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Ok - So I had a summarized build-thread already, but it was lengthy and I wanted to start fresh with a new post, as I am now calling the watch finished. Since the last post I have swapped the hands and added a genuine clasp to the bracelet. Special thanks again to Dbane, NeckyZips, MillerDave and Yuki as well as other members I picked up various odds and ends from. Many thanks to the community over-all for the insight, wisdom and motivation to build this. Spec's 1680 style sterile case - transformed by Dbane with gorgeous bevels and finish-work. I drilled out the lug-holes myself, but they needed some extra help, as did everything else. Spot-on mid-case engraving done by Neckyzips. Genuine 5512 Caseback - sourced from VRF - with Genuine OEM Rolex 5513 case-back sticker from eBay/Germany applied. Genuine Rolex T-19 Plexi Genuine 55xx hands - steel, sourced on eBay, relumed by Big Dazza. Replaced gilt/bright gold hands in favor of these. Genuine Rolex 700 Crown and Tube Genuine Rolex cal.1520 movement, completely rebuilt with new (genuine) auto-rotor and main-spring by master watchmaker Genuine Clasp mounted to rep Rivet Oyster Bracelet (StoneP sourced) - have genuine spring-bars and 2 other straps. Genuine Bezel assembly with aged rep insert sourced from Big Dazza Yuki 5513 Gilt Underline Dial - relumed and aged by Big Dazza, genuine foot-stem positions for a smooth fit This is my first build here - really thrilled with it all together. Here's the link to the original thread and again, these shots were taken with Canon EOS DSLR with 35mm lens. Tuned in Photoshop. For sale, $34,500.00 (clearly, I have no wish to part with it, ha-ha)

1962 “El Corniño” pcg gilt 1675 We watch collectors admire and fantasize over the minute details of vintage timepieces, particularly Rolexes (or Panerai): brownish tropical dials, creamy, puffy lume, yellowed tritium, perfectly faded bezels exposed to harsh seawater and burning suns. We dream of finding that vintage, gilt, tropical 5513 Submariner with some faded caseback engraving of historical significance belonging to a Special Forces or Comex Diver, still stored away in an old metal box. We imagine that gilt dialled 1675 with the faded Pepsi bezel, that belonged to the PAN AM Captain of a Boeing 707 and has been all over the World. Maybe it belonged to an Africa Explorer and Photographer and accompanied him on his solitary National Geographic missions in the beaten up Series II Land Rover: deep into the wild Congo and up the Zambeze to the Victoria Falls, following Livingstone´s epic journey. We imagine us wearing it, dig to discover the story behind that comes with it, visualize all the places it has been to and the events it was present to. On the hard side of real life we also wonder, if it will work at all and possibly worry about the gen parts being truly gen. Than one day RWG comes along, with all the fantastic builds around and, after a while, You realize it might be much simpler to collect some gen parts, maybe get a 1655 rep (there are the 1675 and 16570 options), have it´s caseset reshaped by RolexAddict and everything nicely fitted, so it will be exactly as You wanted it to be. So this is a link to what I was looking for: http://www.rolexforums.com/showthread.php?t=352553 And another: http://www.hqmilton.com/watches/1963-rolex-gmt-1675-pcg-gilt-chapter-ring-dial-with-box-and-papers And a review I used for research and this text: http://www.woundforlife.com/2015/03/13/under-the-loupe-rolex-gmt-master-1675/ And after seemingly endless reading, researching, digging, dreaming, hoping, with some luck and persistance “Never give up, never surrender” this is what I gotJ: The argentinian 1962 “El Corniño” pcg gilt 1675 First let me say, that this is one of the most iconic and beautiful watches I have ever owned. Not just any 1675. Between all of the variations GMT-Master, it´s this early successor of the bakelite- bezeled reference 6542, that speaks to me the most. It has been a grail watch for a long time, so sometimes You just have to walk that extra mile to get it. First introduced in 1959, this is the pcg, gilt 1675. Nicknamed the “El Corniño” by collectors for its horn-like appearance (from El Corno in Spanish meaning the horn or the Bull´s horn, with the diminutive added “Little Horn” like Little Bighorn, Custer´s Last Stand) it features a curved profile that points towards the crown. The Corniño lasted only from 1959 to 1965/1966, making it a rarity in today’s market, while the 1675 would be produced for 21 years until 1980, a testament to its real world functionality and timeless design. The combination of blue, red and gold against the black, discontinued, Yuki gilt dial works amazingly well. RA´s caseset reshaping is just fantastic. The drilled lugholes add to the flair and with the beautifully, naturally faded gen Pepsi-insert/gen GMT bezel assembly/gen plexi/gen crown, it looks truly as if it aged magnificently. If I was a one watch guy this would be it. I´ll let the pictures speak for themselves. Plexiglass with cyclops and black hole effect 5.3mm twinlock crown Aged, yellowed dwo Small, red GMT hour hand GMT bezel assembly (necessary on the 1655) faded, semi-ghost Pepsi insert Drilled lugholes, gen-spec lugbars Gold (gilt) dial imprints, no hyphen between OYSTER PERPETUAL, even earlier issues of the 1675 had the rare OCC (OFFICIAL CERTIFIED CHRONOMETER) lettering, while this 1962 issue reads SUPERLATIVE CHRONOMETER OFFICIALLY CERTIFIED, the SWISS <T25 instead of SWISS only makes it looking like an early argentinian issue Calibre 1565 (stamped 1560 with added GMT function); this had to be replaced by a 2836-2 with GMT function, contrary to gen the GMT hand can be set independently being more functional Correct handstack for the 1675 Flat caseback 7836 stamped folded bracelet with 358 end links (this would belong to a 1969 GMT 1675 from my research). On the hunt for a 62510 Jubilee, the 62510H/550 would fit as well. For all those wondering: Is it worth it? Yes, just do it, You will be amazed. It´s not for the faint-hearted, nor for those in a hurry, it´s very rewarding once You´ve got it. Someway it took me 2 years to get here. Thanks all for reading and thanks to past and present members for reviews, hints and tips, pictures and the history of it:)

About a year ago, I bought something from someone on ebay which started me on a journey… I think I bought a strap or something equally mundane but the seller asked if I would be interested in any other watch related parts as he was selling some stuff from his late father who was a watch enthusiast, collector and amateur, but skilled watch smith. One of the many things he offered me was “an old broken Tudor watch”. When I got the bad pictures the case wear looked good, the dial was a very poor copy which was worrying, the crown was not in the movement and the case was “not openable” so it was not possible to know what the movement was or if it worked, if the tube was good or the crown itself. He was selling it “as is” but it came with a bracelet that appeared to be a gen early pre 7206 rivet which could be correct to the case. It was fairly cheap, not super cheap but I thought in the worst case the bracelet alone should almost make me my money back. This is what I got… A very early PCG Tudor GIlt Sub... everything seems to be gen, the crown, tube, super domed plexi, case, caseback, insert (prob a later one), the bezel had a bad repair when I took it off but it appears to be gen (but I am not 100% sure there) and not only was the movement a gen 390 but it runs perfectly and even the hands appear to be gen gilt period, all be it lumed very very badly. The dial however was trash… so I started a hunt for an early gen gilt Tudor dial. After months of looking and WTBs I gave up on the gilt dial, I considered buying a rep… only Phong and MQ make decent ones, with MQ being the only real really close “true gilt” one but even that has inaccuracies and was something like 800USD. A few weeks ago I managed to find another early Tudor dial with great patina. Not correct to this watch but I figure a gen dial is far better in this case than a rep one. (debate begins on that point). Here are some pics which were a joy to take… the dirt, the wear, the little repairs, the honesty in the case is really nice to see. If anyone has any clues on those case back engravings (military?) please let me know. I hope you enjoy them... Case Case back Bezel Dial So the build begins…

Hello all! So very excited to be on my way to being a full-fledged member of the community by doing my first 5513 build. This is my first "franken" and first build, so I've taken some time to source the parts, talked to a LOT of members (thank you all) and hopefully sourced the right parts. I had a local member "TheMillerDave" help me with many things, including the movement and case, he's a terrific guy and a great resource. Many other members helped me source gen parts too, including Whoopy, Jerkstore, Cubeians, and I'm probably leaving someone out. What I've got here is Yuki (baked) 5513 2 liner underline, gilt with hands MillerDave PCG case and case-back. Probably will try to source gen case & back still from another friend genuine insert and bezel components genuine 1520 movement genuine twinlock 700 crown, rep tube rep plastic dome crystal, one period correct, one 1665 in case I like it better "BK" Rolex 78790 Bracelet, Clasp code AB9 until correct gen bracelet sourced genuine 2mm fat spring-bars I've found holding my loop up to the iPhone and taking pictures results in pretty good macro shots. I feel a little gilty about spending all this money, but hey, it's a hobby Be kind, it's my first try! More shots and macro-shots to come as build progresses but here's a few just to get us started

So I did a bit of aging to my insert on the 5513. I used a dremel tool "fine-detail abrasive brush" then polished it a bit. These are ultra high res pics taken with a Canon DSLR so it really shows everything. I took an iphone shot as well. Less harsh looking in person, and I'm happy with it, the black gloss of the insert is gone, it's a little barked up - and now looks the business of a 50+ year old watch. Tell me what you think please!

I have an interesting project in the works right now, and I was wondering if anyone has the dimensions of a Rolex 5512/13 w/ pointed crown guards... or a gen/phong case to measure? I need every dimension of the mid-case and crown. Also, the dimensions of a Helenarou 6538 bezel [notches] would be very useful. Thanks everyone!