jmb

Good job on the holes, it's gonna look great!

Yeah, Rolex's "poor cousins" are fairly reasonable, all considered. I think about the only difference in some models is an ETA over Rolex movement, somebody correct me if I'm off-base on this. I probably won't wear this much as it's small size looks a bit out of place on my wrist and it's rather snug so I need to "haunt" flea-bay to see if any aftermarket links are available for this style band.

I'm also anxious to see what the next level will be for this piece. It was fun working on it and doing new things and since JAG had so much grief with the postal service (trying to get parts to me to mod) I'm happy to have been a small cog in this large community wheel!

Well, this turned out nicely! I'm glad it's no longer a secret...

Ubi, maybe this might make a good cheap base to start with if somebody wanted to build up one of those that you mentioned. fxr, I got this from a dhgate seller (jason007) that I have found to be reasonably reliable considering the venue. It wasn't as cheap as Ubi's but was still under $60 shipped. There, I revealed the "source" - all flames will be ignored...

T, the case is the first thing that impressed me when opening the package. AND, they are actually thru-holes not just little "dimples" like some others. Are there any Rolex models that have a 34mm case w/lug holes? Thanks, Gorilla, there is very little to choose from!

Since completion of my Tudor Prince Date Chronograph I have become more interested in the Tudor models and also dismayed by the selection (or lack of) available. I decided to order a budget friendly Prince Date mainly to see what I would wind up with. I picked up the watch from the PO this morning and upon unpacking the watch I was pleasantly surprised. The overall fit and finish is good with the main detractions being the end-links need a bit more fitting and the clasp has the same incorrect spelling/words on the back side. Under magnification the small dial print looks to be a bit weak but "on the wrist" if looks fine. The case was a pleasant surprise as it has lug holes! I had figured that a cheap rep would basically be a DateJust with a different dial but at 34mm this case is 2mm smaller and has the aforementioned lug holes. There is also Tudor specific engraving on the case back. Although the band is my only disappointment (end-link fit and clasp spelling/wording) it is quite comfortable, although a bit snug. The dial is silver in color with what I suppose would be called a "linen" (?) texture. The crown is a Twin-Lock Tudor branded piece which screws in and out smoothly. Looking at the face the cyclops appears a bit low as well as a bit underpowered. I really hadn't intended to do a review of this since but I had stated to Lani (in a different thread) that I would review it and since there isn't a lot available in this brand I figured that folks would tolerate it. Enough rambling, here's what it looks like:

If anybody needs a custom "die" for their crystal press I have Delrin in stock to fabricate up to 2" diameter dies so I can pretty much make whatever diameter/depth you may need.

Thanks, T, yeah, I'll probably leave it pretty much the way it is I suppose. Aero, sounds like an interesting project. I recently sorta did something a little bit like that - how's that for a convoluted sentence! I used a "modern" style case, glued in a Clarks T19, drilled holes, beat it up, stuck on a riveted band, and used a red Sub dial. It looks something like this:

T, Yeah, this one is pretty much custom all the way and will never even come close to passing off as "real" but that wasn't the point. Perhaps I'll try to remove the coronet and "Rolex" from the dial and add something else? I just figured it'd be neat to have a no-date that was easy to read without my specs on! I also wanted to experiment with removing and installing the markers so I got a lot of my objectives accomplished with two, actually, left - machining a movement spacer/ring and "lightly aging" the insert... I want to add just a bit of fading to the insert so that it will look a few years old so as to lend legitimacy to the nicks, dents, gouges, etc. produced by being clamped in a vise, filed and drilled on, etc.! I'd rather the watch look well-worn and several years old then me look like a ham-handed careless twit! I have a "nekkid" date dial, you want it for a future project?

I removed the faux "bridge" (loose screw) and rotor screw "cover" on the "Rolex decorated movement" as a precautionary measure in the GMTIIC I won on the raffle and <knock, knock> so far it's ran without a hitch and keeps excellent time.

Red, yeah and it is really easy to read in the dark once charged up - thank you so much! The lume on the hands you sent is outstanding so I'm gonna have to try some of the Glow, Inc. lume I just got on the markers so they don't look so wimpy. Hike, yes it's from the same source, but I just used the base dial and then replaced all of the markers with markers from LV dials from same source.

After "constructing" a "Maxi" no-date dial the regular hands just looked, well, sorta lonesome! Redwatch came to my rescue (Thanks, S!) with a 2836 and matching set of "Maxi Hands", while Ubi chipped in a 2836 stem to complete this Rolex version of "Mulligan Stew"! Here's what we got so far: 1 - Cheap no-date Submariner 2 - Submariner LV dials to rob maxi markers from 1 - 2836-2 movement w/matching LV hands 1 - Non-SEL band For those that didn't watch the last episode I removed all of the markers from a no-date dial and replaced them with the markers from a couple LV dials. I had to use two donor dials since there are three rectangular markers on a no-date dial and a "standard" dial only has two. The larger markers fit into the same holes in the no-date dial and after pushing them in I put a dab of epoxy on the back to secure them. Since this was probably the last time I'll have this apart I also decided to reshape the CGs a bit. They were quite fat and I suppose I could have taken off a bit more but I didn't want to get carried away. The no-date dial was for an a21j so I amputated the feet and secured the dial to the movement with dial-dots. I then installed the hands and used the original plastic retainer as a temporary fix until I get motivated enough to machine a proper movement spacer. Finally, attaching the crown to the stem and installing it, greasing up the O-rings, and affixing the back to the case completed this journey. I've had a lot of fun torturing this little budget-beater sub, but unfortunately I think I've had too much fun with it! It has been apart so many times that I have the bezel retention spring so mangled/twisted up that when put back together the bezel will no longer turn and I've had the crystal in and out experimenting with different thicknesses so many times the gasket is about worn out! Oh well, like I said when I introduced myself last year - I bought a bunch of budget reps to practice on so if I tore something up so what! What I will probably do, somewhere down the road, is get another case, drill and modify it, then transplant the "guts" into it. Right now, though, this will look just about perfect as a well worn "tool watch" once I bleach the insert. OK, that's one more mod but I swear that's it! For those who have followed this metamorphosis from start to finish, and offered encouragement, material support, and constructive criticism along the way, I'd like to say "Thank you"! Here's a few pics of the final product, the last one is a reminder of how it started out. They'll have to be attachments as I'm having some ftp issues right now...

The more I wear this the harder it is to take it off!

I'm exploring that option just as soon as I learn Corel Draw...

You gotta quit doing this, red, I'm starting to lust for one!

One this far off will probably need the hours hand reset as well...

Yes, hands need to be removed and properly set...

I will do my part with a review of a "bargain basement" Tudor Prince Oysterdate that just today started it's journey from CN to my mailbox...

I found neither very comfortable or convenient so I use a Nikon SMZ-1 stereo microscope I used in a previous life - it's fantastic when getting inside movements...

T, some day we need to have a serious talk about crystal abuse...

AArrrrrgh!!!!! Spare the crystal!!!! :Jumpy: :Jumpy: :Jumpy:

This weekend I'm gonna toss one into a carb cleaner vat and see what happens...

Like TeeJay, I'm pretty easy - but am starting to expect a bit more thanks to all of you clowns! I expect a rep to keep reasonable time and be free of defects or errors that are not easily fixable Little accuracy details and cosmetic issues that I can fix for a few bucks, or for free, don't bug me since it offers the opportunity to make it better so as to meet my expectations.

Hmmm, looks kinda old. It's really a shame you can't afford a new watch, I'd be happy to step up and swap you for one that doesn't look quite so worn out! Seriously, nice job and tastefully done. These "gentle aging", not tossed out in the driveway and ran over for a couple days, examples are pushing me closer to making some of my "vintage" watches look a bit "longer in the tooth".