justlounging

very nice...the subtle rehaut engraving now looks perfect..fantastic move in lightly sanding it..

congrats!

I keep coming back to see that all blue insert..

cool tip JJ..thanks..

great to hear that it works for you..

always a relief to be able to fix the keyless works..

show it to him and let him take a guess..

Just ordered a black WSO insert and on the lookout for the gen faded black insert..

will do a comparison when i have both in..

First one might be from a 16700..

Second pic is an early GMT Master II dial, possibly around E series..

The jubilee can be used for both but some GMT Master came fitted with the 580/93150 Oyster bracelets

Gmt master II comes in 3 variations;

Oyster 78360, 78790 and Jubilee 62510

Hahah oh what i do is buy the watch then 'claim' back from the missus..

@Tiyal: The parts that I got are basically all rep..not too sure of its origin..maybe jmb can fill in more on that..

I will let the missus upgrade this watch herself slowly (i.e her funds)..lol

first with a gen jubilee bracelet/endlinks and then gen white gold fluted bezel..next would then be the gen dial..

J: I might need to get another movement spacer from you in the near future..

Thanks once again for your help and parts!

Very nice J!! I am truly a fan!

This might have to replace my 14270 in the watchbox jus simply cos of the unique hands..

First of all, kudos on an amazing piece

Secondly, the photo with which you opened the thread has inspired me to plan a few minor cosmetic alterations to a budget GMT I was able to scrounge up the cash to order last week

Thirdly, October? Which day? Mine's the 10th

PS May I re-post the first photo in the thread?

Thanks and glad to hear the inspiration is being past on..

Yes October..24th mate..

I'm making the missus get me a TT for my pressie..

Go ahead with the re-posting..just remember to post up pics of your mod..

-

Duplicate..Please delete Mods..thanks!

There is a saying that goes like this:

"Behind every successful man, there stands a woman"

Here is a review that has not had its fair share of attention..and this build has been made specially for my missus..for her support, patience and understanding on my participationg in the 'Dark Side'..

I had always wanted to get my missus a gen Ladies DJ and so did she in the early 2000s, when prices were not so ridiculous..right now, current prices for an early 2000-2003 series Ladies DJ would set you back at least US$3,500, depending on the condition, complete with box & papers, serviced, etc..

Simply do a search on Google and anywhere on the World Wide Web with the words 'Ladies Datejust" and you will be hit with so many variations and combinations of this particular watch..

In Asia, I personally believed that this had been the 'must-have' watch for most women..Of course in this new age, we have seen many women moving away from the small 29mm watchsize to much larger watchsizes such as 34mm, 36mm and as large as 40mm.

Don't get me wrong, I think if a lady can pull of the look of having a chunky watch on her wrist, kudos to her! In fact I have seen a few women in my office wearing 40-44mm PAMs with no issues..

That being said, I still like how a smaller watch doesn't call out for attention..Like a woman in a corporate power suit but discreetly wearing small and sexy pieces of lingerie for her man or lover..

What originally got me started on reps (which i then quickly sworn off) was a His and Hers Datejust in 36mm and 29mm respectively..

I destroyed mine but this was her DJ from the streets of Bangkok circa 2005..

Clear casebook, crappy optics from the glass, rigid Jubilee, everything was simply: JUNK!

Before I proceed any further, here are some general specifications of the Ladies Datejust:

Disclaimer: The following information has been pulled off the Internet and I do not claim any ownership to it.

Here are some Gen Reference Pics:

Facts about the Rolex Caliber 2235 Movement:

Basic technical info for the 2235:

Diameter = 20mm

Casing diameter = 19.7mm

Height = 5.95mm (5.4mm for the non-date Cal. 2230)

Jewels = 31

Power Reserve = Approximately 50 hours

Introduced in 1999 when the 2135 was phased out.

Some of the models that are installed with this movement:

Ladies & Midsize Datejust and Yacht-Master

2235 - introduced in 1999

76188, 76198, 76243, 77080, 77014, 77483, 77518, 78158, 78159, 78238, 78240, 78248, 78266, 78268, 78273, 78274, 78278, 78279, 78286, 78288, 79068, 79078, 79079, 79089, 79126, 79136, 79138, 79158, 79159, 79160, 79163, 79166, 79173, 79174, 79178, 79179, 79190, 79238, 79240, 79288, 80298, 80299, 80318, 80319, 80328, 80329, 80359, 81209, 81339, 168622, 168623, 168628, 169622, 169623, 169628, 178238, 178288, 178158, 178279, 178239, 178159, 178243, 178246, 178296, 178286, 178245, 178274, 178275, 179136, 179138, 179158, 179175, 179178, 179179, 179239, 179160, 179165, 179166, 179168, 179173, 179298, 179368, 17945

A closer look at the movement:

The complete movement with both the automatic module and rotor (oscillating weight) attached.

Module still in place, but with the rotor removed

A clearer view of the movement, now that the automatic module has been removed. Note that, unlike the ETA 2892, the automatic module fits onto the movement allowing for larger diameter wheels of the driving train, and more freedom concerning their layout.

The disadvantage of this approach is seen in the fact that the ETA 2892 is only 3.6mm thick versus the Rolex 2235 which is almost 2.5mm thicker!

Like its larger sibling, the Cal. 3135, the balance wheel has a bridge supporting it with provision for quick and easy adjustment of the end-shake.

The underneath of the automatic module. One can clearly see how the reversing wheels have been modified slightly from those of the older Cal. 2135. I'm no mechanical engineer, but my feeling is that the slightly larger steel teeth allow for a more positive locking action when they are turned in reverse.

The dial side with both the calendar module and date indicator in place

The calendar module is still in place, but the date indicator has been removed.

The dial side sans calendar module

Back to the build, I would like to extend an extremely big THANK YOU goes to member jmb for his help. Without him, this build would not ever happen. :applause:

He had posted earlier a thread about an upgrade of the Ladies DJ for his missus and I quickly PM-ed him if he was still needing the rep parts..Luckily for me, he was most willing to sell me an almost complete watch..I only had to assemble it or find someone to do it for me.

These are the rep parts that I received:

Black Baton Markers Dial with Matching Hands

Midcase with Flute Bezel

Sapphire Crystal with Cyclops

Caseback with O-rings

Crown

Jubilee with Clasp and Endlinks

ETA 2671

DWO

Having not worked or seen an ETA 2671 before, I approached Spinmaster to assist me with assembling it. Doing a full service to the movement to ensure a few more years of worry-free usage.

And now that I got it back, It will be gift-wrapped for her birthday towards the end of August.

Before that happen may I present to you the Ladies DateJust 69174..

Dial and Hands

Fluted Bezel, Sapphire Crystal & Cyclops, Crown

Jubilee Bracelet, Endlinks and Clasp

Caseback

A quick comparison between what is and what was:

The differences are as obvious as day and night..

And finally a quick pic on the missus' wrist..had to pry it off her..

Hope you guys enjoy this as much as I have enjoyed putting it together..and hopefully thru this, there will be more love for the Ladies DJ and more love shown to the women supporting us men in this hobby..

Some additional pics for anyone who has a WSO bezel insert..this is a comparison with gen bezel insert..

Gen insert is installed on the bezel, WSO Bezel is always in the foreground

As you can see, there are very subtle differences, mainly in the curvature of the '2', '6', '8' and '0'..'4' looks really close, thickness of the font is slightly wider on the rep..Also the dot separating the numbers is slightly larger on the rep as compared to the gen..

Some other pics:

Separate question:

Which looks better?

Gee that's not fun at all..

you guessed right E

any thing else i can do to improve that? perhaps a sand down and polish with rouge?

Nice! i'm liking the strap combos as well..

updated my snowflake with an oyster bracelet and a mod on the crown..what do you guys think?

Pardon the dust and fingerprints..

ohhhhhh...rail dial..that's nice...

got a pic of it?

Will this bezel fit the 1655 cartel case we have been using to build the 1675? Can we make a 16710 with the lug holes using that case and this bezel?

That's a very good question..i would like to know as well..

Not too familiar with Daytonas but arent there any modern Daytonas with secs@9 that use the same movement as the Zenith?

Correct me if I'm wrong..

I am also looking out for a good enough Daytona..else it'll be gen for me..

I hope this is the angle you're looking for. Sorry they're not so great from my phone. AFAIK, there is no difference with the case from a 1675 to a 16750.

That is perfect mate..thank you very much!

very nice..now that's one gilt watch that I definitely dont mind having..pardon my noobness but could you share the specs?

Thanks!

is yours a Mk1 or MK2?

Very nice!

Would it be possible to ask for a picture of the CG, taken from the side? Thanks!