No-Date Sub Experiment - Final Installment

[jmb]

After "constructing" a "Maxi" no-date dial the regular hands just looked, well, sorta lonesome! Redwatch came to my rescue (Thanks, S!) with a 2836 and matching set of "Maxi Hands", while Ubi chipped in a 2836 stem to complete this Rolex version of "Mulligan Stew"!

Here's what we got so far:

1 - Cheap no-date Submariner

2 - Submariner LV dials to rob maxi markers from

1 - 2836-2 movement w/matching LV hands

1 - Non-SEL band

For those that didn't watch the last episode I removed all of the markers from a no-date dial and replaced them with the markers from a couple LV dials. I had to use two donor dials since there are three rectangular markers on a no-date dial and a "standard" dial only has two. The larger markers fit into the same holes in the no-date dial and after pushing them in I put a dab of epoxy on the back to secure them.

Since this was probably the last time I'll have this apart I also decided to reshape the CGs a bit. They were quite fat and I suppose I could have taken off a bit more but I didn't want to get carried away.

The no-date dial was for an a21j so I amputated the feet and secured the dial to the movement with dial-dots. I then installed the hands and used the original plastic retainer as a temporary fix until I get motivated enough to machine a proper movement spacer. Finally, attaching the crown to the stem and installing it, greasing up the O-rings, and affixing the back to the case completed this journey.

I've had a lot of fun torturing this little budget-beater sub, but unfortunately I think I've had too much fun with it! It has been apart so many times that I have the bezel retention spring so mangled/twisted up that when put back together the bezel will no longer turn and I've had the crystal in and out experimenting with different thicknesses so many times the gasket is about worn out! Oh well, like I said when I introduced myself last year - I bought a bunch of budget reps to practice on so if I tore something up so what!

What I will probably do, somewhere down the road, is get another case, drill and modify it, then transplant the "guts" into it. Right now, though, this will look just about perfect as a well worn "tool watch" once I bleach the insert. OK, that's one more mod but I swear that's it!

For those who have followed this metamorphosis from start to finish, and offered encouragement, material support, and constructive criticism along the way, I'd like to say "Thank you"!

Here's a few pics of the final product, the last one is a reminder of how it started out. They'll have to be attachments as I'm having some ftp issues right now...

[redwatch]

Looks awesome J!!! The hands really compliment the look! Glad they arrived safe and sound!

[hiker01]

Love it! Is that the same batch dial we got last time?

[jmb]

Red, yeah and it is really easy to read in the dark once charged up - thank you so much! The lume on the hands you sent is outstanding so I'm gonna have to try some of the Glow, Inc. lume I just got on the markers so they don't look so wimpy.

Hike, yes it's from the same source, but I just used the base dial and then replaced all of the markers with markers from LV dials from same source.

[TeeJay]

That's looking nice Nothing beats a little custom work

[jmb]

T, Yeah, this one is pretty much custom all the way and will never even come close to passing off as "real" but that wasn't the point. Perhaps I'll try to remove the coronet and "Rolex" from the dial and add something else? I just figured it'd be neat to have a no-date that was easy to read without my specs on! I also wanted to experiment with removing and installing the markers so I got a lot of my objectives accomplished with two, actually, left - machining a movement spacer/ring and "lightly aging" the insert...

I want to add just a bit of fading to the insert so that it will look a few years old so as to lend legitimacy to the nicks, dents, gouges, etc. produced by being clamped in a vise, filed and drilled on, etc.! I'd rather the watch look well-worn and several years old then me look like a ham-handed careless twit!

I have a "nekkid" date dial, you want it for a future project?

[TeeJay]

T, Yeah, this one is pretty much custom all the way and will never even come close to passing off as "real" but that wasn't the point. Perhaps I'll try to remove the coronet and "Rolex" from the dial and add something else? I just figured it'd be neat to have a no-date that was easy to read without my specs on! I also wanted to experiment with removing and installing the markers so I got a lot of my objectives accomplished with two, actually, left - machining a movement spacer/ring and "lightly aging" the insert...

I want to add just a bit of fading to the insert so that it will look a few years old so as to lend legitimacy to the nicks, dents, gouges, etc. produced by being clamped in a vise, filed and drilled on, etc.! I'd rather the watch look well-worn and several years old then me look like a ham-handed careless twit!

I have a "nekkid" date dial, you want it for a future project?

Bro, you say that it would never pass as real, and with someone who 'knows their Rolexes', I'd agree... However... I bet most members of the public would accept it as a genuine Rolex if presented as such, as it looks really nice and very 'consistent to itself' You could always try and sterilize the dial, but I think that would take away from the custom/trick nature of what it actually is, and that's a damn nice project A little light buffing with a nail file should put the right amount of fade to the insert Thanks for the offer of the dial, but I'll have to pass, simply because I seem to have a nightmare getting datewheels and datewindows to align when I get building, which is why all my major projects have been no-dates The only exception being one of my Tudors, which might require the movement servicing, rather than replacing, just so the alignment is still good Very much appreciated though, many thanks

[aeromatic]

Smokin!

who says that projects have to be ultra-expensive! great work! im working on a red sub custom which involves doing away with the mag-lum crystal and getting george to machine me a high dome tropic 19 style glass, and recasing it in a trusty comex (new series vintage case)

[jmb]

Thanks, T, yeah, I'll probably leave it pretty much the way it is I suppose.

Aero, sounds like an interesting project. I recently sorta did something a little bit like that - how's that for a convoluted sentence! I used a "modern" style case, glued in a Clarks T19, drilled holes, beat it up, stuck on a riveted band, and used a red Sub dial. It looks something like this:

[TeeJay]

Thanks, T, yeah, I'll probably leave it pretty much the way it is I suppose.

Any time, bro As above, it's 'consistent to itself', in that all the parts are from the same era, so nothing really looks out of place

That's absolutely awesome as well

[Jack1024]

Actually this is the best no-date rep I've seen of the current generation. No it won't pass for a gen at the AD, but certainly all the details are there. (non-sels, drilled lugs, nice dial, etc.)

Nice work.

J

[jmb]

Thanks, Jack. It probably would have looked a lot more "correct" if I would have left the original markers on the dial, but that wasn't the point of this exercise as this was a continuation of a learning experience. I really like the easy to read dial and this will likely become my daily beater/shop watch.