Serafino

That does sound boring.

Right but the point is he told me he's not selling bezels separately anymore.

Hiya J, last I heard it was case sets only? I'll be glad to find out otherwise. 😎

It's been 8 years already since I got heavily into bezel research, how time flies. I was satisfied with my understanding then but I'm wanting to review my thinking before committing to metal.

I appreciate the suggestion, definitely tempting, but I'm actually going to be happier not carrying $13-20k on my wrist, and paying through the nose to have it serviced. Not to mention I would hate to have to decide for myself that the one I was buying was legit (leave aside the lousy condition most of them are in now). The gen world is a real minefield. I don't think all or even most of the online 'expert sellers' really know as much as they need to. I got my 160XX case back when they were more reasonable, and it's in fair shape. I may well make the bezel myself although some options are appearing. I will be quite content when this thing is finished.

Bezel is one of the things which give 1016s their distinctive character. Even that 1969 is at the steeper end of the spectrum. One wonders if they were hand turned to a few dimensions, with convention and rule of thumb only loosely controlling the details. That one has a service dial. I wonder (idly and with no foundation) if it is also a later bezel.

Thank you Maikol for posting the pictures! Your bezel does not have the proportions and angles of the cleanest 1016 examples with good provenance I have seen in photos. It has a datejust feel to it. To be fair, I have seen possibly original examples with individual features seen on yours, but never all together on one, with the resulting steep primary angle.

Well done on making a bezel at all. Overhang looks about right, but for some reason the angle of the main bevel seems steep for a 1016. Perhaps the flat on top is too wide? I can't tell in the photo, reflections might be part of it.

Hey Alligoat! I recognize your lovely 1601 project, still looking great. Yes I nearly went with a 2836, after I finally figured out the solution to the fact the stem height is .1 mm low, but I'm attached to getting a Top or better grade, which are very rare in 2836s. I don't mind spending a little time and money on spacing the 2824 .35 mm downwards. Hand stack parts in various heights seem to be available lately. The 1570 pins just miss moving parts in an ETA, there are pictures of a slotted example here: I gotta do it, gen has characteristics I can't get anywhere else. Just want to do it as well as can be. I'm holding out for a bezel with the proper OD. Pain in the butt but what can you do. There's one or two on Ebay that might be mod-able to work based on scaling the photos but it's from the Evil One so I'm not chancing $80. I may go with a T-21 crystal though, my modified T-22 isn't lensing incoming light right. Thanks for your thoughts, further thoughts welcome!

Okay so I'm back, hopefully this project will finally gel. Gen dial in a 160XX case with ETA movement. Anyone out there who can reliably mod an ETA 28XX to take gen 1570 dial feet? It seems to be a labor of love as you come very close to moving parts. Thoughts on how to go about it also appreciated, as I am going to do it myself if I can't get someone else to do it. Hand filed slots seems to be the safest procedure. Just the thing for a capable machinist though, that would be awesome if the holes were drilled instead of slots. (If anyone has drawings of a 1570 I would love to get my hands on that, I can measure my dial but I'd love to work this out with official dimensions before I start filing.) Anyone making 1016 bezels? JMB isn't, last I heard. I have plans to try doing it myself here too but would love not to have to. I'm going the 2824 route, I plan to shim the dial spacer and my watchmaker will do the hand height conversion during the service (chrono movement, mwahahaa) I'm also concerned to minimize shifting of the movement and dial in the case, mainly to help preserve the dial. At this point I will likely use a Raffles #2 movement ring but is there any benefit to using the Tudor/34mm version? I see that sometimes recommended and I'm not clear on the benefits. I'm aware of the Yuki ones but seems a lot to pay for something easily broken and not that upgraded from other options. If only Stilty had leased his design to someone to produce. Also with regard to sparing the dial, is there a reliable way to keep it attached to the movement? I was wondering if there might be a way to add locking screws to the main plate at the newly cut slots. I gather hypo cement is not good enough for keeping dial and movement together over time. Maybe epoxied feet in ETA positions, I think that is reasonably reversible? As always, any help much appreciated!

Thanks Nanuq! I have managed to find the M. Young tutorial so will proceed accordingly then get on with my rebuild.

I have acquired a set of rivets, but am a bit distracted by the difficulty of sizing this thing. Dual screwdrivers, many days soaking in Liquid Wrench (nasty stuff!), applied heat with a soldering iron before that, not a budge. I've found a few threads about it, some say heat wasn't effective. I could further refine the fit of the screwdrivers I suppose, or break down and try some Kroil. Some of these are a little polished down and I wonder if the slots will need to be scraped deeper. At some point people just pry open the center links right?

I really appreciate the info! Many thanks.

Does one use a special tool for setting the new rivet head? In other fields there would be a concave headed punch or something but I haven't managed to track one down at the watchmaker supply places.

Great, thanks. Very helpful.

Nevermind, my mistake.

I thought I read somewhere that the cartel rivet bracelets aren't too awful to take apart. Any hints on the process? If it's doable I'd like to take one apart and mod it a bit. Any hints, tool suggestions, or full on tutorials much appreciated. What do I want to do--switch some side plates around, maybe reprofile the links a bit, and if it proves possible, maybe replace the rivets.

I've seen a picture of one of these with a very strangely shifted side plate on one of the links. One of the things I'd like to know is how strong the springs are--do they support the weight of a GMT-style watch okay or do they tend to sag? I checked in with a few places including PT and no leads. Thanks again for any feedback!

I'm very curious to see it!

Hey Alli! Searching around to find out more about these I ran into someone complaining that he'd ordered one in 2012 but already they were out. You like wearing yours? Sick of the hairs catching? I know someone who's in the market...

Back in 2012, woof* mentioning picking up an unusual dimpled-rivet expanding cartel-ish 7206 bracelet accidentally from the clone Josh site a year before (so 2011?). Has anyone found a source for these? I have an itch for an expanding rivet. He's not receiving PMs at the moment or I'd ask him. Thanks for any leads!

mymanmatt: Do you know of any 2836 / 16013 projects which failed due to the .05 mm stem height difference? How do you space the movement from the dial? What size canon pinion do you change to, and what's a good place to buy them? Thanks! JMB:

Thanks Ephry, I have movements on the way, and will go read up on keyless works.

Sweet, great presence.