Ok... I Can't Sleep .

[rag9fx]

Ok ... i want to say that i f-ed up and i need to share it with the world!

the other day i got my sparkling nos tropic 127 in the post and couldn't wait to get home to drop it in my MBW 1680 ... so i take out my trusty window scraper and pop off the retaining ring and lo and behold the crystal comes of with it - result- i grease up the 127 and pop into place and coax the retaining ring as far down as it is going to go.... frustrated i remember the first rule to this game - patcience- after a moment of contemplation i forget about the prime rule and break out the pliers and a rag to pad protect the case and the retaining ring from the un-holy task i am about to perform on my beloved newly aquired watch. so i gently clamp an edge of the case with the pliers and begin to squeeze tightly and - POP!-

- I think sucess... i withdraw the pliars .the result is - Oh F*ck! Sh*t! B*ll**ks! the tip of my pliers were not on the retaining ring at all... it was actully on the edge of the crystal ! I took out a substantial chunk of the tropic. thank god it is solid acrylic ... i would have killed myself if i had properly rendered the crystal useless. Nevertheles i hang my head in dissapointment for damaging a perfectly good rolex tropic . I proceeded with a little more caution and tried to press the retaining ring down more with the pliers and rag combo ... so its down... but not flush against the case and im frustrated again... so its in the watch box until my bezel insert comes which should give more then enough time to calm down re- assess the situation over which i am losing sleep

- and if you can't tell ... i am loving every minute of working on this watch! really i am.

Edited November 17, 2006 by rag9fx

[ubiquitous]

For sake of sanity, and the best interest of your MBW, do yourself a favor and pick up a crystal press. You can use it to press the ring onto your watch with very little fuss. For mine, I use an old gold plated brass Omega case for my die; sits perfect on the ring, clears the crystal, and allows for more leverage in getting the ring seated against the case.

One risk with using pliers against the case is that you could potentially bend or warp that ring. Or, as you've discovered, damage the crystal.

At any rate... With the proper tools, you'll find your experience to be much easier...

[rag9fx]

For sake of sanity, and the best interest of your MBW, do yourself a favor and pick up a crystal press. You can use it to press the ring onto your watch with very little fuss. For mine, I use an old gold plated brass Omega case for my die; sits perfect on the ring, clears the crystal, and allows for more leverage in getting the ring seated against the case.

One risk with using pliers against the case is that you could potentially bend or warp that ring. Or, as you've discovered, damage the crystal.

At any rate... With the proper tools, you'll find your experience to be much easier...

Thanks for your sage advice ubi. its always apricated

Yeah i am obviously too stubourn to buy a press... Maybe i will i dunno- oh i'll never learn !. i am thinking of going the maglite route and seeing where that takes me . I have managed to ding up the edge of case back pretty badly as well ... as i said i think i need to step back from this watch for a while and calm down b4 i do any more damage .

Edited November 17, 2006 by rag9fx

[lionsandtigers]

had this same problem some time ago, remember Randy?

I, unfortunatly lost my patience and hit it with a mallet, lol, big mistake cause it busted the movement harness.

got everything sorted out in the end, but it was a messy process.

to all you kids out there with yer mbw's, buy a crystal press......they save lives

[ubiquitous]

Patience is definitely key. Above all the tools and parts and supplies, no doubt. If there's one thing this hobby has taught me, it's patience... Which is good as I'm not the most patient person to start with

Anyhow... If your future involves modding more MBWs (or any other watches for that matter), you should seriously consider getting a press. It's a nice item to have...

[ubiquitous]

had this same problem some time ago, remember Randy?

I do indeed, J... But very glad to hear all is taken care of on yours

[lionsandtigers]

you helped me out alot buddy, and taught me alot of great things here.

always and forever appreciative

[freddy333]

rag9fx,

I would definitely second the others suggestions re the crystal press. They're not that expensive and it WILL pay for itself the first time you use it and see how easy (and safe) it makes the job.

As an alternative for those without an extra Omega case lying around, you might try a metric socket from a socket wrench set. In some cases, with some [watch] cases, you may find a good fit. Having something that applies the force equally around the circumference of the part goes a long way to reducing the likelihood of collateral damage (to use the parlance of our times'--"The Dude").

[rag9fx]

Anyhow... If your future involves modding more MBWs (or any other watches for that matter), you should seriously consider getting a press. It's a nice item to have...

[Bazz]

None of my presses work with how the high the tropic crystals are, so I found a short piece of high density plumbing pipe at a hardware that is the same diameter as the retaining ring. It cost a couple of dollars will not leave any marks and after a year or so still going like a little trooper!