TeeJay

Were it not for the fact that the owner is a knowledgeable & reliable vintage Rolex collector, I would have written this off as a poorly made franken. It may very well turn out to be similar to some of mine where only the dial is non-gen. Hard to tell with certainty without being able to open the case & inspect everything in person. But the watch appeared on the wrist of this guy while attending the recent Christie's auction in Geneva, where there are more than sufficient numbers of authoritative eyes & if anything about it appeared amiss to these people, I am pretty certain its questionable lineage would have been called out (or, at least, mentioned). So, for now, I would file this 1 in the 'With vintage Rolex, never say never.' category.

Something else which might explain it, is the dial, for some reason, makes me think of a factory prototype. The blurring/fading of the bezel markings is also interesting. Of course, the strap might simply be a new 'upgrade' following a failure of an original bracelet or an aged leather strap. It's certainly an interesting watch, for sure, thanks for sharing the photo

Here's my current line up. Top row are fully functional, bottom row are the works in progress

White 6205 Sub. I am always suspicious when I see oddities like this appear out of nowhere, especially, without the original bracelet. But the owner has good credentials, so I accept his word that it is gen (although the hands do not appear to be original to this watch).

I would trust your instinct. It's an interesting watch, for sure, but there's definitely something not quite right about it. Possibly a franken built to custom specifications?

Dude, that's absolutely awesome, and a perfect combination

"All" the style of a Rolex? I daresay not! Hmmph!

Oh yeah, all the style, and more! When have Rolex ever used a triangle or snowflake dial on a Sub? And since the Newman Daytonas, they've done pretty much nothing with the chrono dials (except bling them out ) The Tudor chronos on the other hand, way more visually intersting Tudor might be Rolex's step-children/poor cousins, but I must admit, they have way more variation on the basic themes, which I think earns them a biiiiig and puts them a mile ahead of the totally stuck in a rut parent company

A fantastic pair I love Tudors, all the style of a Rolex, none of the shame from the brandname

Thoughts and best regards to you and your family in this time.

I'd put it on a vintage Daytona. Pre-Oyster model.

Other than that, I have no idea.

If you mean the pre-Daytona with the smooth bezel, then you are spot on, sir

[Edit to add]

The one on the left

I dont have so much as a clue T,but good luck with the project all the same

Thanks, amigo

Chrono something ?

You're on the right line

I bought this strap today for a planned future project, and wondered if anyone could guess what it would be going on, from the type of strap, and what they're sometimes seen on... If someone guesses, I will reveal the plan, if no one guesses, well, watch this space, and it will eventually get built and revealed

PS I'm no expert on Rolex model codes, so model name/variant would be preferred

I'm sure Stephane will be able to enlighten us in due time

Of course TJ!

..the funny thing is, I plan on selling my gens to get it. The frankens and nicely modded pams feel more like artwork and creations. Unless someone made me a serious offer for one of my frankens, I think they'll be staying with me

I completely know what you mean there. I never had to sell a watch I built or modified myself, and I'm not sure if I could for the reasons you mentioned, but a 'stock purchased' item, well, that can always be replaced with another 'stock purchased' twin Can't wait to see your new acquisition

It's the skin of a local snake (Zumbadora they call it here) and I used the dark brown part of the tail).

I also made one in vintage black leather and one in Chocolate Cayman (will take some pics tomorrow at daylight).

All I need now are blue eyes and a better looking face and the Newman look would be complete ....

Sounds fantastic (looking forwards to the pics of the other straps) and that certainly is the perfect strap for such an iconic watch

Lol, more like something pretty expensive! I may be selling two "grails" + a few others to fund it.

Dare I go out on a limb and guess something vintage?

Thanks guys. And it's probably the most comfortable strap ever... I never really liked bund straps, but it works really well with the watch and gives it a bit more wrist presence and size:

Any time, it looks fantastic My wife has (somewhere ) a white Chanel J12 on a white faux-leather bund strap, and similarly, that really brought more presence to the watch What kind of leather did you use?

ha ha, I agree Lhooq, the plastic case would be way too brittle

nice work TeeJay; about time RWG had some greek mythology in one of it's threads. Perhaps watch lovers see themselves in the reflection of their watches...

I would say that watch lovers certainly want their watch to reflect aspects of themselves or their interests And for those who only wear 'a brandname' for the prestige, well, that's got to be a form of narcissism

To be fair, like Alistair, I never had an issue with my deal with PWC. Well, the issue with the watch was resolved without hassle, and it was otherwise my smoothest transaction to date, but, after what people have said, I don't feel comfortable recommending him to others.

Just finished my first bund strap:

Dude, that is awesome Has such a vintage retro look to it Very nice work

Still wearing this:

Currently running at +11 seconds over 24 hours, not too bad for an unregulated asian movement

I always aim to keep (or certainly make use of parts from) watches I buy, and I doubt what I have would interest many buyers, so as Freddy said, I buy to keep I would (and have) sell if I desperately needed the cash, but never to fund another watch purchase, as my collection planning has always been pretty strategic. To me, selling X to buy Y, would still meaning acquiring another X to fill that gap in the collection

Always remembered

If you don't love yourself, no-one else will

Why feel awkward going to the movies or having dinner by yourself, as a Narcissist, your True Love is always with you

What's the TJ twist?

The black leather strap, so it's as worn by John Barrowman in his portrayal of Captain Jack Harkness

However, having seen this image, an episode screenshot,

I'm wondering if it might instead be an Air-King-Date...

Barrowman's got quite a collection of Rolexes, so it wouldn't surprise me if the watch was his own property rather than issued by the wardrobe department, and also wouldn't surprise me if he had the less-common Air-King-Date...

Either way, it's keeping good time thus far, and really comfortable to wear, it just vanishes on my arm

Something new today, with a little custom twist

Perfection