cht Posted March 10, 2011 Report Share Posted March 10, 2011 (edited) Now the bezel insert will not fit. The crystal fits the case perfect, but the insert's circumference is not large enough to accomodate the T39. What can I do? I really don't want to sand away the inner diameter of the bezel insert. Is there a know problem with the mbk inserts being to small? Would a gen insert have a wider inner diameter? A sub insert fits fine over the T39, but of course it needs the sub bezel, and I would hate to put the thin sub bezel on this watch. Should I just ditch the t39? I know I have seen 1665's with superdomes, that's why I bought it, so I'm confused. any suggestions would be great! here it is before I started hacking into it! Edited March 10, 2011 by cht Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbutlerman Posted March 10, 2011 Report Share Posted March 10, 2011 I had the same problem with mine. First round I sanded down the inner diameter of the insert until it fit. Then, after I got tired of that, I purchased a Gen insert and it works perfectly!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cats Posted March 10, 2011 Report Share Posted March 10, 2011 In the beginning my drsd had a T Clarks T39 with the mbw insert and that fitted perfectly. I later changed the insert to a PMWF and the crystal to domed gen tropic also without any problems. Either your crystal doesn't have the right dimensions ( outher diametre )or the mbw bezel dimensions changed during time. Let's wait what the experts have to say Carpe Diem cats Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddy333 Posted March 11, 2011 Report Share Posted March 11, 2011 The MBW insert is made to fit the OD of the crystal MBW uses. If you change the crystal, you should also change the insert. Either a gen (search ebay or the sale sections of gen forums) or PMWF 5513 insert are the way to go for an MBW 1665 (or Sub). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dizzy Posted March 11, 2011 Report Share Posted March 11, 2011 Would a gen insert have a wider inner diameter? As Freddy says, YES you need a gen size insert to fit around that gen size plexi A sub insert fits fine over the T39, but of course it needs the sub bezel, and I would hate to put the thin sub bezel on this watch. 1680 and 1665 use the same insert. Your sub insert it probably gen size and your 1665 insert is MBW size. Should I just ditch the t39? Uhmmmm.... NO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
panerai153 Posted March 11, 2011 Report Share Posted March 11, 2011 If you are looking for a vintage used insert, go over to the Vintage Rolex Forum (Vintage Rolex market) there are always guys selling inserts over there. They aren't cheap, but it will be genuine and will work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cht Posted March 12, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 12, 2011 (edited) thanks guys, great info here! You make this hobby possible! I emailed the pmwf link you posted freddy, thanx, waiting to hear back. It looks like a great option. In the meantime, I sanded down and widened the inner diameter to fit and sharpied the edge. Then I ran into another problem, which starts from my first mistake. well, as it turns out, I made the mistake of purchasing a wholesale outlet t39. It is also too big for the retaining ring. A rolex watchsmith whose always happy to help me out pointed out that it is .5mm larger than the mbw crystal. The WSO crystal outer diameter measures 30.5mm. This is still .2mm too big for the inner diameter of the gen spec pmwf insert. He said IF it was a high quality acrylic, like a gen rolex, it would be more flexible and would probably work with the retaining ring. But, it is a cheap $30 acrylic crystal so it is brittle and has no flex so it will not work. And it would still be too big for the insert. If you have any suggestions for a crystal besides gen, that would be great. Or else, I'll just wait till a gen crystal of any sort pops up. until then, I reassembled it back with all the mbw parts until I can source better quality parts. so, moral of the story, pass on the wholesale outlet crystals. thanks again guys! pic of my sub that I built with your guys's help in the past. Uploaded with ImageShack.us Edited March 12, 2011 by cht Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jasf2002 Posted March 12, 2011 Report Share Posted March 12, 2011 There are two size's of T19 and I found that while both would fit my case well, only one would allow the retaining ring to fit over - 303mm rater than 305mm. Don't know if this is the same issue that you are having - got mine from Cousins UK http://www.cousinsuk.com/catalog/4/0/1957.aspx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woof* Posted March 12, 2011 Report Share Posted March 12, 2011 To throw another wrench in the works, there are also two different 39s that clark offers.. a superdome, and an almost superdome. Clark's almost superdome is 24$ and the full superdome is 69$ I also bought the option you did for 30$ from the other seller, but don't know if it will be a problem on my josh 5512. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddy333 Posted March 12, 2011 Report Share Posted March 12, 2011 I made the mistake of purchasing a wholesale outlet t39. Search out 'Mr. Slimeball'. In the meantime, get Clarks Superdome, which is nearly identical to the gen (although I have a NOS gen, the Clarks xtal is what I have on my watch) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cht Posted March 13, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 13, 2011 thanks again guys. I took your advice and purchased the clarks superdome from nostalgia on ebay. He was very thorough, helpful, and polite. Rail dial in route as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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