alligoat

The reason you file down the edges is because it's too sharp. If you need to, 600 or 1000 wet dry sandpaper should work and maybe a little polish afterwards- auto stuff will work, just not too much to take off the brushed finish.

For $75 you can't go wrong. With all due respect, your AD dpesn't know his 16800's. And don't forget, the 16800 is 316L, whereas the 16610 is 904L. 501B is correct for the 16610, but different type of stainless steel.

Is this new Submariner going to be labeled 116610?

The one thing that I've noticed about the noob clasp is that the crown emblem is too short- too fat, whereas the gen crown on the back of the clasp is longer, narrower. 593 end links are correct for the 16800 and 168000, but I have seen 580 and 501's (no on 16800's that were stated to be 100% original. But who can really say a watch is 100% after 25-30 years. But then again, Rolex has been known to use whatever was in the parts bin back then. The 455B's that you have are nice, they don't have that typical replica cut-out on the back side. I'm still waiting for the MBK 93150 to arrive- Chris says it's overdue, just like the Eurotimer w/ lugholes. But the Eurotimer w/ lugholes will have the deep rehaut- better suited for an early 16610 than the 16800. I like what you did filing the grooves out of the safety clasp- looks good.

Thanks for the update, chefcook.

Great write-up, Shundi. Very informative and a cool bit of history on a vintage line of watches. Good reading and pics are fine, too.

Ran across this at Clark's looking for a 295C crystal http://cgi.ebay.com/Bezel-Flat-Friction-Wa...1QQcmdZViewItem I'm thinking it's the same part for the 5513, 1680 and 1665.

No women's Daytona.

I'm just curious if anyone has tried this aftermarket 16800 bezel ring, insert, click spring and flat washer from Faisal Ali down here in beautiful Sugar Land. Of course, he's one part short of the complete assembly- the the bottom tension (retaining) ring which goes down first and secures the crystal and gasket. http://cgi.ebay.com/BEZEL-INSERT-FOR-ROLEX...1QQcmdZViewItem EDIT: Here's the complete assembly- has anyone tried this? http://cgi.ebay.com/BEZEL-INSERT-RETAINING...1742.m153.l1262

Too bad no one's found a rep case to fit a gen dial in?- Oops, I forgot, an MBW/MBK 1675 will take a gen dial.

After ebay, you need to start cultivating a relationship with a watchmaker who has a parts account with Rolex. And he'd have to be sympathetic to your replica based proclivities. I look for parts on the Vintage Rolex Forum also, but those guys are way proud of their parts to the point of being unrealistic, IMO. http://www.vintagerolexforum.com/ Haven't got to the modern rolex forum yet, because I generally do OK on ebay- you just have to practice patience and persistence- just keep looking and don't get caught up paying too much- eventually you'll find what you're looking for at a reasonable price. A genuine bezel insert, 315-16800, for a modern sub is going to run $60-100 on ebay. I just bought a nice tritium insert for my 16800 for $65.

The advantage to the Swiss movement is that it can be repaired- parts will fit and are available. But the problem is that you may buy what is advertised as Swiss and it turns out to be an asian copy movement. Looks like a 2836-2, but then parts may or may not fit. My asian copy movt is doing fine, but my nephew's just bit the bullet- we'll see what the watchmaker can do with it. CHS is still a problem, but it's your choice. You may get lucky and you may not. IHS still is the best bet for reliability.

Dizzy's right, they use the same insert- #315-5513-??, OD is 36.50 as I recall. Font on your insert looks decent, pearl hole looks pretty big to me.

Beautiful job, Pete. I had to read the previous 1675 topic, and I gather that you had Michael Young redo the rep dial due to the fit problems with the gen being too small. It looks very nice, and now you don't have to look at "Oyster Perpetual Date" on the dial which is a dead giveaway. Great work and thanks for sharing. @ freddy, the movement would be the 2836-2 which came with the watch from silix originally.

Nice watch, cschenone, and good job on the cg's. One question, why a eurotimez crown and tube? Is it better than the WM9 crown and tube?

Not yet, but hang in there, hopefully it'll be soon

Beautiful job, RS! You take these frankens to a whole nother level, congrats!

Try Michael Young at classicwatchparts.com/ http://www.classicwatchparts.com/catpart/c...t=5a&page=2

I don't know enough about those early bezels to comment, maybe freddy knows more since that's his area of study these days. Skeet and Urul mention the early bezel was also plastic, covered with a metal-like substance. As Tomvox states, the original bezel is in poor condition, with an Italian insert. I do have my doubts about the dial though. A 1958 dial would be marked 'Swiss' at the bottom, I believe, since tritium didn't come into use until around 1963 or so. Nevertheless, I'd figure this dial as an early 60's replacement, when gilt was still prevalent.

That Brevet crown certainly adds something to your watch- some of that 'Rolex mystique'. If you could source an early butterfly rotor for the 1530, it would certainly be the cats meow. Great job!

Interesting. Is this one of the previous Hong Kong dealers resurrected w/ a new name- like watchesandparts comes to mind. But like freddy says, they're not great dials, but they'd be perfect for the budget rep project. Don't know if I'd put them in a franken w/ a gen movement, but at $120 or so, it might be worth it buying one to take a looksy.

Interesting. You'd have to wonder why Rolex doesn't make a Ladies Submariner- it seems like it would be a no brainer.

It says refinished, but that really means 'hot off the presses', in other words, it's new.

Beautiful watch, JoJo. The dial and the hands are a flawless match- excellent. That Brevet crown is nice, I've never seen that on a 5508.

I read about this last week- to quickly paraphrase- there are two cases- large and smaller, if they put the wrong crystal in the larger case, maybe it sits too low- basically flush with the bezel. Yuck, what do you do- send it back or live with it- those are your two choices. Maybe someone else can pull up the topic- it's only a week or so old.