mir36 Posted November 1, 2013 Report Share Posted November 1, 2013 (edited) Top notch. Another build to aspire to. Thanks for showing the way. Edited November 1, 2013 by mir36 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valty Posted November 1, 2013 Report Share Posted November 1, 2013 @Ubi, I can screw 1/2 of a turn with my fingers, but not that much more. This is probably because the crown and the inner gasket are new. With a piece of cloth to don't hurt my fingers, I can get 3/4 of a turn, but it become nearly impossible to unscrew with naked fingers at this point... I think it's impossible to go more than 3/4 of a turn without reducing the thickness of the crown inner gasket. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clem2192 Posted November 1, 2013 Report Share Posted November 1, 2013 Absolutely gorgeous Another stunning build - congratulations Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lhooq Posted November 1, 2013 Report Share Posted November 1, 2013 Thank you for descending from the Patekosphere to build this beauty, ubi! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TeeJay Posted November 1, 2013 Report Share Posted November 1, 2013 Beautiful work as always, brother Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbane883 Posted November 1, 2013 Report Share Posted November 1, 2013 Wow. Speechless. That dial is remarkable. Congrats. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanuq Posted November 1, 2013 Report Share Posted November 1, 2013 Thank you for descending from the Patekosphere to build this beauty, ubi! Truer words were never spoken. Every time I see a "Just something I distractedly threw together" post by Ubi I know I'll have chest pains. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanuq Posted November 1, 2013 Report Share Posted November 1, 2013 With a piece of cloth to don't hurt my fingers, I can get 3/4 of a turn, but it become nearly impossible to unscrew with naked fingers at this point... Valty, you want to be really careful doing that. It's a brass crown screwing onto steel threads and you can strip the crown pretty easily. I have a solution for you: send me your nasty NOS crown that won't screw down far enough and I'll send you my gorgeous Minh Quy crown that looks the same and screws down a full 1-1/4 turns Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valty Posted November 1, 2013 Report Share Posted November 1, 2013 Valty, you want to be really careful doing that. It's a brass crown screwing onto steel threads and you can strip the crown pretty easily. I have a solution for you: send me your nasty NOS crown that won't screw down far enough and I'll send you my gorgeous Minh Quy crown that looks the same and screws down a full 1-1/4 turns You always make me laugh a lot when you are *trying* to make a gorgeous deal :D More seriously, thanks you very much for the advise, I didn't know the crown was in brass... It really looks like steel... I'll be careful with this. The cloth was only to test how much turns 1/4 of turn I can get BTW, are you looking for a gen 800 / 8000 NOS combo ? I still have one extra set... Not cheap though, but probably cheaper than VRF anyways... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanuq Posted November 1, 2013 Report Share Posted November 1, 2013 Yes, your crown is brass with steel "wrapped" over it. That's where the crimps come from on the case-side. Please PM me details about your NOS 8mm set! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted November 1, 2013 Author Report Share Posted November 1, 2013 Moment of truth... Just got out of the shower with this thing strapped to my wrist... We'll see how water tight 3/4 of a turn is... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valty Posted November 1, 2013 Report Share Posted November 1, 2013 Moment of truth... Just got out of the shower with this thing strapped to my wrist... We'll see how water tight 3/4 of a turn is... You are crazy, Mr. Ubi... :) I suppose the leak, if there is any, will probably comes from the plexiglass... (But, now thinking you bought a $15 crown... ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted November 1, 2013 Author Report Share Posted November 1, 2013 All good. At least for showering For any further submersion, I'll need to get a proper pressure test done... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TeeJay Posted November 1, 2013 Report Share Posted November 1, 2013 All good. At least for showering For any further submersion, I'll need to get a proper pressure test done...If it survived a shower, I'd suggest the faucet test, and then go from there (I put mine under the faucet before a shower ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanuq Posted November 1, 2013 Report Share Posted November 1, 2013 Ubi, with Balls of Steel. I wouldn't risk a 1030 movt that way, so a 2846 lives inside my Big Gonzo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted November 4, 2013 Author Report Share Posted November 4, 2013 Latest pondering... Do I start working on wearing down some of the plating on the bezel to produce some artifical patina and allow the brass base peek through? Or do I simply let time do it's work? I'm leaning towards natural wear... Mrs. Ubi says the same... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lionsandtigers Posted November 4, 2013 Report Share Posted November 4, 2013 au natural Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanuq Posted November 4, 2013 Report Share Posted November 4, 2013 Ubi, a watch that's been artificially aged is pretty easy to tell. Even when done very, very carefully the eye still sees things subconsciously that the conscious eye doesn't. The piece just "looks odd". You'd never be able to say what it is, but it's there. With my aging I use pretty dramatic methods to get the correct overall shape then it takes months of very mild abuse (oops I banged it into a doorframe!) followed by polishing it on t-shirts, jeans, etc. to smooth out the micro-damage. Focus on the areas you shaped manually, and let time and tons of elbow grease smooth and polish them. As that happens the bezel will get polished too, and the brass will begin to show. My Little Crown has been about 3 years of wear and t-shirt polishing to get the knurling on the bezel slightly rounded over, and some brass showing. I also handle it with grubby hands, else the areas between the knurling are too clean. I'm starting the process on the Big Crown, and it's off to a good start but a long way from where I want it to be. The brass is just starting to show around the lip on top that retains the insert. You get to go down this road with the bezel one time. Plan each step and go slow. Put away the sandpaper and go slow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dieselpower Posted November 4, 2013 Report Share Posted November 4, 2013 I have to agree with our Alaskan friend. I've got an old MBW1665 on my wrist and it was 'aged' artificially some years ago. It was never too convincing. Since then I have worn it and subjected it to - shall we say "natural abuse" and there is no doubt that the randomness of genuine dings and scrapes is a thing that can not be replicated. that, combined with natural wear from use is a priceless combination. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjmj Posted November 5, 2013 Report Share Posted November 5, 2013 Let it wear and tear over time. More natural that way! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted November 6, 2013 Author Report Share Posted November 6, 2013 Given how clean and crisp the case and bezel are as a match, I'll just let time do it's work. I just have to wear it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanuq Posted November 6, 2013 Report Share Posted November 6, 2013 Okay, okay, alright... you twisted my arm hard enough. Send it up here. I'll wear it for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmg Posted November 6, 2013 Report Share Posted November 6, 2013 Beautiful as all your projects are sir! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
popklister Posted November 13, 2013 Report Share Posted November 13, 2013 Looks like its a path that all rep collectors walk. After a couple of years you end up with the Big Crown Project? Some years ago i hated them but now all i feel is that i need one:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GWP123 Posted December 5, 2013 Report Share Posted December 5, 2013 Wow, this is beautiful. I've been trying to find a big crown rep but they all have small crowns! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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