chiman12

I've been getting a lot of builds done lately and here are a couple more of my vintage Tudor builds. I must admit, the title for the "King of Tudors" will always belong to JMB, but I do enjoy my Tudor builds. Here are a couple of Tudors that I've recently completed and quick stories behind them...my Franken Jumbo Tudor Day-Date and my 7922BC. The Story of the Jumbo Tudor Day-Date Franken.... I always mention that I have certain parts that just sit in my parts box. What I do is buy parts that I think are hard to come by and they sit in my parts box until a project evolves that I can use a particular part. I've had a NOS Black Jumbo dial that has been sitting in my parts box for well over a year. One day I ran across an auction for a Jumbo Day-Date on fleabay... The movement was obviously in poor shape, but I was more concerned about the shape of the case. Based on the pictures, the case was in worn, but good shape, so I decided to take a chance and buy the Tudor for just the case. The same day, an auction came up selling a Felca with a serviced AS1895, but the case was in poor shape. "This was mean't to be" I said to myself... When I received the Tudor, I was correct in my intial observations in that the movement couldn't be saved and was rusted beyond repair. The only parts I could use were the day and date wheels! The case was a different story, there was only a tiny bit of rust on the edge of the case back that could be easily removed with sandpaper. I proceed to put everything together and refinished the case and hands and installed a gen Tudor bracelet using rep Datejust endlinks. Here it is... ...and the Tale of my Tudor 7922BC I built a 6538 quite awhile ago using a Yuki case, but with time I was a little disappointed at how the rehaut looked on the watch. I thought it was a little too wokky as compared to gen pics that I have seen. I also have a Tudor 7922 and was never quite happy in that the dial was a little small for the case it was in currently .One day, I ran across this pic of a 7922 on 10pastTen.com and noticed that the rehaut was also a little wokky. So I proceed to take apart my 7922 and 6538 and convert it to 7922BC... I think the conversion turned out perfectly, in that 7922BC with the 100m dials were actually very rare and that some 7922 actually used 6538 cases! I love how the dial is properly displayed in in the rehaut and enjoy how the watch now looks. So why are the pieces similar??? The size of the Jumbo Day-Date is 37.5mm while the 7922 is 38mm. With its shear size, the Jumbo DD commands the same wrist presence as the 7922, but will also go with a suit! In addtion, the Jumbo DD actually uses 2mm spring bars. The genetics of both pieces are so similar, yet are completely different watches!!!

I really like my Rolex Japanese reference books. Some of my builds are inspired by the watches that are presented in these books. The looks of this Daytona inspired me... All aspects of the watch seem to blend perfectly! One aspect I like is the thin "DAYTONA" print that sits higher above the hour sub-dial. You don't see this very often on Daytonas. The "DAYTONA" that are commonly seen tend to be printed in a thicker font and sits pretty tight to the hour sub-dial. The bezel is also a little different, in that the tachy markings on this 3rd generation bezel sit further away from the inner edge of the bezel. The silver with black dial...simple elegance...plus I couldn't find a PN Ferrari dial good enough to for my build!! I spent months trying to source the parts to emulate the above Daytona and this is the end result.... The parts came from various sources. A V72 was used for the heart of this 6265, Yuki dial, DW hands, Sterny T21, DW case, gen crown, and a gen 78350 bracelet finished this baby off! Now the bezel...I was in total awe when I found this bezel. I was surprised how accurate it is considering the source. It actually came off of a cartel Daytona 6262!!!! The bezel was a tiny bit too small, so I had to and down the inside the bezel so that it would fit onto the DW case. Notice the beautiful hooks on the "7"'s!!! Thanks for look everyone!

Congrats Dizzy! It's a stunner! I love the personal touch of the Rolex sticker on the case back!

Great tute Ronin...simple and effective!

frank...the CG's look kind of short or is the crown way too fat??? But otherwise looks good...

It's actually looks pretty good on the wrist! Good mini review TeeJay!

try fitting the gen crown on the rep tube...it might work...that's what I did for my build...

usmc...to clarify, you cannot directly swap the 75B with a gen, it will have to use it as an overlay, but the 75B date direction flips the same way as the 1675, so you'll have no issues using a genspec datewheel as an overlay. The GMT hand you can use genspec (needs to be broached a tiny bit)...but the hour/minute/sec hands will have to be ETA spec. BTW...you have a nice list of parts there and GL with the build!

Great comparo review once again M! I might have to pick up a J&K for my Daytona build.

Actually looks not too bad J! Enjoy!

I really like it M! Love that black w/ silver dial look...plain...but elegant!

Because I bought a rep for the bracelet to put my gen (it came with the rubber strap), I had done a quick comparision and from what I can remember the rep was remarkably accurate. The slightest tells were that the case back engravings weren't as deep, the date wheel font was a little thin, and the bezel screw holes were just a fraction smaller. But a great rep...and build like a tank!!!

I prefer the InGod GW dial over both Yuki and MBW...

So M...from what I gather is then the watch is only good for the bezel and movement? How about converting it to a Tudor 7922? The lug hole location would bug the crap out of me!

That looks really good! A big brother to a 6542...this means your going to need to build one of those next!

Still beautiful and even more accurate now L! BTW...a late answer...but I just notice your Nov 23rd post. It is actually a faux Tudor movement that was in my 7922...I'm quite positive it's origins are from Vietnam (as is the case). It's not a franken movement either as the engravings on the rotor is incorrect and the bridges aren't signed Tudor. A good attempt to replicate a gen Tudor movement.

hahahaha! Thanks guys! I saw that 1675 on RG...very nice...it's a great find and he is one lucky guy!

If you are going to start a 5512/5513 project...I recommend starting with an MBW and go from there. With 6538, you are pretty limited to a Yuki case....but member Dizzy have been contemplating using the Josh 6541 as a base.

Hike...with projects like yours...I'm starting to like the cali dial more and more!!!!

HI everyone! Just wanted to give an update and a parting shot of 1675 project. This project is pretty much brought to a close with the generous donation of a really nice coin edge from Master Ubi and I can't thank him enough! What a beautiful bezel!!!! I think the bezel and the movement are really the jewels of this whole project. The bezel fit on the CWP retainer with no problems. THANK YOU R!!!! Some closing shots... Once again...the Zodiac 75B The great Josh donor case... The beautiful NDT dial with custom vintage... Parting shot with the Yuki 7206 bracelet... Thanks once again for everyones valued input for making this project a reality and thanks to Ubi for the great looking bezel!! Cheers!!!

That is a beautiful find D!

Just a though Dizzy...have you considered using the new 6541 for a base? The rehaut looks not too bad. The mid case is too thick for a 6541, but it could work for a 6538. 37mm, so the size is good. You'll need to bubble the case back...if that concerns you. Might be minimal work to convert it to a 6538. The only thing that might be a problem is the dial...might not be able to fit a gen-spec dial.

I agree with Ubi...the Josh is the best one for a build for the simple fact that I didn't have a problem at all using gen-spec parts on the case.

I hope you're not paying a lot of money for the case. Just from the corrosion alone...this watch won't be safe to go anywhere near steam, let alone water. If you use a 1575, you'll rust it solid in no time. The bezel retaining ring also looks really beat and you'll need to replace that, because I don't think it is any condition to secure a bezel assembly. So add the cost of a gen bezel assembly and insert. In addition, a gen jub. bracelet...a good one will cost ~$400-$500... IMHO...you might as well sell the 1675 parts and buy a complete one. Save yourself the headaches...

Considering the accessibility of good aftermarket parts, it is really not hard to mimic the genuine product really well for a reasonable price. I agree with the other members, use discretion on the decision to build a super franken. A really extreme rep build would be something like a Yuki case ($500)+ gen dial (you have)+ rep GMT for movement, GMT hand, and bracelet ($200)+Clark ETA hands ($14)=$714 and this would be a nice piece to wear everyday and you don't even have to spend that much. GL with your 1675 build!