mezzanine

I wish that it was possible to do a 1675 rep with genuine parts. They're relatively available in the market and would be a cool new addition for MBK to try to undertake. I guess Phong might have something that would work. A really nice 5513 gilt dial could be in the cards for me at some point. Any excuse to get a watch into my collection that uses a superdome. I don't imagine gen gilt dials are going for very cheap, though. I think you're right about re-dials. I like my SD dial, it's one of the better redials I've seen as an amateur, but I still think it has some glaring weaknesses. When I think back to those MBW dials, I shudder.

Damn! Let me know.... I'm tempted to do a Red 1680 project with a good re-dial. Those genuine dials are ridiculously expensive.

Incredible Trev- tremendous score on that one. I don't know what it is about the folded bracelets, but I love 'em. Also, they haven't been able to rep the folded bracelets very well, otherwise I would probably have just used a rep option for a bracelet. Incredible to see a 7836 in NOS condition!

One of the issues I've noticed with having a genuine dial installed is that there is a little bit of rust that is creeping up from the part that was shaved. Most of the legit white dials for 1680's are going to be in the $500 and above range. Probably within a year I imagine they'll be hard to find under $1000 in good condition and not re-dialed.

I keep trying to make my current projects take as long as possible to get completed, to try to avoid having my interest find another project. There is a lot of challenge, thought, and time that goes into the search and execution. A lot of decision making about the relative value and benefit of different genuine part options. Sometimes it can actually get frustrating. But without these qualities I don't think it would be as ultimately fufilling.

I agree with most of these suggestions. There are a ton of great things about the MBK vintage rollies. The most major is the ability to take genuine parts. If you don't plan on actually modding the watch with genuine rolex parts, then I don't think it's a great value at a nearly $400 for the unmodded rep. But if you are committed to modding it, then you can get as close as you want to the real thing as your budget, time, and interest will allow. It's constantly able to accept gen parts in the future, as well, so you can gradually add parts over time- which is stating the obvious, but while the average rep drops in value at a higher rate over time, genuine rolex parts increase in value at a very solid rate. They're such a cool little niche within our hobby. When you consider the popularity of Rolex and in particular the sub, I don't have a lot of interest in the modern Rolex reps or gens because they're so interchangably associated and difficult to distinguish. Not as true for the vintage rollies. What I like about them is that even as reps they're expensive enough when modded and the parts are difficult enough to source as to make it unlikely that even many rep owners are likely to own one proportionate the % of rep buyers, even. I will never sell either of those watches! And neither will you, once you've got a taste.

I suggest looking for a 78360 bracelet w/o endlinks. I picked one up for $200, which would finish the bracelet for probably not a lot less than you paid for the endlinks, unless you were able to get lucky. To clarify on the bargain bracelet- not the one I have pictured in another thread, the one I'm referring to is a beater that I haven't received that's going to need some work.

Some more pics of the two current bracelets. I'm contemplating options at this point. Ideally, I'd trade the SEL bracelet for a sub/SD bracelet, but it is killing me to see them both there and not just put them on each of the two vintage watches that need one. Also, just to clarify, I don't mean this to be a sales thread or anything, but I have been sort of treating this like a blog almost, and I know a few of us are on the same search. I've been doing some research to see about the possible use of the SEL bracelet in terms of saving it to use with a future project, but it doesn't seem like there are any options for either GMT's or Explorer's.

I'm looking forward to the Zenith Defy Extreme being released because I believe it will be the first rep with the type of three-dimensional dial that Hublot is using with the Big Bang in the second picture. That orange one is awful. At least the other ones use a deeper, burnt orange that looks cool.

Oli, I may have been a little high on the 593's, but you can always start higher and bring the price down. The condition of the 580's and their year is also a factor...but they should hopefully go for more than the 593's. I'll try to fire off a pic of the SEL's. It's in nice condition. I saw a standard sub bracelet (modern) go for $1500 recently. I don't get it.

Oli, the 593's go for around the same price of the 580's. Say $200. I feel a fair price for the 501B's might be $80. I feel the 580's might be $200. The 585's....can I ask what condition? I might try to hit a home run on them, as they're not very common. I'd say $300. Keep in mind, I'm trying to give you an idea of prices that the market will bear, while giving you a solid profit by starting on the higher end of the price spectrum. Your comment about the bending of the endlinks is very relevant for me, as I've realized that to get a bracelet to fit, it will require that the size of the opening of the endlink where it attaches to the case is increased in width by a couple of millimeters. It's one of those highly simple things that is scary though, at least to me, and I think I'm going to get it done by a watchsmith as a result. Oli, let me know if you're interested in either a 78360 or the bracelet pictured above.

This is the latest arrival.

Oli, the only difference I'm aware of is in their $$ values. The 501B's are a good deal for people looking to mod their rep with gen endlinks. They shouldn't be outrageous like 585's are. Are the 593's hollow endlinks? I wasn't sure if the were SEL. I've got a GMT/Explorer bracelet on the way that I think has solid endlinks that I won't be able to use. Not sure whether I would keep the bracelet or perhaps trade both the SEL bracelet and a 78360 for a 9135 folded, but even as much as I love the folded bracelets, I don't see putting that kind of money out on a bracelet at this point. I would rather use a cheaper gen option and maybe get a gen bezel. Both my watches would be near complete if I had gen bracelets and bezels for them. Bezels might even be more rare than inserts/endlinks. I haven't seen one on the market for a while now, I'm not sure if there are any value-options where bezels are concerned.

Great deal, Terry. If anyone deserved to find one, it was you- now if only you had a pair of vintage 580's to go on that bracelet. Oli, that clasp is something else. Looks like it's in excellent condition, too. I was going to message you earlier on today when I saw an Explorer II bezel go for $4500 and it made me think of your 1655.

Hey guys, I've been in touch with the seller and am waiting to hear back. I'm going to close this down at this point, as there is limited availability for these parts and there is not a lot of room.

Freddy, I don't know what I'd do if you weren't around....probably spend a lot more money on fake parts. Marty, check your PM's. I just checked the Ebay page of that seller, and he's asking for more for the clasp, but of course his are new and are guaranteed.

Damn. If there was a way I could do it, I would. Also, I agree that the idea of going with a jumbo Tudor that's beat up is a good option, given the cost of the Tudor reps and their lack of availability.

I wasn't sure where to put this, and my offer isn't going to last for long. I'm wondering if anyone would want to go in with me on a couple of flip-lock clasps for a vintage sub/SD bracelet. The price would be $175 US and I'm not even sure if I can get them, but the chances would increase greatly if I had another person who was also interested in this part. Mods, if this is inappropriate, I apologize- the reason I posted it here is that the offer is highly time-dependent, and I wasn't sure where anyone would see it in time. Thought I'd also mention that under most circumstances I would've just bought both already, and sell the extra one at a later point. I'm running low on cash, and the seller isn't willing to split them up...hence the offer to bring someone in for what should be a good deal.

PAMman, you are sure right about the challenge involved in identifying these parts. It is quite an adventure and a challenge to be 100% about any of these vintage parts, IMO. Even with the parts I'm sure about, it's always 95% sure, just because you realize the difficulty level and need to build a margin of error into your judgment. It's all about degrees of certainty. It's strange if I'm involved in a sale situation, because the person will ask me "are you sure it's gen", and all I can do is lay out the reasoning. The feedback causes me to believe it's gen, which confirms my own belief. I probably wouldn't have even questioned it for a second if the watchsmith hadn't pointed it out. The person who sold it to me offered to take it down to their local Rolex dealer and have them verify it before the sale, but I figured that was enough for me, and I knew they believed it was gen...but then again...as I said above, ya never know for sure. That's why I'm glad that you guys are experts! Stilty, the SEL bracelet I was telling you about is here, just at the post office. I'm going to pick it up tomorrow morning and I'm going to be curious to take a look at it. I'll start a new thread for that one maybe, but I'm not sure if I'm going to keep it or if I'll try to trade it for something more compatible with a sub or SD.

Not sure Marty...hopefully someone will chime in. Out of curiosity, why would you be looking to match the insert to the pearl, as opposed to the other way around (meaning you should be looking for a gen insert/pearl!)

Hey guys, thanks for the help on this. Every time I think I'm in the clear, and it's a gen, I come across something else that makes me wonder...

Just had a pair of vintage 580 endlinks stolen from a package being sent to the US. Those endlinks are worth probably a hundred times the price of gold per unit gram in weight.

The more I look at that coronet on the back of the clasp, the more I wonder whether he could be onto something. It just looks strange. I don't think I've ever seen one like that- but perhaps one of the experts will be able to say for sure. I have another one of these bracelets en route.

If you can get a hold of half-decent condition 91350 bracelets for that price, let me know, and I'll be interested in one for sure...

A vintage GMT would be one watch that I'd love to see the MBK folks get around to repping. Out of the variety of vintage rolex models, the availability of parts for the vintage GMT's is much better than it is for 1680's or SD's. It would be much easier for the average rep builder to source GMT parts than the sub/SD parts that are currently scarce in the marketplace.