freddy333

Been wearing my 'Graph today, but switching over to my Golden Beauty for dinner

Click here (note that these will not fit 2mm dia springbars - check with the seller for details).

True & this very point has been discussed ad nauseum here over the years. The only thing I will add is that it is not the man-on-the-street or even the average Rolex owner or watchmaker that you need to neurose over, but those WIS types (like us) who, believe it or not, are becoming more commonplace than you might imagine. Late last year, I ran into a pair of early 20-somethings in a parking lot, who recognized my 6536-1 as a 'Bond Sub' & struck up a conversation on the spot (My watch being modeled by a friend) They began spouting off facts about early Sub history that I would never have imagined could possibly come from such young guys. While I would not call them WIS types, I was glad I was not wearing a rep, because they clearly knew enough to have called me out if my watch had not added up.

No argument there.

I am all for building-on-a-budget & can see that you put alot of effort into this. For the effort/skills required, I say well done. But, as much as I hate to be critical in these (budget) cases, I never understand the reasoning behind fitting a grungy-looking dial into an otherwise nearly pristine case. If you like that grungy look (I do not think I have ever seen a gen Daytona dial that looked like that), I think you need to mirror that grungy appearance with the case & bracelet. Actually, I would toss the bracelet (looks fake/cheap) & replace it with a solid link or cheap strap, either of which I think would make the watch look a bit more authentic. Or not............

Great work, Ronin. Were this just another standard ETA-powered watch, I would say it looks great & leave it at that. But, considering how clever this project is, it really is too bad the lettering on the dial is not better aligned & the datewheel does not have the correct flat-top 3. Still, I cannot wait to see the completed watch.

Wow. Just wow.

A slightly larger (1024x768) & less shadowy pic would help, but what I see looks very good so far. Remember, with vintage Rolex watches, God is in the details (which are currently difficult to see).

Making a watch takes a great deal of time, expertise, tools (with the know-how to use them) & patience. You can get an idea of what is involved here. I agree. It should be relatively easy & cheap, once you have the required raw steel & tooling setup. DW owns a factory, so he would know. Also, & more importantly, the only difference between the case that comes with a $50 Canal Street rep & 1 of Phong's or NDT's $1,500 cases are the dimensions. The quality of steel is the same, the construction, in most cases, is done in the same factories that produce the cheap stuff &, from my experience, there is no more QC involved in making the $1,500 case than there is for the $50 rep. The only difference that I can see are the dimensions & the story that accompanies the item from the seller.

Mine have 'outties'. See the link in my previous response for details. I may have this wrong (I often get these backwards), but I think the European spec bracelet rivets had 'outties' & the north american had 'innies' (or vice-versa).

I have only seen a Patek Moonphase on NDT (a stunner, but I want the 6202 Rolex). Phong sells a Rolex Moonphase, but, as usual, from what I have seen of his work, way over-priced & likely a nightmare internally. She does have a point. Pouring money into what is, ultimately, still a non-gen watch.......at least from Rolex's point of view, which is the ultimate arbiter when it comes to Rolex watches, is nutty. But, when you get bitten by the watch bug (as I was more than 25 years ago), you find yourself doing some nutty things. There was a period of time when I was still sane enough to draw the line at spending more than $1k on a non-gen watch. But, sometimes, when you get too close to the sun, you become blinded to the heat & end up doing nutty things. However, to be fair, I have to admit that, while I am an ardent collector, I am also an admitted poser. That is, when I spend the money to buy (or time to construct) a beautiful or rare Rolex watch, I hope to receive some accolades for doing so. Now, I realize it is a rare thing for someone to honest enough to (openly) admit to being narcissistic, but there you are. So as long as I am comfortable wearing a beautiful Rolex watch that I believe looks like the real thing, I am comfortable in the belief that others will see it that way, too. To illustrate this further, let me relay an incident that happened about a year ago - I was with a friend who was shopping for jewelry in a store that was also a Rolex AD. While my friend was trying on rings, I moseyed over to the Rolex cases & asked to see a couple of watches. I removed my double-red & laid it on the counter to put on 1 of the store's watches (I cannot recall which watch) & the manager, who was assisting me picked up my double-red & said 'Is it real?' 'Yes', I replied. Incredulous, the manager asked if I would mind if her watchmaker took a look at it? 'No', I said, 'knock yourself out, but don't drop it please', assuming he would just look at the dial through his loupe. So she takes the watch over to the watchmaker, who had a number of Rolex factory certificates above his bench (he was obviously an ex-Rolex employee). Before I could make my way over to him, he had popped-off my watch's caseback to inspect its innards, no doubt expecting to find an ETA or similarly non-Rolex movement ticking away inside. But, upon finding a nice, clear Rolex 1575 beating unceremoniously inside, he turned it over, jerked his head a few times (the way 1 does when taken by surprise) & got up from his seat to return the watch to me. His only comment was 'Wow, I have never actually seen 1 of those. Do you know what it's worth?' I said 'I have a pretty good idea.' He gave me a smile, (very gingerly) placed my watch back down on the padded counter & returned to his bench. The manager, who, I suspect, based on my non-designer garb & generally affable manner, had fully expected to be able to ridicule me for trying to pose as a real Rolex owner/buyer, then offered to show me some of her Pateks, which I had also voiced some interest in. The point of all this is that, while I will never be able to resell my double-red (or any of my other gen-powered frankens), I am confident that I can walk into any AD (or most gen watch clubs) & be on par with the Big Boys. And, to quote Baretta, that's the name of that tune. I have a friend who married a very attractive Brazilian woman & if your wife anything like she is, I would recommend sleeping (with 1 eye open) in a separate room (with a (loaded/cocked) pistol under your pillow). Oh, & make sure your life insurance is paid-up.

Was (an addict). With 1 exception (preferably in steel).............. .............my collection is pretty much complete. Noting the exception above, I have all of my grails - either gens or nearly gens (gen-powered frankens) - as well as a select handful of non-Rolex reps. Read this. As always, take seller claims with a big chunk of salt & have your watch pressure-tested by a watchmaker if you want to take it into water (& be able to use it afterward). All told, I think I spent a total of about $2,500 on my drsd (all gen except for dial, crystal & MBW mid-case)

Some sellers sell parts & some do not. Sometimes, a seller will make an exception for a regular customer even when they do not normally sell parts. I would suggest that you contact them with your specific request.

Some well thought-out points here.

Ending the work week wearing the bottom 1 (but with a nicer bezel)

Yes, my 1st working Hev came from a cheap rep. Read this. Pricing/details in the link I provided above (click it). No (reps in years & I do not think I am married to your wife's friend), just spending all my effort on gens & gen-powered frankens.

Sounds like you got lucky with a watchmaker who has the proper rivets. If you can, please see if the watchmaker can provide a source & part number for the rivets he uses. Oh & do not forget to post pics of the finished bracelet.

Looks great, but I think you need to flatten the upper curves of the lugs (the area above the springbar holes) to match the curvature of a Sub case. Although you have done a great job reducing the height of the case, the shape of the top of the lugs (when viewed from the side) still looks more like a Seadweller than a Sub Compare to your case Also, you may want to replace your bezel, which also looks more like a (thicker) Seadweller bezel.

Josh & Andrew are 2 (of many) sellers who have their own subforums in RWG's sellers' subforums (some sections of RWG require at least VIP member status to access - click the Upgrade your membership link atop every page for options).

Ideally, you grind off the rivets, add/remove the required links to make the bracelet fit & install new rivets (I have no idea who, if anyone, sells the correct rivets these days). The alternative is to use a flat screwdriver/blade to unfold 2 links, add/remove the required links to make the bracelet fit & refold the original links. The problem with the alternative option is that it is very difficult to unfold/fold steel links without leaving the face of the links deformed. Fortunately, the clasp has sufficient adjustment available to fit my 7" wrist.

Ditto. This began the same way (only the mid case is original MBW now)

Bill - Eurotimez was selling MBW cases before he went belly-up (or whatever it was that happened). I got a 5513 MBW from him for a friend a couple of years ago, which I believe cost around $200. No idea who, if anyone, may still be selling MBW cases? But I would be surprised if no one is. Read this. Although it will not (easily) accept the correct 2mm dia springbars), this rep rivet is nearly an exact copy of my gens & light years beyond those MBW bracelets (Click the pic for the link) I have 1 of these on my 6536/1 Sub Yes, but I have not purchased any reps in a couple of years, so it is not likely I will be getting any more. You might post a request in the Rolex or for sale forums as some of the more senior members may have 1 lying around.

Wearing 1 of my Newmans today

Wearing my 'Graph again today