ubiquitous

I guess let's start with the easy/obvious first...

Are there any hands touching or making contact? i.e. seconds hand touching the minute hand?

Does the delay only occur in certain positions? e.g. crown up, dial up, crown down, etc?

JoeyB, I would say without hesitation that you are THE authority and expert on the 6542. Much respect!!

Well, I am not sure that my analysis would be 100% relevant in this situation as the SD dial I have is his prototype that he made prior to going full production roll out. The SD prototype is a great dial; nice details and great fonts to dial text and marker indicies. But there are a lot of details that Rolli/FGD's just nail spot on, such as the 1pc, 1mm design with dial feet, surface finish (both in texture and gloss), fonts, indicies, lume tone/consistency etc. It really is a phenomenal dial!

No knock at all on SD's prototype; it's a dial that I have had on my 201/A for the last year and one that I've been very happy with. But when you look at the Rolli/FGD dial, all the nuances and attention to detail... All of the discussion behind it regarding the manner in which it's produced... The time, financial investment, quality and care in this product all becomes very apparent, very quickly...

In short, it's pretty awesome

Thank you sir.

Admittedly, there are only a few Panerai that I absolutely love; the 201/A having always been the top of that list. I appreciate the design and am fascinated by the history of the brand... But as someone who feels more comfortable wearing 36mm vintage Patek, 44mm - 47mm cases are a bit of an adjustment for me these days (they also draw a little more attention than I like ).

None the less, my 201/A has been a constant work in progress and on the scale of fun it definitely ranks within the top 5. This piece was built with parts that couldn't have been possible without great friends who have made huge efforts (evident of their love for all things watches); I've made some great friendships from this build, and that alone brings a smile to my face every time I look at this piece

Pretty dang sweet! Really love the dial on No. 1...

I think this piece is one of those builds that is constantly evolving for me. I've made a number of revisions to this watch over the years; this one is (in my mind) finally edging ever closer to being finalized (methinks)...

I managed to score one of those new, Rolli/FGD 201/A dials from Ogladio, who was an absolute gent and a great pleasure to work with! He zipped these parts over the Atlantic to get them in my hands in very short order; having rec'd them this morning, I went to work quickly as I was quite excited and very anxious to have these goodies before my eyes! I managed to modify the hands and get everything installed while on a conference call for work Don't think I heard a word of what went on during the call, but I did manage to enjoy the process of doing a little watch work, which I have to admit I have not done in quite some time.

Anyways... On to some pics... You'll have to excuse me on these as they are a mix of DSLR and cell phone images. And... There aren't too many images either, I'm afraid. I was already multitasking enough as it was!

Gorgeous dial! It's got a nice, semi gloss/semi matte finish, though it appears more matte in this pic than it really is!

Modded hands... Edges and center opening given a bit of a rub to expose some brass

On to business...

Side by side with my Steph_Dexter prototype dial; also a great dial in it's own right!

Buttoned up...

That 6...

Thanks for looking!

//ubi

I like it; definitely a different look for the iconic Submariner, and the change up is nice.

But what's really more important here is that YOU like it!

I love it!

Coming up on the final stretch! Looking good!

All of these are fantastic examples! But I really dig this one... Great dial!

The watches that end up on my bench are usuall a sight to behold, whether gen or rep.  I keep my watches in mechanically solid condition,  clean and presentable but I'm not blowing every dust flake off of them either. It's interesting to see how much the average person doesn't sweat the condition of the watch though, from the cleanliness of the piece and its strap/bracelet, to the cracks, scratches and gouges, to sometimes missing parts.  As long as it runs anything goes.

So true! I've become the go-to person for a lot of friends and family that want me to look at their watch, to fix this or that, etc. I am always surprised at how beat to shit some of these watches are, and most are gens!

Maybe the content of these images would qualify as art?

Thank you gents; really appreciate the kind comments!

Thanks, Marsu! Really appreciate that!

 

Hong Kong Fast Freddy?

No, no... Germany Fast Freddy!

Thanks MB- Really kind of you to say!

Heh... You wouldn't believe how much about watches I've forgotten! Maybe even more than I ever knew to begin with

Thank you gents; really appreciate the warm reception Indeed... Been a long time since I've stepped foot in the door and it's comforting to see a lot of the familiar, friendly faces that really makes this place so great! I also see a lot of new members participating and that is also fantastic to see! Anytime we can grow the RWG family with good people, that's a good day!

I will try to be a little more frequent, but sadly, I am afraid I don't have much to offer these days in terms of builds. The Pateks were the last major projects I had going on; anything moving forward will really only involve small updates and revisions here and there where possible.

Maybe I need to start on a new adventure?

The PPs are definitely my faves that I've built... Perhaps ever. They are much, much more difficult than anything else I've put together and they make me smile everytime I look at them.

But one cannot go wrong with a nice vintage Rolex either! The Big Crown is one that feels like it is a constant work in progress and the WM9 16622 may just stay stock as a daily wearer.

Some details...

-'Voldemort' dial (2 line red depth with numeral markers on an original Beyler plate)

-Genuine Rolex caliber 1030

-Hands (?? Dunno)

-JW case

-Genuine Rolex crown

-Genuine Rolex fat font insert

-Genuine C+I bracelet

-Genuine PPCo dial (champlevé enamel)

-Valjoux caliber 23

-Genuine PPCo hands

-JW case

-Genuine PPCo crown (unsigned; period correct)

-Genuine PPCo/Camille Fournet strap

-Genuine PPCo steel buckle (14mm period correct)

-Genuine PPCo dial (champlevé enamel)

-Genuine PPCo caliber 27SC

-Genuine PPCo hands

-JW case

-Genuine PPCo crown (unsigned; period correct)

-Genuine PPCo/Camille Fournet strap

-Genuine PPCo steel buckle (16mm period correct)

-Genuine PPCo dial (champlevé enamel)

-Genuine PPCo caliber 12-120

-Genuine PPCo hands

-JW case

-Genuine PPCo crown (unsigned; period correct)

-Genuine PPCo/Camille Fournet strap

-Genuine PPCo steel buckle (16mm period correct)

-Genuine PPCo dial (18k hallmarked dial base; some of the gold is peeking through on the patina)

-Genuine PPCo caliber 23-300

-Genuine PPCo hands

-Steel vintage case

-Genuine PPCo 18k WG crown

-Hirsch strap

-Genuine PPCo steel buckle (16mm)

A couple of snaps of a recent acquisition...

Been a while since I got the camera out; grabbed a few shots before putting these away in the bank vault and thought I'd post, no rhyme, no reason...

Are you the same Fast Freddy I know from 10 years ago?

 

Absolutely stellar results, my friend! I have been waiting to see you try your hand at a vintage, and this one speaks for itself! Love it!

Thoughts and best wishes to his family; this really comes as a huge shock!

 

Very sad day...

Taking these back to be locked away on Mon; so enjoying them for the weekend...

Yeah, I've done one before...