irate03 Posted September 24, 2015 Report Share Posted September 24, 2015 (edited) Just finished this little build. I wanted to make a 6536 small crown and a few months ago managed to source a gen vintage crown. I couldn't get an old crown tube so I bought a twin lock with the right chamfered base from cousins UK and had to drill out the centre for the spring loaded tube to fit through. Case was drilled out and re-threaded. I also shaped the chamfered edges on the lugs and also took away some metal under the lugs to create a thinner more curved case profile.Bottom line is that the 6536 was a very thin case and nobody makes anything like it. And to re create the case accurately the lug holes would need filling and re-drilling in a slightly different place after the bottom and top of the case had been milled down. A massive job and not one I'm in a position to do.It's a tiger concept V2 case, pain in the [censored] to source parts for because there is a lack of any replacement plexis. I ended up using a cousins plexi which gave me a low dome. Hands are from a place called Ric's watch repair, they are flat sub hands made for 1570 movement, so I had to broach the holes to fit the asian movement I have at the moment, I'm waiting for a Swiss vintage ETA to be serviced that i'll put in for a truly nice finish. insert is from raffles, bleached so the coated layer comes off and fades. Dial is a re-lumed Helenarou from RWG member Big Dazza, cheers mate. I had to resize the dial to fit the TC case, from 29mm down to 28mm and in the process some of the matt spray coating came of, I cleaned a lot of the rest off but decided to leave some around the edge as it looked like the gloss dial was starting to age and fade and I liked the effect. Clearly the only major flaw and issue in this build is the depth rating, the 6536 had 100m / 330ft text on the dial, and nobody apart for Yuki does this, and the Yuki dial is 37mm which would drop straight through the bezel. Finally I added an "exclamation mark" under the 6 marker. I've seen these gen dials and thought it was a tiny detail i'd love to include, and a few days ago I found a gen 6536 picture with one of these dials.I hope you like it. Edited September 24, 2015 by irate03 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mendota Explorer Posted September 24, 2015 Report Share Posted September 24, 2015 Bravo! Very nice work with this one. I absolutely love the texture and the aging effects on the dial and hands. Did Big Dazza also do those hands for you? If he did not, how did you produce that aged effect on them?The case looks fantastic. In your post, you mention that the case work was more than you could handle. Who ended up doing the work for you? They did a fantastic job.This is a beautiful piece. Enjoy it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whoopy12 Posted September 24, 2015 Report Share Posted September 24, 2015 Excellent job! You sure take some pretty pictures as well Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
irate03 Posted September 24, 2015 Author Report Share Posted September 24, 2015 I did all the case and hands work, I only meant that if I wanted the case to be even thinner to the correct thickness it would need machine work. I thinned the underside of the lugs by hand. The hands were finely sanded then treated with a mixture of salt and vinegar to oxidise and give the colour, then they were lumed by me, I have a nice lume mixture that gives a puffy matt finish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mendota Explorer Posted September 24, 2015 Report Share Posted September 24, 2015 (edited) I did all the case and hands work, I only meant that if I wanted the case to be even thinner to the correct thickness it would need machine work. I thinned the underside of the lugs by hand. The hands were finely sanded then treated with a mixture of salt and vinegar to oxidise and give the colour, then they were lumed by me, I have a nice lume mixture that gives a puffy matt finish.Wow. You did such a nice job! Very impressive work. I love the little crack in the seconds hand! I am going to experiment with reluming a couple of dials and hands this winter to get my 1680 right and also to start another project. Can you share your lume recipe via PM? Edited September 24, 2015 by Mendota Explorer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dilligaf24824 Posted September 24, 2015 Report Share Posted September 24, 2015 Damn! Hot! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hologramet Posted September 24, 2015 Report Share Posted September 24, 2015 Really really nice!Do you know what size the bezel insert is? I'm buying a similar case and was wondering which stock bezel inserts (from other vendors) that will fit... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbane883 Posted September 24, 2015 Report Share Posted September 24, 2015 For a budget build, it looks fantastic. well done. Just goes to show you what a little elbow grease can accomplish. congrats. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
droptopman Posted September 24, 2015 Report Share Posted September 24, 2015 Great work on this. Dial and hands look really good. Nice case work as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanuq Posted September 24, 2015 Report Share Posted September 24, 2015 Very very very very nice! BUT....... man I hate to say this.........The 6536/1 had a 100m = 330ft depth rating. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike on a bike Posted September 24, 2015 Report Share Posted September 24, 2015 Great job , just outstanding. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
highoeyazmuhudee Posted September 24, 2015 Report Share Posted September 24, 2015 very nice piece! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddy333 Posted September 24, 2015 Report Share Posted September 24, 2015 For a budget build, it looks fantastic. well done. Just goes to show you what a little elbow grease can accomplish. congrats.Ditto.BUT....... man I hate to say this.........The 6536/1 had a 100m = 330ft depth rating.Oops. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
irate03 Posted September 24, 2015 Author Report Share Posted September 24, 2015 Ditto.Oops.read through my explanation " Clearly the only major flaw and issue in this build is the depth rating, the 6536 had 100m / 330ft text on the dial, and nobody apart for Yuki does this, and the Yuki dial is 37mm which would drop straight through the bezel."Apart from a custom made dial the only ready made option I can find is Yuki and that is a 27mm (gen size) dial, the opening in the Tiger Concept V2 case is 27mm so the dial would drop though, you could back it with something but likely have an unsightly edge visible. So I have taken a little artistic license and built a slightly thick 6536 with 6538 depth rated dial. Given that so many vintage rolex's have the same authenticity issues as old panerai's with mix and match parts, I decided it would be something I could overlook.........for now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanuq Posted September 24, 2015 Report Share Posted September 24, 2015 Ah, good explanation and good reasoning. There was a 6538 on Fleabay last night that was "all gen" except for a dial that was poorly repainted and hands that were replaced, and an Athaya crown. But otherwise all original, priced at $43k plus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
irate03 Posted September 25, 2015 Author Report Share Posted September 25, 2015 Ah, good explanation and good reasoning. There was a 6538 on Fleabay last night that was "all gen" except for a dial that was poorly repainted and hands that were replaced, and an Athaya crown. But otherwise all original, priced at $43k plus.There are two 6538's on there now, one looks a bit iffy on the dial, the other looks like the engravings were machined yesterday. and the bezel is new. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geny Posted September 27, 2015 Report Share Posted September 27, 2015 Another beauty by you, congratulations and wear it in good health! Love the case work Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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