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Due to the sudden appearance of a number of '59 'Big Log' 20mm vintage 7206 bracelets on ebay, most of which appear to be coming from Asia (generally, Hong Kong), I think it is safe to assume that this bracelet is now being repped & aftermarket parts sellers (such as NDTrading) are attempting to scam buyers. It strains credulity to think that a half dozen rarely seen bracelets would suddenly flood the market & all coming from the same corner of the world (a corner that has become notorious, in the past year, for repping vintage Rolex bracelets with great accuracy). On the positive side, I would expect these soon to be available through our normal channels at the usual aftermarket prices.

Well here it is... We all know the flaws of the new vintages, but we are starting to figure out the fix's for them. JMB got the retaining ring figured out and this is an easy mod for the datewindow that everyone can do with the right tools. The datewindow on the 1680 dial is way too small and barely lets the font show through and also makes the cyclops appear out of alignment. Mods: Pulled the dial off used very small square file to slowly open the window touched up filed edges with black paint, worked the 5min markers a bit and sprayed dial with matt clearcoat. Its not "perfect" but dont forget this pic is supersized. At normal size with the naked eye, it looks pretty damn good compared to before. The opening is aprox 75% larger than before. I dont have a before pic but you guys will instantly see what i mean. I removed material mostly from the inside edge and some from the bottom to expose more of the font. This is a pic from the website showing how the datewindow is too small and almost covers the font on the left side of the window. Here is my Puretime dial after mods Looks 100x better. It really needed the matt clearcoat to add some texture to the plastic looking finish. This watch just keeps getting better and better. Its actually more fun doing all this work instead of buying an MBW. Swapping a dial is easy, but modding the datewindow and refinishing it adds a sense of pride to the build. I guess if you wanted to get really fancy, you could even bevel the edges of the window to make it perfect, but i didnt want to run the risk of my touchup paint not matching and making a mess of it. Oh and YES the gen/aftermarket dial fit perfect and datewindow aligned bang on. I used the NDtrading dial as an example while i removed material. I suspect all the cyclops alignment issues are caused from the too small and right justified datewindow. Hopefully this fixes all the datewindow issues. Good luck and have fun dizz

Well here it is... Pulled the dial off used very small square file to slowly open the window touched up filed edges with black paint, worked the 5min markers a bit and sprayed dial with matt clearcoat. Its not "perfect" but dont forget this pic is supersized. At normal size with the naked eye, it looks pretty damn good compared to before. The opening is aprox 75% larger than before. I dont have a before pic but you guys will instantly see what i mean. I removed material mostly from the inside edge and some from the bottom to expose more of the font. This is a pic from the website showing how the datewindow is too small and almost covers the font on the left side of the window. Here is my Puretime dial after mods Looks 100x better. It really needed the matt clearcoat to add some texture to the plastic looking finish. This watch just keeps getting better and better. Its actually more fun doing all this work instead of buying an MBW. Swapping a dial is easy, but modding the datewindow and refinishing it adds a sense of pride to the build. I guess if you wanted to get really fancy, you could even bevel the edges of the window to make it perfect, but i didnt want to run the risk of my touchup paint not matching and making a mess of it. cheers dizz [edit - oh and YES the gen/aftermarket dial fit perfect and datewindow aligned. I used the NDtrading dial as an example while i removed material. I suspect all the cyclops alignment issues are caused from the too small and right justified datewindow]

Sorry for necro-post.....but would anyone know if ingod44 dial (26.5mm wide) will fit correctly in Phongs 1655 case set? I believe Phong's dials, like NDTrading dials are 27.3mm. I know both fit the 1570 movement...but it seems that Phong and NDT provide little bit more diameter on the dial edge compared to Ingod's dial...you can even tell by the comparison of the dials. So is the GEN Rolex dial 26.5 like Ingod's....because Ingod seems to refer that he remakes the dial on actual Rolex blank?

Sorry for necro-post.....but would anyone know if ingod44 dial (26.5mm wide) will fit correctly in Phongs 1655 case set? I believe Phong's dials, like NDTrading dials are 27.3mm. I know both fit the 1570 movement...but it seems that Phong and NDT provide little bit more diameter on the dial edge compared to Ingod's dial...you can even tell by the comparison of the dials. So is the GEN Rolex dial 26.5 like Ingod's....because Ingod seems to refer that he remakes the dial on actual Rolex blank?

In lieu of feet, these dials have a flange that runs perpendicular to the dial face which is pressed down around the outer edge of the movement's pillar (main) plate. The dial is held (onto the movement) by friction The dial's form also has a 2nd purpose, which is to hold the datewheel in place. Without the dial fitted, the datewheel would pop off the movement as soon as the date change mechanism trips. In addition to the 6542, early Subs & other 103x-based Rolex dials are made similarly (the dial pictured above is a 1050s DJ). And, yes, NDtrading's dial is made the same way.

If anyone is interested, NDtrading sells a red dial 6542 (I had been considering using this until I received the white 1) (These dials are made to fit a gen 103x movement - they have no feet &, instead, clamp onto the pillar plate, so you cannot mod them for use with another movement unless its dimensions exactly match the 103x's)

I'm no Tudor specialist, but... it doesn't look half bad. It's better than the dials being sold by both Jewelryandwatch and Yukiwatch, and about on par with the NDTrading dial. The only big issue I can detect -other than what looks to be a temporary datewheel- is that there should be a tiny gap between the homeplates and the minute track. I would also be tempted to yellow those indices a bit, though you can find gens with white plates. Colors look a bit odd. Maybe the photo was taken with Josh's camera?

Pics not sufficient to properly qualify the case (but looks similar to most aftermarket cases), but the bracelet is clearly low-end. Were it me, I would stick with DW, Phong, NDtrading or Yuki.

Andy, there was a brief discussion on 1016s a couple of weeks ago. Genuine 1016 cases are very rare, and very dear when they do show up. Yuki is an option, but one that hasn't been tested yet. It looks good in the pictures, but it's hard to gauge the accuracy from the angles the shots were taken. NDTrading has a pricey replacement available. It may also be due to the angles at which the photos were taken, but I think it looks terrible. MBK sells the best out-of-the-box 1016, and it's also a good base for projects (as shown by Lanikai's and crockey's gilt-dial Explorers). The dimensions are a bit off, though. The problem with most of the cheaper (i.e. $250 and lower) 1016 reps is that they're based on old rep Datejusts that are all over the place, dimensionally. You can take a close look at a couple of mine here. One came from Hont, and the other was from Narikaa. Pretty much the same case. That said, I would like to give Silix's ROLS048 a try if I were embarking on another cheapo 1016 project! It looks like a promising base, with more softly-contoured lugs, thicker midsection, and lugholes in roughly the right place. The caseback is very different, though.

Brightlight: My mistake. I just checked eBay and the case I remembered was complete but dented, and sold for $1500. The one you were looking at sounds like a phenomenal deal. If you do decide to go with Yuki, I'd be very interested to know your impressions of the case. It looks good in pictures, unlike the terrible 1016 replacement being sold -for $900!- by NDTrading. Finally, I would like to apologize for raising the price of your dial by an extra five bucks! I also noticed that the day after you won it, the same Hong Kong-based seller had five more with a Buy-It-Now of $111... It looks like a good dial with crisp printing of the text and markers. The numerals are more rounded than is usual, but I've seen gen examples on which the tritium goes pretty much where it pleases. My biggest reservation concerns the '6', which appears to have levitated a bit!

I have been considering getting an aftermarket caseback (Yuki & NDtrading both sell the reasonable facsimiles) & having it engraved with the Pan Am globe, but, 1st things 1st. As I was assembling the Phase II watch, I found that I may need to replace the calendar ring. The only part I did not replace even though the parts list shows a different part number for the GMT is the calendar ring. A couple of watchmakers told me they were virtually interchangeable throughout the 103x series, so I did not replace it. It seems the watchmakers may have been wrong. Trouble is that the GMT calendar wheel (the wheel that drives the date wheel) stands a bit taller than the original 1036 calendar wheel & this causes the date wheel to likewise rise slightly above the top face of the 1036 calendar ring The result of this is that the date wheel rises up above the top of the calendar ring's surface & pops out of its channel. Once I snap the dial onto the pillar, the date wheel, which is sitting up a bit too high, is coming into contact with the underside of the dial, which keeps it from revolving. So I am putting the word out trying to locate the correct GMT calendar ring.

Nice watch.. could you let me know where you got the datewheel? I would swap the insert with something better e.g. NDtrading or Yuki or Andy

Natalie's Passion is NDtrading, but I cannot tell you if a gen insert will fit their 5517 bezel (though, from my experience with some of their other parts, it likely would).

Good Afternoon to the Vintage Rolex experts amoungst you,need some advise if possible. Rebuilding a 1655 from Gen parts but missing the Gen hand set,so need to buy a nice set of replacement hands. Who's are best? NDTrading or does Phong at J&W sell anything better.Or is there another souce someone can put me onto. Appreciate your help Denimhead

Phong, in AZ, is J&W & Natalie, in CA, is NDtrading.

Looks good. You can get a case to fit a gen dial (& movement) from Yuki or NDtrading.

JoJo's NDtrading dial is better than the MBW, but neither is 100% accurate. You should seek out some gen examples to compare both dials to.

PS: Here's a pic of mine. Brand new and never used "NDTrading" dial. PM me if you'd be interested, I can save you a few bucks JJ

If it helps, while I have not handled the final products, I assisted DW with these (they are designed to gen specs), so they should be similar to Yuki's or NDtrading's. They were designed to accept/fit only gen parts (not ETA or standard rep dials).

I believe that all the old MBW 1665's had the same serial number. Other members who have one might want to weigh in on this, but it seems like thats from threads posted several years back. If all the serial numbers are the same, replacing the case wouldn't help. Possibly a earlier dial would be the solution. If you are going to get a case with a unique serial number, I think you would have to go the route of a yuki, NDtrading, etc. I believe that they will engrave a number of your choice on the case.I never considered this a problem, as the serial # is hidden by the end links, and I'm not going to let someone take my bracelet off to look!

Great work on the case. Now get yourself a good dial/handset (NDtrading, Yuki, etc) or, at least, have the hour markers on your dial relumed to tone down the shine.

Welcome to the wonderful world of diy watch construction. At best, replica watch cases are not made to any specific standard of quality. Their dimensions & form are dictated solely by what the factory may have available at any given time. For this reason, it is folly to assume that a gen movement (or any other gen Rolex part) will automatically fit anything other than a gen case (exceptions being a few $650-$2,000 made-to-gen-specs aftermarket cases from the likes of NDtrading, Yuki, etc). And even some of the best made-to-gen-spec cases do not always mate properly with gen parts. Building frankens is much more of an art than a science, meaning that the theory (of what should fit) more often proves to be the exception rather than the rule.

A couple of others come to mind- Natalie over at NDTrading Corp, http://ndtradingcorp.com/zen/ Kinda expensive like Phong, but good selection of vintage rolex parts. Jewelryoutlet555 is the sister company to wholesaleoutlet990, http://myworld.ebay.com/jewelryoutlet555/ Good rolex inserts, but not always the best aftermarket parts- buy w/ caution.

5508's are around. But it may be that you might have to consider spending more money for a franken built from parts from Yuki Watch, NDTrading Corp, or Jewelry and Watch. The economy 5508's from the regular dealers aren't very faithful reps, anyway. But with a little modding they can be fun. Keep looking and hopefully you'll find sommething you like. BTW, Consensus seems to be that the true Bond sub was most likely a 6538.