stilty

No need for dial feet. The dial can be glued to the rim of the movement holder. Just a few dots of epoxy to hold it in place. The pressure of the case clamps holds everything together in the case. That is another great feature of the movement holder. It also acts as a dial support! To remove the date discs, you need to unscrew a few parts from the mainplate to remove the discs. I don't recommend it if one has little or no experience, but it isn't very difficult. I rarely use 2836-2 in projects, but there are a few more steps to remove the discs.

Thanks everyone. And yes, these take a lot of time to do. Fortunately, last nights work only took about 2 hours, and that was because I took some time for pictures. The fourth wheel and cannon pinion took me about 1/2 hour. About 10-15 minutes to sand the 2834-2 date disc, and about 20 minutes aligning the date disc. But let me explain... it took hours and hours and hours of time researching, test fitting, and sourcing parts to be able to figure out how to perform the build. I now seem to have it figured out, but while I was learning by trial and error, it tooks a very long time and some damaged parts. I spent a lot of money and time figuring it out. I damaged a lot of parts with trial and error... found out the hard way about "spiderwebs" from various glues. It is not fun and very time consuming having to clean glue out of a movement! Also, the machined movement holder is the biggest time saver. It takes care a everything when it comes to fitting the movement in a gen case. There is no more guess work, and the rest comes pretty easy. But again, these took a lot of time to develop. Lots of measuring, getting prototypes made, making adjustments. CNC shops are not cheap, and finding one that will take the time to work on a small job isn't easy either. Next I'll discuss how I measure for proper hand fitting heights. What parts are required, and where to get them. And when the parts arrive, I'll install the dial, hand set, and show how perfectly it all fits in a genuine Rolex case.

Great story!

I've received a few requests on Franken building, so figured since I'm starting a new project, that I would post some pics of the process of building a Franken. Admin, please move to the appropriate area if necessary. I tried to post in How to section, but did not have access. I'm calling this Pt. I. But it is actually part II as the first step is changing the cannon pinion and fourth wheel. If you know how to do this, you don't need a tuturial, and if you don't know how to do it. Please get in touch with a watchmaker, or someone who does. I don't recommend changing the fourth wheel if you have little or no experience. The project I am starting is a Franken 16013 datejust. Gen SS case, YG bezel, plastic crystal. I am going to use an ETA 2824-2 movement. The movement is factory fresh from ETA. It was in a sealed package and has ETA CS markings. I am also going to use one of my 2824-2 to 3035 movement holders and a genuine Rolex date disc in champagne color. I have already snapped in the movement in the movement holder as there are a few things I want to show you. The movement holder has been designed to retro fit an ETA movement in a genuine Rolex case. The fit is snug and it does a great job. Stem alignment is perfect and the holder has a built in spacer between dial and movement. You can also glue the dial to the top of the movement holder. I'll take some pictures when I get to that stage. Here is a profile shot to show the built in spacer. We have about 0.40mm of clearance between the mainplate of the movement and the back of the dial. Perfect to installing the thick genuine date disc. One problem I have found with using the ETA 2824-2, as well as the 2892-A2, is that the date disc sits slightly recessed in the mainplate. If you look closely, you can see that it sits just under the top of the movement mainplate. If I were to glue directly to the ETA disc, I run the risk of problems down the road. The disc will rub, or get hung up and not operate properly. But, there is a solution, and it is quite easy! What I do is swap out the 2824-2 disc with a disc from a 2834-2. If you look at the picture below, you will see that the 2824-2 disc (left) is flat, while the 2834-2 disc (right) has a slight step. The step is 0.20mm. This gives just enough clearance above the movement mainplate so the overlay does not rub or touch the movement and will operate flawlessly. Here is the 2834-2 disc installed. I sanded the top so I would have a nice surface for the epoxy. You can see that it is now slightly above the mainplate when installed. Now it is time to install the genuine date disc. I use a 2 part slow set epoxy. I think it is 30 minute epoxy. Avoid anything that dries to quickly or leaves spider webs. What are spider webs? Well, they are those very fine strands of glue that string along and when applying. You don't want them in the movement! Also, you really want to use a slow set epoxy as this is not a job you want to rush. You want to be able to have sufficient time to set and reset the disc until you have it aligned perfectly. I usually mix the epoxy with a tooth pick, and then apply the epoxy in small dots, equally spaced apart. Be careful not to use too much so it leaks into the movement! I usually give it a minute or two to allow the epoxy to slightly gel up a bit. Then I carefully drop on the disc. Try to drop it straight down as you don't want to slide it around too much and risk pushing some epoxy into the movement. Now here is something that I use that saves me a lot of time! Since I build Frankens, I use gen dials, and that means I have to cut the dial feet off. This is a real pain installing the date disc as I find I spend more time making sure the dial is centered before I can check the disc alignment. What I do now is use an old rep dial that has dial feet in place for the ETA movement. Now I just drop the dial in place and check the disc alignment. It makes installation so much easier and a lot more precise! Now I just take my time, and make adjustments to the disc until alignment is perfect in the date window. I can now quick set the date through the whole month and see that each number is aligned. Once the epoxy is cured, it is now ready to install the genuine dial! Here is the date disc installed. All numbers are perfectly aligned. I tested the the quickset function. I advanced the time until the date rolled over and everything is perfect! Take a look at the picture. The combination of the 2834-2 disc and the thick genuine disc fit perfectly between the movement and back of dial. You can see that the disc just sits slightly below the top of the movement holder I'm still waiting for the case and dial, but figured I would prep the movement until they arrive. For Pt. II, I'll install the dial and hands and show you how great everything fits in the gen Rolex case!

For what movement? Gen, Asian, ETA? I've seen aftermarket for gen. My guess is the only place you will get them if from one of the dealers.

BUMP I've got some test samples available HERE

Going to see the Canucks take on the Leaf bastards tomorrow night, so I figured I would wear something big and beefy in case I need to defend myself from the crazy fans from Toronto. We're sitting row 2 from the ice! Should be a good game. Not a rep... nor a high end gen... but a damn solid watch! ETA movement and a tungsten bezel to protect the sapphire crystal. It can take a beating. Nixon Automatic.

HAHAHA. I think the BLOCKBUSTER would be more effective... and more fun in court! I wonder how I can get one of those through customs? I still think one should look at the positive side of things. Home Invasion is serious and it could have been a lot worse... training or no training.

Congrats! One of life's greatest gifts!

Thanks for the effort anyway! It got a lot of us excited! Too bad about the module. Date discs are fairly easy to get, but not the module.

Yes, that would be a problem if both modules were missing. I have date discs, but no date module, nor autowinding module. Can your dealer supply at least the autowind module?

Well, to try and look for a positive in this shitty situation. At least you and the 5 others that were sleeping were not hurt. You never know what kind of sketchy freak could be robbing you. They could have been armed, and it could have been a lot worse if you or someone else startled them. But it sure would be nice to catch them and introduce them to the staircase with their face!

So you mix the chocolate chips, peanut butter and tea together? Just kidding! We've got enough chocolate around here left over from Halloween! Trying to stay away from him or I'll get diabetes! Love the grail! Cheers to you too!

Interested in a 3135 if available.

Wow, that's a beauty! Nice job!

Thanks everyone for the kind words. @ Toad: The movement holder is genuine Rolex. It is made to fit a c.2125 in a mid size case. The ETA 2000 and Rolex 2135 are very close in size. Only 0.20mm difference in diameter. Only slight modification was needed to fit the movement in the Rolex holder and case. @ ice: The dial is genuine Rolex and I picked it up on eBay. Unfortunately, the price tag was $300 but I knew it would be something the wife would like and it would work with the project. The dial has no dial feet, only a lip that is friction fit to the movement holder so it was a perfect choice, if not the only choice to go with this project. @ Freddy: I looked at their site, but they have no 17mm bracelets. List price at the AD for an oyster is $450. I may have to break down and get one as I'm not having any luck with the usual suspects. @ Yellow: This is a fairly straight forward project when all the parts are there. Only need to change the HW and CP on the movement, 4th wheel should be fine as the tubes on the hands are very long. I changed it anyway. For hands, the hour hand and minute hand are C.2035 and they fit no problem. I used the sweep hand from a set of C.2135 and that fit not problem as well. I found the sweep from the 2035 too small. I guess I could have broached it, but when I found that the 2135 hand fit, I figured why bother. The date disc is just glued on top of the ETA disc. A spacer is required between the two, but that is easy to do. The only thing I don't like is that the date is not instantaneous. It slowly rolls over. It starts to roll over at about 10:30pm. It is quick set though. But who, other that a WIS, sits there and waits for the date to turn over?

Here is something you don't see everyday as a franken. A Midsize or Boy's size. Genuine 30mm Case with gen bezel and gen sapphire crystal Genuine Dial - Ivory colored Anniversary with WG Arabic markers Genuine 2135 Date Disc Genuine 2135 Movement Holder Omega 2520 Movement (ETA 2000 base) Aftermarket hands These are quick n dirty pics I took tonight after spending a bit of time assembling this mid size. I still need to source a bracelet. The dial is beautiful! Ivory colored Anniversary dial features ROLEXROLEXROLEX stamped across the face. I'll take some better pictures later to show the details on the dial. Here is a pic I took previous of test fitting the movement with the gen movement holder in the case. I'll take some side by side comparison shots with a 34mm 15200 Date and 36mm 16200 Datejust to show the difference in size. I am building it for my wife, and I showed it to her tonight. She thinks it is to small as she is used to wearing a 34mm Date. She thinks it is beautiful and loves the dial. I'm sure once I get a bracelet on it, she will be more than happy to wear it.

Yes, you can use either the 2824-2 or 2836-2 with the conversion ring for 3035 movement. If you use a 2824-2, you will have extra room between the dial and movement to fit a gen date disc for an overlay. The holder has the space built in for stem alignment. The difference in thickness (dial side) of movement is 0.40mm between the two movements. Gen disc is 0.20mm, swap out the 2824-2 disc with a 2834-2 disc, and it allows for clearance over the mainplate as the 2834-2 disc is slightly raised, where the 2824-2 sits recessed in the mainplate.

yes, if your case has lug holes.

Nice! Great pictures! So the crystal swap worked out? Your brother is going to love it!

We have 3 macs in our home. I use a PC at the office, only because I have to. PC's are such a pain in the ass and a big waste of time. It seems daily our IT guys are sending us updates, patches, etc. Takes me a good 20 minutes each morning to get that piece of [censored] up and running, and that is if I have no security updates. Good news is, we are still running XP. Mrs. Stilty is in design, and does all her work on her two macs. I just have mine for fun. We connect and backup with a 1TB Time Capsule. I also picked up a 160GB AppleTV. Main reason for that was to rip all my kids DVD's and store them on the ATV. Visual Hub is a great little app to do the converting to ATV. This saves the little one from damaging all the DVDs, and the player! We each have iphones, so I guess we are a happy little mac family. Macs are just so easy to use. They are designed for the end user.

when i read your topic i thought you were going to mention that "retired" watchmaker that had a sub crown listed for $399. Item 130266594247. does that seller think we are retarded? Anyway, I know what seller you are thinking about. his crowns are good. He will even confirm what case/model you are looking for..

nice one. so all gen parts? or rep case? could you be kind to show movement shots? What did you do as far as modifications? What kind of date disc did you use? gen 3135 disc?

So I guess this seller from Korea is selling some DJ's with fake movements? But here is another pic of a 3135 and it looks the same as well. So is the top picture rep or bottom in your comparison pictures? A

Ray Lamontagne.... just got some tickets for his show on Saturday. This guy is an amazing songwriter. Check out this haunting track. Truly Amazing.