Revere

Doing research before buying is good. That said, you're fortunate that there are a couple of choices that you can't really go wrong with. The 116610 V6s, the TC 16610 V6, some of the other ones in m2m... 

I'm trying to move my dark lord dial to an ETA movt with similar stem height so I can replace the cal 1030 in my 6538. 

I'm hesitant to clip the feet like this process requires. I think I'll be stuck looking for a movt where I can make holes in the main plate to accept cal 1030 dial feet... 

Yeah, I'm thinking left coronet to right dial, and if something could be done about the 12" marker that would be even nicer. 

This is gonna look good!

The watch's profile looks way beefier with a brushed finish, in a nice way.

17 hours ago, photon said:

 

The pushers on DW 7750 cases are asymmetric and their positions are aligned well radially with the chrono operation and reset levers on V72. But, funnily enough mine have a problem in the depth position. While the winding stem position is okay, the top pusher just misses the operation lever. But, this may be unique to my V72 because the length of the operation lever in the thickness direction of the movement is quite short. A more conventional V72 operation lever with a longer lever is on the way and this will tell if the problem is due to the case or the movement.

 

Thank you for the information! That's interesting.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't 7750 pushers symmetric? Why would DW 7750 cases have asymmetric positioned pushers? Was there an expectation that the pushers would be modified or something?

Were there any issues with pusher location for the v72 in a 7750 case?

That looks pretty good. Where did you source the case from, if you don't mind my asking?

Date looks pretty left justified

Very nice. My dad's gen milgauss is so nice to look at, I love the green crystal.

I'm not sure how difficult the process truly is. I'm assuming it has to do with doping the sapphire crystal with some contaminant, and it changes the coloring in that way. To get full transparency with just a green tint, it's probably on the order of parts per million or something like that. Semiconductor industry has been doing that for a long time with silicon, germanium, and other materials. Maybe they just want to make it sound fancy  

16 hours ago, preacher62 said:

Did you see the FG Paul Newman that someone brought to the Antique Roadshow on PBS this week.  He had the original sales slip.  $535.00.  The appraiser priced it at $100K.  The man almost had an MI.  WOW!  What an investment.

That was a serious underestimate too. No doubt it would sell for at least $300k. That owner has since sold it, and it's now being resold by another company. No doubt the guy made a pretty penny but I wish the man had gotten the full price it was worth!

1 hour ago, automatico said:

The 'case neck' where the crystal fits is supposed to be 28.2mm outside diameter...if genuine spec. Where the trouble begins (assuming the neck is 28.2mm) is with crystals and crystal retainer bezels (inner bezels). Almost every aftmkt number 19 crystal is different, some will fit and some will not. Besides that, some case makers may have a genspec case neck and use an odd spec crystal along with an odd spec inner bezel. This equals trouble as there is no telling who might have a suitable replacement crystal.

I found only one brand of aftmkt crystal that is always the same...GS. Unbranded crystals from supply houses and internet sellers may be the same from batch to batch or not. The catch is GS 19 crystals come in three sizes:  PA 462-66 (30.45mm)   PA 462-67 (30.48mm)    PA 46220A (30.30m), more if you count the 'hi dome' models.   You also will need a precision digital caliper, not a HK cheapie. Last but not least...you need a good crystal press with metal dies and develop a 'feel' for the proper fit. After you press the inner bezel down over the crystal (assuming it 'feels' right) take a 10x loupe and a bright light and look closely all the way around the crystal skirt for cracks by looking down through the sidewall of the crystal. If the inner bezel was too tight, the sidewall of the crystal will crack but it may not show without a close look.

After you know what size and brand of crystal will fit your case/inner bezel combo you can go from there. My advice is to find what fits and buy at least three if you plan to keep the watch. Btw, it's not cheap or easy if the first few crystals do not fit so maybe you will be lucky and hit a good combo first or second try. I have maybe 30 assorted number 19 crystals from genuine to Sternkreuz, GS, Best Fit, Clark, ST etc and have tried them all on various projects. I remember on one of my MBK '5513' projects I ended up with an ST/Clark bezel kit (same thing) and a GS crystal (?? on the p/n). The original MBK inner bezel would fit the GS crystal but the rotating bezel was not a good fit on the inner bezel etc, etc so I went to the ST/Clark kit. So far, so good.

I posted a full dose of what to expect because it sounded like you wanted the watch to be water resistant.

Crystals:   http://www.ofrei.com/page419.html

Damn, just dropped some knowledge on us!

" and also being a machinist have a little knowledge about such things as drilling holes."

best part of the whole post 

Ah, must have been thinking about Ingod! great to know NDT is still in business. At least, hopefully

Isn't NDT out of the game? That's what I have heard. 

I've made experiments on tropical dials with careful airbrushing. I pretty much cut out a lot of slots for date wheels, circular edges, and other features in a chunk of brass and painted over in black. Then I airbrushed with brown paint.

That was a while back, the results were ok, I think they could have looked better if I had spent more time picking out colors, mixing ratios for air/paint, tips for the air brush, texture for the base layer of paint, some other things... It just needs a lot of time and attention put to practicing, and I didn't have the opportunity for either when I started the experiment!

4 hours ago, WeenFiend said:

No, but I have read many good things about Tony Chen in different blogs as well as here. He is with noobwatch.com and although not a TD now I think his old site hontwatch was. I will let you guys know how it goes and perhaps he can make the TD list. The more the merrier. I also e-mailed him that if he did right I will help him out by giving him props. In this game it only takes one bad experience to ruin you and so far thats all i found is one bad experience so I am guessing he is reputable. IMO

Hopefully it works out. In this hobby it pays to be patient and double check everything, I've learned that myself many times and I'm sure many of the members here will corroborate that. 

Next time, best to verify your seller is a TD and that you're buying from the correct source!

From what I have heard, the SA3135 has correct exterior dimensions to the gen. This includes diameter, stem height, all the stuff that matters. 

I think I have also heard the stem for the SA3135 is some no-name thing that is not standard, so the Y3135 and gen stem will not work on it.

I'm not sure if the SA3135 has interchangeable parts with the gen. If the SA3135 has gen dimensions then the crown, tube, Yuki, or gen 3135 should all drop into that case without a problem. I would start by searching to confirm the dimensions of the SA3135. 

Curious about any updates here. I'm going to attempt this with a Rolex 1030 movement substitute and a dial from the unspoken manufacturer.

The same issues occurred to me: pinions and stem height. 

3 hours ago, denimhead said:

I think its the same as eta2836 by the look of things

I don't have access to it now but if I remember correctly it's the same as a 2836

I have a watch with a 9015 and it is reasonably quiet. I guess no louder than a clone 28XX. 

I can only assume that it might be better to use a gen 9015 than a clone 28XX. It all depends on where the movement are assembled, but in principle if they come from Japan assembled and are dropped into the case in a half-clean place, they might give better performance than a clone movement. It should go without saying that the 9015 blows away any 21J (which IIRC is a clone of the Miyota 8215). 

Man that's a tragedy. You gotta wonder who would send a Comex 1680 to an RSC, except for maybe an original Comex employee.

It looks like there are no ETA movements that have a reasonable stem height comparison. One member was able to clip the dial to fit a 2846, machine the case to accept the movement and change the stem height. 

That seems like a nightmare scenario because I would never clip this dial. I think I will be taking a movement like the 2846 and machining new pinions for it, as well as a spacer for between the dial and base plate. If there is enough thickness here, this spacer can have the slots for the 1030 dial feet as well as the actual "dial feet" for the 2846 movement, forming a sort of dial foot adapter. I think there is room for creativity here.

Not sure of the viability of this, but it sounds like it should work on paper. Machining those pinions will be a challenge but after the 1030's service I should have many years to figure this out.

On 3/30/2016 at 2:29 PM, JoeyB said:

I print the date window portion all back as the dial is, no outline for the window at all. When fully dried it should be tight. I then cut the opening in an 'X', from corner across to opposing corner. That makes 4 little triangles. From the back of the dial, I then use a toothpick dipped in the Micro-Set to wet each triangle, one at a time, and draw it over the bevel and out the back, folding onto the back of the dial. The vinyl decals I use have a little, tiny bit of stretch to them. Using the toothpick I pull the triangle taught on the back of the dial. Then hold it there until it sticks. The decals take the shape of the bevel nicely. Some bit of trim might be needed, and I do that with the same wetted toothpick, smoothing the corners if necessary.   

 

 

This is great advice. I've never worked with this specific application but I've done similar things with decals. 

4 hours ago, Sogeha said:

I have read of drilling main plates. ETA 2783 has been done. Personally I would still stick with the present movement, I guess a seiko or even a quartz could be fitted by someone skilled, but a big crown with the correct movement is a much more desirable piece IMO.

Thanks for the lead on the 2783. Has it been done with this case? I'll look into stem heights etc.

I agree that an original 1030 movement is more desirable in this build. For the time being any many years ahead I plan on keeping it, but this is a watch I intend on passing down so ideally I'd love to be able to pass down a nice 1030 movement in a neat little box with a more robust/serviceable movement inside. Who knows.

2 hours ago, alligoat said:

I'd get that 1030 serviced and see how that works out for you first. If after the watch is serviced and it's in good shape, then get on a regular maintenance schedule and get it serviced every 5-6 years. At that point it should last a long time. From the sounds of it- poor amplitude and isochronism- I'd think a service is long overdue.

I don't think you're going to be able to drill plates in a movement for fitting the original dial feet- that's probably a pipe dream. So say you were going to get maybe a 2846-2 with a movement ring- I'd figure at that point you'd need to get a spare dial and hands rather than trash your 1030 dial and hands. So then your looking at maybe $500 or more. So that's why I say get the 1030 serviced and see where you go from there.

  

I'll definitely get it serviced and see how things progress with the movement. I think modifying a contemporary movent to take this dial is feasible, maybe difficult but achievable by some means. It's a special dial so a replacement is not exactly in the books, ever!