ubiquitous

Sign me up!

I wonder why no one's ever done this before? Sounds like a GREAT idea!

For me... Pretty much #7. I wear one watch, more or less all the time. But, sometimes around the house I'll wear another on my right wrist

Well, genuine Rolex does have it's merits. How many brands out there can say they are true manufacturers? How many companies out there use in-house calibers in a watch that's priced under $5k new? Not many... Only a handful, and most of those are made in Japan. With regards to buying a genuine watch... I'd buy a Rolex before a Panerai with an ETA inside

Oh man... Quality AND Quantity!! Now, THAT'S what I'm talking about!

Yeah, what archi said!

You're close. Have a look at some pics of gens, and tell me what you see when looking at the dial...

Good stuff, BT!! Candy for the eyes.... P.S. My two month old was really looking at your 16710 pic! I was holding her on my lap while surfing RWG, and I think the bright colors really got her attention!

The flaw on the rep dials is so obvious that most eyes go right over it. It's sometimes hidden, sometimes not, depending on the time of day...

For what it's worth, Rolex ranks third on my list of brand preferences. However, there are three factors that make Rolex the heaviest collected in my watch box... 1) Vintage Rolex 2) Cosmograph Daytonas 3) The relative ease of building Franken-Rolex watches Expanding on these factors... I REALLY like vintage Rolex watches. I've handled a good number of gens, and I just love the character that the old matte dials and acrylic crystal models have. These watches lived in a time where they were used for what they were- watches. Not collectables, not safe queens. So, it goes without saying that these watches have some history in them, and that's something that has always fascinated me. In recent years, the cost of select gen sports pieces have really started to escalate, and I cannot realistically justify the idea of buying a 1665, or 1655, 6263, etc. So, I buy a replication, and build it out as close to the genuine article as possible. Some may ask why? Well, for me, the hobby is probably quite similar to someone who builds model planes, trains, cars, or full scale replica cars, etc. It sort of speaks out on a sense of art, I suppose, as with each watch I put together has a part of me in it when it's finished (that being my time, effort, and love for the 'sport'). It's something I take pride in. The finished result also nets me a watch that I would always long to own, but hugely inflated pricing keeps such pieces out of my reach. I mean, c'mon... I'd rather spend $80k on my kids' education before I buy myself a timepiece I could build... Cosmographs... Well, what can I say? I'm a sucker for Daytonas. I love them... Always have. For this reason alone, I don't mind having a couple of Rolex's in the box with the coronet sitting atop 3 stopwatch registers Now, going back to the building thing... You already know my reasons for wanting to build my frankensteins... But, did I also mention how relatively easy Rolex makes it? The hard part is knowing where, and whom to source from. But, parts are out there... They're not cheap, but sometimes one can find good deals. Now, I never sell my watches, and I will never try and claim they are genuine, as they are most certainly not. But, every day of the week, I can wear a watch that I've always wanted on my wrist, and it means even more to me since I have a hand in it's creation. We're all in this hobby for different reasons... These are mine Happy time keeping...

tourbillon, Any chance you can post some photos? I think pics will help visually help answer a lot of questions...

Saabin? He's in Oregon, I thought? He did put together some very nice frankens, but there's one big flaw with the SRSD. I've pointed it out to a few, but I wonder how many others see it too?

Holy smokes, Chris!! That's some serious PAM presence!! :cloud9: Top notch.... As always!

Starting off my week right. This will be my last week in the office for the year... Taking 3 weeks off, so gotta take care of business before I depart for vacation... I'll need a serious time piece to accompany me...

Here's a pic direct from Panerai.com http://www.panerai.com/img/2/prodotti/1067...00172_index.jpg

Tantalium PAMs (like the 192) are a bit blue in color, and are VERY heavy in weight.

First, thank you everyone for the VERY kind comments! This one has been a long work in progress (they all seem to be, don't they?), and to have this one at the stage of completion as it stands now seems almost... Surreal Looks like I'll have to figure out a new project to start on MacDad- The rivet 7206 bracelet is technically not correct for a great white, as great white production would have been well past the time of rivet Oysters. Rather, a heavy link Oyster (93150) is correct for that piece, as GW's were introduced in the late 70's; folded link (9315) and heavy links are correct for DRSD's with the rivets being more period correct for 5513's in the early to mid 60's era. Hope this helps! Thanks again for the kind words! As always, they are very much appreciated! Cheers, R

I glue mine to the spacer ring. The spacer ring sits on the rim of the movement, and provides adequete clearance between the movement and the dial.

No one's ever called me- On any of my watches. Hell, I didn't even know our watches had built in phones in them? How do I activate that function?

Agree... Considering that a generic datewheel for a 3135 is $45 from Ofrei, the economics of buying a crapped out noobmariner for $40 makes perfect sense. If you're in need of a modern datewheel, this is the way to go (in my opinion). For the vintage wheels... They're coming...

I think we owe it to each other to post the good and the bad. However, I think that if someone is considering the idea of making a negative post, that they first try and seek resolution off of the forum via private communication. Only once all attempts at fixing the problem are exahuasted should one post a negative post, and should also mention the attempts made to fix the problem. That seems only fair to me.

Open the crown and throw the watch in a ziplock with a packet of silica. The silica will pull the moisture out of the watch...

Yes, 15xx and 30xx movements have the date rolling counter clockwise; the 3135 rolls clockwise like ETA. The datewheels are thin enough that you could glue one down to the ETA wheel like an overlay, but as cheiftang mentioned, the datewheel from the 21j noobmariner is of excellent quality, and in my opinion, better than any of the aftermarket 3135 wheels out there. That is the overlay I used in my franken-DJ...

I hack to time.gov... On the watches that have hack function, that is

Richard, Seems that just about all genuine SS Daytonas are highly sought after. Of course, the vintage Cosmos, especially the Newman's and early 6239/41's with pump pushers (in original, or as close to original condition as possible), and of course, the 6263/5's. Very collectable. With regards to modern, the 16520 is more collectable than 116520's, as the 16520's are no longer in production. However, some are more collectable than others. For example- Early R serial pieces with original dials, bezels, etc are highly sought after; incidentally, A serial daytonas at the end of prouction are even more collectable as there were only very few produced in this era, as the model line was transitioning to the 116520. Of course, S/W/T black dialed Patrizzi's are fetching HUGE premiums on the market ($25k - $30k). Not many out there as most dials have been changed for non-chocolate subdial rings. Of course, the collectability doesn't end at just SS. Vintage 18k 6263/5's, 14k 6239/41 PN's and 16528's are also coming up in demand. Unfortunately, the 1165xx's just aren't quite as collectable, as they are current production with an open end on build. With regards to building... I do indeed have $3k+ into each watch. Yes, folks, that's each (total is $6k and change between the two). Sounds like a lot... And it is. But considering that these frankens have genuine El Primeros inside, along with a number of genuine parts, I personally feel that having a 1:1 with gen for a fraction of the price is worth it (standard 16520's are now selling at $9k - $11k, depending).