Aging the bezel inserts.. 1680,1665's

[lanikai]

Been there, JUST done that with the insert on my DRSD 1665 project doooh

and i have a singer dial on the way - how smart is this (hitting my self)

Anyone have a 1665 insert they would sell.....pleeeeeaasee

FTnWE

M.. go to ebay and get a Clarks for 12 usd.. it has the acrylic pearl also.. and is a better fit for the 1665 .. the one that comes with your rep is too con-vexed,.. the Clarks will fit "flatter" like the genuine.. it's about 12 usd.. just got 2 myself for aging..

AC

Lani

[thogaa]

That looks just about right. Did you plunge the whole watch or just the insert?

Here's 3 minutes in straight liquid pool chlorine. Like Lani said, it got much lighter when it hit the air. Next time 2 minutes might be worth a try.

All in all, I'm quite happy with the results. It's very uniform throughout the whole insert. It actually looks slightly darker than what the picture shows.

[marinamm20]

M.. go to ebay and get a Clarks for 12 usd.. it has the acrylic pearl also.. and is a better fit for the 1665 .. the one that comes with your rep is too con-vexed,.. the Clarks will fit "flatter" like the genuine.. it's about 12 usd.. just got 2 myself for aging..

AC

Lani

hi lani

do you have a link - all i finde when searching for Clarks insert, is brake pads for bikecycles - dont think they will fit ;-)

[kbh]

I'll give you another hint Lani. If you flatten the rep insert with a crystal press and the right size dies, the rep insert will snap into place without glue.

[lanikai]

hi lani

do you have a link - all i finde when searching for Clarks insert, is brake pads for bikecycles - dont think they will fit ;-)

go here M >> Clark Watch Parts

@kbh.. I don't use glue for any of the inserts.. they should snap right in.

AC

Lani

[kbh]

That looks just about right. Did you plunge the whole watch or just the insert?

No! Just the insert. Also the pearl took about 2 to 3 minutes in a toaster oven to come out a perfect match for the aged dial.

[lanikai]

You can also get the correct acrylic from Clark.. fyi

[gavidoc]

To widen an insert, I use a beer bottle.

I have a high grade UV tester at work that we use to "age" our product to see how it holds up. A typical 21 day test is the equivalent of approx. 15 years. I might have to throw an insert in there to see how it does.

KBH, your insert looks really good. Just like my faded real ones. This one was pulled off a 7016 that I picked up in Hong Kong. Parted the watch out but kept the insert. I've got a few others in different states of fading as well but your's looks like this one and my other 7016 one. Both from 1968.

[kbh]

You can also get the correct acrylic from Clark.. fyi

I'm not sure if this was directed to me but just for information, mine is a Clark crystal.

[kbh]

To widen an insert, I use a beer bottle.

KBH, your insert looks really good. Just like my faded real ones. This one was pulled off a 7016 that I picked up in Hong Kong. Parted the watch out but kept the insert. I've got a few others in different states of fading as well but your's looks like this one and my other 7016 one. Both from 1968.

Thanks, that makes me feel good. Appreciate it!

[Pre V]

Hey Lani, I really like how your colouration turned out on the bezels.

Wanting to experiment and came across Ubi's post from years back on his trials with concoction with Bleach + Salt.

Needless to say, the Bleach I had on hand was too strong it stripped off the black paint and silver indices on many of my bezels.

Here's my overly-done, not really what I was wanting to achieve Silverish Metallic effect --- last usable one on my MDub DRSD. Was wanting to order from Wholesaleoutlet but they ain't shipping to Asia regions....bummer.

[lanikai]

Hey Lani, I really like how your colouration turned out on the bezels.

Wanting to experiment and came across Ubi's post from years back on his trials with concoction with Bleach + Salt.

Needless to say, the Bleach I had on hand was too strong it stripped off the black paint and silver indices on many of my bezels.

Here's my overly-done, not really what I was wanting to achieve Silverish Metallic effect --- last usable one on my MDub DRSD. Was wanting to order from Wholesaleoutlet but they ain't shipping to Asia regions....bummer.

your kidding me.. that is the metallic effect that I'm looking for.. that looks like the genuine on my friends 1665 and 1680 ... that is sweet A .. I ordered some vintage bezels from Clarks.. a new item on his site.. looks good and for 12 or 13 usd not bad.. wholesale outlet is 35 usd and I think clark looks better..with the acrylic pearl too..

but let me know if you need help ordering WSO or clark.. I can ship them to you from Hawaii..

lemme see how this last one is coming along .. I'll fish it outta the solution and take a pic.. psot in a bit..

AC/R

[Pre V]

your kidding me.. that is the metallic effect that I'm looking for.. that looks like the genuine on my friends 1665 and 1680 ... that is sweet A .. I ordered some vintage bezels from Clarks.. a new item on his site.. looks good and for 12 or 13 usd not bad.. wholesale outlet is 35 usd and I think clark looks better..with the acrylic pearl too..

but let me know if you need help ordering WSO or clark.. I can ship them to you from Hawaii..

lemme see how this last one is coming along .. I'll fish it outta the solution and take a pic.. psot in a bit..

AC/R

Seriously? Are you really wanting to achieve this effect?? My concoction consists of: A Cup with 50% Bleach + 50% Water (H2O) + 1 teaspoon of salt

I felt that mine was way too light, and the whole chemical reaction just escalated once I poured a tat of boiling water into the cup.

I had 2 MBW Inserts turned all chocolate brown before fading/corroding to a total metallic finish till the numerals were invisible (before I can fish them out fast enough)

Will order Clark's inserts and try out liquid chlorine --- kbh's effect is what I hope I can achieve too.

Here's another pic under natural light....I still feel that the metallic look is too faded....perhaps, I am not used to it...

Some quick-dirty freshly taken pics with flash:

Now if you look at the insert below, the numerals on the insert actually was invisible. What I did was get some Blue Nail Polish and applied on the whole insert. After it dried, I used Nail Polish Remover - Acetone and slowly work on the insert, leaving some baby-bluish paint on the numbers. This just happened out of curiosity, and last I remembered was that Project-X Rolex was actually offering a similar Sub or Explorer with such similar bluish colour.

[lanikai]

This is a Yuki's insert.. it's been slow cooking for about 2 weeks now, it's coming along.. still a little more black to be removed.. I think I need to bet past all the paint to get the metallic look.. this Yuki's is more stubborn than wholesaleoutlet insert.. that one is a breeze..cheaper made I guess..

Actuall PreV.. if it was just a bit less it would be perfect.. ok.. thanks for that.. now I know it has to go past the light grey and get just before all the paint is dissolves.. with a hint of paint left it should be perfect.. so after the grey.. really dillute the solution so maybe another 2 to 3 weeks worth of immersion ..

I'll take this past grey and see where it leads

[Nanuq]

Lani, you know the photo I posted of mine where the insert is blueish and the dial is going tropical? That's the original MBW insert from 12 years ago, and I soaked it in straight bleach, the strongest stuff I could find, for 30 minutes, then 45 minutes, then for an hour, then another hour. Then massive heat with the strongest sea salt solution I could saturate, and extremely harsh direct sunlight. I'm happy but I'd like to reduce the blue tint just a little.

[Pre V]

Lani, thanks for the update on your Yuki insert. It's really coming out nicely! Can't wait to see the final outcome.

2 months back, I started aging a gen 5513 insert under direct sunlight (12 hours/day), and it turned out more Bluish than the Faded Grey which I hope to achieved.

[billodavio]

Hi guys,

I have been trying to give an antique look to my Vacheron white dial (wanted to make it yellowish) and I was about to use the fume of a cigarette to do that job, when my friend, a jeweller instructed me to do the following: tramp the dial in yougurt (yes) and to cover it in a cotton towel then to keep it in a dark place for 2 day. Then the dial had a great antique look with fading and yellowish look evenly distributed. Apparently that was the good job of the bacteria within the yogurt. Maybe the same can do the job for your project / regards

[lanikai]

Lani, thanks for the update on your Yuki insert. It's really coming out nicely! Can't wait to see the final outcome.

2 months back, I started aging a gen 5513 insert under direct sunlight (12 hours/day), and it turned out more Bluish than the Faded Grey which I hope to achieved.

that blue is also a good match A. ..

I really would like to get it to the silverfish gray though .. but this also looks really good.. wonder how it would do in a bowl of sea salt in the sun??.. good thing you guy's are here to share these concoctions with.. I dont think anyone else would really appreciate it..

[lanikai]

OK Gents... I think "we" have a winner.. I say we because, all of the input in this thread is what lead to what appears to be success in the final stage of aging, my Yuki insert, right now it has a nice light silver metallic hue to it.. a week or two more and hopefully it will resemble a genuine aged insert..

I will post pics this week of what it looks like now.. probably tomorrow.. I don't wanna upset what is going on with it now.. but it has been a combination of methods that was used in this, the final stage of aging..looks great :thumbsupsmileyanim:

AC/Lani

[thogaa]

I used chlorine about 3x3mins for my vint sub. Worked out well i think

First I tried with 20 mins on the bezel insert of my vint osm300. It went FUBAR

(Andrew has has helped and is shipping me an insert)

My latest chlorine job - this one turned out just about right for me

[redwatch]

Hi guys,

I have been trying to give an antique look to my Vacheron white dial (wanted to make it yellowish) and I was about to use the fume of a cigarette to do that job, when my friend, a jeweller instructed me to do the following: tramp the dial in yougurt (yes) and to cover it in a cotton towel then to keep it in a dark place for 2 day. Then the dial had a great antique look with fading and yellowish look evenly distributed. Apparently that was the good job of the bacteria within the yogurt. Maybe the same can do the job for your project / regards

That's a quite intriguing concept billo! Thanks for sharing that!

[lanikai]

I used chlorine about 3x3mins for my vint sub. Worked out well i think

First I tried with 20 mins on the bezel insert of my vint osm300. It went FUBAR

(Andrew has has helped and is shipping me an insert)

My latest chlorine job - this one turned out just about right for me

I like the second pic.. that looks good ... my goal is to get it to that point but retain the metallic sparkle.. almost there with my Yukis insert .... in the sun it has a nice metallic look to it.. still needs a little more fading.. I may stop the process and let it go the rest of the way naturally with just wear.. the way I'm doing this one takes about 2 months.