ubiquitous Posted May 22, 2015 Report Share Posted May 22, 2015 I think this piece is one of those builds that is constantly evolving for me. I've made a number of revisions to this watch over the years; this one is (in my mind) finally edging ever closer to being finalized (methinks)... I managed to score one of those new, Rolli/FGD 201/A dials from Ogladio, who was an absolute gent and a great pleasure to work with! He zipped these parts over the Atlantic to get them in my hands in very short order; having rec'd them this morning, I went to work quickly as I was quite excited and very anxious to have these goodies before my eyes! I managed to modify the hands and get everything installed while on a conference call for work Don't think I heard a word of what went on during the call, but I did manage to enjoy the process of doing a little watch work, which I have to admit I have not done in quite some time.Anyways... On to some pics... You'll have to excuse me on these as they are a mix of DSLR and cell phone images. And... There aren't too many images either, I'm afraid. I was already multitasking enough as it was!Gorgeous dial! It's got a nice, semi gloss/semi matte finish, though it appears more matte in this pic than it really is!Modded hands... Edges and center opening given a bit of a rub to expose some brassOn to business...Side by side with my Steph_Dexter prototype dial; also a great dial in it's own right!Buttoned up...That 6... Thanks for looking!//ubi 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
droptopman Posted May 23, 2015 Report Share Posted May 23, 2015 Beautiful piece. Being a die hard Rolex guy all these years, these Pam's are growing on me. I have looked around enough to understand the quality of that dial and hands. I love simple no date dials. Great looking watch. Sent from my droptop using telepathy ️ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted May 23, 2015 Author Report Share Posted May 23, 2015 Thank you sir.Admittedly, there are only a few Panerai that I absolutely love; the 201/A having always been the top of that list. I appreciate the design and am fascinated by the history of the brand... But as someone who feels more comfortable wearing 36mm vintage Patek, 44mm - 47mm cases are a bit of an adjustment for me these days (they also draw a little more attention than I like ).None the less, my 201/A has been a constant work in progress and on the scale of fun it definitely ranks within the top 5. This piece was built with parts that couldn't have been possible without great friends who have made huge efforts (evident of their love for all things watches); I've made some great friendships from this build, and that alone brings a smile to my face every time I look at this piece 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
esco Posted May 24, 2015 Report Share Posted May 24, 2015 (edited) Excellent! Could you provide some thoughts on the SD and Rolli/FGD dials since you do have both in hand? Edited May 24, 2015 by esco Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted May 25, 2015 Author Report Share Posted May 25, 2015 Well, I am not sure that my analysis would be 100% relevant in this situation as the SD dial I have is his prototype that he made prior to going full production roll out. The SD prototype is a great dial; nice details and great fonts to dial text and marker indicies. But there are a lot of details that Rolli/FGD's just nail spot on, such as the 1pc, 1mm design with dial feet, surface finish (both in texture and gloss), fonts, indicies, lume tone/consistency etc. It really is a phenomenal dial!No knock at all on SD's prototype; it's a dial that I have had on my 201/A for the last year and one that I've been very happy with. But when you look at the Rolli/FGD dial, all the nuances and attention to detail... All of the discussion behind it regarding the manner in which it's produced... The time, financial investment, quality and care in this product all becomes very apparent, very quickly...In short, it's pretty awesome Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vlydog Posted May 25, 2015 Report Share Posted May 25, 2015 R, you have set a high bar with this one! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seafoam Posted May 26, 2015 Report Share Posted May 26, 2015 WOW, that's hot! Love that dial R! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmg Posted May 26, 2015 Report Share Posted May 26, 2015 Just what the Dr. ordered sir, nice -as always! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishgodeep Posted May 26, 2015 Report Share Posted May 26, 2015 They don't come much better than this ....great work , great parts , great friends ! Glad you found what you wanted R. All these new builds are shaming my collection into hiding .....time to go to work ! Cheers FGD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ogladio Posted May 26, 2015 Report Share Posted May 26, 2015 ^^+1 to what Simon says! As always a great attention to details and fantastic photos. Don't think it's possible to get a better 201/a than this without going gen, hope it gets some wrist time too despite that fierce competition in your watch box Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elprimerozen Posted May 29, 2015 Report Share Posted May 29, 2015 Hi Ubi!!! Nice to see you again...! ....btw.....you nailed it again...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted June 10, 2015 Author Report Share Posted June 10, 2015 Thanks, gents! Really appreciate the kind words!The 201/A has been spending a LOT of time on my wrist it seems! All my other watches are offsite and stored away, so this one has been getting some miles on the clock, so to speak Have to say though, I've really been enjoying it; even if I had my other watches here with me, this one would still get it's fair share of exposure! Think that speaks volumes, considering Admittedly, my interest in watches in general has somewhat waned over the past year or so; like anything else in life, things tend to go in cycles and there are lots of peaks and valleys. With some recent purchases and work on long term projects, I am feeling that old interest start to spark up again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted June 13, 2015 Author Report Share Posted June 13, 2015 Did I mention that I love the finish of this dial? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katerchen Posted June 14, 2015 Report Share Posted June 14, 2015 A pleasure to see another build of you - congrats on that beautiful and classic piece!! Wear it well, thats a keeper for sure. Cheers George Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted June 14, 2015 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2015 Thanks, George! Been a long time, and it's great to see you posting still! I've had a few inquiries into the parts used for this build, so I thought I'd include the ingredients for fun... -Old 111j case, fully reshaped by w0lf; lugs drilled by Zig -H Factory crystal -DW 201/A caseback -Custom fabricated CG; a good friend of mine made 10 of these and a few of us got lucky as recipients! -Gen(?) crown (one of the old Turkish ones) -Custom fabricated crown tube -Rolli/FGD dial -Rolli/FGD hands set -Swiss 6497-1 -Pre-V lug bars -Dirk strap with sewn in Logo buckle Given the nature of the case and especially the CG, I am not sure I could ever duplicate this one again... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asf Posted June 15, 2015 Report Share Posted June 15, 2015 look at that beast on your wrist! love it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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