freddy333

Another fairly reliable tell-tale sign of a fake is to gently shake the watch & listen for the sound of the rotor spinning. Rolex rotors, especially when new, emit little or no sound even with your ear next to the case. A spinning rotor in an ETA & most Asian-made movements used in Rolex reps can usually be heard an arm's length (or more) away. And many non-Rolex rotors will continue to spin (& make noise) for many cycles even after the case has become stationary (a frequent complaint from their owners). You can also just take the watch to your local AD & compare the fit & finish of your watch to a new gen taken from their showroom case. This is a test that no rep in my experience has ever passed.

This is the 1st I have heard about the move, but congratulations on the new house. That is 1 of the few things that are better to get than a new watch (I think).

Thanks for the clarification.

R - Where did you locate the thin profile case itself? Was it part of a kit, like the 16520? The reason I ask is because I located a low profile bezel a few months ago, but I cannot remove the bezel on my Daytonas. In fact, a number of people have now tried to remove the bezels from either of my 2 thin profile cases (my original 4-year old 116520 rep & the rep I got a couple of months ago from idolreplicas), but neither 1 will budge. Razor blades, paint scrapers, case openers, bezel removers, etc. We tried WD40, we tried heating/cooling, we tried repeated cycles in an ultrasonic, but the damned things will not come off! Unlike the bezels on the thick Daytona rep cases (which CAN be removed with a razor blade), the bezels on my thin profile Daytona rep cases must either epoxied onto the case or they were not made to be removed. I would love to pop a low profile bezel onto my main 116520, but unless I can find another thin profile case with an easily removable (or already removed) bezel, I appear to be stuck.

Looks good so far, R. I have a couple of questions -- 1. Is the case a kit or did you disassemble a rep? If the latter, why not use the original case clamps & how did you remove the bezel? I have been completely unable to pry my bezel off using any of the usual procedures. 2. Is the bezel rep or gen? Hard to tell if it is the same (slightly too tall) profile bezel I have on my 116520 or if it is flatter (gen)? Actually, a 3rd question -- Bracelet or strap for this 1?

Wow, Zig, it hurts me to look at your picture, so I can only imagine how it felt from your end. Take it easy, avoid school zones & get well soon!!!!!!!!

I have had my head buried in some other projects, but I am glad to hear all the correct crystals arrived & on schedule. I should have had you handle all my previous purchases from Ali.

Kudos, Lani.

Interesting. He says the 'Watch is also appropriatly marked in-between the lugs as well', so the polished appearance between the lugs may have been a photoshop effort to hide the engraving. I would also like to see a clear view of the crown, but my guess is that this will end up going for considerably more than a 'bargain' price (assuming it does not close (or get pulled) early).

Would it really matter when it comes to such a classic?

I think we all just got trumped.

If this process will maintain polished steel (like the middle links of a GMTII or similar) in a pristine state, that would be a good thing.

This may be a silly question, but unless you plan to use your watch as a hammer, what is the benefit/purpose here?

Not sure what it is, but I love this picture. Maybe it is the reflections coming off the CGs & cyclops, but very well done.

Excellent work.

If you have a hand drill, slide the stem into the drill's chuck (with the crown sticking out) & clamp the jaws down around the wide, round base of the stem (make it tight, but not crushing-tight) Once the stem is firmly held in the drill's jaws, you should be able to twist off the crown by hand. If not, try soaking it in WD40 for an hour or so & try again. If that does not work, try heating the crown as described previously. If you plan to do this again, a pin vice will make the job alot easier (click the pic)

No problem this time for me --- traceroute statistics for rwg.cc 14 packets transmitted, 13 received round-trip time (ms) min 0, avg 42, max 125

UK ADs do sell dials & other parts to existing customers, but not US ADs. I am not sure about other EU ADs.

Hike - Did you get it out yet (sorry, I have been preoccupied with a few projects over the past few days). Ziggy is right, but before you use brute force, press the stem back in & then out to the time-setting position. Wind the hands through a complete 24-hour cycle & then press the stem back home & out to the time-setting position again. Then see if you can press button the release in easier. I have seen a couple of clutch levers that got stuck in the wrong position & blocked the release from pivoting properly to allow the stem to release.

Prompt? I have been waiting almost a week just to get paypal payment info so I could give him money.

I contacted NDT, but they were less than cooperative. I had asked MY if he could source a proper case, but he did not seem willing to go beyond his already kind offer to custom design a bezel for 'my' case. More detail in my PM.

I am looking for size & dimensional information for the 6542 GMT Master case, bezel & (bakelite/plastic) insert. Please take a look at the following 2 pictures & provide any of the missing dimensions (or corrections to those listed) I PM'd Saabin (again) yesterday, but have not yet received a response. Please respond ONLY if you have 100% accurate information

Congrads. A real beauty. What is the source? How about more pictures, especially a crown side view?

Yes