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yeah, like fred said, depends on your movement. If you have a gen mvnt, def go with gen hands, it's one of the benefits of having the mvmt. I tried some aftermarket Tudor replacement hands and the quality wasn't up to par, so I stuck with the MBK hands that came on the MBK ETA movement and had them relumed.

Davidsen (DSN) can get these. They fit for 6497 and molnija stems. You will need to change out your tube in most cases. (He supplies one with the crown) I forgot how much I paid for mine, but I recall it being reasonable, like under $50USD or so for the set.

guerilla glue works well and super glue gel.

Thanks for noticing, there is still much to discuss which I hope to do in the near future, like the high beat vs low beat movement, drilling for the crown tube, crown guards sanding, etc. I need to find some of the links with the good discussions... As for the datewheel, I was keeping in line with the RSC theme. I had decided I wanted this piece to look nice and new"ish," that is, service replaced and taken care of. The date wheels were not uncommonly switched out during service and were replaced with the white datewheel. Many vintage projects I see are beaten, faded, and ragged, so it wouldn't make sense to have a nice service replaced looking datewheel on that watch, but I feel it fits this particular piece well. Also, to my knowledge, there is no grey datewheel for the ETA style movements that has the positioning of the dates centered as well as the original MBK. Most grey wheels, including the pt/josh have the cursed left justification, which, personally, I cannot tolerate. I'd much rather have the RSC look with a white wheel and correctly placed dates than the grey wheel with goofy positioning. Matter of preference.

wow, we have a lot of diveristy on this day of resurrection. I'll tag along with TJ on the vintage rolex bandwagon.

Side profile shows the nice lug hole positioning, correct crown position, and the tame height of the superdome. I know purists won’t agree with my choice of the superdome, but I absolutely love it. The obligatory wrist shot which I kindly oblige. I’d like to thank so much all the inspiration I get from everyone else, this watch would not have been possible without you guys!

“The first Sea-Dweller was launched by the end of 1967, bearing the model number 1665. It had a depth rating of 2000 feet, which was clearly engraved in red color as “Sea-Dweller Submariner 2000” on the dial. This model featured the 1575 movement, the new Triplock crown, a thicker crystal, and a larger case. The new Triplock crown featured a triple gasket system which helps in tightly screwing down the case tube against the Oyster case. As a result, another layer of protection is created. This model did not carry the date magnification bubble, present on all Rolex watches. The special version of 1665 that was issued to the COMEX divers, however, continued to display the standard “COMEX” logo. Later, to strengthen the image of Sea-Dweller, the tag “Submariner 2000” was dropped leaving only “Sea-Dweller” on the dial in white color. This look started by the mid 1970s and continued until 1981.” The original mbk 1665 is a great looking watch, there is no question. Many will agree the quality and feel of the watch are beyond the josh/pt vintage line. As an owner of the PT 1680, I can easily agree. Despite being a great replication, some of us turn our sickness for perfection and make it an interactive enjoyable hobby. These are the following modifications I performed on my 1665. 1. Drill lugs holes and bracelet 2. File crown guards 3. Replace crown and tube 4. Replace bezel insert 5. Smoothen case 6. Replace crystal 7. Replace dial 8. Relume dial and hands out of the box mbk great white seadweller Most of us start out with some inspiration. I found a great example of a well taken care of 1665 with some service replacement parts on it. I find that this part is crucial to the project, it keeps you on track and gives you focus and direction. gen I immediately was hooked on the superdome, it just gave the watch such a vintage dive watch feel. gen A great example of an original rail gen dialed 1665 great white. A large majority of this hobby is hunting for the parts. Well, it started out looking like this. The MBK is a great base, but it does need some massaging to get it celebrity status. First is the lug holes. I used 3 precision bits by IRWIN, I found them at a local ACE hardware store. Working from smaller to larger to widen the hole. I started out with the #57 and finished up with the #55. You will also need to drill the bracelet to accept the 2mm gen spring bars. I used a 5/64th’s cobalt bit. You can do this without a drill press, but you will probably break bits. I used my buddies and made a jig that held the case firmly so it could move a smidgen if needed. This keeps you from being a little off in the setup and ending up with a crooked hole. Since the hole is already there, it acts as a pilot with the drill bit passing through the case. Some tips: Drill slowly and use some oil. I backed off regularly to let the bit cool I used leather to hold the bracelet in place while I drilled. Now that the lugs are drilled, we need some nice springbars to go with it. My research from other build led me to OFREI’s springbars. (google it  ) These have a nice bevel at the tips, awesome. The tube is weaksauce on the MBK. It’s too small to fit a gen crown and the construction design is wrong. You can purchase24- 703 Rolex aftermarket replacements which are plentiful. Needless to say, the MBK crown will have to go. You can find used Rolex 7mm triple lock crowns pretty easily. 703 on the right. (gasket is not installed btw. ) Now we need a better insert, or at least a better pearl. I realized that like the dial, the insert is a large part of the look of the watch. I finally found an NOS on ebay. Many like the faded look (you can use bleach for a few minutes on a new bezel) or will look for thick font bezels since they are what the original watches were equipped with. 5513 bezels will also fit. You cannot use modern sub 16610 inserts or newer sea dweller inserts as they are larger in diameter. Since I am going for a more restored/serviced look, I opted for the gen replacement part. I use a razor and pry a little from each corner of the watch to remove it. I recommend using some painters tape to protect the lugs from scratches. Here is the Rolex service replacement for the 1665/5513. The service replacement insert had a thinner more modern font, but still has the nice vintage pearl. I used a few drops of Guerilla glue and a clamp to hold it in place overnight. Gen on the right. The case will need some massaging. I use a dremel and a nail file for the bulk of smoothing of pretty much all the edges. I always finish off with a felt polisher on the dremel to give it a smooth soft feel. Sharp and 90 degree corners are your enemy! Removing the caseback paint took some patience, with nail polish remover and other demel goodies. I tried to smoothen the edges of the engravings with sand paper and other dremel goodies to remove the laser etched look from MBK. I was not afraid to be liberal with a polishing compound on the case back, since, it would have been rubbing on the back side of a wrist for decades. Next is a new crystal,well acrylic. I found, DO NOT go cheap on this! Cheap plastic is hard and brittle which can lead to fitment issues. Nice plastic is soft and flexible. I opted for a Clark 25-39 Tropic superdome because it just gives the watch so much personality and makes it so much more interesting. Superdome on the left. The mbk dial is pretty dang good, but, having a unique dial just sets off the whole watch in my opinion, since it is the focus of the watch, I was not opposed to investing some $$$ into this piece. There are many different replacement dials, yuki watch, NDTrading ,etc. It really comes down to preference since none are gen. Keeping the MBK and reluming would be a good option. The MBK dial and hand lume color does not match. The hands are a more bright white like on a modern Rolex with the dial being more yellow. The lume was also missing any kind of texture and it had an almost glossy finish to it. The relume of the dial and hands not only gives them a nice matching color, but it adds texture that was missing. There are plenty of modders on the forums that can perform this. I can speack of Zigmiester and Pbdad. I will note that The Zigmeister was half the price of Pbdad. The new Rail dial and hands relumed I was not looking for a really beaten trashed “vintage” look, this pic highlights the subtle aging details and the great dial. Final assembly gave this result.

looks more like a hand done redial

wow, very impressive! Is that a 1680 crystal? Where did you get teh logo for the box cover? Looks great!

cool, be interested in the build details on this one. I was going to suggest you need a 210, but the 294 is way more interesting!

This is possible to do with a press. Let me preface that I am not a machinist by any means, nor do I have much drilling experience. I used Irwin precision bits bought at the local Ace hardware store. I bought 3 bits, smaller to larger, a #57, a #56, and a #55. I started by drilling all the holes with the smallest bit, the #57, then worked my way till the #55 irwin bit. I've read plenty on drilling, and everyone says use LOW speeds. Well, my friends drill was broken and it could not drill slow, just fast. So, I just advanced the bit slowly, backed it off to let it cool, advanced it slowly, backed off to cool, etc. No broken bits. I also choked up on the bit so there was only enough bit extending from the chuck to pierce the lug. I also made a jig to hold the case. I DID NOT mount the case super tightly in the jig, just firmly. This was because the holes are already there, and the drill would line itself up. It you mount the case tight and it is off slightly, you could end up with crooked holes. finish them off with a slight chamfer with a larger sized bit, i did this by hand. Uploaded with ImageShack.us As far as spring bars, you want them to look like this. ofrei has the nicest I have seen so far. they should be 2mm in diameter at their thickest point, search for them this way. NOTE: the MBK does not accept the 2mm spring bars, you will have to drill those too!

Props for being bold enough to go after the date window on the dial. Did you just use a small file? Looks great! The cg's could be slimmed and trimmed a smidgen more. The bleached bezel looks great, love the look. COngrats on a nice looking watch! I was lucky enough to pay $150 for a brand new "NOS" vintage Rolex bezel on ebay, keep checking out the auctions from time to time.

why is this and all your other threads in the for sale forum? put it in the rolex section, get whatever info you want, then make a fs add with a price.

^^^^dunno, that strap looks kinda....ewww. no offense of course. enjoy your 005 gee!

^^^great watch, i miss mine!

I though I was scammed out of my pre paid price long ago, but look what showed up in the mail! You can only imagine how happy I was! :yeah: The crown is still a little too big, but that is an easy enough fix. the pearl looks gen, looks to be the same one that was on my wm9LV. Dial font is a little off, but it still looks great. The end link fitment is great! The best on a wm9 with the exception of the wm9 v1/v2 subs. Uploaded with ImageShack.us I was disappointed to find that he is using solid mid-link bracelets again. Uploaded with ImageShack.us Overall, I am really pleased with the watch. But, the solid midlink bracelet is a huge deal breaker for me. It just makes the watch uncomfortable compared to a sub. I have contacted him for a refund, I'll see what he says. Anyone else get theirs yet?

haha, April fools! Nice gen. :yu:

Seriously though, is there some other option to fixing a minute hand that has fallen off that I am not aware of?

sounds like he is a G shock kinda guy....

so, the tip is to put the minute hand back on?

wow, the gmt looks great! Specs on the build?

Pics?

thanks for sharing this thread!

I'm an advocator for a leather nato, that way it doesn't look like a kids watch (black/grey nato), it's comfortable, and you have more opportunities to wear it in different settings. Uploaded with ImageShack.us though I did enjoy the corvus strap on my LV when I had it, though it was a t-shirt/jeans thing only though. Uploaded with ImageShack.us

I normally don't wear a watch when I ride, if I did, it'd probably be quartz. we have similar graphics.