Finally got my 16610 done

[JoJo35]

Well, it has been a good two years waiting in the parts box, and finally it is all together. A hearty thank you goes out to my good friend the Zigmeister, who took the time to put together this work of art. I'll let you guys guess what it has in it, although I'll start off by saying that it has the movement from my very first MBW newly serviced and purring like a kitten under the hood.

Here's a few quick pics I took, please don't mind the errant dust

[vlydog]

Nicely done B! Congratulations on this spectacular build.

[praetor]

So many gen parts...so awesome :clapping:

I didn't have the money to finish mine =(

what endlinks did you end up using? it looks too curvy

Edited November 24, 2010 by praetor

[JoJo35]

Thanks Vly and praetor!

[JoJo35]

what endlinks did you end up using? it looks too curvy

This bracelet is a hollow mid link from one of my watches. I sold the WM9 solid mid link years ago, and now as I look back I certainly should have kept the better end links that came with that bracelet. Oh well, no big deal really, the important stuff that matters most is always the dial and bezel/crown anyway. I'll be on the lookout for a gen bracelet or a set of WM9 V1 endlinks if they pop up.

[vlydog]

I thought those teeth looked mighty sharp!

[praetor]

precious time still sells the bracelet separately as long as he still sells the wm9 v 1.5. But you'd have to buy the entire bracelet and then cannibalize it.

[JoJo35]

precious time still sells the bracelet separately as long as he still sells the wm9 v 1.5. But you'd have to buy the entire bracelet and then cannibalize it.

Thanks for the heads up, still a lot cheaper than buying a gen bracelet

[JoJo35]

precious time still sells the bracelet separately as long as he still sells the wm9 v 1.5. But you'd have to buy the entire bracelet and then cannibalize it.

Thanks for the heads up, still a lot cheaper than buying a gen bracelet

[panerai153]

Jo,

It's hard to beat those WM9 16610's. Of my non- vintage watches my v3 gets the most wrist time. probably more than everything else combined (Except my Snowflake and 1680)

All I've got on mine is a genuine insert, possibly some day I will add a genuine Bezel and Crown/tube.

Yours looks really,really nice. You must have an ETA 2824-2 in yours, the workhorse of workhorses.I do love that bezel. I'm like you, I don't think folks (except WIS) ever look at the endlinks. If the dial ,bezel,insert look right, they don't look any further. It's hard to criticize reasonably well fitting SEL's, considering how poorly most Rolex hollow EL's fit after a few years of wear and stretch. they get pretty sloppy after a while, but who cares, as long as they keep the watch on the bracelet and on your wrist.

[jmb]

Looks very good, JoJo, but I'm having difficulty picturing you with a "modern" Sub!

[JoJo35]

Jo,

It's hard to beat those WM9 16610's. Of my non- vintage watches my v3 gets the most wrist time. probably more than everything else combined (Except my Snowflake and 1680)

All I've got on mine is a genuine insert, possibly some day I will add a genuine Bezel and Crown/tube.

Yours looks really,really nice. You must have an ETA 2824-2 in yours, the workhorse of workhorses.I do love that bezel. I'm like you, I don't think folks (except WIS) ever look at the endlinks. If the dial ,bezel,insert look right, they don't look any further. It's hard to criticize reasonably well fitting SEL's, considering how poorly most Rolex hollow EL's fit after a few years of wear and stretch. they get pretty sloppy after a while, but who cares, as long as they keep the watch on the bracelet and on your wrist.

Thanks for taking the time to post up panerai153. The movement that is in this one is a Swiss 2836-2, newly serviced and timed by the Zigmeister

As far as the endlinks, you're right, and to be honest I really don't care either, but then again I'll still be on the lookout for a gen 93250 or V1 endlinks so I can fix it. Everything else is done to the hilt . I'm surprised that there are no guesses on the gen parts yet? (not counting the bezel, yes Vly, those cuts gave it away )

[JoJo35]

Looks very good, JoJo, but I'm having difficulty picturing you with a "modern" Sub!

Thanks Justin

Yep, believe it or not I've always liked the 16610! Years ago I had an MBW 16610 that was modded very nicely (and since sold), until the WM9 came out and I jumped on it. Just around that same time, I began collecting gens, and my rep projects took a back seat. Finally, I realized that I needed a good daily watch, so the WM9 project got resurrected!

[panerai153]

Genuine parts, huuuum? well you gave us one, so I would guess Bezel insert, crown/tube, dial and hands (Tudor probably since Gen. Rolex won't fit an ETA) Oh, Forgot, that sure looks like a genuine crystal as well.

throw a 3135 in that baby, and man you would have the ultimate Contemporary super franken.

[JoJo35]

Genuine parts, huuuum? well you gave us one, so I would guess Bezel insert, crown/tube, dial and hands (Tudor probably since Gen. Rolex won't fit an ETA)

throw a 3135 in that baby, and man you would have the ultimate Contemporary super franken.

Hmm... ok panerai153, you hit just about everything (almost )

I was thinking of naming this thread " P series love", since the watch is basically a tribute to the P series.

Starting off with the most important and visible part, the dial: Yes, this is a genuine "P" series dial, with (by chance more than anything else), the "flat S" is the same as the WM9 dial that replicated the real thing.

Next, of course the bezel, which obviously wouldn't work correctly without a genuine retainer. Sitting nicely within that bezel is a genuine "flat four" old stock superluminova insert (again, correct for a P series 16610).

Obligatory (of course) is a genuine crown and tube

...and finally, the hands are the original WM9, artistically re-lumed with superluminova by none other than the Zigmeister

[alligoat]

gen parts, eh

dial,

bezel insert,

crystal,

bezel assembly, 4 pieces- crystal retention ring, flat washer, click spring and bezel

crown and tube

[JoJo35]

gen parts, eh

dial,

bezel insert,

crystal,

bezel assembly, 4 pieces- crystal retention ring, flat washer, click spring and bezel

crown and tube

Bingo!

You hit it alligoat! Yep, as you probably already know from every one of my other projects, I could never stand to look at a rep crystal, no matter how good it supposedly was.

As far as the other items you mentioned, the washer and click spring from the WM9 worked fine, so IMO there certainly was no sense in replacing those with genuine.

This watch has stirred up some of my interest in 16610's again, so who knows, maybe I'll find a nice gen to add to my collection

[panerai153]

Is the crystal stock WM9, Clarks or gen? You and the maestro really did a great job on this one. I may be way off base, because I haven't tried pricing 16610 parts (YET!!) But I would expect that parts are more readily available and consequently cheaper than the same part for older subs such as the 1680. So possibly one could do a really nice modding job on the 16610 without breaking the bank. Of course considering that if you are a careful shopper and are at the right place at the right time, generals in fairly nice condition can be had for around 3k, You sure couldn't use Freddy's 10% rule here.

[JoJo35]

Is the crystal stock WM9, Clarks or gen?

The crystal is a genuine

[homecd]

Looks awesome!!!

[HauteHippie]

Nice build. I was sure the dial was *not* gen. Guess that says a lot about the quality of the rep version because to me this one really looks like the non-gen WM9 flat S dial, not the typical crisp and clean gen print. Especially in this shot:

Anyhow, with the cost of parts you've used, I'd say you did it just right. Going above and beyond at this point doesn't quite make sense, as the cost of a used gen suddenly gets too close for comfort.

[highoeyazmuhudee]

very nice indeed the end link in the second pic fits oddly tho.

the only thing i would have changed from what i can see are those hands.

[JoJo35]

Nice build. I was sure the dial was *not* gen. Guess that says a lot about the quality of the rep version because to me this one really looks like the non-gen WM9 flat S dial, not the typical crisp and clean gen print. Especially in this shot:

Anyhow, with the cost of parts you've used, I'd say you did it just right. Going above and beyond at this point doesn't quite make sense, as the cost of a used gen suddenly gets too close for comfort.

Chief,

Thanks for your comment regarding the dial. As far as the quality of the gen vs rep dial, there really is no comparison. Unfortunately the pic is out of focus, and I really didn't bother doing it over a dozen times to get the focus/lighting perfect. However, the printing and "crispness" of the gen dial is clean and perfect as it should be, and blows the WM9 dial completely out of the water. I'll admit the pic is really lousy. With that pic I was actually trying to capture the etched crown on the crystal, and I think the focus is slightly forward of the dial. Besides that, because of the way the lighting has to be in order to see the etched crown, it casts weird shadows, and showed off every single spec of dust on the crystal (there was a lot, I photoshopped most of them off the dial, but you can still see the dust that appears to be on the hands, but is actually on top of the crystal above it).

[JoJo35]

PS: I'll be selling the new WM9 "flat S" dial and the 2836-2 movement if anyone may be interested (+ the crystal too!)

[JoJo35]

the only thing i would have changed from what i can see are those hands.

Did the Zigmeister not relume these good enough? You didn't say why you would change the hands?