Lo' Posted November 28, 2012 Report Share Posted November 28, 2012 I just bought this from a guy on another forum. I did so mostly to source the bracelet as the whole watch is costing me almost as much as a rep bracelet at Phong. That being said is there anything else that's worth saving from this piece according to you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sgtguk Posted November 28, 2012 Report Share Posted November 28, 2012 No the rest is just scrap send it to me I'll make sure it gets put in the right bin for ya only kidding! What are the specs of the case, (I'm looking for one to start next project thats all) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lo' Posted November 28, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2012 No the rest is just scrap send it to me I'll make sure it gets put in the right bin for ya only kidding! What are the specs of the case, (I'm looking for one to start next project thats all) No problem, I appreciate your will to spare me the hassle of travelling all the way to the trash can . What kind of specs are you asking for? Sorry but I'm a total newbie so I still don't know where to look/what to look for Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sgtguk Posted November 28, 2012 Report Share Posted November 28, 2012 Just wondering where the watch comes from (which dealer) and if it will take Genuine parts, crystal, insert etc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alligoat Posted November 28, 2012 Report Share Posted November 28, 2012 A cartel 1680 can come from any number of sellers. Best cartel 1680s would be from Puretime and Josh, but with reservations of course. The Puretime case would need a new bezel assembly but Clark's was selling those a while back, I believe. The Josh case has stubby crown guards which can be trimmed on the inside but are still hard to overcome. Both will take a gen crystal. Other models may also take the gen crystal (or decent aftermarket one). It would be nice if the seller could tell you which dealer the case came from. As for what you do from there, that's up to you. BTW, the Rolex emblem on the clasp of the bracelet is too fat and stubby- i.e. it sucks. Also, the safety clasp should be smooth and not have the lines thru it as was the case with later- 16610 and on- bracelets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lo' Posted November 28, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2012 Oh I see. Well the seller told me that this is a cartel 1680 so I assumed that it came from watchcartel.com. For what is about fitting gen parts I am sorry but I can't help you there. All I know is that the seller has been replacing the original cristal with a tropic, that he's been getting the insert from the USA and that he's been fitting a new set of more accurate hands. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lo' Posted November 28, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2012 Alligoat, the clasp is not a problem given it can be changed and, I am anyway not worried about the fake look. All I need is that this bracelet bears the correct endlinks and that it accepts 2mm springbars (which it does). Add to it that I get a whole watch for the price of a rep bracelet and I'm a happy camper . But once I have sourced the bracelet I still have all the rest left. So my reason for opening this thread is that of understanding whether there is anything good that might be of interest to you out there and/or if I can serenely use the various parts to play Dr. Frankenstein with (e.g. trying the unfamous "oven method" to obtain a crispy dial ), because I will not be damaging beautiful 1:1 aftermarket parts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sgtguk Posted November 28, 2012 Report Share Posted November 28, 2012 I think it looks good but I'm no expert Lo certainly something you could have a go at modding ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robaer Posted November 28, 2012 Report Share Posted November 28, 2012 The bezel insert doesn't look to bad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alligoat Posted November 28, 2012 Report Share Posted November 28, 2012 The bezel insert doesn't look to bad. +1, just add an Ofrei pearl, Crown guards could probably use a trim, but can't really see them You don't say which movement you have in there- if it's a 2846-2 that's a big plus The dial is ok, not great, the lume markers look a little flat like they're painted on there, but since you didn't pay much, why worry- just call it a beater and go on. Enjoy the watch and if you find that the 1680 is your cup of tea, you can build a better model later on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lo' Posted November 28, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2012 Hi again Alligoat, thanks for the highlights, Just out of curiosity, how much could I expect to spend for a pearl? The movement is a 21j, nothing to write home about and I think the crown guards have been trimmed by the seller himself. Let's see what happens Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
panerai153 Posted November 29, 2012 Report Share Posted November 29, 2012 Hi again Alligoat, thanks for the highlights, Just out of curiosity, how much could I expect to spend for a pearl? The movement is a 21j, nothing to write home about and I think the crown guards have been trimmed by the seller himself. Let's see what happens Pearl: Ofrei sells them as generic illumines dot for bezel insert 24.00 USD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aeromatic Posted November 29, 2012 Report Share Posted November 29, 2012 (edited) I just ordered the 2846 trusty 1680 i also used the puretime 1680 for my 5513 these are from the same factory and the watch fits a gen spec dial (26mm) without mods due to the rehaunt ridge shape i believe that this cartel is the best available for small money and with reshaped cgs and gen crown the case is very close to the gen i actually kept the cartel bezel but this can be changed i have ordered a clark crystal so i will find out if it fits soon i have a home made crystal on at the moment your watch does not look like one of these but check to see it it takes a 26mm dial Edited November 29, 2012 by aeromatic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lo' Posted November 29, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 29, 2012 Pearl: Ofrei sells them as generic illumines dot for bezel insert 24.00 USD Thanks for the info. After posting the question I have done some googling and finally ended up with the data I needed. Actually I'm wondering what the cost of shipping this to my door would be and, if it would be worth it... Is it possible that nobody in the EU supplies these small parts? Do we french/englishmen/spaniards/italians have to go look on the other side of the pond for spares? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lo' Posted November 29, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 29, 2012 I just ordered the 2846 trusty 1680 i also used the puretime 1680 for my 5513 these are from the same factory and the watch fits a gen spec dial (26mm) without mods due to the rehaunt ridge shape i believe that this cartel is the best available for small money and with reshaped cgs and gen crown the case is very close to the gen i actually kept the cartel bezel but this can be changed i have ordered a clark crystal so i will find out if it fits soon i have a home made crystal on at the moment your watch does not look like one of these but check to see it it takes a 26mm dial Sure will but how do I do that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alligoat Posted November 30, 2012 Report Share Posted November 30, 2012 "Sure will but how do I do that?" To measure a dial, you have to take it and the movement out of the case. 1. open the case with the Rolex caseback wrench 2. remove the crown and stem- unscrew crown and pull out to the last stop and then carefully depress the button on the movement and pull out the crown and stem. 3. unscrew the hold down screws and tabs. 4. Flip case over and drop movement and dial into your hand 5. put movement and dial on the table with the dial face up 6. with a pair of calipers measure the OD of the dial. You need a Rolex caseback opener tool, screwdrivers and a pair of tweezers to do this Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lo' Posted November 30, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 30, 2012 (edited) To measure a dial, you have to take it and the movement out of the case. 1. open the case with the Rolex caseback wrench 2. remove the crown and stem- unscrew crown and pull out to the last stop and then carefully depress the button on the movement and pull out the crown and stem. 3. unscrew the hold down screws and tabs. 4. Flip case over and drop movement and dial into your hand 5. put movement and dial on the table with the dial face up 6. with a pair of calipers measure the OD of the dial. You need a Rolex caseback opener tool, screwdrivers and a pair of tweezers to do this "Sure will but how do I do that?" Ok, I lied! Edited November 30, 2012 by Lo' Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dieselpower Posted December 1, 2012 Report Share Posted December 1, 2012 I'm afraid Ofrei pearls work out very expensive for us in the UK - look at the postage charges. I just got an unpainted pearl from Yuki for my 5513 project. I think this is your best bet moneywise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aeromatic Posted December 1, 2012 Report Share Posted December 1, 2012 I'm afraid Ofrei pearls work out very expensive for us in the UK - look at the postage charges. I just got an unpainted pearl from Yuki for my 5513 project. I think this is your best bet moneywise. I prefer to find an aftermarket insert off ebay that has the correct pearl often for around the same price as the pearl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alligoat Posted December 1, 2012 Report Share Posted December 1, 2012 The wholesaleoutlet 5513 bezel insert with the better pearl is another option- don't know but it looks like the shipping to EU could be included http://www.ebay.com/itm/BEZEL-INSERT-FOR-VINTAGE-ROLEX-SUBMARINER-1680-5513-ARCYLIC-PEARL-12-/310426361963?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4846da606b Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rolexaddict Posted December 1, 2012 Report Share Posted December 1, 2012 Look at my section "The Vintage Watch Parlour"http://www.rwg.bz/board/ You will see my offers and see what is possible to do, machining the PClones 1680 case and stubby CG 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aeromatic Posted December 1, 2012 Report Share Posted December 1, 2012 Super work . i recieved my cartel 1680 watch and started stripping it down im using the case for my snowflake build unfortunately the bezel assembly fell off the brass retaining ring is missing i am only keeping the case i was planning to reshape the cgs but on this watch the cgs were good and not the stubby type i will fit a 2783 eta in place of the 2846 as the 2846 does not fit my snowflake dial feet i wiil fit a gen crown/tube and clark crystal i will need to do a slight mod to accept the 26mm dial the parts decarded have gone to my watchmaker friend member Georgeloiz for his future projects i thought the redsub dial was nice for a cartel watch ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
perry563 Posted December 1, 2012 Report Share Posted December 1, 2012 I bought one of these with a 2846 movement and it died the day received. I sent it off to a modder and was told the movement was trash...could not be fixed....at least it did not pay to get it fixed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lo' Posted December 1, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 1, 2012 The wholesaleoutlet 5513 bezel insert with the better pearl is another option- don't know but it looks like the shipping to EU could be included http://www.ebay.com/itm/BEZEL-INSERT-FOR-VINTAGE-ROLEX-SUBMARINER-1680-5513-ARCYLIC-PEARL-12-/310426361963?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4846da606b Yes they will ship to Italy via USPS for USD 4,00. USD 40 in total. What was the price of the pearl alone at Ofrei? USD 24 if I'm not wrong... this looks like such a better offer! The only thing that is not guaranteed is that this insert will fit into my bezel... I could run the risk for this small sum but I really do not want to get in the mood of shelling money on this watch if it's not a very good base to start a modding project on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lo' Posted December 1, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 1, 2012 Look at my section "The Vintage Watch Parlour"http://www.rwg.bz/board/ You will see my offers and see what is possible to do, machining the PClones 1680 case and stubby CG Thanks for replyng RolexAddict. I will use your pics as a comparison with my watch -as soon as I get it that is- Then I will post some pictures in this thread so to see whether it is worth the hassle of sending it over and having you work on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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