alligoat

Maybe the ETA 2671's are still readily available, in which case, it might just be easier to order her a whole new DJ. Of course that would also free you up for more important things, like modding your own watches!

Snap-On Tools makes a #55 cobalt drill bit which most people use for drilling the lugholes. Maybe it's 1.3mm. It might be that the gen holes are just slightly larger than 1.2mm or even 1.2mm for that matter. But who can see 1/10th of a millimeter? Rolex springbars are 2mm, but once again the ends are around 1.2mm- you can buy them on ebay, or from yukiwatch You may have to get different end pieces, but get the sprinbars first and then see. Wholesaleoutlet990 sells rep 580 end pieces for not too much. You'll also have to enlarge the holes in the end of the bracelet to fit the 2mm springbars. Helps to have a drill press, vice, and a 2mm bit. Same springbars and bracelets for 5513/1665/1680/16800/16610 early/14060- 93150 bracelet. 580 ends for 5513/1665early/1680 585 for later 1665, 593 for 16800, 501B for early 16610 and I think also 14060.

Well, I'm not an MBW expert, but the first thing I don't like is the laser etching. I have a Watchmaster 1680 which is basically the same as a MBW 1680 and the inscription between the lugs is much cleaner more like a real Rolex than the laser crap you have. But Cats would know more, because his is more recent. Maybe MBW/MBK has changed- cheapened up their cases, used laser etching, or maybe you just have the standard CN DRSD. You do have a thicker bezel, that's a plus. But remember, the CN group has copied the MBW DRSD also... Your insert is obviously not MBW- looks like the typical CN insert. You could buy a PMWF 5513 insert (or other 5513 insert for less on ebay)and see if it's a direct swap- that would indicate the correct bezel size. Same with the T-19- if aftermarket parts fit, that's good. BTW, MBW's have a non-functioning HE valve. If you remove your movement and find a functioning HE valve, it's definitely CN!

The William Marshall is a nice little Swiss knock-off with a 2824-2 movement. I bought it 3-4 years ago on ebay for $210 or so and it shipped directly from Switzerland. No one's ever commented on it, but I really get few comments if any on the watches I wear. I'm a firm believer in the 99.9% theory- 99.9% of the people could give a rat's a$$ what watch you're wearing. @ kbh, the insert/pearl reminds me of the vintage MBW's- same flat pearl! Lume's decent but not great.

I'm with kbh, grease the seals and have it tested. My two noobs are WR and a lot of people around here have had good luck w/ them being WR. this one's made a few laps in the pool When I scuba dive, however, I use a $200 scuba watch. This William Marshall has made it down 125' I don't wear my vintage gen subs scuba diving, ha, it ain't worth it!

Have you tried Mchael Young at www.classicwatchparts.com? He's in Hong Kong. It would help if you gave us a better description of what you're trying to do, also.

The tool for screwing in the case tube, 6mm, from Jules Borel, is STK1060 and yes, it is $35.00. But it is a much better tool than the tube wrench jmb shows above- which I also have and don't use anymore! You can find the 3.0mm x .35 tap for $6-8 from an industrial supply place if you look around- google! The good news is that on a noob case, you don't have to drill the hole w/ a 2.65mm drill bit! But it is a good idea to clean the threads w/ a tap.

Rolex part numbers are 24-703-0 for the crown and 24-7030-0 for the tube. I saw a gen case tube go for $10 on ebay last week! I've had good luck recently with the tubes from wholesaleoutlet990. Clark's Watch supply also sells decent ones. Before installing a tube, I clean out the threads with a 3.0mm x .35 tap. Also, on a noob case, it helps to countersink the case hole with a larger drill bit to seat the tube slightly into the case. This can wallow out the backside of the case slightly since the hole is positioned toward the bottom of the case to accomodate the 2836-2/DG2813 movement, but it has no other ill effects to my knowledge. I use a little blue loc-tite to seat the tube in the case, and a case tube wrench for installing the tube. But the tubes are delicate- I've snapped off more than one or two- that's why it's a good idea to run the tap all the way thru the case. I was picking up crown (gen-used) for $20-30, but they may have gone up recently on ebay. Stem threads are the same for 2836/DG2813 and Rolex stems. But if a stem won't unscrew, you may need to apply a little heat, sometimes glue is used to keep them in the crown. 14060 and 16610 use the same parts. I haven't tried jmb's parts4rolex crown/tube but we are seeing decent rep crown/tube assemblies in sub reps in the last year- WM9, Euromariners, and maybe we'll see more of the interchangeable rep parts in the future.

I seem to recall a 16800 with gold hands, but the dial was standard black w/ white markers w/ wg surrounds, IIRC. But nothing in a 16610.

yeh, I figured you were referring to rehaut width and the more I look at it, I agree, it's just too wide. And like you say, cg's may be too short fake case, gen movement , dial, insert and maybe crown/tube. MBw's were around back in the 90's and they're from Taiwan, And so I'd figure the TWB's were also

Like the new DW, end pieces are cool, wish they would quit with the laser etching, price is OK, and I'm w/ ByTor, the DRSD is too over the top for me. Wonder if it has the working CN HE valve? Crown and tube could be cool- the old 703 crown and a decent gen-like rep tube??? Shoot, if they incorporated those changes into the red sub w/ a good dial and it would take gen crystal and bezel/insert, man it would be cool!

I'll give you the fat lugs, B-T. But I can't see the cg's very well, insert is OK, 16800 rehaut is shallower than a 16610. I just don't know about the case, but the dial looks decent in spite of the bad pic. Swiss- T<25 on the dial. It wouldn't surprise me if it were a rep case- we've seen some decent older ones over the years and putting a 3035 movement in one isn't that hard. Heck, I even saw a noob case with a 3035 movement in it a year ago on ebay. F520117! And some lucky twit probably bought it! It all still goes back to "Buy the seller".

I think the watch may be a franken- 16803 (TT)case, and everything else is ss. The dial looks OK, don't know about the case... The last guy, Submariner, said service the watch and go on, I agree with that. Getting a lawyer involved would very likely be a waste of money.

I bought one of these unbranded oyster bands for my MKII mini exploder: http://cgi.ebay.com/20MM-STEEL-BAND-BRACELET-FOR-ROLEX-MEN-SUBMARINER-WATCH_W0QQitemZ250560104661QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item3a568bc8d5 For $16 it's not too bad- solid mid-links but who cares. But I do prefer it on the brown croc strap...., you just can't wear a strap when you're out sweating and gettin!

You can buy an aftermarket 24-7030-0 tube for around $20- it'll fit the gen crown if the rep tube you have in the watch doesn't work. Of course, when you remove the old tube, you should run a 3.0mm x .35 tap thru the hole to clean up the threads first... and you might need to countersink the hole w/ a larger drill bit to seat the new tube properly in the case. Then again, some people are able to remove the old tube and screw in the new one w/ a little loc-tite (blue) and never look back. You also need a case tube wrench for installing the new tube (6mm). yeh, come to think of it, the aftermarket case tubes are cheap, it's all of the tools you need to do the job correctly that are expensive!

Yes, both are 20mm ends. At least the modern Daytonas will work, not the vintage 6263/6265's which were 19mm ends

Taking it back another layer on the plastic crystal shouldn't be a problem. Plastic crystals are really a maintenance item- polish them til it's time to replace 'em. It's relatively cheap to replace them. Looks good.

They're the same, aren't they? I visited the 88 site yesterday from here, so I'd assume it's correct.

Thanks Ronin. I certainly like the unmarked Kingston look you've created and the price is great- 1/3 of a Yao creation! And the Noah Fuller site is cool- I'm starting to get into Seikos- but I need another watch like a hole in the head!

All you can do is ask him. He has sold me parts before. I believe he's on vacation until the 18th of this month.

Very nice Ronin! Now you need to tell us about the dial. I certainly like the lume on it, where did it come from?

there you go, a quick application on the sides. Maybe you could do the same thing with some paint, a silver/brown/dk gray mix for instance....

Right you are Ubi, Richard has been around for a long time. He used to participate but I haven't seen him chime in lately. He used to go by Audemarsdan or something like that. I don't know if he makes a living doing this stuff or not, maybe selling advertising on his site? By-Tor has also written some stuff for him 3-4 yrs ago. It's funny to navigate his site and see some of the old known scam sites! BestSwiss... He manages to remain fairly neutral and uncommitted, but I sometimes wonder what his rep collection looks like!

yeh, lani, my concern is that you might loose the lume which is attached to the backside of the hands- but what do I know?

Actually with a gen YachtMaster dial and a gen 3135 Rolex movement (probably around $2K USD), you could build a very good franken with the WM9 case. BK says the Rolex movement will fit the WM9 case. Of course, if I was going to get a YM, I'd just go w/ the WM9 from BK, it's quite a bit less expensive than building a franken.