JJPanerai Posted June 26, 2014 Report Share Posted June 26, 2014 Hey Guys- I recently picked up a nice cheapie 40mm rolex explorer. What I am wondering is how hard it would be to upgrade this from a 21J Asian movement to an ETA highbeat so that the hand sweeps a little smoother. I am looking to try to mod this also with a gen crown and crystal but am unsure if it will take these mods. I am very new to modding and this would be my first project so any advice even as stupid as it may sound is appreciated. Also, does anyone have experience trying to get the correct hand stack on a watch like this? I have heard that the Asian and ETA are simple movements which can cause the correct hand stack mod to be unreliable and break within a couple months. Is this a myth or do I truely need a gen movement for something like this? Thanks in advance as I really hope to learn a bit more about this watch and modding in general! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
automatico Posted June 26, 2014 Report Share Posted June 26, 2014 Your dial and hands will not work on an Eta...swiss or asian etaclone. My advice for a swisseta upgrade is to start with a watch with an etaclone movement and change it out for a genuine swisseta when it quits. Chances are your watch is not machined for case clamps as most '21j' watches use plastic spacers. It may have an MG crystal, not sapphire. The hand stack is not very important to many replica owners as it is a minor detail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dovo1695 Posted June 26, 2014 Report Share Posted June 26, 2014 +1 it won't work. You're best bet is to sell it, and use the proceeds to get yourself an asian ETA clone and wait for it to stop ticking. You might be surprised how long it takes though. I have Asian ETA's that are still keeping excellent time after 4 years! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JJPanerai Posted June 26, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 26, 2014 I was always under the impression the hand stack is a dead give away but it is sounding increasingly like I should just appreciate the value I got for this cheapie. My first rep before I sold it had a 2824 and between seconds had a tick-tick-tick-tick-tick or 5 tick while this watch just has a tick-tick-tick is that a give away that the watch movement is poor quality? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dovo1695 Posted June 26, 2014 Report Share Posted June 26, 2014 90% of people don't know what an automatic watch is. 9.9% of people know what an automatic watch is but don't know the different movements. .099% of people know the different movements and might notice the difference if they had the gen vs the rep side by side. .001% of people would notice the second hand speed without a gen beside and know it to be a rep. The good news is that .001% of people are either watchmakers or members of this site! It's a cool rep that you picked up for next to nothing, enjoy it! That's my 2 cents anyway 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JJPanerai Posted June 26, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 26, 2014 90% of people don't know what an automatic watch is. 9.9% of people know what an automatic watch is but don't know the different movements. .099% of people know the different movements and might notice the difference if they had the gen vs the rep side by side. .001% of people would notice the second hand speed without a gen beside and know it to be a rep. The good news is that .001% of people are either watchmakers or members of this site! It's a cool rep that you picked up for next to nothing, enjoy it! That's my 2 cents anyway Yea I think I have just been too absorbed with this forum to realize most people don't have the same know how about watches. Some stuff that that seems as basic knowledge in this forum is probably much much more than even som real gen watch owners know! Either way its time for me to stop worrying about the tells and enjoy it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
automatico Posted June 26, 2014 Report Share Posted June 26, 2014 From what I have seen... About 90% of the 'new breed' of trendy mechanical watch owners know less about watches than the average stray dog. Half of them can't tell if their watch is running or not, much less tell what time it is without a cell phone. They walk around with the date changing at 12 noon asking if they should 'send it in and have it overhauled' to fix the date. One of them told me his watch was 'wound too tight' and would not run, then asked if he could turn the crown backwards to let the 'pressure' off. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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