polexpete

Fantastic work Avitt, its a project i wanna get off the ground someday. You made me start looking for bits... P.

Nice idea but you might want to try a group buy from the source at http://www.vintagewatchesmq.com/home.html He doesn't list prices but i am sure it will work out cheaper as i'm sure this is where ndt gets his dials from. Also a word of warning. These dials do not fit straight into a MBW case they need to lose around 0.2mm in diameter and taking a file to a USD400 dial is not for the faint hearted... P.

Hey Oliver, damn right, i'll let you know when my birthday is. Cheers mate....

Hey Guys, again, many thanks yer great comments glad you like it... I'm gonna answer yer qustions but first Nanuq, u wanna trade that baby? but i guess you're gonna want 30k on top huh? damn!!! Had a lot of fun working on this but when you sourced a great dial its a pisser when it doesn't fit yer case. I just learned from a highly respected member that as well as the 5513 MBW stamp on the "1680" case it also has 5513 dimesions which means the 1680 dial is around 0.2mm larger and so has to be trimmed. I wish MBW had made the case to 1680 spec then all dials would fit without having to get a file to an expensive and sometimes original 1680 dial. The dial is certainly from same Vietnam source, expensive but not that expensive.... The datewheel isn't silver but what i did do was make it a little more yellow like aged paper. Bright white datewheels stand out like sore thumbs on a vintagised watch. You can do this by handling it with yer grubby hands or like i did zap it under the grill like cheese on toast. Works a treat! done it with dials too but you gotta be careful, a few seconds is enough. As for the bracelet its a hollowlink aftermarket which i've had a while and has fallen apart on its own really. I scotchbrite the shiny endplates getting right to the edges of the rivets. I brought it on the Bay and wish i'd got some more at the time... Thanks guys P.

Thanks guys for yer positive comments, much appreciated. The crown and tube came from a watch maker in Hong Kong who had replaced these with a new set with the gasket. Apparently the watch had leaked so he replaced the whole lot. You don't see too many sets around although i do have another crown but the tubes are so hard to find coz i think they probably get thrown away after being replaced. Here's a pic you can see the inside is much narrower in the threads than the replacements. Cheers P.

Thanks for yer comments. The 2nd version of 200m dial had closed 6's. He's a pic for yer reference...

Here's a picture of a gen i used for reference... P.

Hey By-Tor, thanks. Dial came from Vietnam had a friend pick it up for me. Its the most accurate rep red dial i've seen. As you know most nearly all are real bad. P.

Been working on this "chocolate" version of the Red Sub for a long time and finally got the right bits to put it all together. A bit of history for those not familiar is that it seems that all Rolex black dials have a percentage of brown pigment but certain dials (the 200m/660ft) apparently had (maybe by error) a higher percentage of brown pigment in the black varnish and when exposed to natural Ultra Violet light like sunlight, the dial turns brown. This process can take between 35 to 50 years so had to age this rep somewhat to give it a gen feel. I'll let the pictures do the talking feel free to comment... P. Btw i managed to get an original tube without the gasket, with the original crown. Most of these have been replaced when watches were serviced. Not gonna go swimming with this one..

Thanks Stephane. Oliver, i'll keep it public as all knowledge is good... Here's the caseback but it needs some more work to get it looking as good as Stephane's Great White. Freddy started a useful thread on how to vintage casesbacks not so long ago. As for the dial its a gen Singer base refinished. I got of off this guy... http://stores.ebay.co.uk/NDTradingCorp a while ago but it seems his products like a lot of gen and refinished Rolex bits, have gone through the roof in price... Also included a pic of the HE valve and gen T39 superdome. Cheers P.

quote name='Stephane' date='Jul 15 2007, 07:55 PM' post='282104'] Genuine maybe ???

Nice piece Stephane but you gotta get a correct crown to really finish it off... And nice caseback work but its correct for DRSD not Great White. Don't you just hate that... sorry but that's what we're here for huh? P.

Nanuq, the story behind the watch is as amazing as the watch itself. Thanks for sharing... P.

Hey Freddy, Yeah looking at Micheal's site he has no gen listed so my mistake sorry they probably are aftermarket but they are very accurate. I vintaged the lume myself to match my dial but i think he may do a vintage version. If you need ask him. I have a 2836-2 movement and the hands fit no problem. As for the back of yer watch and indeed your watch overall i think the drsd is one of the best looking watches ever and even with the small flaws on my dial, back etc its still a great looking watch and i think thats what counts. Afterall we're not trying to fool anybody here. P.

Yup i agree they're a bargain. Many thanks for yer comments glad you like them. The 5514 is an awesome model look forward to seeing the pics.. P.

Hi Jetson, posting a pic of my two sd's. The Comex has (i changed them now) the same hands as you mention where as the drsd has the Classicwatchparts variety. I reckon the later are more accurate but twice the price. P.

Hi Freddy, I use genuine Tudor sub hands for their 2824 movement from Micheal at http://www.classicwatchparts.com I can't see any on his website at the moment but if you email him at michael_ck_young@hotmail.com he can probably help you out. Can you post some pics of the front of yer drsd, its looks great from behind... P.

Thank you that's what i wanted to see. Again nice work Avitt you should be very pleased.... P.

Huh! 30 years wear and here's one you posted yourself. A matt finish is not vintage sorry.....

Avitt, your work is fantastic but that caseback would look so more authentic with a polish. get yerself some rouge and a polisher and give it some. think chrome ok... P.

Spot on. And your dial is way more likely to be a giveaway before your caseback is ever seen. Enjoy! I'm gonna watch the footy...

Yeah sorry technical gliches... over to you man......

Forget it, that baby needs some serious polishing to get it anywhere near.... P.

No chance, you gotta polish that baby then maybe... P.

quote name='freddy333' date='May 21 2007, 11:32 PM' post='250765'] fx -- That is the same problem I had with the diamond Dremel engraving bits I used on the other caseback. Between the 'wobbly' nature of the rotating Dremel shaft and the width of the tip of the bits, I completely bullocks up the caseback. Fortunately, it was scrap. But the experience tells me the standard Dremel is not the correct tool for this type of re-engraving work. What are people using to do this?