jmb

Thought this was interesting being it's supposed to be dedicated to Tudor now that they are re-entering the US market... http://tudorwatch.hodinkee.com/

Heh, I thought the crown on the gen was too chunky! Shows how much I know 'bout these modern thangs...

I really don't follow the "late model" watches that much and with such small pics it's hard to tell any detail but the "gut-o-meter" tells me gen on the left...

To be honest after you find your dial and movement you might be just as good selling this one (probably for what you paid) and getting a case kit since you expressed the desire for a bracelet. You can PM me and I can go over the options with you...

Upgradable is the name of the game on this one. My first "upgrade" would be a 2824 movement, then I would shop around for a dial. When a dial and movement was in-hand then do a swap-out - that way you could wear the watch while shopping around and spending according to your budget...

Going, going, gone! Thanks RWG!

With the recent resurgence of interest in vintage Explorers I kinda got the itch to build another one. Since I got into this hobby my quest has always been "best bang for the buck" and have searched out cases, hands, etc, that look decent and are wallet friendly. I've tried to prove that cheap doesn't always mean crap. I have had pretty good luck with the DJ cases that I mod up to make vintage Explorers with and now that I found a source for reasonably priced vintage style Explorer Dials I decided to see just how inexpensive I could get with a reasonable looking Explorer build. The dials aren't perfect ("OYSTER PERPETUAL" a bit large and indicies are a kinda chunky) but on the wrist they aren't that bad PLUS the chunky markers have some great lume that glows all night! I like that since I don't see as good as I used to... I took one of my 2824 case-kits and married it with one of my gilt dials and a DG2813 movement and I think the results are not half bad! I took the matte gilt dial and sprayed on a couple coats of clear, wet-sanded with 1500 grit, then hit it with some automotive clear-coat polishing compound. After this treatment I took a piece of wadded up tissue paper and swirled it around on the dial to put some fine scratches in it to tone things down as I was going for an "aged" look. I then mounted the dial to the 2813 with a medium dial spacer which lined the stem up with the case tube pretty well. I then popped on a set of gilt hands that I hit lightly with the 1500. I am not really a big fan of straps but decided that a strap was the cheapest way to go, and I had this new strap from a movement donor, so on it went! I'm wearing it right now and am impressed with how light it makes the watch, I really can't tell I'm wearing it! Build List: 2824 DJ case with drilled lugs Clark T22 Crystal Custom bezel DG 2813 movement Gilt hand set for a21j "Budget" Gilt Explorer dial gloss clear-coated Black leather/nylon strap Case clamps and screws Here's a few pics, not really sure why the hands turned out silver looking and the dial print silverish white (I used natural lighting) but they are gold-toned in real life! Thanks for looking and not laughing TOO loud...

Feelin' kinda "small" today...

I'll be putting a post in the "part for sale" section later today. I don't want to get into details here so as to not be chastised for trying to sell something in the Rollie section! But, to be brief I (currently) could probably put together a kit where you would just need to supply movement and whatever bracelet/strap you want to use...

This is the case I use and the dial on this one is an old MBW... This is another using a "hand-me-down" LHOOQ dial:

Hmmm, looks just like the ones I made that nobody wanted 'cause they would have to put some labor into finishing them! Maybe I ought to make some more and list them for half-price?

The parts houses (borel, startime, etc.) have good quality ones...

Yeah, almost 2 years! It used to be easy to remember where my bezels went but now...

Dang, I thought you'd built one! Tease...

Still...

Do it, do it, do it...

Stayin' small and conservative...

M, it's 'bout time for you to build another explorer, ain't it? The hands I get are rather "convex" as well and are about the perfect length for a 28mm dial.

Oh, yeah!!

Almost makes me feel like scrounging another movement...

Bargain-basement Explorer - it's starting to grow on me...

Ever watch any of them "Ancient Aliens" shows? Kinda make you wonder...

"Authorized" replicas... Isn't that something like genuine simulated whatever?

All of the rep dials I get from this guy have both sets...