ubiquitous

One of the main differences with the rep v gen is the height of the stack... It's very apparent installed, as the rep crystal's dome starts flush with the bezel insert; the gen stands up slightly before the edge leading to the dome...

I think you've done a great job on shining that one up, ff! If you picked that one up for lower than fair market, I think you could stand to make a nice, tidy little profit from flipping! P.S. The dial/hand combination is one of my favorites....

Tasteful old money...

Man... I am sorry to see that Pho...

No comparisons of the rep crystal and the gen superdome, but here is a comparison I took of a genuine flat 39 and a genuine supderome 39...

Hi Marco... Based on your photos, I believe the cases are very similar, if not the same Mine had originated from a non-MBW dealer...

I've noticed some Breitlings on Tiff Needell's wrist a few times as well...

You may have paid for cake... But maybe she delivered pie...

The 1680 in the pics is actually a series of old photos of past MBW's I've had and sold...

Sounds like you've got quite a lot covered I'll start with the crystal removal... Pop the bezel off of the watch. For this, I usually slide my debit card between the bezel and the case at the crown guards. Because the card is plastic, there is not much risk of marring up the case or bezel with this technique. Once you have the card wedged in, you can work it around the diameter to pop the bezel off. At which point, you'd see this: Now, you can remove the retaining ring... For this job, you'll need a razor blade to wedge under the ring (this helps lift the ring slightly): Be sure to work the blade around the diameter of the ring- The objective is to lift the ring evenly. Once you have a slight gap worked up, you can then use a larger/thicker blade to work the ring up and off: Crystal swap is straightforward- Remove the old and press the new one on with your thumbs. The goal here is to intall once- Multiple R&I's can cause the crystal to stress and possibly form hairline cracks, thus compromising sealing integrity. Once you have the new crystal on, align the cyclops (if applicable- say on a 1680), double check alignment, and then re-press the retaining ring on. You'll need a press of some sort; I simply use an old Omega Seamaster case as my 'die', and insert the whole assembly into a cheap crystal press I have: Once you have the ring seated, place the washer spring on, and then install the bezel, which simply snaps onto the lip of the retaining ring. If you have a new bezel insert, that can be installed on the bezel prior to this step. As for the tube... There are two mods that I absolutely despise doing- Lug hole drilling and tubes. For these... I find myself preferring to farm them out these days, as I would rather put my hand on the stove burner than do these mods. I've done them before, which is how I've come to dislike them... So.... For the tube, you'll need to first heat the tube up to warm the glue up securing it to the case. Some people use the tip of a soldering iron, as it can be inserted into the tube to heat. Once the tube is heated sufficiently, you can use the end of a rat tail file to unthread it from the case. Once removed, it is advised that you run the proper sized tap through the threads to clean them up. These taps can be purchased from most supply houses, and are typically advertised as for the crown size vs. the actual tube size. In this case, you'll need the one advertised for the 6mm crown, as the tube for the 7mm Triplock has the same 3mm diameter: Once the case is tapped, you can install the tube. Some applications may require a countersinking of the tube, some may not. It depends on the watch you have... At this point, all that should be necessary is swapping the crown on the stem with genuine, and you oughta be set. Hope this helps... R

Singer was one of three major dial makers for Rolex; there was Singer, Beyeler and Stern (the same Stern as Patek, I believe). Rolex ended up buying out numerous companies to pull outsourced production in-house; Beyeler was purchased and brought in for the dial production side. Singer, I believe, ended up selling off a good portion of blank plates which have recirculated and are resurfacing on the market (e.g. the dial I have ref'd above). Stern... We know what has become of Stern, which is not a bad place to be at all

What kinds of tools do you have, Pugs?

I typically visit my AD's with my white dial El Primero Daytona on; without fail, it always seems to strike up conversation (and on one occassion, even a trade proposition from the manager involving a watch out of his own personal collection)...

Wow... This one's an oldie! Who... You must have been doing some serious searching of the archives to have unearthed this one! Hopefully, it's of help to some of you guys....

Actually, the one in the auction is different... MBW Singers look like this... eBay dial... Meanwhile, a genuine Singer looks like this Hope this helps... R

Indeed... Amazing how the little things can make such a huge difference.

One could always put together a frankenstein... Like this one that I put together for my father: Genuine case, dial, crown with ETA movement and Tudor hands...

Today, I'm working from home, so I have this pair of Franken-Daytonas on... Saturday calls for the Franken-Sub... Sunday... My modded MBW 1665...

Looks great, V! a very nice franken-PAM you have here! Incredible...

Just make sure the dial is aligned properly!

50 to the occassional 60 a week here...

Well... Kruz probably would post a pic if he could... But since his watch is with me, it kind of makes things difficult BTW... A teaser...

watch-co is known for Omegas, and carries a lot of genuine parts. Based on the description, this one is on the fine line of being an all genuine franken- Franken only in the sense that the watch as you see it was not actually assembled by Omega, but the parts used are all genuine. Again... It kind of begs the question as to what really constitutes a franken... But since this one was 'restored' by a third party using a new case, bracelet, dial and hands (leaving only the movement as 'transplanted'), this one qualifies as such in my book...

Nicely done, but very difficult to do... One has to be very careful when soldering as the heat could damage the dial. No doubt, however, that if you have a watchmaker who can do this sort of work, it is the best way to go!

Looks pretty good to me, ff. A little too good. Methinks this is a trick question