cheap fix for a puretime 1680 bezel

[what2]

I picked up a puretime 1680 a while back, messed up the hands.. fixed that, then the crown would not lock in, justasgood fixed that for me. Then we come to the bezel, and the ^*(%(* white plastic ring that holds the bezel on and the crystal too I guess. I could not get it all back together right, justasgood could not do it.. started to look around for something else to use. I planned on setting the crystal with epoxy so I did not have to worry about holding it on.

Came across some tiny rubber bands that my wife uses for my 5 year old daughters hair. The barely fit on my pinky and are about 1mm in size. I put a blue one on first and stuck on the bezel.. and perfect; the bezel fit tight and turned with just the right amount of resistance, unfortunately the crystal had a blue tint from the rubber band. Dug through the big box of rubber bands and saw one that was kind of a faded yellow. Bam that was the ticket, the crystal took on a slightly yellow tone from the rubber band and the bezel works great.

crappy pictures but you get the idea, can hardly notice the bubbles in the dial from my baking it for 45 minutes... I think the insert could use a bit more bleach. I also have a gen crown coming in the next day or two.

[mjmj]

Great Job! Thanks for the tip

[Dizzy]

Interesting tip... I am going to try the same thing right now using an old caseback o-ring..

[what2]

My first idea was an o-ring... it was too big. I found that unless the band was very tight against the side of the crystal the bezel would not seat flush against the case.. which was the problem I had with the original white plastic ring to start with.

[Dizzy]

I used a thin o-ring that fit just snug around the base of the crystal retention ring. Worked PERFECT. The bezel is night and tight now and even harder to pry off than before. I think i might have found a permenant solution. I tried dental floss before but it only worked for a few days. This solution seems much better.

[Rolexious]

Sounds like a great idea because my bezel spins way too freely. Only problem is that rubber bands will dry out and get brittle. Should be good for a few months anyway.

[Dizzy]

That was the problem with mine.. the bezel would snap on but was way too loose. Now its tight. If you put a little silicone grease on the o-ring before install then it wont dry out. I put a very small amount on mine but i might pop it off and put a little more on to find tune it so it turns with the right amount of tension.

Overall i think this was a great solution! Thanks for the tip what2!!

cheers

dizz

[what2]

my best ideas generally come when I am trying to fix something I screwed up...

[Dizzy]

lol

[Dizzy]

When i used the o-ring to tighten my bezel i wasnt using it on one of these puretime cases. I was doing it to simply add resistance to the turning motion. Now i have a PT 1680 and i see what you guys mean by this plastic gasket thing. I snapped on an aftermarket t-19 and its nice and tight. I just need something to hold on the retention ring now. I'll try this method above and see if it works.