gioarmani Posted September 30, 2006 Report Share Posted September 30, 2006 (edited) MBW? How 'bout Todd's best watch? Quite proud of my little equal-opportunity sub I must say, so here's the story. I took the dial, case, crystal, & bezel insert from EL's sub, a crown & stem from Josh, a band from Andrew, and the clasp & deployment buckle from Josh. The biggest pain in the ass other than the bezel insert was finding the right screw pins to fit links & clasps from different bands. I wound up having to use the actual bezel from my swissexpert sub (seeing as I scratched the [censored] out of EL's bezel trying to pop it off, which explains the money I wasted on a French bezel remover this week...I also got my hands on the new nickle-plated Eta 2836-2 (from who I can't say) with the annodized colored gears and lubed it myself. Also got some gaskets & silicon grease from Findking watch supply (off eBay) and sealed 'er up myself--I think the GS hypo cement I used on the insert I also bought from them. After assembled & sealed, I lightly sanded the outer edges of the band's links with 1000 & 1200 grit sandpaper, then dry sanded the outside of the CG's with 1200 & buffed the case, bezel, & crown out with some SS jewelers rouge (from bostonwatchexchange.com) and my Dremel, then hit the band with some 00 steel wool (for the brushed look), then lightly polished it (the band only) with a Cape Cod polishing cloth to reinforce a little sheen. Aesthetically speaking, the datewheel seems to center itself perfectly, the cyclops eye is the right mag & seems to be aligned properly, the crystal etching @ 6 o'clock is made of dots and NOT solid lines when under the loupe--exactly like the gen-- minus my shaky hands in the pics the dial print is flawless under magnification as well; slightly raised, thin letters & not overly bold. My pics might fib a little but the crown seems to be the correct width and length. EL's sticker DOES have the proper 16610 marking (unlike my swissexpert that said 116610). And his pearl bezel looks fantastic & is the correct size compared to the real thing in person. Andrew's band has phenominal SEL's and great edges--the gens I poured over in detail (at my local AD, much to their dismay) for the past week have surprisingly sharp edges along the centers, not the edges. And yes, it is true, the brand new D, & Z style Sub bezels @ the AD all have slightly differing pearls; severely disappointing. Thank God I made up my mind weeks ago to never buy another gen. Where the clasp is marked "ROLEX, STEELINOX, REGISTERED SWISS MADE,"etc., Andrews was stamped "AD10"--which by my research is indicative of the Sept 2003 thru Sept 2004 bands, which technically was the last year they put springbar-holes in the cases, but Josh's clasp had slightly better markings and was stamped "CL1", which is the proper code for the newer 2004-2005 bands. This was the most recent marking I could find on anyone's band so I added his clasp to Andrew's band--I've yet to see any reps use the "MA" for the '05's or the "OP" for the '06's yet, so dealers if you're reading this you might want to send a memo to the factory. After all was said and done upon completion last night, I packaged her up in my gen box with all the tags, anchor, books, etc., took it to the AD to see their reaction. I told both salespeople and the shift manager that the watch was a gift from my brother who told me it was "a swiss-made replica in a genuine box". All 3 checked it out for a couple minutes until they actually told me that he was lying; apparently he gifted me a gen and told me it was a rep so I wouldn't know how much $$$ he had spent on me. I told them, no, it was just a really good swiss replica and was about to expalin the modifications when the manager interupted and uscrewed the crown to show me the gaskets, showed me the little circle on the inside of the link for the diver's extension, held it up to his ear and wound it while listening to it, declaring that "sounds real to me" (I've never heard of this), and looked for the crown @ 6 under a loupe and found it. He said he'd have his repair guy in the back pop the caseback real quick to show me the movement, and I said I didn't want to for fear of ruining my waterproofness--whcih was true--so he removed half the band from the case looking for the serial #...which is unbelievable how long it took them too realize it was a fake; and mind you, not even by the case's serial # engraving, which they said looked real, but by the engraving of the band # on the insde of the SEL's. F*cking amazing--I was so proud that they were this convinced! He said he had never seen anything that good in "all his years" and said if the engravings hadn't given it away, he was going to tell me to add the watch to my home-owner's policy. Anyway, enough of my babble--here's the eyecandy: And the lume I was amazed at! This pic is right after a 3-5 minute charge up with a halogen flashlight (I wanted to get it close to true-sunlight). The intensity of the lume's glow dulled quickly, but in complete darkness it was still lit enought to easily read the time after 30-45 minutes. (Oh yeah--my girl's back today, so the PAM005's modeling pics will come tonight or tomorrow morning...) And here's my new French bezel remover. I was going to buy the handheld Swiss one, but $325+ USD?! Get a grip, Switzerland. Edited September 30, 2006 by gioarmani Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DWSmoot Posted September 30, 2006 Report Share Posted September 30, 2006 Great story...great watch! I have read some good things about EL's sub being a good base for modding... This is truly a beautiful watch. Enjoy it "g". DW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
x86uops Posted September 30, 2006 Report Share Posted September 30, 2006 Nice ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gioarmani Posted September 30, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 30, 2006 Yes, El's is definitley the best s far. Only major flaw is the crown depth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starbug Posted September 30, 2006 Report Share Posted September 30, 2006 Super story! You need to start offering this as a service for those of us who want these dream reps !! Brilliant job! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gioarmani Posted September 30, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 30, 2006 Not a bad idea--might not be able to get that many nickle plated Eta's though, unless everyone was satisfied with regular gold-plated Eta 2836's...hmmm... (that would pay for the waterproof tester I just bought ) Speaking of which, I completley forgot: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lionsandtigers Posted September 30, 2006 Report Share Posted September 30, 2006 very nice, i just got ELs sub as well, very impressed. i just swapped the bracelet out with the modern SD bracelet that i got of my modern sd from andrew (the sides of the links have the polished finish which i prefer, and the finish overall is a little more to my liking). I am hesitant to swap out the crown being that i have screwed up at least 3 eta's in the process, although my last crown removal went perfect thanks to The Zigmeisters help. now i'm just waiting on my gen insert, so once i have that, will pop that in and swap out the crowns. here's a pic of mine (before the bracelet swap) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madmex Posted October 2, 2006 Report Share Posted October 2, 2006 That is awesome! Congratulations on your devotion and hard work to create this beauty. I really like your story about the AD. Did they not have a gen to compare it side by side, and weigh them, etc? I always heard stories about someone *typically a Cartier AD, getting a customer in for a change of battery or whatever, and the dealer taking the watch to the back and coming back with a hammer and destroying it to the horror and dismay of the owner! Probably an urban myth, lol. Seriously, congratulations! Hey so how is EL's ss band? I read you used Andrew's. Does EL's have hollow middle links? The crown you have on there (from Josh, I read) is really a stunner. You really did take the best of the pack and created a masterpiece. Maybe you can create a few frankens from the leftover parts and sell them to recoup your investment. You're my new hero on here! Enjoy it in good health. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TJGladeRaider Posted October 2, 2006 Report Share Posted October 2, 2006 I always heard stories about someone *typically a Cartier AD, getting a customer in for a change of battery or whatever, and the dealer taking the watch to the back and coming back with a hammer and destroying it to the horror and dismay of the owner! Probably an urban myth, lol. Replica or not, an AD has no lawful authority to seize, or destroy private property, any more than the customer has a right to knock out his front teeth . . . LOL Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tribal Posted October 2, 2006 Report Share Posted October 2, 2006 (edited) Damm nice Great watch.... This one need only a gen Tube and Crown... ...And i think looks like my MBW 1B look here.. My MBW 1B Very good work,nice to see that you made it by yourself.. Rg Tribal Edited October 2, 2006 by Tribal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2005SUBMARINER Posted October 2, 2006 Report Share Posted October 2, 2006 i agree with TRIBAL ! gen crown & tube & you have a winner ! she's a beauti Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vaccum Posted October 2, 2006 Report Share Posted October 2, 2006 Congrats and very nice watch! Can you tell me the link to the bezel removal tool. vaccum Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gioarmani Posted October 2, 2006 Author Report Share Posted October 2, 2006 Bezel remover: http://www.jewelerssupplies.com/Bezel-Remover.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MechWatch Posted October 2, 2006 Report Share Posted October 2, 2006 Great work. Results are fantastic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gioarmani Posted October 2, 2006 Author Report Share Posted October 2, 2006 Thanks again. A little time consuming & a bit expensive for a hobby, but it certaintly is rewarding. I think I'll get a few down-pat and maybe start mod'ing for others if I can repeat it with enough success to feel confident enought to charge for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vaccum Posted October 2, 2006 Report Share Posted October 2, 2006 Bezel remover: http://www.jewelerssupplies.com/Bezel-Remover.html Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bearcat Posted October 2, 2006 Report Share Posted October 2, 2006 Beautiful dial on that baby. As close to gen as I've ever seen. --Doc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gioarmani Posted October 3, 2006 Author Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Beautiful dial on that baby. As close to gen as I've ever seen. --Doc You know, that's exactly what stood out the most to me when I got mine from swissexpert, but EL's seems to be the exact some one (possibly from the same manufacturer/factory). Best print I've seen on any quality, any price, any dealer, ever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jnkay Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Spectactular work, fantastic! Did you canabalize the perfect sub you just bought from Josh, or did you have another? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gioarmani Posted October 3, 2006 Author Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 I got the movement from elsewhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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