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aphillipe

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Posts posted by aphillipe

  13. Tempus Machina replica, how would you do it?

    in The Rolex Area

    Posted

    Either Freddy333 or cc33 posted this about a year ago (maybe 2 now), but one of those guys has some incredible step by step progress macro pics from "He who shall not be named" during the creation of a dial.  MIND = BLOWN after looking at each step of the process to create one of these masterpiece dials.  The "gilt" is simply the brass dial plate showing through the lacquer, but the process to build up the dial surface all around the brass is amazing.  Maybe one of them could post those pics again, or we could find a link back to that thread.  It is spectacular to see it. The guy really is a magician.

    To the OP - the nameless one only works with gen dial plates.  The 6538 was a 38mm watch.  There is no way a gen 6538 dial is going to fit in a modern 40mm sub case.  Nor would you ever want to hobble together a replica of a custom build watch using a gen plate refinished dial. There would be a line of people here a mile long waiting to flog you if anyone heard that you took a Voldemort dial and clipped the feet to hobble it together into a rep.  That is blasphemy!  But it is a moot point, anyway, because it won't fit.

    Would LOVE to see those pics

  15. Tempus Machina replica, how would you do it?

    in The Rolex Area

    Posted

    The dial is going to be your biggest culprit.  I didn't fully understand (and appreciate) what a gilt dial REALLY looked like till I got one.  I can post some shots side by side with a traditional whoopy "gilt" dial so you can see the difference...  True gilt as you all know is a multi-step process involving a gold plate and chemicals to create a negative relief - the gold shines through and depending on the lighting can appear gold all the way to a negative dark gray almost black.. a regular rep gilt dial has no such reflection and leaves a lot to be desired...  The Tempus is the sexiest watch I've seen in years but until we can find a good source for the dial I feel it'll be a half-@ss attempt no matter how we do it..

     

     

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  17. Tempus Machina replica, how would you do it?

    in The Rolex Area

    Posted

    Yes please keep us posted.  I have PBDad doing a build for me to imitate it.  He's 90% confident he can get it done.  He's been quiet most of the summer since I initiated it back in the latter part of May but I have a feeling before we get into winter I'll have a stunner on my wrist. I believe several others have also reached out to him so it may turn into a limited edition build he does similar to his Heritage HS01.

     

    The dial on the Tempus watch isn't printed. It is actually exposed gilt similar to the dials that cc33 uses on his builds.

     

    Correct - the dial will be impossible to recreate to the extent "the unspoken one" or whatever he refer to him as does it.  My 6538 he did the dial on is so uniquely different that any printed attempt wont recreate the magic.

  21. New to THIS forum... not new to the rep world...

    in Introduction/Rules/Support

    Posted · Edited by aphillipe

    So with the pick-up of droptopman's 6538 last week (the most amazing watch I've ever worn on my wrist) I have since upgraded to VIP on here to show my support and figured I'd actually introduce myself since I've become more active on here the last few months.  Name is Adam, I live just outside of Portland Oregon here in the beautiful Pacific Northwest.  I've been into reps since I got out of college in 2003 - My first purchases were from a guy in China after stumbling upon his website by chance.  $25 for any rep you wanted - these things were 21j rudimentary pieces that looked the part from about 5 feet out but that was about it.  I LOVED watches, picked up like 10 of these and they held me over until I purchased my first gen Rolex, a GMT II-C shortly after they came out back in 2007.  I wore that thing proudly every single day for a few years including to my wedding but then regretfully parted with it shortly after.  I decided to prove to her after we got settled in that paying off student loans was more important than acquiring "stuff".... We had about $200k in combined student loan debt so that watch was the first domino in what would take us almost 4 years to achieve.  Looking back, it put such a small dent in the actual total but was symbolic in a way, as it said sacrifices must be made to get out of this hole we are in due to our degrees and career paths.  Speaking of which, I'm a MBA grad and have about 11.5 years of experience now in the medical sales niche.  I've done everything from rehab equipment in physical/sports therapy, to surgical instruments in the operating room. My current home though is with a fantastic company catering to the diabetic community. After selling off my GMT II-C, I began searching for a rep worthy of my wrist after wearing the gen.  I stumbled upon one of the forums, and BK in particular and the rest is history.  His GMT was amazing and helped ease the regret of selling my own.

     

    Fast forward to the last few years and I've always had a full watch box but sold off most everything I owned more recently to collect vintage Rolex exclusively.  I'm not sure what it is about watches that are old (or are made to look the part), but I love how each one can age differently and be appreciated for what it is, and not what it isn't.  I'm having to part with quite a few of my builds to recoup money from the 6538, but after wearing this watch and seeing how special gen parts are on a vintage piece, my attitude is continuing to shift. My 5 year goal is to (of course) keep this 6538, and add a 1981 5513 and a 1981 1675 (birth year) and potentially build a gen-spec 6542 albino if I can source a good base dial or have one made.  I think those two watches, with the 6538 and a 6542 would make for an amazing collection to hold onto.  Will I ever stop purchasing/building reps?  Definitely not.  The journey to completing one is too much fun as is the research that goes into it. Do I want some gens though that will appreciate in value and can be held onto for decades?  Definitely!

     

    Outside of my watch obsession (it's about to get REAL nerdy here)... I LOVE board games and online gaming (particularly the Battlefield franchise).  Euro games that require serious strategy really stimulate me. Many know Catan, but go further and look up "Twilight Struggle", and "Castles of Burgundy", and you will get the idea.  I also love good whiskey, cigars, and getting out on our boat or just being active in the beautiful outdoors here in Oregon.  My wife and I don't have kids quite yet, but are looking to start sooner than later as we're both 34 and the clock is ticking. 

     

    I LOVE this forum in particular for unique reasons over the others that are out there that I also wander around on.  People on here take their builds to a another level.  There's many talented folks on here that do amazing work and create works of art.  I feel the members on here also appreciate those finished products in a different way than your basic user that's online trying to find "the best sub".  Thanks for letting me participate and keep posting your build threads as they inspire me to want to do more with my own!
     

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