Completed Explorer 11 1655 first project

[alfe]

Some shots of my 1655 Exp 11 Orange Hand project. Based on a recent Josh watch with an ETA movement.

Some notes on my (probably incorrect) method:

Crown off and stem out, movement out (somehow I managed to jam the movement which required the services of a local watchsmith to get going £40!)

GMT hand painted with 69 Humbrol enamel with very fine brush

Hour minute and second hands ‘weathered’ with grey watery acrylic mix.

Bezel off and black rubber filling removed from etched numbers . Bezel polished with Dremel. Etched numbers re-filled with 21 Humbrol black enamel gloss. I know it’s not usual to polish the bezel but I’ve seen a lot of gens with this and I think it looks good.

CG’s re-shaped with diamond half round and full round mini files. I was a bit over-zealous with the filing and made the curve away from the CG’s a little too severe so it arrived at the apex just before the 8 and the 4 on the bezel (on the gen the curve is slightly gentler and reaches apex exactly at the 8 and the 4). Silly mistake but I think it just about gets away with it. Polished with Dremel and polishing rouge.

Sterny crystal fitted but bezel struggled to fit using an ebay watch press, so I improvised one from a hard plastic pipe. The circular plastic end of the pipe fits the bezel well and it hammered (gently) on eventually and is waterproof.

All in all a fairly straightforward first project but I’m worried I’ll get to like this and progress onto bigger projects – already looking at Subs etc - help!

I’ve included my gen 1957 Oysterdate Precision 6694 in the last shot.

[alligoat]

Looks to me like you might be hooked! Congrats on your first project.

[Ronin]

Very nice indeed.

[krpster]

Well done!

[rosnik]

Very nice!

congrats.

[dutchguy2]

Very nice. Wear it in good health.

[Original Scope]

Well done! It looks good.

[20Babies]

very very nice!

very tempted to take the same route as u.

Is the crown gen or rep?

Wondering if it is needed to change the crown to look more gen....

Thanks

[alfe]

Sorry about delay. Crown and tube are factory as supplied by Josh. They are pretty good and compare well with gen - smooth action and screw down well onto tube so I thought that it wasn't worth the bother of changing them. Anyhow, not sur e if they would fit. Perhaps someone has tried on the forum?

I'm glad I tried this as a first build - fairly straightforward and because the basic watch from Josh is so good (dial is accurate), a good result can be achieved for little effort. 1655 is not one of the real superstars like the Sub but is an easy watch to live with and it grows on you.

Cheers Alf.

[TeeJay]

Fantastic results

[thogaa]

Looks exactly right for a watch your old man might have bought slightly used from a friend who needed the money back in the early 70s

And that's one helluva first project - Wear it well

[20Babies]

Hey Alf, thx for the reply.

I have been doing much research and found a possible source for a Gen tropic 116.

However, it costs US$200 for it. When you decide on the Sterny crystal, did you do much comparision b/w the gen, Sterny and Clark's version?

I probably agree with your on the crown. It is pretty close to the gen. I probably wont want to risk investing on the gen crown n tube, and later find out it doesnt fit....

Sorry about delay. Crown and tube are factory as supplied by Josh. They are pretty good and compare well with gen - smooth action and screw down well onto tube so I thought that it wasn't worth the bother of changing them. Anyhow, not sur e if they would fit. Perhaps someone has tried on the forum?

I'm glad I tried this as a first build - fairly straightforward and because the basic watch from Josh is so good (dial is accurate), a good result can be achieved for little effort. 1655 is not one of the real superstars like the Sub but is an easy watch to live with and it grows on you.

Cheers Alf.

[thogaa]

Hey Alf, thx for the reply.

I have been doing much research and found a possible source for a Gen tropic 116.

However, it costs US$200 for it. When you decide on the Sterny crystal, did you do much comparision b/w the gen, Sterny and Clark's version?

I probably agree with your on the crown. It is pretty close to the gen. I probably wont want to risk investing on the gen crown n tube, and later find out it doesnt fit....

Me want gen crystal Would it fit and where to buy?

[automatico]

"I have been doing much research and found a possible source for a Gen tropic 116.

However, it costs US$200 for it. When you decide on the Sterny crystal, did you do much comparision b/w the gen, Sterny and Clark's version?"

Sternkreuz

30.15 OD

28.9mm ID

4.65mm high close to the edge

6.08mm high at magnifier

Genuine

30.25 OD

29.0mm ID

5.1mm high close to the edge

6.45mm high at magnifier

The 'close to the edge' measurements depend on how close you measure to the edge. If you move a few mm toward the center, the figure rapidly gets higher because of the slight dome.

Edited June 16, 2011 by automatico

[20Babies]

I was trying to get the dimension of Clark 116 to compare too.

But failed to get them.

If you were to chosse b/w Sterny and Clark, which would you choose?

"I have been doing much research and found a possible source for a Gen tropic 116.

However, it costs US$200 for it. When you decide on the Sterny crystal, did you do much comparision b/w the gen, Sterny and Clark's version?"

Sternkreuz

30.15 OD

28.9mm ID

4.65mm high close to the edge

6.08mm high at magnifier

Genuine

30.25 OD

29.0mm ID

5.1mm high close to the edge

6.45mm high at magnifier

The 'close to the edge' measurements depend on how close you measure to the edge. If you move a few mm toward the center, the figure rapidly gets higher because of the slight dome.

[alfe]

I think it was Sterny 25 -116 (302) crystal from Cousins UK and whichever one I used there was 0.13 difference between outer edge Josh crystal and outer edge of the Sterny.

The Sterny was OD 30.2 (same as Clark) and the Bezel Inner Diameter was 30.05. And the difference between the Josh fitted crystal and the Sterny 116 was 0.13 too wide.

However as this is an interference fit anyhow, I figured that this would fit with a bit of an extra shove.

I used a bit of 600 wet and dry on the inside of the bezel (maybe 10 sweeps by hand) but not much sanding and the bezel pressed on with the help of a thick pipe (correct diameter for bezel) and gentle use of a small sledge hammer.

The crystal went on the case perfectly.

Hope this helps. Alf

[alfe]

I would say the Sterny is perfect for this watch, Date mag is as good as gen maybe slightly better and no discernable difference in quality compared to the gen crystal on my 6694. The great thing is the top edge of the Sterny 25 116 (302) is curved identicaly to the gen used on an Exp 11. It is also exactly the correct height. Looks great.