TeeJay

Certainly does. I well remember the impetus discussions back on RWG1 regarding this piece. I do think too a GMT dive watch a missed opportunity for Rolex's line. As if Jacques Yves Cousteau never crossed an international dateline? As if. Watch your 'copyrights' T'J. There's a lot of 'infringement' going around these days. Hard to believe, harder to notice, but it's there, trust me.

I'm glad you like it Hopefully, V2.0 will be better, and 'more consistent'. I hadn't originally planned to use the vintage dial, but I lost concentration while enlarging the center hole of the dial from the original Submariner, and overdid it a bit... Fortunately, I had the other 'spare' that I could use, and overall, I think it's come out nicely

I know what you mean, to me, GMT is a function that can be used by many disciplines, so shouldn't necessarily be limited to dive watches. As for copyrights, if they want to use it, well, it wouldn't be the first time a corporation would have stolen creative work from me and not paid me

@T'J

We can just call the girl in the avatar "B", as that is all I have ever heard her referred. It is an avatar ( past grilfriend) from a long since departed RWG1 member 'rya' who, as my many years junior taught me a lot about navigating online with respect to 'open forums' such as these. The most important of which being; do not let the disparity of our own views, whether political, religious, or social more`, even to the point it goes to heated argument, get in the way of enjoying ourselves and each other; i.e. flame that damn Neocon's underwear in that "Off Topic" politcal thread, help that same person source a nice Daytona in "General Discussion". "Petty" is a waste of good Karma. I keep "B" around to remind me. Plus I'm shallow. The girl is hot!

Awesome policy to take with things, and I completely agree with it

I hope the GMT Sub meets with your approval after all this time it's taken me to actually show it properly

She is indeed, and reminds me of Diva Zappa, and I just wondered if it might've been some kind of modeling shot of her

Wearing this one today...

That's a fantastic watch, and a real pro-quality photo That should be in a catalogue

It's my Dad's watch D. He has three Rolex genuine; 1680, 6263, and Day Date 1830? I'm guessing there, I never paid attention to the Rollie 'dress' watches.

But, when I first came to RWG in '04 it was after a conversation I had with Dad regarding his last will. He didn't want to bog down the document catagorizing a lot 'personal effects' which he really didn't have that much of. He just let it be known I would be getting the 1680. Coincidentally I was spammed from 'onlinereplicastore.com' soon after and thought it would be a good idea if I got a 'paste' 1680 to wear when I finally took possession of the precious gen. on that sad occaision. That experience brought me to RWG.

Over the five years I have gleaned a wealth of 'Rolex' knowledge from the boards. I shared that interest with Dad, bought him a Joshua 16610 for a laugh, and like a lot of us just started waxing horolographic. I did the research on the 6263 shared that with him, and unbenownst to me, he decided to leave me the Daytona as well, thinking that made more sense than leaving it to his wife merely because it had a lot of collateral value. It was understood she would just have, and be welcomed to sell it off as part of his estate. This watch should be an heirloom.

This week-end my Dad was making his annual pilgrimage through Daytona to Key West from New England. He wearing a simple G-Shock. After dinner I noticed he had changed into the Daytona. I was surprised as he stopped wearing the watch decades ago, it being an old anniversary gift from my mother who had passed in the seventies. He took it off then and just kept it in a drawer. After I joined RWG and learned of the lore of the Daytona I would ask him to bring it and the Sub out for a wind up every Summer when I would visit him. The occaisions always ended with him; "They'll be yours someday". I told him how hard it would be to wear them as the Sub is synonymous with our getting our Diver's certificates together, and the Daytona always on his wrist, me watching as he manipulated the controls of his airplanes. Just 'growing up stuff'. He thought that was [censored] and laughed over it. I think he decided to give me the Daytona early as to give me a chance to get used to having it and the opportunity to thank him face to face. Him being an old Scot and war horse wears very little on his sleeve to emotion, gestures speak volumes and it just meant a lot to both of us with very little said.

So, how's that for thread crapping your 'wrist check' ? . I will have to submit the bracelet to the membership some other time for particulars and help sussing it out. It's strange. I know the original bracelet ID should be 78350 or similar, known as a 'fold over' solid mid link? But this one can't be original. It's certainly hall marked 'Rolex' and bearing the coronet on the clasp, but cannot find a stamping for model number, it's fold over, indeed, but rivetted, with a rivet type I have never seen; hollow ends, not solid like a pin head. The stamped end links are per the era, but fit horribly. They may have been damaged. My father was never 'easy' on anything. Anyone. Hmmmmmmmmmmm. A 'changeout' would not be out of order though. This watch, originally, was bought with a Panda dial (he still has it), switched because my father couldn't read the subdials flying approaches, and too the dial of the 1680 was swapped at the AD after a dive with the crown screwed out. Not good. Originally I belive it were a "Red" Submariner, now it's White.

What an awesome story

Out of curiosity, who's the person in your avatar?

Not only is Lanikai a rep hero, his fantastic photo reviews are probably responsible for an ungodly number of rep purchases. As an example, after looking at the dealer pics of the new UN I was completely unimpressed. Then I saw his photo review and thought "Damn, that's a great looking watch." Now I'll almost surely buy one. Thanks for all the reviews.

Lani is a hero, full stop He gives with no thought of reward

Sorry, guys, I'm still wearing this one

Although I did swap the caseback which was on the case (which says "Rolex Oyster - Original Gas Escape Valve" with the plain one from the Silix Vintage sub which also provided the dial)

I just remembered this one:

"Sit your five-dollar ass down before I make change..." - Wesley Snipes, New Jack City

A few of my favorites:

"Ezekial 25:17" as delivered by Samuel L. Jackson

Answer to the old question "How long's a piece of string?" -- "Twice the length from the middle to the end..."

"Such is life..." Ned Kelly

A good tag-on to just about any comment about something... "That's what she said last night..."

I'm not 100% sure, but I believe that that might be the same model of watch which John Barrowman wore in his portayal of Captain Jack Harkness... I've never found a shot which was directly on the face, but I've seen John wearing several Rolexes before, so I have a hunch that this is it...

[Edit to add]

I forgot to say, if you think the guy is reliable, then for that price, I'd go for it

Looking at these photos, I wouldn't have said that the crown guards needed shaving... They look pretty good to me

done :-)

make some pics of the mods, regarding the engravings, a light brush would do the trick I'd guess

Thanks again for posting the comparison I'll be sure to post plenty of pics of the project, but with the financial commitments I have for the next six months (not only m own weddng next month, but also a trip to Tokyo in may, to combine my wife's birthday and my best friend's wedding) the project likely won't get started till after then...

This watch is an obvious fantasy, so no rules apply. You can customize it however you desire.

Indeed, a fantasy model built by me I was thinking that a set of vintage-colored sword hands would complete the watch, but for V2.0, I was thinking of going with a more 'clean/modern' look, so I was thinking about using a GMTIIC as the base watch. To be honest, I do like the watch I've built, it's just that the lume on the dial isn't anthing special. Out of curiousity, was there a model of Rolex (or Tudor) where both the hands where sword hands? At the moment, all I'm fnding is one where the hour hand is sword-style, but the minute hand is regular...

Looking good

That's an absolutely fantastic review, thanks for taking the time to put it together I'm glad I'm not alone in my thoughts that the gen is not worth the ticket price, but is a really nice watch in it's own right

Having handled the gen, I knew what it was like (although I have to admit, even in the AD, I didn't notice the color-engraving in the clasp) but I couldn't really compare it to the rep, as I didn't have the 'visual memory' of a rep to make a comparison. An interesting point about the engraving on the rehaut, as I have to admit, it was not particularly noticeable on the gen. Depending on how noticeable I felt the engraving was when I see the rep 'in person', I might indeed sand the rehaut down a little to make it less noticeable, but, if I like how it looks, I might well keep it as it is. When I've seen the watches with ROLEXROLEXROLEX slapped around the rehaut, I have thought it was branding overkill, but, as before, on the gen, it wasn't actually an obtrusive detail, and quite ignorable. My only concern for sanding the rehaut, is increasing the diameter and exposing the edges of the dial... I guess I'll just have to wait and see and then decide

You're asking about vintage specs and preferences, and then talking about applying them to a "GMT Submariner"? is that some hithero unknown ultra rare model from the late 50s?

The GMT Submariner is a bastardized hybrid of my own creation. There's a tag line on a British TV advert for a brand of wood stains: "It does what it says on the tin..." (the guys who actually advertise the product tend to look like they drink the stuff rather than staining their woods, but that's another story ) That is the philosophy I took to the watch I built. The dial says 'Submariner', but it has GMT Functions (it's essentially, a sub dial in a GMT case) so 'GMT Submariner' is the most apt description for it (other than POS )

What I'm considering for V2.0, of the above creation, is using the GMTIIC as the base, and jamming in a vintage-style dial, however, I'm debating between using one which is 'vintage colors', or 'new white'. I think that as the GMTIIC is a modern watch, then 'new' dial and hand colors would be more in keeping with the bezel and green GMT hand, although by preference, I think 'vintage colored' dials and hands look nicer

I like the sound of it With regards to life in general, I've always prefferred 'custom' rather than 'off the rack', and that applies equally to my taste in watches. The GMT Submariner I built last year and only recently decided to like, might well be a fantasy bastardization, and a real Frankenstein's monster in terms of parts, but it looks (within reason) exactly how I wanted it to look (well, nothing that can't be further tweaked)

I think I read that someone said that the DSSD bracelet wouldn't fit on a GMT II C, as it's wider at the lugs, so it might not fit your plan... I find that frustrating myself, as I was considering using the same bracelet for V2.0 of the GMT Sub... Instead, I might just have to settle for a regular Oyster bracelet, as that at least has a diver's extension, and that's a must for me

Best of luck with the project, bro, be sure to take a load of pictures once it's done

Thanks for the responses, amigos You've pretty much confirmed my original thoughts that 'uniformity' does lend to the overall image Bearing that in mind, I might still consider installing vintaged sword hands in my GMT Submariner, but I'm still in two minds about it...

How do folks think a watch with a vintage dial and hands would look in a brand spanking new case? Not so much a 'factory fresh' case, as anything can be scuffed up a little But more of say, having the case for a current watch, but containing the vintage dial and hands? An interesting juxtaposition of the old and new, or just an inconsistent and jumbled mess?

I'll post a gen / rep review today.

might help your mods.

That'll be awesome, thank you

I was just wondering if there was any particular ruling or school of thought about if the hands and dial should match? I've seen a few watches with the vintage dials, where the hands have been much whiter than the dial... Should they match, or is it just a personal preference?

Interesting write-up TJ. I thought the polished mid-links were quite a different departure for Rolex...interesting you didn't like it. I'm curious about this one. I tried on the gen and quite liked it...but when it came down to it...it still seemed like another black diver so I didn't jump for it. I like the gloss of the bezel and the larger proportioning of the numbers though.

Thanks Maybe "didn't like" was a bit too strong, and doesn't really cover my thoughts completely... I think on another watch, I wouldn't have minded, but for some reason, they just struck me as out of place on that particular watch Infact, the bracelet was probably the thing which I disliked the most about it. The case was really nice, and when I looked at the watch with the bracelet covered, I really liked it. I think my thoughts on the mid-links might just be my personal taste... If it was on a regular Oyster bracelet, I probably wouldn't have minded I definitely think that I might have some plans for one, but only with extensive modifications I wonder how easy it would be to sand the ROLEXROLEXROLEX off the rehaut...

I got the opportunity to try one on today (gen, not rep), and I have to admit, I was actually pretty impressed Unlike the Submariner, this actually felt like a substantial watch when I put it on. Not really worthy of the near

It's kinda like tattoo's and piercings, I'm able to hide all my ink but have a few very visable piercings. You always get the dumb questions, does it hurt, why would you do that to your self etc. I wear my tattoos because I love them and they all have meaning to me, same with watches, I love all of mine (some more than others, but shh, don't tell them!) I wear them for me not other people. If asked gen or rep, I tell the truth.

I have to admit, I've never really had any comments made 'out in the wild' about my ink, but it's mostly pretty much covered. How much that'll change when I get traditional Japanese sleeves done, I wouldn't like to say I'm like you, I wear a watch for my benefit, and not because of what someone will think of it My only concern now I've started wearing my customized GMT Submariner, is that because the dial says 'Rolex' will it attract more attention than my other watches simply because the brand is better known That said, during the year I only had a Submariner, no one commented on it, so I doubt anyone will now

Some answers I've seen most commonly coming up to those questions during my time here

1. Flaunting a watch (rep or gen) is only going to draw negative attention, and get the wearer branded a poseur. That's not to say a watch has to remain hidden under a cuff, and only ever peeked at with a theatrical gesture and looking down the sleeve, but equally, doing things to deliberately draw attention to the watch is more likely to leave people with a negative impression, than being impressed or interested

2. Honesty is the best policy. People who actually try and pass reps off as gens deserve the ridicule of being caught out. However, that's not to say, as mentioned above, that anyone who just happens to ask, needs to be given an apologetic justification of the watch... In most situations, a simple 'Thanks' is all that is required to any compliment. To be honest, if somone outright asks if a watch is a fake, then that is just showing their lack of manners, so they don't deserve the justification. By all means, a simple 'Yes...' is certainly one answer, but if the person is just trying to make someone look bad, it's better to ignore the question entirely, simply because it is distasteful.

3. I may be wrong, but I believe many collectors who own both reps and gens, really don't care what others think about the providence of a particular watch, and are just as likely to say that a gen is a rep Sure, I can understand that a watch snob who only bought a gen because it cost X amount, and doesn't actually have an interest in watches in general, sure, they likely would get very irate at the suggestion that their beloved Rolex might be considered a fake, but for someone who actually loved watches, and collected reps and gens, I don't think they'd be too bothered.

Best thing that happened to me this week, coming from Germany

Awesome watch, bro

Just a quick shot from me... Rep watch, rep patch, real good

It's interesting to see the differences those options make. I have to admit, I think I prefer the black on leather option best From a designer's perspective, there are a few revisions I'd make to the design and layout, but it's till a really nice watch, and, as mentioned, a really interesting twist on the GMT complication