jmb Posted February 28, 2010 Report Share Posted February 28, 2010 I have loved my "community" Prince Date Chrono since I got it put together and I've found myself wearing it more and more. Kurt went above and beyond the call and mailed me a gen Tudor Trip-Lock crown and tube set! After helping my youngest finish the 24k mile service on his BMW R1200ST this evening I wandered out to the shop and proceeded to tear apart my "pride and joy". After I de-cased the movement and removed the old tube I tried the gen tube and it would not even start so I dug the proper tap out of the toolbox. The amount of chips produced by the tap indicated to me that the original hole had a completely different thread, smaller diameter, or both. After running the tap through a few times, and cleaning out the swarf, I trial fitted the tube and found it stood rather proud of the case. Looking at the tube under magnification revealed a tapered portion at the top of the threaded portion so I put a shallow countersink on the crown tube hole in the case. After doing this I could screw the tube all the way in so I then applied thread locker, screwed in the new tube, and then greased all of the O-rings and installed them into the tube. The final thing was to install the new crown onto the stem after removing the old crown. I tried to unscrew it but it wouldn't budge and I didn't want to risk snapping the stem. I had originally installed the crown using blue Loc-Tite so I can verify it does it's job well! I had to heat the stem to break the thread-locker bond then I was able to unscrew the two pieces. I then screwed the gen crown onto the existing stem and, to my surprise, found the stem length did not have to be altered as it fit perfectly. Below are a few pics of the finished product with a "before" pic for comparison. Before, with rep Rolex crown: After, with gen Tudor crown: I didn't realize that such a small detail would be noticeable but I can now see why people always seem to want to change to a gen crown. Thanks for looking and thanks go again to Kurt, Ubi, and Lani for making this project a reality. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
By-Tor Posted February 28, 2010 Report Share Posted February 28, 2010 That is exactly what you said: Small but very nice addition. This kind of details are exactly what we watch enthusiasts love. PS: That's a lovely Tudor chrono. Justasgood pm'd photos of his blue version. Great watches. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmb Posted February 28, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2010 Thanks, BT. Yeah, I love his blue one. I saw a blue dial w/hands on flea-bay the other day and it didn't last very long - I was very tempted but it cost more than I have paid for any complete watch and while I waffled about it somebody snagged it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dluddy Posted February 28, 2010 Report Share Posted February 28, 2010 Icing on the Tudor cake right there Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shultz Posted February 28, 2010 Report Share Posted February 28, 2010 Very good addition. Now the lugs need to be drilled and your Franken will come very close to the real deal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gplracer Posted February 28, 2010 Report Share Posted February 28, 2010 Very nice JMB I love reading these types of post where the process is stated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TeeJay Posted February 28, 2010 Report Share Posted February 28, 2010 Very nice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justasgood Posted February 28, 2010 Report Share Posted February 28, 2010 J, Nice Work! I love that dial combo. Your help with the compression rings was far more valuable to me. Thanks for all you've done and enjoy that very nice watch, Kurt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmb Posted February 28, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2010 shultz, yes, I do need to do that but I may wait until I can find a source for end-links that have a "tube" that will accommodate the larger spring bars. When I drill these out at least every other one will become unsoldered from the link. gpl, no problem - I like reading what kind of things people run into as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justasgood Posted February 28, 2010 Report Share Posted February 28, 2010 shultz, yes, I do need to do that but I may wait until I can find a source for end-links that have a "tube" that will accommodate the larger spring bars. When I drill these out at least every other one will become unsoldered from the link. gpl, no problem - I like reading what kind of things people run into as well. Hey J, the spring bars on this version of the Chrono aren't 2mm bars. It is a standard hole size so don't drill them like a sub. I'll put the caliper to mine to see if I can determine the size. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shultz Posted February 28, 2010 Report Share Posted February 28, 2010 Hey J, the spring bars on this version of the Chrono aren't 2mm bars. It is a standard hole size so don't drill them like a sub. I'll put the caliper to mine to see if I can determine the size. Yes, you are right. The lug holes on the Tudor chronos are not as tight as on (early) subs. But I can imagine that will be a challenging job to drill the lugs Will cost a couple of drill bits.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmb Posted February 28, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2010 As soon as "we" come up with a diameter I'll drill 'em. Are y'all saying that even though there are holes a "standard" spring bar is used? If that's the deal I can just poke some holes about half way through the lug since the ends of the spring bars won't be showing and that way I won't disturb the holes on the inside of the lug where the spring bars actually locates into. This is sounding almost too easy... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redwatch Posted February 28, 2010 Report Share Posted February 28, 2010 Looks awesome J! More upgrade parts are on their way to you (but for another project ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmb Posted March 1, 2010 Author Report Share Posted March 1, 2010 red, Cool! I found a crystal in the junkbox that had the cyclops a lot closer to the edge and was going to put it on the Tudor until I was cleaning it and found a "coronet" etched on it! Does anybody know if these A7750 Daytona cases will take a gen (or aftermarket sapphire as gen replacement) crystal? I routinely see them on flea-bay for not a whole lot of money... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted March 1, 2010 Report Share Posted March 1, 2010 Looking sharp, J!! It's the little details that really make for the greatest of differences! Well done, and looking great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tribal Posted March 1, 2010 Report Share Posted March 1, 2010 Great looking Tudor Chrono. Love it I can't believe the factorys didn't repped it, it's one of the nicest Chronos I think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmb Posted March 1, 2010 Author Report Share Posted March 1, 2010 I agree that it should be repped, all the parts are "off-the-shelf" except for the dial and that should be rather easy... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shultz Posted March 1, 2010 Report Share Posted March 1, 2010 Does anybody know if these A7750 Daytona cases will take a gen (or aftermarket sapphire as gen replacement) crystal? J - would you do me a favour please and measure the diameter of that coronet crystal? I have flying some crystals around, perhaps one will fit the daytona case. Cheers F. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted March 1, 2010 Report Share Posted March 1, 2010 A Clark's 295C should fit on there without hassle. Cyclops might not align correctly, but the physical fit using the rep gasket should be fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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