloth with a very small amount of turpentine / acetone on it. It's best to put some liquid on the cloth, and give it a few minutes to evaporate off. If this method doesn't work for you, spraying the painted dial with a matt clear-coat prior to colouring the text will allow for the wax to be easily removed with a damp lint-free cloth. ...and close ups! The text looks strange under a macro lens, but to the naked eye, it's fine. If you want a smoother, crisper finish, use the clear-coat method prior to applying the wax - a soft damp cloth will leave a much cleaner finish. That's it - I won't cover vintage techniques on a dial (as I'm no expert) but this should get your dial to a good standard to allow any further aging. I hope this helps somebody!

Cut you losses and send it to me Unless you're a trained watchmaker, I'd leave the movement well alone. Maybe see if another member can help you out, or send it to The Zigmeister for diagnosis. As they're becoming so rare to source, unless you got it for a good price, I wouldn't suggest returning it would be a great idea (6 months down the line, the price could of doubled yet again!).

You'll have to excuse my ignorance, but I thought if a tourbillon would be anywhere, it would replace the balance wheel? I'd be interested to see the student movement decorating finalists - just doing a google search now!

I think it's just the lighting - it's a strange optical illusion (I can't remember the name, but they use it on lithophanes etc.) that makes a concave surface appear convex. Correct me if I'm wrong! Neat idea on the reverse adaptor - I can't believe I hadn't thought of it, but I've just ordered one to save the cost of a macro for my 350D!

Looks great, S - the lugs are good, the CG is awesome, the dial is great (did you engrave it from sheet brass?). The movement is in great condition - you really can't get any better!

I remember a few months ago, a guy on eBay had original NOS 6152/1 CG's unassembled. I can't find the pictures right now, but is this one?! I'm amazed by the movement - did you add the incabloc in yourself?

Ahh... nice engraving. Please, please tell me that that is your new non-alarm movement! I'll add photos of my 2 soon - although, the case that I mod won't have this attention to detail and workmanship!

They went a little overboard on cutting out markers on the subdial . I guess from the numerals / distortion, it's some kind of Fiddy-homage - what's it like with the lights on?!

I've got to tell you that you've been ripped off with the movement. The genuine PAM127 uses a quartz - why not send that to me, and I'll let you have the real deal? Seriously - that is an amazing watch. Is this *the* dial?

If only we had some way of getting better a better dial with good numerals and true engraving with correct fonts, then this project could be amazing...

The new movement looks really good, FGD. Saying that - the addition of an 8 day power reserve, changing the plates and aging it by 60 years and I'd be completely sold!!

Finding a rhodium plater should be an easy task - but as others have pointed out, the finish still won't resemble the gen!

I'm sure it'd work if you're careful. I've polished and replated Cortebert bridges in the past - they're more difficult as the jewel settings sit proud of the bridge. Be careful of the jewels, and make sure they're clean before refitting - it must be worth a try!

Which Rad case with screw in lugs? The one pictured is a vintage case - admittedly, the welding is less obvious / non existant compared to some. Here's the Ferretti post (the photos seem to have been removed) that I mentioned, as well as the post that provoked the original discussion about plastic dials!

There's nothing wrong with the Rad - it was a prototype plastic (bakelite?) dial from the 40's - I believe Ferretti posted a very informative post about them a few months back. It's a difficult one with the MM 6152 - but looking at the case, bezel, (and from the other photos in the album) lugs and case back, it does look reasonably authentic - perhaps a prototype / redial? A nice collection, regardless!

It

Looks good

W? Do you have something to confess?!