alligoat

I guess what I like about the 16610 is the sapphire crystal- makes it much more rugged than the 1680- those plastic crystals are always taking a hit. Of course, 16800 is my favorite

Here's a pic of a gen 16710 that I borrowed! It looks thinner than a 16610 to me, but I really doubt anyone would ever notice.

Joey, Certainly you could use a 16610 rep case and make a 16710. Is the sub case too thick? I don't know. Old GMTs used to be thinner cases- 6542, 1675- don't know with the modern ones.

Yes, you probably have the old style 703 crown with what I call the tall coronet. The stem should be silver colored, but it is probably brass underneath as you indicate. The modern 703 crown has been repped, but I doubt that the old 703 crown has been (but who's to say), so what you have is probably an old gen 703 crown. You could post some pics, btw.

It doesn't work as Woof said and so you are fooling yourself. The 702 crown takes the 7020 tube and it was discussed here as recently as last week. The difference is that the 702 tube has the threads at the bottom of the tube and is smooth on the top end. It has two gaskets inside the tube and the crown has the third gasket at the base of the stem (same as the 703), hence the 'triplock' designation. It has no external gasket at the base of the tube like the 7030 tube. Try reading this discussion. http://www.rwg.cc/topic/151011-jewellery-and-watch-702-crown/

Your bezel is certainly gen-like construction. So at that point you basically have to trust the seller. Your insert looks ok- it's hard to tell from a pic, but if the pearl is good, it's probably gen. The fact that the bezel fits a gen sub should be good proof. I've never had an aftermarket bezel that I didn't have to massage to get to fit on a sub- i.e. sand and file so it wasn't so tight.

6542 is all I can think of- no crown guards and a cyclops. Can't tell if it's a Pepsi insert w/ the black and white photo.

A 702 crown and tube would be correct on a Daytona 6263 until 1980 or 1981. Somewhere around then the 703 came into existence. I've seen a 1983 1665 with the old 702 crown and tube. So you never quite know with Rolex.

There is an early version of the 703 crown which looks the same as the 702 crown- with the tall crown emblem. I don't know when the fat squatty 703 crown came out- maybe mid 90s.

That's a nice case- especially if you want to use a gen 1570 movement. Sure it needs a little work, polish the bezel to give it a little age, drill the lugholes to spec, thin the cg's a little and maybe thin the lugs/polish it to give a little older look since there's no bevel on the lugs. But most 1680s lost the bevel on the lugs a long time ago- mine is 34 years old so it's been down the road a few times and been polished, probably more than once. I really like the high crown position and the drooping cg's, rehaut is also spot on. Good engravings would be a big plus.

Yes, the 702 tube is different and won't work with a 703 crown. The second page of J&W's crown page has a 702 crown and tube for $150- if it's still available, that would be a fair deal. 702 tubes are hard to find.

Do you have a crystal press? If not, you need to get one. At that point you can press the bezel off of the retention ring. Yes, the black gasket on the bottom of the retention ring is for added water protection. Yours sounds like gen-like construction- the Euromariners from 3-4 years ago (which are MBKs) had the two gasket system- chinese engineering. I'm hoping they've improved upon that old system. I used a Clark's crystal, but then the Euro retention ring was too big and wouldn't keep the crystal on- hence the gen retention ring. Then the bezel didn't fit tightly, so I had to find another bezel. But now it's WR.

Dan is right, you have to separate the bezel from the crystal retention ring and the crystal too. Press the crystal down from the top with your thumbs- you could also use the crystal press with the smaller dies. Like highoey says, if you have the dastardly two gasket system, you're going to have to keep working on it. I ended up with a gen crystal retention ring on mine and finally found an aftermarket bezel that worked. With the gold bezel you may have a problem if it doesn't fit tightly. Clark's is a good place for aftermarket parts- crystal and bezel assembly. A lot of this is just fit and match, maybe sanding with 320/400/600 wet dry snadpaper. This stuff doesn't fit like gen parts.

It's a good looking case, dial looks like a MKII, but why is the 8 in the date window low? Crown is a later 703- the squatty crown emblem. The droop of the crown guards is spot on- same as the gen- heck it could be a gen case for that matter

Is the nylon gasket installed dry against the crystal and case? Yes, AFAIK. It's a tight compression fit. And a rubber gasket goes on the underside of the compression ring- you can apply silicone to that.

Nice group of subs, R! I certainly wouldn't worry about the date mag on the LV- it's maybe .1 too big- 2.6 vs 2.5- like it really doesn't matter. And the date fits in the window and the cyclops just fine anyway. I like the bezel insert you put on the Invicta. Those are true beaters and great watches with the Miyota movement in there. I've got a couple that I modded with Rolex YM inserts Great change of pace for when you don't want to wear the sub. BTW, I just noticed that you changed the seconds hand on your 8926- good job!

Boy that is a nice build iRU! Congrats

Nice job J! If you're moving the Tiffany down the line, let Sidney Youngblood know!

Interesting how the SN and the 5513 are conveniently worn off. And you can't see the quality of the engravings.I'd stay away myself

Is that a metal surround around the pearl? That would be a BIG tell- the 5513 has the all acrylic pearl. The crown appears to be an early 703- with the tall crown emblem on the end of the crown. 702s are similar, but they take a completely different tube. Ironic that the last three digits of the SN are 007- where's James Bond when you need him!

Nice group of vintage Rollies, bones! And it looks like the quality has improved over time!

I wonder how many of the turkeys over at VRF would catch on to the old 110! Looking good so far DP.

Here is a 16030 with the correct 'engine turned' bezel I guess a 16030 could also have a smooth bezel.

I agree with tomhorn that the watch originally pictured is not a 16030, or at least it''s been modded with a white gold fluted bezel and therefore more like a 16014. Finding these DJ cases on the bay is getting more difficult- prices are going up- too many franken builders! Even my DD used a 16000 case modified by Phong That is an aftermarket polished fluted ss bezel by the way- like kbh says- WG bezels are hard to come by these days at a decent price.

pearl looks good