Early sixties pointed crown guards, gilt 1675 GMT-Master, pic heavy

[Nightwatch]

1962 “El Corniño” pcg gilt 1675

We watch collectors admire and fantasize over the minute details of vintage timepieces, particularly Rolexes (or Panerai): brownish tropical dials, creamy, puffy lume, yellowed tritium, perfectly faded bezels exposed to harsh seawater and burning suns. We dream of finding that vintage, gilt, tropical 5513 Submariner with some faded caseback engraving of historical significance belonging to a Special Forces or Comex Diver, still stored away in an old metal box. We imagine that gilt dialled 1675 with the faded Pepsi bezel, that belonged to the PAN AM Captain of a Boeing 707 and has been all over the World. Maybe it belonged to an Africa Explorer and Photographer and accompanied him on his solitary National Geographic missions in the beaten up Series II Land Rover: deep into the wild Congo and up the Zambeze to the Victoria Falls, following Livingstone´s epic journey. We imagine us wearing it, dig to discover the story behind that comes with it, visualize all the places it has been to and the events it was present to.

On the hard side of real life we also wonder, if it will work at all and possibly worry about the gen parts being truly gen.

Than one day RWG comes along, with all the fantastic builds around and, after a while, You realize it might be much simpler to collect some gen parts, maybe get a 1655 rep (there are the 1675 and 16570 options),  have it´s caseset reshaped by RolexAddict and everything nicely fitted, so it will be exactly as You wanted it to be.

So this is a link to what I was looking for: http://www.rolexforums.com/showthread.php?t=352553

And another: http://www.hqmilton.com/watches/1963-rolex-gmt-1675-pcg-gilt-chapter-ring-dial-with-box-and-papers

And a review I used for research and this text:

http://www.woundforlife.com/2015/03/13/under-the-loupe-rolex-gmt-master-1675/

 

And after seemingly endless reading, researching, digging, dreaming, hoping, with some luck and persistance “Never give up, never surrender” this is what I gotJ:

The argentinian 1962 “El Corniño” pcg gilt 1675

First let me say, that this is one of the most iconic and beautiful watches I have ever owned. Not just any 1675. Between all of the variations GMT-Master, it´s this early successor of the bakelite- bezeled reference 6542, that speaks to me the most. It has been a grail watch for a long time, so sometimes You just have to walk that extra mile to get it.

First introduced in 1959, this is the pcg, gilt 1675. Nicknamed the “El Corniño” by collectors for its horn-like appearance (from El Corno in Spanish meaning the horn or the Bull´s horn, with the diminutive added “Little Horn” like Little Bighorn, Custer´s Last Stand) it features a curved profile that points towards the crown. The Corniño lasted only from 1959 to 1965/1966, making it a rarity in today’s market, while the 1675 would be produced for 21 years until 1980, a testament to its real world functionality and timeless design.

The combination of blue, red and gold against the black, discontinued, Yuki gilt dial works amazingly well. RA´s caseset reshaping is just fantastic. The drilled lugholes add to the flair and with the beautifully, naturally faded gen Pepsi-insert/gen GMT bezel assembly/gen plexi/gen crown, it looks truly as if it aged magnificently.

If I was a one watch guy this would be it. I´ll let the pictures speak for themselves.

Plexiglass with cyclops and black hole effect

5.3mm twinlock crown

Aged, yellowed dwo

Small, red GMT hour hand

GMT bezel assembly (necessary on the 1655)

faded, semi-ghost Pepsi insert

Drilled lugholes, gen-spec lugbars

Gold (gilt) dial imprints, no hyphen between OYSTER PERPETUAL, even earlier issues of the 1675 had the rare OCC (OFFICIAL CERTIFIED CHRONOMETER) lettering, while this 1962 issue reads SUPERLATIVE CHRONOMETER OFFICIALLY CERTIFIED, the SWISS <T25 instead of SWISS only makes it looking like an early argentinian issue

Calibre 1565 (stamped 1560 with added GMT function); this had to be replaced by a 2836-2 with GMT function, contrary to gen the GMT hand can be set independently being more functional

Correct handstack for the 1675

Flat caseback

7836 stamped folded bracelet with 358 end links (this would belong to a 1969 GMT 1675 from my research).

On the hunt for a 62510 Jubilee, the 62510H/550 would fit as well.

For all those wondering: Is it worth it? Yes, just do it, You will be amazed. It´s not for the faint-hearted, nor for those in a hurry, it´s very rewarding once You´ve got it. Someway it took me 2 years to get here. 

Thanks all for reading and thanks to past and present members for reviews, hints and tips, pictures and the history of it:)

 

 

 

 

 

 

[irolexu]

Gorgeous watch

[Bart Cordell]

Congratulations ! Your 1675 is beautiful.

I need a gilt dial on mine too.

[Ezio]

Amazing 

 

great Job mate 

 

if it wasnt because of The thickness of these i Would own one too  

[UmpaHimself]

Stunning! Congrats. Wear it well.

[Nightwatch]

Thanks Guys:)

About the thickness I read quite a lot but thinking of the AP 15400 reps thickness I don´t quite follow it for this one. It sits low and slim on the wrist.

While the 16700 GMT is extremely thin at 11.8 mm and the other 16700´s series are only 12,4mm the 1675 GMT-Master is given with 

Watch dimensions:
Lugs inside opening: 20mm
H:  47.5 mm -  lug-to-lug        
W: 40mm bezel only       
(42mm L side of the bezel to the R edge of the crown)      
Thickness: 13.75 mm incl. cyclops on acrylic crystal. 12.75mm w/o cyclops from here: http://www.mkmotorsport.com/watches_GMT1675.htm

In comparison with the calipers wrapped in paper I get: thickness 14,15mm incl. cyclops on acrylic crystal 13.35mm w/o cyclops at the exact center and 12.95mm if 1 cm to the side. This one has the flat caseback fitted that could even be slimmed down a bit if machined and the 0,5mm are negligible on the wrist and even of. As said the 16700 is visibly sleeker, a real 1675 haven´t tried it out and on pics it´s very close. 

[wiesn089]

Wonderful build, amazing attention to detail, wear it well!

[Mike on a bike]

Outstanding!!!

[rower]

Incredible...I wish I had that kind of focus and patience.

[Nightwatch]

9 hours ago, rower said:

Incredible...I wish I had that kind of focus and patience.

lol, the patience was all there, luck too ... great, unique Gif, this made my day:)

Thx again Guys. Credit to whom it belongs, and that is JJ with his superior craftmanship and keeny eye for minutae details in the first place. He build this in June ´14. I catched it in a wtb requestJ I´m just so much in watchheaven/ happy like a kid to have one of my "grails" now as a keeper.

During the lengthy research, last Year I stumbled on exactly this build, on a presentation by Yuki, recognized it for being what I wanted, and happened to see it was from a watch-buddy of mine who put it all together.  In the end, it was just coincidence and much needed luck, thanks to already knowing what I wanted to go for, otherwise it would´ve taken yet another couple of months.

Next on the block is the M-serial 16570 GMT, for which I´m expecting a gen dial this weekJ

[droptopman]

This is beautifully done. Outstanding work. Congrats.

[Sbybbuser]

May I ask what is the maker of the dial. I had a similar looking watch before that I sold almost a year ago.

Now I have a new pcg in hand that needs a gilt dial.

Thanks

Sent from my SM-N9100 using Tapatalk

[Nightwatch]

6 minutes ago, Sbybbuser said:

May I ask what is the maker of the dial. I had a similar looking watch before that I sold almost a year ago.

Now I have a new pcg in hand that needs a gilt dial.

Thanks

Sent from my SM-N9100 using Tapatalk

Hi, it´s a discontinued dial from Yukiwatch, he doesn´t have it anymore like this. Maybe check his other offerings or Tonnywatches on Ebay/ Instagram.

[kyldare]

Gorgeous build! I can only imagine the satisfaction of having finished a project that lengthy. Congrats!

Where did you source the 2836-2? 

Did you have to modify it much to fit in the case or to accept the hands at all?

I'm looking for a GMT movement to use with my gen 1675 hands/dial/case and am trying to decide what will be most accurate to the original movement and least complex to get into my case with a gen date wheel. Originally had planned on a 2893-2, but would like to know about this route a bit more...

[Nightwatch]

Hi and thanks. No modifications for the movement necessary as it came with the base 1655: http://www.ttw8488.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1_4&products_id=6561 this ETA-clone replacement with R- dwo would also do with an ETA dial and hands (seller on ebay too): http://www.helenarou.com/hangzhou-6460-automatic-gmt-movement-date-at-300-eta-283646030028362.html. 

For fitting the all gen parts, You would need a Yuki 3135 movement modified to 3185 (check Yukiwatches) and contact Misikpied to modify it (with movement/parts/service and modification You´re talking +-$around $835). Verify first if this really does fit the 1675 case (and stem height/placement).

For interest: what is the overall thickness of the gen 1675 including plexi (without cyclops) measured at the center and at the 2 o´clock corner if You have some calipers

[mcotter]

Wowser, your 1675 is everything you said it was & then some! Not only is the GMT beyond belief...your essay about the

journey is beautiful, a more articulate story on a rep build I've never seen. Congratulations, a great post & a fabulous

watch...regards, mcotter

[kyldare]

I don't have calipers, but I might be able to find a set to get a measurement for you. I'll see what I can do this weekend. 

Thanks for the advice on the movement for my case!!! I read a lot of opinions about what to use without any links or much context. I really appreciate it. 

 

On 3/3/2016 at 6:27 PM, Nightwatch said:

Hi and thanks. No modifications for the movement necessary as it came with the base 1655: http://www.ttw8488.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1_4&products_id=6561 this ETA-clone replacement with R- dwo would also do with an ETA dial and hands (seller on ebay too): http://www.helenarou.com/hangzhou-6460-automatic-gmt-movement-date-at-300-eta-283646030028362.html. 

For fitting the all gen parts, You would need a Yuki 3135 movement modified to 3185 (check Yukiwatches) and contact Misikpied to modify it (with movement/parts/service and modification You´re talking +-$around $835). Verify first if this really does fit the 1675 case (and stem height/placement).

For interest: what is the overall thickness of the gen 1675 including plexi (without cyclops) measured at the center and at the 2 o´clock corner if You have some calipers

 

[Tiyal]

Love it! Great write up. Almost ready to pull the trigger. All the pieces are there. Just having a little issue with the case. It would seem I tapped it at a bit of an angle. The crown sits just off center and touches the lug. Some day I'll commit.

[Nightwatch]

This vintage GMT really is all I ever wanted from a watch:) Some more 2016 pics:

[rower]

Definitely one to be proud of! 

[altesporsche]

All I can say is WOW !  that is truly a beauty !  hold on to that one ! 

I had a chance to hold an original PAN AM GMT a couple of Christmases ago. One of my old mans Pilots, father used to be a pilot for Pan Am back in the 60's and he handed the GMT down to him. He was at aChristmas party a few years ago at my parents and I noticed it on his wrist. I was in awe and had to ask about it.. when he took it off and I saw the Pan Am on the back I kind of got a "holy F$^k" feeling overcome me lol it was truly something to hold something like that and to know the rarity and how much it was sought after.  

 

[imajedi]

Holy cow I'm in love.