freddy333

Thanks Flex. Who says crime does not pay?

You can say that again

While I do enjoy 'the hunt', more & more I am finding that I enjoy ogling these rare beauties (in their completed form) even more I forgot to mention in my original post about the 1030 problems that around the time I began receiving my 1st set of calendar & gmt components for the 1030 conversion, I was offered a reasonable deal on a 1035 (same movement, but with all of the calendar components already installed). As the other movement had an all-black date wheel, I opted, instead, to continue the search for the remaining 1036gmt parts, thinking the money would be better spent on new or NOS parts & a 'Roulette' date wheel. In addition, I thought my total parts costs would ultimately total (along with the 1030 movement) less than the cost of the other movement. In hindsight, that was probably a bad decision since the cost to machine my base plate will likely put my total cost a good deal beyond what the other movement would have cost me. And I would already have all but 1 of the required parts to convert a 1035 over to 1036gmt form. But such is life.

Excellent read (as usual), By-Tor. At some point, I will definitely get the white dialed version, preferably with chs (I know it is difficult to spot, but since I can I have to assume others can too). In addition to replacing the crown/tube with gens, I would also swap the lens out for either a gen or Clarks. That visible etching is another 1 of those a-bit-too-obvious blemishes that spoil an otherwise wonderful out-of-the-box rep for me. Finally, is it me or is the GMT hand installed at an upward angle in this pic (if so, I suspect it was done to provide the hand with sufficient clearance to pass over the hour index markers without coming into contact with them)

It seems that my hunch was correct. I just received this response from 1 of the sellers Of course, it is impossible (at this point) to know if this seller was just snagged in 1 of Rolex's random tactical sweeps or whether it is the tip of a much wider strategic plan. But it certainly merits continued scrutiny.

True. I am not sure about that?

It is for this reason that I really wish the powers that be would consider making RWG a <META name="ROBOTS" content="NOINDEX, NOFOLLOW"> site. While the horse has already left the stable on existing forum postings, at least we could limit the visibility of future postings. And no matter what anyone has told you to the contrary, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER include real names or member locations in public posts. Although this information can be gotten via court order, there is no reason to make it publicly available without 1. Remember, whatever you post on the web may remain there (somewhere) forever & can be used against you.

Sometime within the past few hours, 2 of the better ebay sellers that I have done business with (each having perfect 100% seller scores) have had their ebay accounts (& stores) removed. All I get out of ebay is that the seller's accounts were closed by ebay or the seller closed it himself (the latter option is not likely). Since both sellers specialized in Rolex, I have a feeling that legal hammers (on behalf of the gen companies) are now being brought down upon anyone who cuts into the gens' dwindling sales & vanishing profit margins. I cannot help but think that the predictions voiced by a few here (including myself) over the past year suggesting that once the (economic) going gets tough, the gens' legal eagles will get going (against gray marketers & others who are cutting into sales of gen watches (yes, RWG, increasingly, we are becoming 1 of those others)). I have a feeling that this may be the sad case at ebay & the black cloud will only expand further. I hope I am wrong, but

It just occurred to me, as I posted the last pic, that even if my collection were limited to just those 2 watches, I do not think I could ever have a truly bad week with either 1 of them in my possession. Sometimes, I think we (I) tend to lose perspective & forget how fortunate we are to have even 1 of the reps or frankens that routinely grace the pages of RWG these days.

Exactly. Sometimes a dead-end leads to an unexpected & even more beautiful road than the 1 you started out on. The watch on the left rose up out of the ashes of another failed project

Thanks Shundi. The only real difficult part is that I have been amazingly successful (even surprising myself) in tracking down most of the parts I needed for the 1036-to-1036gmt conversion, & I almost have them all. So to come so close only to find out that I may end up having to get another movement & start all over, not to mention not needing parts that are still on their way to me, is just more depressing than usual.

Thanks & I appreciate the words of encouragement. But, in the end, these projects always seem to work themselves out. I just look at franken-building like gambling - I never bet with more than I can afford to lose. That way, the inevitable 'bad throws' are just set-backs & not life-changers. I just received word about the crowns - the correct pair are on their way (with an apology from the seller) & I get to keep the wrong pair in exchange for a good seller rating. The seller even offered me a good deal on a 700 (not dots) crown. So, 1 problem solved & I even get a couple of bonuses out of it. I am weighing options for the 1030. I contacted someone who makes watch parts in the hopes that he might be able to machine the missing screw hole & surface indents into my plate for a reasonable fee. If that option does not prove workable, I will either sell/trade the 1030 for another with the proper plate or just keep it for another project that I am thinking about. And I am waiting to hear back from Natalie to see if I can work out a deal for a middle 6542 case (at a good discount) & use the gen 6542 caseback for that. You just have to be creative & think outside the lines.

On Monday, I received what was supposed to be a pair of mint 702 Triplocks. They were 703s & not mint. Fortunately, the seller had good, clear pics of the crowns he was selling & these ain't them. So, once I actually hear back from him, assuming he just sent the wrong pair (& did not pull a bait & switch scheme on me), I may be able to get this problem sorted out. If not, another pair of relatively expensive parts may end up in the parts box. Yesterday, after receiving the 3rd or 4th set of parts that I have been collecting (at great cost in time & money) for my 1030-to-1036-gmt conversion (Come Fly With Me), it suddenly became clear that I can't get there from here. Beating 1030 1 of the screws that screws into the main plate to attach part of the calendar (date change) mechanism does not have a screw hole to screw into. So, apparently, contrary to what I thought, other movements that are based on the 1030 (1035, 1036, 1066, etc) must use a different or modified 1030 base plate, with additional screw holes & other changes. So a rare & costly gen movement may end up in the parts box, awaiting the next opportunity (though I may just have enough parts to build a gen-powered, 6536 franken ). Then, today, I finally received my gen 6542 caseback, which looks & screws into the Silix case perfectly (I had been worried that the case/caseback threads might not mesh or fit), but the caseback does not cover enough of the gasket cut-out in the back of the case to look right. So another expensive part goes into the parts box & awaits the next opportunity. So it has not been a great week.

CGuy - Good deal. I hope you enjoy yours as much as I enjoy mine. Note that I fitted a gen crown/tube & pushers on mine (kept the original DW crystal though).

We are indeed members of a very exclusive club.

Yes

It is indeed a DW silver dial (the 6263 was only ever offered by Rolex with silver or black dials) in a standard DW case with a lower profile V72 caseback that I added after removing the auto-wind components from the movement (the cases for the V72 & A7750 DWs are exactly the same - only the caseback & inside dimensions differ)

Try this (in the Wiki section) & read TZ's FAQ.

For a beginner with serious intentions (or more than 1 watch to work on), I would start with the Timezone School Level 1 tool kit, but ask them to leave out the movement (as long as you do not need a movement to practice with). Unless you already know which tools you need (& how can a beginner without any tools possibly know that), this kit contains a good, basic set of quality tools that you can build from.

The key to matching a winder to a movement is not the length of time it turns, but the total number of turns for a 24 hour period. Either your watch requires service or the winder is not providing a sufficient number of turns/day for that movement. You can get a good indication of which it is by manually winding the watch 40 turns (slowly) & then wearing the watch for a couple of days. Assuming you are reasonably active during this time, if the watch stops, then it needs service. If it continues to run, then the winder is not providing sufficient turns/day (the guides that accompany some winders are NOT always correct).

No, but a search through the yellow pages for 'Watch & clock repair' will provide a list of local watchmakers that you can phone. Avoid chain stores & authorized dealers.

Tudor again

Possibility 1 - The movement in the GMT may need more turns/day than the Sub. Did you manually wind it 40 turns before putting it on the winder? If not, do so. Possibility 2 - The GMT may need service.

Expanding on Alligoat's recommendation, my 1st choice would be an all-steel, silver dialed Datejust with fluted bezel & plain bar markers - the classic Rolex Or a basic black-dialed Explorer A plain-Jane Rolex gets the point across without screaming it (which makes it less likely that your rep will be ID'd).