freddy333

No guarantees, but try here. You might also check with a couple of local, professional watchmakers to see if your case threads can be repaired (often, they can). Or try this guy, who is well-known & specializes in vintage Rolex repairs.

Back in the 1960s, Speidel sold a stretchable metal bracelet called Twist-O-Flex, which was very popular, especially with divers, which allowed them to easily slip their watch over their wet-suited wrist To compete, many companies (Rolex included) produced stretchable versions of their metal bracelets. Unfortunately, while a nice convenience, stretchable metal links tend to pinch skin & pull (arm) hair, making them some of the least comfortable bracelets ever made, which is why many companies (Rolex included) continued to sell non-stretchable versions of their metal bracelets long after production of the stretchable versions ceased.

I feel for you . Maybe these will brighten your day

It must suck being you, stuck in that hellhole with nothing but beach & palm trees.

How about some washers around each of the dial feet? Since there is an endless selection of washer sizes/thicknesses, you should be able to select a pair that provide the exact spacing you require &, unlike gaskets, they will maintain the spacing without compressing when you put everything together.

Very difficult to ID a bezel. This is definitely a case where you have to buy the seller before you buy the watch (or, in this case, bezel). If the seller has a long, established track record in vintage Rolex parts/watches, then it is probably a safe buy. Otherwise, without something along the lines of an original sales slip from Rolex SA or an AD (that you know, so you can confirm the paperwork's authenticity), I would assume it is aftermarket, regardless of the seller's hyperbole.

Thanks All. I do not think Rolex has ever had those kinds of ads. At least, not that I have seen. But, then, as Andy Warhol proved with a Campbell's soup can, images of an icon are a powerful marketing device. With a Newman Daytona, its component parts are those tools.

Not in the old MBW cases anyway. There are a couple of threads detailing the work I did on mine that you might Search out. I understand the newer MBWs differ slightly, but I have never compared them, so I cannot verify that.

Great pics, ASCI.

Hard to tell with these pics. Shoot a pic outside in the sun over something dark & the area in the cyclops, if it is gen, will look like a hole in the lens (ie, clear, with almost no glare/reflection). Rolex ARs both sides of the cyclops, which is lacking on virtually every aftermarket xtal I have come across (though many aftermarkets have the laser etching @ 6, so this is not a reliable indicator).

At some point, you may have trouble winding or setting time, depending on where the clutch gets stuck.

Be aware that the inner rings in the end links through which the springbars slide also hold the end links to the 1st links in the bracelet. Widening/stretching those rings will also tighten the hinge between the end & 1st links, which may leave your bracelet both weakened & ill-fitting.

Your stem is (about 1-1.5mm) too short.

Some of those threads contain links to earlier posts that may have what you need. But if you search for '6542' & my handle, you should find them all. There are a handful of Phase 2-related threads, so you may need to read the beginnings of each to find what you need.

Ditto.

Dials containing the SWISS - T < 25 sig do indicate lume content, but I do not believe there is a direct correlation between a SWISS sig & lume content. Nearly all Swiss-made watches prior to 1970 carried the 'SWISS' sig, regardless of whether there was lume (regardless of content) or not. Challenge? More like a life-long quest, & you best have extremely deep pockets if/when you do find 1. After an extensive search, ultimately, I had to modify a standard 1036 & it took me more than 2 years to locate all the required parts (about a dozen - you might search out my Phase II 6542 threads for details) (2846-powered Phase 1 at right) Fortunately, I received the last part just days before Rolex tightened their grip on parts account holders. In the words of a long-time watchmaker friend - 'Now I need to report every month every watch I handle .they then compare my material order to the watches'. So be prepared for an even longer & more difficult struggle than I experienced.

That packaging is definitely not genuine. So unless a known seller with a Rolex parts account has repackaged a used part (which is against Rolex's policy & grounds for losing your Rolex account), I would say it is worth $15-$30 (the higher end for genuine Swiss-made only), which is the going rate for aftermarket Rolex crystals.

I can certainly appreciate the enjoyment of doing it yourself, but with build costs being so close to the price of a gen, I would have gone with the gen or built a rarer model. That said, I think you did a fantastic job on this. The final result speaks for itself. I think it is also worth noting that while most members of gen forums look down on us, the amount of skill & craftsmenship here (not just the projects, but, also, the photography) is lacking over there.

It can work. This is all gen (1520-powered) except for the xtal (Clarks) & MBW 5513 mid-case This is all gen (1575-powered) except for the xtal (Clarks), dial (modded, 1-of-a-kind found on ebay a few years ago) & MBW 1665 mid-case

Nice & take JoeyB's advice

I agree with some of the comments above - that is alot of money to spend on a franken when a gen is not much more. I have put 157x movements into MBW cases (1665 & 5513) &, while it can be done (& made to look quite gen), it is ALOT of work (grinding, sanding & polishing). Gen-powered frankens only make (financial) sense when the cost of the gen is prohibitive or the build cost is no more than about $1k (a bit more than a good rep).

Some low-end Comex Sub reps have them (that is what my original He valve mod was based on) Today, only the mid-case is original to that El-Cheapo rep I believe that original Comex rep is still available. Search the dealer listings.