Donerix 2.0

Thank you. We took some friends and their kids and went to a friend's private beach and BBQed some nice food. The kids had a blast...

No watch today. It's my son's birthday. 9 years and a handful for his mom: The angel and the beast. London with his new best friend Bo: But after seeing vlydog's post I think I will join him today:

I have a few 5513 casebacks laying around. I will measure and see if one is the right size.

After comparing pics I would say it is the same 52mm case they also use for the 300. Shame though, I would have definitely tried out a 42mm version

Needs the 6mm crown

Started tinkering with this MBW 5513 gilt dial:

NYC was cold, but I loved it as always. Last sun rays at LaGuardia:

Any strap maker here can make you a strap in the length you want

What about Josh's version: http://www.1-pc8838.com/rlgv00125-vgmt-1675-ssoysf-bluered-a2836-p-11000.html

I left all the money at home so I couldn't be tempted

This monday I was invited to the IWJG watch and diamond show at the Miami Hilton. I thought it would be a nice little show with some vendors and I could maybe take a look at the one or other vintage piece, but when we were waiting 90 minutes in line to get in I got a feeling it was something a bit bigger. Once we got our passes and walked in we looked at hundreds of stands filled with hundreds of watches of all brands imaginable. There must have been several hundred million dollars in watches in the ball room. Making the rounds I got to see and handle all the watches I ever dreamed of. Sorry, I was so watch-struck that I forgot to take more pics. Here is a nice 6536 for $14k on my wrist: All the big name dealers where there, Robert Maron, Matthew Bain, H.Q.Milton and Giulio Bonaccio from luxurywatchexchange just to name a few. And everybody was very accomodating and let you handle any watch you wanted. I held some of the nicest vintage Submariners and Sea-Dwellers. Got to play with some amazing PAMs like the 372, 341, 360 and 382. Had a nice chat with Giulio Bonaccio who showed me his personal 6152 which was in perfect condition and some of his own Rad-style creations with original Rolex 618 movements. I showed him some of my straps I had brought along and he invited me to visit his store in NYC this week and I hope he might sell them in his store in the future. I was wearing my DW Tudor MonteCarlo and while it was a great test to see how good our reps have become ( a Asian dealer offered me $10K, but of course I said that the watch wasn't for sale) it was also proof that there are people that really know their stuff: While wandering the isles we came across a little stand with an older gentleman sitting behind it. He had some very nice pieces in there (one tropical no crown sub was so nice I would have give a kidney for it and thrown in my left nut). We looked over the watches for a few minutes and I noticed that he kept looking at my watch. Then I saw that he had a gen Tudor Homeplate laying there as well and when I pointed it out to my friend the gentleman nicely said "this is a real one".... I was quite impressed that he could spot it without having the watch in his hands (especially after just having been offered serious money for it from a professional dealer). I was honest and complimented him on knowing his stuff> When we walked away I read the sign on the front of his stand: JAMES DOWLING - a real authority on vintage Rolex watches. Al in all in was a true trip to the watch holy land for me and I would guess that the majority off all vintage watches that are currently for sale (at least in the US) and not in private collections where present that day in one room. I think this is also why the prices are controlled the way they are. The best $26 I have spent in a long time: I hope you enjoyed it and again sorry for not taking more pics...

I had a gen crystal but my watch smith shaved it off when he installed the DW steel bezel (instead of modifying the rep bezel he screwd up a $180 gen crystal - aaargh), but Phong sent me a crystal ($35) and it fits perfect and is very very close to the gen C-128 I think the black dial works quite well with the black bezel

DW case set with Phong bezel

STill this one:

Finally managed to get the black bezel on:

Ronin: I am in FL and got your stuff

I saw Matthew Bain the other day wearing a 6542 with a simple vintage tan band and it looked really cool. Send me a PM and I make you something. A nice croc could look good too:

Fresh from Bangkok via Cubeistan (Thanks R ): MBW 5513 First impression: great feel and dial, slightly wokky rehaut (but not like a Yuki case), ridiculous MBW pearl as always, good rep crown and so far only the second hand is moving (nice sweep though), hour and minute hand are still sleeping. Gotta open her up and see if I can wake them up .... A little tweaking and aging and this should be a beauty

Looks so ..... real. Great piece and the caseback sticker is the perfect final detail...

Well done.The bezel has always been the biggest issue for me when it comes to GMT builds. I once tired doing the same with a bezel but my result wasn't even close... I wish FxrAndy would make some, I am sure he would make a lot of people happy ... because I have ordered several supposedly gen-like bezel assemblies fro different suppliers and they are all just slightly different submariner bezels. NIce job

A little progress already. NW tube and crown installed: Just need to adjust the lever a bit on the CG: I just wish the crown had a bit more teeth:

This project has been over two years in the making so I have to go back all the way to my first GTG, the mother of all GTGs in Chicago in September of '09. I was a full on noob and was blown away by the collections of calibers like Mr.B&W, Joe and Projectologist (who sold me my first quality vintage then) - just to name a few. But ultimately it was the work of the VDB boys from Germany (let's keep the sauce jokes to a minimum please) that got me dreaming about vintage Italian watches every day and spend thousands of hours after closing my restaurant at night learning about them and fiddling around with their lookalikes. That weekend in the windy city I knew that one day I had to own a watch with an Angelus SF240 movement (and just be like Joe for once who's watches then almost got me more excited than the girl I was traveling with at the time - and she was not hard on the eyes - ask Joe ): But where to find a movement? I know there are guys here that pick them up strolling through the neighborhoud, but I live in a Third World country where most people don't even own a watch. None of the searching and ebay bidding turned out to be successful. But then during my second GTG in good old Germany (another powerhouse BTW with a gen 6152 present) VDB made me an offer I couldn't refuse: a 4-piece weather station with my Angelus in it in trade for a considerable amount of my straps. "YES I DO", was all I could say and take her home until death will do us apart. I was driving through most of Europe with the clock sitting on the dashboard so I could sneak the occasional peak - every kilometer... But there was more for me waiting in Germany: KNOWLEDGE in the shape of a true magician: Merlin, the wizard from Austria. He who already had excelled in building an 8-day masterpiece. On top of that he is a really great guy and the one responsible for the great crystal you will see later. This project is more than just a hopefully nice watch I will never ever sell: It's proof for the great quality of people you find when you are with like-minded watch addicts. So many members have helped me with this and my thanks go out to all of them and especially a few - without them this would have never gotten off the ground: Ebzen's nimble hands shaped the case, Gordon's seemingly endless craftsmanship produced the 3-piece dial (a gigantic leap by itself, especially with a second subdial), the crown and crown tube, while neckyzips supplied the great pressure fit lug bars (and pressure it is, that Bruno is staying on there for good ) and last but not least Alvaro, the mechanic at the machine shop in the next town - mine only has a gas station - who custom made the movement holder on a gigantic lathe that is probably older than the movement itself and who usually machines parts for tractors and agricultural water pumps. And of course Stephan who gave the whole thing the heart and the shoes (Bruno V1, no better strap out there - and trust me it pains me to say that being a strap maker myself....) I know I am rambling, but I really wanted to show my gratitude towards all of you that have helped along the way. Well there is still a bit to go: The original hands might be at the end of their life span and until now the hour hand still sits too low to pass by the second hand. The new bezel that will allow the movement to sit up higher in the case so the crown stem will line up with the tube (that still needs to installed) is on the way. And then the great NW caseback will screw done as well too. But look for yourself: Please accept my apology for the finger prints and dust, but as I said this is still a work in progress. Ebzen at work Gordon's masterpiece I prefer the "all wheels in place" look Can't wait until she will ride there every day.....

Sorry, but since the admin hasn't been able to solve my mysteriously disappeared VIP account issue I am posting this here for now: Working on a special project for myself which is a bit of a hybrid to say the least. I found a pretty cool Jubilee bracelet in my parts bin, but it only has one endlink. So if anybody has one laying around please sell it to me so I can get this "bastard" on the road. 20mm please and it's for a Submariner case. Thanks in advance. Eric

Vlydog: I tried to PM you regarding a MC question, but your mailbox was full. Can you check. Playing around with these two: