alligoat

[We should do a group buy of good quality round threes open 6/9 date discs for the ETA. E

Kind of like being caught between a rock and a hard spot. Your best bet is the get the Rolex bezel, insert and spring at an AD or an RSC. But they'll probably want $500, give or take, to service it. An independent watchmaker with a Rolex parts account could get you the parts and maybe only charge you $200-300 for a service. Maybe he'd get you the parts and let you getaway w/o a service. But if the watch hasn't been serviced in 10 years, it's long overdue!

Have you checked with Ken at Rafflestime, maybe he could find one.

And look at their prices- $1350 for a sub rep- that's a pretty good margin! Especially when you either get a $300 rep or nothing at all!

The bezel insert is older, but in good condition. If it's for a 14060, it won't fit a 16610, it's slightly smaller. Crystal for a 14060 is smaller also and won't fit the 16610. Other parts will, but the hands will fit a 3000/3130 or 3135 Rolex movt, not an eta.

Yep, your bezel mechanism is definitely rep- old style rep at that. Crown and cgs are a giveaway also and as pointed out, it's a rep bracelet. But it might be worth opening the case to see if you have an eta movement- there were no clones back in that day, just Asian 21j as the other choice.

Would you consider a vintage relume of the hands and the dial, LHOOQ? Like you say, finding a suitable dial would be next to impossible. I was thinking a watchmaker might well have to fabricate a stem to fit the movement, a la Ziggy

Since this movement pre dates the 1030, I thought I'd google around and see if I could find out which movement it is. A260, A296... Lo and behold this watch is being auctioned on ebay by Andrew Shear http://www.ebay.com/itm/1953-Vintage-Rare-Rolex-Big-Bubbleback-Explorer-I-ref-6350-PROJECT-WATCH-/200963868228?pt=Wristwatches&hash=item2eca614644#ht_883wt_1160 At any rate, I agree with cc33 and Tony, Bob Ridley would be the best shot to get it going again.

The problem with the MBW red sub dial is that the red 'Submariner' print is too tall/large, as is the 660ft=200m. And the dial is 26.2mm so fitting a gen or a good aftermarket dial like an Ingod in there, which is 26.5mm, requires some work. Either trim the new dial down or enlarge the dial seat in the case, maybe with a dremel tool. But the MBW 1680s are nice, back in 2006 they were the best thing going, and even now they're still good- make a great beater. Wear it, age it naturally and enjoy!

The serifs on the numbers of the outer tachymeter scale certainly are pronounced. 6s and 9s on the subdials look closed to me which is ok. here's a gen that you can compare it with- it's a little whited out colorwise, but we're looking at the printing to compare with the MQ. I think the last gen dial I saw on the bay went for $4500-5000! These Interwatches aren't bad to look at either for comparison

If you got the 16233 for let's say $2000 and you sold the watch parts for $1000 you'd be doing great. Of course, you'd need to figure a service for the 3135- add $200-300 say. Case and caseback- say $250-300 crystal- $100-150 bezel- maybe $150 dial- $100-150 bracelet- $300 hands- $50-100 Like Tom says, condition matters. Oh, crown might be worth $50. Those figures are just a guesstimate, your results will vary!

I don't see a TC bracelet working on a build like this- you need the short clasp and polished center links, there's also the way the SELs hang out past the lugs which is unique to the YM. This older P serial has some nice pics to look at: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mens-Rolex-Yacht-Master-S-Steel-Platinum-16622-P-Serial-/261275564940?pt=Wristwatches&hash=item3cd53cbb8c#ht_6932wt_1398 A few years back I saw one of the WM9s and it was very nice- it would be a good start with all of the gen parts you mentioned and then a 3135. Guess the WM9 case would have to be the V3 if you used it.

WOW! That is nice, even the center SELs have gold on the sides. Beautiful watch.

The watch looks nice, but that's not a gen dial- it's an MBW dial which is stamped Singer on the back. A gen Mark IV red sub dial looks like this one that Orchi posted on VRF. http://www.network54.com/Forum/539586/message/1217965375/1680--3.18mil+SN%2C+II.71%2C+Red+Sub%2C+non-hacking+cal.+1575--posted+by+Orchi It's marked Beyeler on the back, by the way. The problem on the MBW dial is the 'Submariner' is too tall as is the 660ft-200m. Also, the red is too red. Also, look at the 6's on 660 on Orchi's dial- just a slight gap in the middle- don't see that on the MBW dial. I realize the MKIV red dial is now referred to as the MKV on VRF sometimes. The first two were meters first and a few years ago someone came up with a third meters first, so that moved the two feet first dials out to 4 and 5.

I'm not even sure it could be modified to accept gen parts.Cheapest route on a 16613 would be TC case, gold aftermarket bezel, gold crown and then a dial and bezel insert. Bracelet would be a challenge also. You could try a ST3135 case also if you had access to one. There's just no easy way to build a decent 16613!

I can see where the crown on the M case is set too far into the case. Looks like it will interfere with the bezel assembly when installed. I remember this being an issue with the WM9-V3 case, but crown position was higher on that case for a 2824-2/3135 movement. But I can't tell fr pic #2 that the crowns are at a different position- like you say, just that the cgs are shaped differently. If it fits a gen movement, it could be a WM9-V3.

Yes, your crystal looks a tad high. But as you indicated, w/ an aftermarket crystal retaining ring and no tension ring, you can't really call it all gen construction. Your bezel doesn't look as nice as the two gen examples above it either. It looks slightly taller. Also, which gasket did you use? A Rolex sub uses the #2 gasket as in 295-C2. On both my Euromariner (MBW) and my 16800 franken w/ the ST3035 case I wrestled with the bezel assemblies, buying various parts and sanding, etc. until the parts finally fit and the watches were WR. BTW, you realize that the bezel assembly on the 16800, 168000 and the 16610 are all the same- nothing has changed since 1980- they all use the exact same parts- crystal, retention ring, tension spring, click spring and bezel. Bezel inserts are still the same part # with variations for the last 2-3 digits, and do vary in fonts- especially in the 4 in 40- but that's another discussion. You might keep trying to swap in different parts, or you could just go on and enjoy the watch- esp. if it's WR.

Here's the early Y- serial- lugholes, boxy 4, Next up is the late Y serial w/ the 16610 T case- no lugholes, pointed 4 insert

I like the 34 mm watches and they're not too small as far as I'm concerned. I'd try to find one closer to your home and for a slightly better price.

Looks good A! Sure you could do a new set of hands, but that's no big deal Now you've got a nice franken w gen bezel construction. Congrats The 16613 isn't an easy build by any means.

Darn, it's already the 27th in HK! Nice looking sub Eric, but that bezel insert is earlier than the sub- you need the latest insert with the skinny 4 in 40. This noob case has the correct late model insert

I just bought a GP bracelet from this seller- looks good on my 1550 GP Date http://www.ebay.com/itm/19MM-BRUSHED-STAINLESS-STEEL-OYSTER-BAND-BRACELET-FOR-ROLEX-OLD-EXPLORER-WATCH-N-/350857442340?pt=US_Watch_Bands&hash=item51b0bbb424#ht_579wt_1160 He's got it in 20mm if that's what you need.

Your best bet would be a lenient independent w/ a Rolex parts account. If you don't need parts, servicing is no big deal

Either way, it looks good Cpt!

Very nice write up map! Thank goodness you have the scratches on the 93150 so that I can tell them apart in the pics.