dluddy Posted December 9, 2009 Report Share Posted December 9, 2009 Jut got this back from it's final stop and couldn't be more pleased with the results and it's journey is worth telling This is one of the famous 4th Generation ETA Pumpkin Planet Oceans (42MM). This one has had quite the journey but it is indicative of the spirit of RWG. The first upgrade I planned was a Chief Double AR of the crystal. Shipped it off only to have the crystal get lost in the process of being returned by Chief. What did he do, he replaced it with a Genuine crystal - now that is customer service A very generous forum friend (you might recognize the countertop) then completed phase 1 which included his ingenious pearl upgrade. The results were great and I was pleased. But, then I went hiking and while climbing through some caves, I scratched the bezel insert - Start: On to phase two which he so generously agreed to do the work - parts from ofrei: Gen Dial Gen Bezel ETA DW (left over from a PAM Lello DW swap) A little snag along the way with the fitment of the gen bezel. Nothing is exact in the rep world as we know and the Gen bezel was a tad too snug to fit. I guess no two 4th Gen PO's are the same and it is hit or miss with the gen part fitments sometimes. But.... We have another forum friend with a new lathe up yonder.... So, off it went to Canada. Just got it back and am pretty impressed Special thanks to Chieftang, Ubiquitous and Ziggy for making this Franken come true Ubi was right about the Gen Bezel - it is a huge improvement Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickey Padge Posted December 9, 2009 Report Share Posted December 9, 2009 WOW, stunning, as genuine as a PO rep could possibly ever look! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FROGMAN Posted December 9, 2009 Report Share Posted December 9, 2009 That is awesome! I'm really thinking about buying a GEN PO....great job on this....would be very hard to get called out on that one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rosnik Posted December 9, 2009 Report Share Posted December 9, 2009 very nice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coolfire Posted December 10, 2009 Report Share Posted December 10, 2009 Very sweet! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
By-Tor Posted December 10, 2009 Report Share Posted December 10, 2009 Excellent! It's just mind blowing how much nicer the 42mm version is. Especially on a bracelet. Enjoy this awesome franken D! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danza1812 Posted December 10, 2009 Report Share Posted December 10, 2009 4th gens are so hard to find these days! I am about to do an orange franken effort on another 45mm UPO to match my Black/white franken, thanks for the inspiration! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Demsey Posted December 13, 2009 Report Share Posted December 13, 2009 Nice watch. Great journey. Good tale. I dunno D, if I had scratched that insert taking out the garbage? I would have prolly swapped it. But spelunking!? Cool! Sometimes you have to ask yourself; WWND? (What Would 'Nanuq' Do?) The other week pulling Grouper out of the Atlantic with my kids, the sash weight on a Bandit reel swung in and crashed all hell out of my Josh Sub insert. Two years ago I would have been online to Watchmaterial.com stat. Now? It got a big "OH YEAH! BABY!" I used to wonder why Bob would revel in his beautiful gens taking the brunt; 1. They are tool watches. Wilsdorf would be proud 2) Every scratch a memory. I'm working on my 'wristwatch philosophy'. Wear your PO in good health! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoJo35 Posted December 17, 2009 Report Share Posted December 17, 2009 Wow, how did I miss this? Beautiful job D! Wear in good health Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lanikai Posted December 17, 2009 Report Share Posted December 17, 2009 Another great story for the annals of RWG.. Congrats.. that piece means more than any genuine now.. AC/Lani Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Utheman Posted December 18, 2009 Report Share Posted December 18, 2009 Wow, very nice! I didn't like the orange version much, but this one would make me change my mind. Congrats ww Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andreww Posted December 18, 2009 Report Share Posted December 18, 2009 Beautiful 42mm mate! Much nicer than an UPO IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asmo Posted December 22, 2009 Report Share Posted December 22, 2009 Much nicer than an UPO GASP ! Sacrilege !!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmedude Posted January 3, 2010 Report Share Posted January 3, 2010 Wow, very nice! I didn't like the orange version much, but this one would make me change my mind. Congrats ww I never appreciated the orange bezel either until I joined this forum. Still anxiously awaiting my PAM so that I could move on to a PO for my next project :-D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted January 3, 2010 Report Share Posted January 3, 2010 Glad to see that your PO has made it home with the final installment of the facelift completed Looks great with the bezel finally fitted! Thanks for letting me assist in your project, buddy. These are always a lot of fun to put together! Cheers, //ubi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OSRep Posted January 4, 2010 Report Share Posted January 4, 2010 Its all been said, but WOW!! Good to know that there are people in here who will help you out Absolutely gorgeous watch - I LOVE the PO......Congrats. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eton Posted January 4, 2010 Report Share Posted January 4, 2010 Superb, great pics!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
haveblue Posted January 7, 2010 Report Share Posted January 7, 2010 d, that 42 franken is absolutely amazing!...especially the transformation process! i've been away for about a year and now come back and see this!....stunning! wear it in good health! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxquillen Posted January 23, 2010 Report Share Posted January 23, 2010 Not trying to hijack this thread, but I'd like some clarification. Is it safe to assume the 42mm PO, Asian movement that I just got from Narikaa in November is 4th generation? I like the watch, and for the money I don't mind that it's not right on with the gen. One of the weaknesses that I've noticed is the crown and crown tube. Will this accept a gen crown/crown tube, or are we referring just to the ETA 2824 versions of the watch. I expect to get a reasonable life out of the movement, but when and if it does fail, is it easiest just to replace with another Asian movement or is it possible to change to an ETA movement, which would probably require a different handset. I'm trying to understand which modding applies to which version of the 42mm PO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted January 25, 2010 Report Share Posted January 25, 2010 The 4th generation watch is based upon a very specific case; the easiest way to identify are 1) The position of the He Valve (slightly above 10:00, as per the genuine) and 2) The coin edged bezel. This is the only model that I've found that will easily accept genuine parts as the dimensions and size are on par with it's genuine counterpart. In dluddy's particular instance however, the genuine bezel would not fit as a 1:1 replacement, thus requiring slight machining to faciltate fit; on my case, the complete bezel assembly was a direct swap and snapped on without any additional work required. Here is what a later 4th gen looks like out of the box: Note the location of the He Valve along with the shape of the bezel edge. After modification: The 42mm PO from Narikaa is a slight bit different; the diameter of the crystal, bezel and dial are all a bit larger than gen, and therefore those parts will not be a direct exchange. Regarding the crown; I believe that this is the one item that is not a 1:1 swap with any of the models as the tube is slightly too small for the case. Most people epoxy their crown tubes in, and some have gone so far as to laser weld it in. I myself have been looking for a solution that requires neither glue nor weld, but rather a metal sleeve to allow for a press fit. I haven't gotten around to it just yet, however... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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