Mendota Explorer

Looking great so far. Nice work on this. You really improved it from stock. If you ever decide to make another one or work on a different dial, a member gave me some awesome tips to produce that dry and textured look to the lume that vintage tritium gets. I can't wait to try it myself. He said to mix in some white spirits or mineral spirits, depending on what it is called in your country. As the mineral spirits evaporate, they produce a dry and almost powdery look, not the smooth and shiny look. You have to experiment with it to get your mixture right so it isn't too dry.

Yes, very nice work with those crown guards. Do you only shape the inside edges to take away metal? Do you leave the outside edges alone? Will the Athaya 702 work with the rep tube? How about the Athaya 700 crown?

Looks great so far! Can't wait until you receive the 700. Looking forward to seeing it. Which crystal did you install?

Check out the red 1680 case that hughesj just posted in the 5513 thread. What do you think of that one for the foundation for a 5513/5512 build?

Just sent a PM for the link to this watch. Good call on the Athaya 700. I'm just wondering if this is a paperclip type bezel construction or if it uses a retaining ring and tension washer setup. Those lugholes look like they are wide enough for gen spec bars. I have a spare set of WSO 580 endlinks so I'll for sure swap the endlinks if I get this. Very nice job so far with your parts!

Nice! That's the same one Kime linked earlier in the thread, right? How's the case back and the case profile? I'm just wondering how that 5512 case could be different. This one looks great! How is the bezel construction?

Very nice looking dial! I like that one a lot. ETA dial feet and matching ETA hand set?

Awesome. Good to know. Thanks for the heads up! Josh's 1680 looks like a good case to work with. A member over on HF who does a lot of modding says he likes the case from Tony at Asian 7750.

Better than Folsom Prison Blues, I suppose! [emoji2] [emoji106] Wow. $3k is awesome. I would do that for sure. Nice work.

Your pics are awesome. It is definitely on my list of possibilities. Literally the only thing that makes me pause is the snowflake hands. If these were Mercedes hands I would be all over it. Then again, it is indeed something different. I really need to go try it on!

Very nice piece. It helps to see it in real world pics, too. I love that texture on the dial and the red triangle. What do you think of the hands, now that it is on your wrist? Or have you always been a snowflake fan?

Oh wait, lol, I was thinking regular ceramic sub. This one already has then removed. [emoji1] [emoji106]

You know, it is funny but I think that is a better case for doing a 5512/5513 than the Josh 5512 that was recently posted and discussed! That other 5512 seemed to be thicker and had a strange case back. Am I wrong, or is this case better overall? If this is the one that the OP selected, it looks awesome to me. Is it me, or are those lugholes also drilled out to accept gen bars? That's awesome if yes.

I wonder, in the end how does assembling a 5513 from all gen parts compare in price to finding one for sale on the gen forums?

It does have a lot of "right" things going for it. If you can grind the crown guards off, and drill lug holes from scratch, it probably covers more of the bases.

That looks pretty good! Which dealer are you using for it? Do you have a pic from the side profile? I'm wondering if that is the same case as the 5512 that was just recently discussed. Have you picked out a dial for it?

Interesting. So apparently they have spare parts lying around to make a hodge podge? I wonder - do they have any of the sub cases instead of the SD cases?

Wow! This is really coming along smoothly. Can't wait to see it all put together.

LOL, be sure to post pics and a review when you get it! I'm being pulled to it, as well. I'm considering this one or a used 16570 polar Exp II for my first gen purchase. If I were to get the Tudor, then the Exp II would be 2nd, followed up by a GMTIIC eventually.

I'm thinking that's where the Helenarou case might be a great option, plus you get lugholes already drilled. Problem is, of course, that the insert would be aluminum instead of the ceramic used in the actual Tempus Machina.

Wow. Which dealer? That sucks! Where do you start with replacing items? I like the mid case if you were buying a SD. Was this supposed to be a sub, though (judging by the dial?"

Which 1680 did you end up purchasing for your base watch? Can you link to it? Eggs should work. Another trick I've read about is using salt and vinegar. You soak a paper towel with white vinegar and microwave it to get it steaming hot. Then put your hands on the ends of toothpicks and stick them into a lump of Rodico, and place that on top of the steaming paper towel. Sprinkle sea salt onto the paper towel and then place a glass on top of the Rocico/hands to trap the fumes. Over time the acid in the vinegar fumes, combined with the salt, will corrode the hands. Watch it to make sure it doesn't happen too quickly. Other members have tried ammonia on the paper towel and those vapors react too quickly. Literally within a couple of minutes the hands will corrode so fast that they might break. Vinegar goes more slowly and isn't as caustic. Yet another technique I read about on another forum is using this Japanese model building "patina paint." They make kits for aging things such as model trains, cars, airplanes, buildings, etc. The kits come in "shades" and contain 3 colors. You use a very small amount of the paint and literally "flick it" onto the surface you are aging. the tiny specks of multiple colors recreate the look of patina on brass, iron, and other metals. I think it may have been an old post on Homage Forum, actually.

Have any of you guys worked with the Helenarou 5513 case? How does this one compare overall?

I'm following this thread because I am also interested in the 7016. I'm wondering if anyone has any experience working with the Helenarou 5513 case.