Nixmazda Posted October 16, 2013 Report Share Posted October 16, 2013 As we all do, I had the urge to build a Franken. Most of us go the Rolex or Pam route, but I wanted to go an entirely different direction. So I decided to do a build of a piece that I have always loved and nobody has done. I chose the classic and sexy Cartier Roadster S. This is a piece I've been slowly accumulating parts for over the last 2 years and finally started the tedious assembly process this week. The piece started life as a 1:1 (or so they claimed) with a A2824 on a rubber strap from a TD. I wore it around here and there for a few months and really enjoy the comfort, look and feel. Not 6 months after owning it, it started to run terrible and lose time like it was its job. So at this point I could have serviced it and put it back in the rotation or do something great. Being as I have a heavy gen collection...I chose the latter. And here we are now... Since it's death in 2011 I have been searching down all the perfect pieces to build it into the best Roadster Franken to date. This is what I have accumulated so far. - ETA 2824-2 - Gen crown - Gen crystal - Gen gasket set - Gen brown croc strap - Gen sail cloth strap - Gen deploy buckle - Gen inner/outer box set for exact model w/matching model #s - Gen papers set w/DVD and service manuals for match model # On top of these gen pieces I have gone through 4 rep bracelets until I found one deserving enough to be part of this build. I have refinished the entire inner and outer case and bracelet to be 99.9% per gen. So as of this week I have started the fun process of fully servicing it's new ETA 2824-2 before it gets transplanted. I am 100% disassembling it, cleaning every piece with the ultrasonic, replacing the main spring, assembling and lubing to factory specs along the way. Here's a few fun pics to get it started. I will keep this updated over the next week or 2 as it comes together. And sadly enough, once it's complete I will probably putting her up for sale! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ninjaturtles Posted October 16, 2013 Report Share Posted October 16, 2013 Wow great project! Keep us posted! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legend Posted October 16, 2013 Report Share Posted October 16, 2013 lovely watch to come, and I am impressed with your patience and skills to put the parts together. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nixmazda Posted October 17, 2013 Author Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 I spent a few more hours today reassembling the movement. Now for those of us who have taken on a project like this, we know it's not a walk in the park. It usually takes 3-4hrs and includes lots of tedious delicate work ensuring not to damage any of the delicate parts along the way. So I get it all assembled nicely and placed back into the case. I get her a wind. Everything runs like a top. So I check the automatic module and notice that the rotor was sticking and the power was not being transferred smoothly through the gears into the mainspring. Well...time to figure out what the hell the issue is! And thankfully I figured it out quickly. The reverse wheels on the auto module are not running smoothly. Grrrrrr wonderful! I then ordered up the necessary parts so I can get this running to my strict expectations and eventually within COSC standards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nixmazda Posted October 18, 2013 Author Report Share Posted October 18, 2013 I spent some time today refinishing the case itself. Overall it was pretty decent for a rep, but there were some areas that needed to be addressed. The main thing was the bottom side of the lugs where the strap/bracelet quick release system attaches to the case. Secondly was cleaning up the polish portions and rebrushing the bezel to a more factory finish. Also the portion of the case where the crown sits when it is fully pushed in, wasn't nice and clean and even. So I felt it was necessary to take care of it! And finally, the bezel (brushed section) on the rep dosnt sit high enough off the case (polished section) like it does in the gen. Now there's no way to raise the bezel, so the only other option was for me to take on the daunting task to polish down the case to an even level all the way around. Then once that was done I needed to ensure I had a nice sharp clean edge separating the 2 sections. After an enormously time consuming session with the polishing wheel, it resulted very very well! I've got some more cleaning up to do here and there, but here's how it sits now Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nixmazda Posted October 18, 2013 Author Report Share Posted October 18, 2013 A few more hours put into the shaping of the case and crown shoulder section to get that perfect gen look and feel. I think I've got the height correct of the bezel now! I then finished shaping the case shoulder that sits under the crown. It came out PERFECT! One other issue with this piece that I noticed today was that when the caseback was screwed down tightly, it would not sit flush to the same height as the back of the lugs and case sides, which is typical of many reps out there. Well the gen sits nice and flush, so I wanted mine to as well! As I took down the thickness of the case back I began to notice that the sides of it did not follow the same exact contour as the case and the gap between the 2 was not consistent. Yep, you guessed it...I took care of this as well! Here's a few pics of today's progress... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExtraExtra Posted October 19, 2013 Report Share Posted October 19, 2013 Nice project. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mr_slippery Posted October 20, 2013 Report Share Posted October 20, 2013 Please keep up the photo-documented updates. I'm really enjoying them and I'm sure whoever buys it from you if you elect to sell will really value it too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nixmazda Posted October 20, 2013 Author Report Share Posted October 20, 2013 Please keep up the photo-documented updates. I'm really enjoying them and I'm sure whoever buys it from you if you elect to sell will really value it too. Will do! And it will be going up for sale within the next few weeks once I finish it to my expectations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nixmazda Posted October 23, 2013 Author Report Share Posted October 23, 2013 Reverse wheel arrived today! So that should be installed tomorrow at some point and she will be all back up and running 100% Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nixmazda Posted October 23, 2013 Author Report Share Posted October 23, 2013 Well....I had a few minutes so I decided to toss it in now! And hot damn does she run like a top! Can't really complain about that kind of accuracy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nixmazda Posted October 26, 2013 Author Report Share Posted October 26, 2013 Keep your eyes peeled guys...here's a small preview of what else is going to come with the package. And it will be listed later today for sale exclusively on RepGeek! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martijnp Posted October 28, 2013 Report Share Posted October 28, 2013 Impressive project! Thanks for the pictures, will keep an eye on this topic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gran Posted October 28, 2013 Report Share Posted October 28, 2013 :wub: now thats a keper!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nixmazda Posted October 28, 2013 Author Report Share Posted October 28, 2013 :wub: now thats a keper!!! Well she's up for sale over on RepGeek!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gran Posted October 28, 2013 Report Share Posted October 28, 2013 Well she's up for sale over on RepGeek!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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