TeeJay

A Ventura?

Interesting thoughts, and especially interesting to read that the metal links in the strap actually serve a practical, rather than purely aesthetic purpose

I do know what you mean about the sub variations. I would say my interest in subs falls part-way into that category, in so much as there are a few specific variants which interest me, but, I would say that those variations are significant enough to make each watch stand apart from the others, rather than say, mere variations in color of the dial printing

Since RobbieG first posted the Rhodium-dialled MMD, I've rather liked it, and would have been keen to acquire a nice rep of it. His other discussions on the 'economy of watch collecting' and minimizing a collection, would certainly point towards a watch which can be worn for a variety of occasions, and I think the Rhodium MMD fits that catagory, in the same way a Yacht-Master can dress down, just as easily as it can dress up. However... Given the way my collecting is moving towards personal projects, I don't think I would be happy wearing a 'stock purchased' watch day in day out, as now, I would prefer to wear something which I had a hand in building. Maybe I'll wind up with one one-day, maybe I won't, but either way, I do think it is a watch which would make a fine addition to any collection

What kind of project build could I do for my low funds? :0

You might be able to source a cheap sub, find a Tudor dial and do a 're-branding' Having just done that myself, I am now a firm convert to the Tudor Appreciation Society Way more fun than a Rolex

None too shabby, I think you've found yourself an excellent project watch Heck, if you weren't concerned with 100% accuracy to gen, it would be a nice enough watch to wear as it is Best of luck with your plans

My bad

I'm still wearing my newly modified NATO sub, which has undergone a 're-branding' from Rolex, to Tudor...

From this:

To this:

A 100% improvement, I think

I am absolutely loving the dial which Slartibartfast made, there is another in existence, which he has suggested could be put to an RWG raffle...

What's the lume like? Well, it's not superluminova, but, after a charging from an LED torch before bed, the lume was still readable 6 hours later

I love how it looks on the wrist, and has really got my Snowflake project off to a flying start Potentially a very long-term project due to costs of various parts, so one which will be a 'work in progress' for some time, but, one I am very happy to wear 'as is'

Wrong Thread

I have had about 20 watches and many have been passed on as I've read more and figured out what I was looking for. When I first arrived I had 2 old reps that never got used and should not have been used either, due to the low quality!!

What actually got me into watch collecting was probably something completely different than most of you all.

I saw a video on 4-5 years back about kinetic art. An artist called Theo Jansen and how a machine could work in a grand scale just by putting it on a beach, letting the winds fuel it. I found this thrilling. How could I see a motor work this complicated and interesting in real life? It soon got to me that watches have the same ability to wow me when it comes down to it. It think engines this smal, working this hard, with so many functions are amazing. Then a friend of me showed his newly acuired rep watches and pointed me in this direction. I then began to see the beauty of the cases and surrondings that this amazing machines were wrapped in, and I was sold.

After that I have been pretty much obsessed with watches. I keep the number at 6-7 watches so that I can enjoy them without leaving them of my wrist for too long. I wear them well. I don't care if I scratch them or wear them at work (offshore oilrigs), as I generally take good care. (I think it only builds character.) I don't want my watches to be "ding-free" and look too perfect, I want each of them to look used and loved

I will buy some more gens in the near future and build some good frankens, as I've found some pieces I cannot live without. But for now I think the rep world is threating me more than good enough.

Wear them well

Soooo I'm a collector, it's what I do, it's who I am.

I don't have as many watches as Lani or Robertk but I know I have too many and yes many get little or no wrist time, the one in my avatar for instance I don't recall wearing ever.

My problem is that I love the watch that is on my wrist, by this I mean I have just gone a few Months with a PO chrono until the bezel popped (gotta fix that when I get a chance), before that it was Months with an IWC GST (can't remember why I changed), now I have a Pam 192 I can't seem to take off.

The funny thing is I haven't actually bought a watch for a very long time now, this I suspect is a combination of financial status and the fact that I know once I do buy another I will probably go nuts again.

Ken

I'm absolutely the same, my friend. If I was to be totally objective and logical, I'd do with reps, what I used to do with cheap watches when I was younger: Buy one, wear it for a year, then buy a new watch. My problem, is I love collecting, and I love building... I like having a 'regular beater', but I also like having a 'specialized watch', such as a GMT for travelling, a NATO strap for hot weather etc as that gives me what I consider the perfect rotation: Not rotating for the sake of it, or because I can't settle on a watch, but because it is suited to my requirements at that time If only I could get over my aversion of wearing a NATO strap while wet, I probably wouldn't take my newly acquired Tudor project sub off, but would make it my main beater, but, I don't like taking a watch off just because of water, so SS is definitely the option for me

[Edit to add]

While writing this, I was seriously tempted to transplant the Tudor dial into my vintage sub, (which I think would look awesome) but, I consider the Snowflake dial to be a milsub, so I feel that requires a fixed-lug case and NATO strap

So, I have about $270 clearing tomorrow from sales of miscellaneous stuff laying around the house.

What nice watch can I get for that?

Please post opinions, ideas etc!

Cheers~

H

Rather than an outright buy, how about a project build?

I'll be 31 in a few weeks time

I like this one myself, too bad you're in the UK.

Yes, it does detach and is functional.

Oh man, what I'd give to have 2nd Amendment rights

On a more positive note, I've managed to fix up my belt... I found my 'formal black belt' in the closet, and realized that it the buckle was secured in the same way as on my brown belt (screw/rivet holding a fold of leather in place, which in turn, held the buckle in place) so a few seconds work with the screwdriver of my Swiss Army knife, a buckle transplant later, and the brown belt is back in use Okay, I don't really like this buckle with this belt, but, it'll suffice till I can get a replacement buckle, as I really like wearing the brown belt Birthday money well spent

Me Likey!!!

Wow, I now have hope that I'll Be able to get that small rose 27mm closed minute track dial done finally!!

Impressive work , both of you!

Cheers

Ed

Thanks Your project sounds pretty awesome

Me likey! how long did the whole thing take not including creating the dial template? Any plans to sell dials?

Well, we've been working on the project for over a month, but R would be the best person to say how long it took to actually do, as he did all the practical work. If I remember, it took me a few hours to create the original dial template, which he then refined into something more useable

Whaow handsome job.

And very interesting thechnique.

I had thaught of that for changing font on a date disk (p196 7753 brob), but never even imagined it would be so cool for a dial.

After luming it does look like if was a normal dial.

Indeed, R first used the technique for changing a date wheel font As you say, once the transfer is lumed and varnished, it really does look like it is a regular dial. The crazing on the crystal picked up the light, which obscured the dial in the photos, but on the wrist, the crystal appears much 'clearer', and, given the quality of the finished dial, I would be quite happy to install one under a 'clean' sapphire crystal, and hope to be able to do so with a future project watch

Thanks for the feedback, guys, once again, I must point out that it was Slartibartfast who did all the hard work on this project, and it was he, who constructed and lumed the dials I'm just the monkey who cased it up

My main interest in watches, has always been divers watches, and to an equal extent, military diver's watches.

I started off with a EuroFakes Submariner, but after a while, wanted to replace it with an Omega 2254.50 for the larger hands and indices, however, with Casino Royale being released, instead, I went for a 42mm Planet Ocean instead. Eventually, I got into Panerai, and after selling off my collection to pay for my wedding and reception, I've since come all the way back to wearing Rolex, and now Tudor. I am by no means a well off person, but, I don't look like a bum, so I feel I can carry off watches of this value without any undue attention. Another impact on my watch collection, is the Japanese aesthetic of wabi-sabi. Taking that into account, I prefer 'vintage' watches over modern ones, and, as an added benefit, an apparently-old, beaten up watch, gets no scrutiny from the casual observer. While not a total protection from the dreaded "Is that a fake Rolex?" question, it certainly helps minimize it.

I think the primary focus on my collecting now, will be project builds. It's much more fun than just buying something outright, and the satisfaction one can take from looking at a watch and knowing they built it themselves, is considerable. I've never been someone who changes watch frequently, so I tend to wear the same watch for a time, before circumstances necessitate a change.

For example, my NATO Sub (Now with a Snowflake dial) can only be worn on the NATO strap due to the fixed lugs, so this is an ideal watch for when it is simply too hot to wear a watch on SS or rubber. The vintage sub is still my 'daily beater', but if the temperature dictated it, I would go for the NATO sub instead. Here's a prediction for the way my collection will go:

Daily Beater - Vintage Submariner

Hot weather beater - NATO Tudor

GMT - Project watch (Details are still in planning)

Additional watches, will be the GMTIICSub project I've had in the planning for a year. This will be a modern watch, so probably get very little wear, but it's one I've thought about so much, I am going to build it, just so I can say I actually did it. If I feel the need to get a 'smart watch', I'll get myself a DJ like the one worn by John Barrowman in Torchwood.

Any additional project builds, will be satisfied through building the various military-issue Rolexes/Tudors, such as the Peruvian AirForce GMT, or the South African MilSub

damn...charlie - that's a great looking Rollie...

what are the details - of the watch and the vintaging process?...

R-

+1

That's looking fantastic, do tell

great job brother, looks beautiful

well done

Many thanks, brother, but all I did was take the photos and case it up, Slartibartfast is the master craftsman here, so all the praise must go to him

That's looking absolutely awesome A fine project indeed

Thanks for the feedback, guys, I cannot take any credit here, as all the construction of this dial was done by R. He just sent me a couple of uncut transfers incase I wanted to play around with them myself, the dial arrived fully finished, and fixed to the brass backing disc All I did, was cobbled together a photoshop version of the dial layout, which he then refined into the final prints

Okay, I'm sure you all remember Slartibartfast's awesome Ranger dial project, well, since then, Slartibartfast and I have been in collaboration to explore the medium of dial transfers as a viable substitute dial. Given the recent popularity of Tudors, and as the previous project had been a Ranger, it made sense to stick with the Tudor theme, and in the end, we wound up going with a no-date Snowflake dial. The process of producing the dial, Slartibartfast documented in his above linked tutorial/pictorial, so all I am doing here, is reviewing the dial 'as a product', and presenting it to the community as a fun project, which has given very good results Any questions, I would suggest to direct to Slartibartfast, as he is the one who actually brought this all to fruition, I was merely a sounding board and reviewer.

While Slartibartfast has very kindly gifted me the dial reviewed, that has not in any way biassed my view of the dial, because I am genuinely impressed by the finished result, and would have given a positive review even if the dial was not to remain in my possession. Onto words and pictures (who remembers that old classic? )

The actual face of the dial, is, as in the above linked tutorial, a high-quality print onto water transfer paper. Here are a couple of 'raw transfers' so people can see how they look 'coming off the line', to bear in mind when comparing to the actual finished dial...

Here's a better shot to show the clarity of the printing...

After application, the dial was painted with luminous paint (not superlume, although I can only imagine how awesome a superlumed dial would look) and then sprayed with matte varnish. While I have been told that the transfer would not withstand getting wet, and that the edge can be a weak point, for the transfer to potentially seperate from the base dial, I can honestly say that I found no such problems when installing the dial. While I handled the dial gently during installation, I did not treat it any more gently than I would any other dial transplant, and there was no issue whatsoever. Here's a few shots to comparing the dial to a Silix Vintage dial.

Personally, I think the quality is comparable. The varnish gives the dial an awesome texture, the text is clearly and crisply printed, and I think it looks fantastic

Here it is installed on the movement (I decided not to go with the destro setup in the end, as I just wasn't feeling it)

And all cased up... I am not happy with the condition of the watch case, as I really want to get a black insert back in place, but at the moment, it's financially not an option, so I'm making do with the bare metal. That said, while I was not over happy with the condition of the NATO sub 24 hours ago, I am now thoroughly overjoyed with it, and would be happy to wear it publicly, even though it is still quite some way from accurate to the gen...

From this point on, please excuse the condition of the crystal, as it obscures the clarity of the dial, but to the naked eye, on the wrist, the dial is incredibly clear and easy to read. Certainly the clearest Rolex dial I've seen, and on a line with Panerai clarity/ease of visibility. Could this be to do with the square indices being more noticeable to the eye than circular ones? I don't know... Either way, on the wrist, the dial is very easy to read at a glance

With its equally vintaged blood-brother:

Standing proud:

And a final wrist shot

As above, 'happy' does not begin to cover how pleased I am with the dial, and what an awesome start it has gotten my Snowflake project off to. Slartibartfast is a true gentleman, and collaborating with him on this project has truly been a pleasure

R, thank you again for your generosity in gifting me the dial, it really is very much appreciated, and if you'd care to add a few words about the production of the dial and the issues overcome, please feel free

Something a little different for me today A review is to follow shortly, but for now, here's a teaser

Certainly the darkest day of my life, and one which cost many dearly. I lost a good friend on that day, and very nearly a cousin, but what really shook me, when talking to other friends, was how they had also lost relatives and parents. At first, it seemed strange how something on the other side of the planet could not only affect me, but also people who I knew, and it was then that I realized just how small the world really is, and how we are all connected to each other on some level.

It sickens me that the people who committed the acts claim to have have done so in the name of God. If they were truly religious, they would have understood how utterly forbidden their actions are.

A dark day indeed, all we can do, is make sure we never forget, and pray that nothing like it happens again.

May peace be upon you all.

totally battered beater today and friday as i'll be working on machines all day..

this is a $20 egypt brought rep which has been used as a test piece for case mods, ageing bezels, hands, etc.. its been slowly turned it into an over-polished semi-vintage wreck, but its kinda fun to wear when you're goofing around working on cars, decorating, etc!..

ps.. first time i've ever tried to take a pic of a watch, so go easy on me!..

Nothing wrong with semi-vintage, that's a fine looking watch, amigo

Ahh I'll consider myself told