5514 help please.

[azbank]

Gentlemen, 

Got a nice Whoopy Comex dial no date., need a good case for a franken build. Please point to the right direction. Was looking at cartel cases, too fat, too tall, valve escape unreal. where do I get a good one? Please help. Appreciate the advise. 

[rka]

I'm building the same watch. The case is the last part I have to source. The best cases are the ones from HH. Unfortunately almost impossible to find. Yuki and Phong are the other possibilities, but a way higher price.

[azbank]

Yes, it seems that is exactly the case., there is also MBW but it looks too fat., the originals are thinner. I guess Yuki or Phong., but I am in EU so need trans-shipment through the UK. so much trouble :))) I got a cartel case from Josh but it is simply no good, especially if you have a good dial. What do you think? 

[tomhorn]

I was lucky to find an HH case for my build. Bought one of the last one's he had. I know HH had a lot of challenges to get where he did. It's really too bad that the project never came to fruition.

The only potential availability of an HH case I have seen that was not already built into a franken was hinted at by member "altesporsche" in a thread back in January. Have no idea if he sold it during that thread, or has done anything with it. Otherwise, at this point you're out of luck.

As for what to do now, there are only three viable options. Phong, Yuki and MBW. Phong's cases are easily the best, but is also the most money. Yuki's are better than the MBW case, but with either of those, you are going to have to do some case re-shaping in order to get them to look better. Personally, I wouldn't even attempt a 5514 build now without having the budget for a Phong case. Sure, you'll spend less with Yuki or the MBW, but then you'll have the added re-shaping costs and they still won't be as good anyway.

This is why the first order of business when deciding to build a franken is doing the research and coming up with the plan. It's critical to do this before buying the first part. Otherwise you can end up with a few parts, and no way to finish the project, or an end cost that's way more than you wanted to spend. Far better to figure out ahead of time what items are going to be the toughest to find, so you can start with them first.

As you've found, with the 5514, it's the case. For a 1016, it's the dial. The list goes on ...

[rka]

Isn't the 5514 case a 5513 with HEV? Then it would be easier to buy a 5513 and drill the hev?

[freddy333]

1 hour ago, rka said:

Isn't the 5514 case a 5513 with HEV? Then it would be easier to buy a 5513 and drill the hev?

Several years ago, there were a few threads detailing the specs & how to drill a 5513 case for an He valve. If you search for valve and freddy333, you should be able to locate them.

Here is 1 of them

[rka]

Thanks! The hev does not necessarily need to work. If the hev looks correct, it's fine. In this case I also don't have to worry about water resistance.

[UmpaHimself]

13 hours ago, tomhorn said:

This is why the first order of business when deciding to build a franken is doing the research and coming up with the plan. It's critical to do this before buying the first part. Otherwise you can end up with a few parts, and no way to finish the project, or an end cost that's way more than you wanted to spend. Far better to figure out ahead of time what items are going to be the toughest to find, so you can start with them first.

My god, that is the story of my life right now. If only I would have known more before going in. But it has been a fantastic learning experience for both rep and gen buying. I think I have duplicate parts for everything at the moment. Dials, cases, hands, crystals, inserts (rep and gen). 

To OP, really depends on how perfect you want it. I think overall the MBW case is much better then the Cartel for your average sub but the 5514 isn't your average sub. In this case it may be best to go with Phong. As said you have Yuki and don't forget Minh Quy. His cases are a bit cheaper then Phong. Not sure the quality though.

[automatico]

I have drilled a few cases for valves and it was not too hard to do but it is nerve wracking. After finally locating where I wanted the valve (not as easy as it sounds) I mounted the case in a miniature Sherline milling machine and drilled the smaller hole all the way through followed by the larger hole/valve seat. I use the milling machine because it feeds the drill by a feed screw as opposed to the unregulated hand wheel/spokes on a regular drill press. I drilled all the way through the case so the valve shaft would have plenty of material in the case for a secure fit and so I could knock the valve out from the inside if needed.

The smaller hole is not too hard to drill but the larger outside hole/valve seat is not as easy because it needs to be a certain depth. The angle of the cutting end of the drill is probably not the same as the oem valve seat but the rubber O ring will seal up Ok if you choose to go with a working valve. If you want to polish the valve seat you can use a small wooden dowel with polishing compound on the tip and spin it in a drill etc. If it was mine, I would go with a non working valve because it solves a few problems:  1 - No spring groove to cut on the end of the valve.  2 - No inner leaf spring to fabricate.  3 - No leaking O ring problems.  4 - No need to fly cut a relief inside the case to make room for the valve spring.

I drilled a couple older cartel cases for valves and did not make the valves until after I drilled the smaller hole and valve seat. By making the valve after the holes are drilled, I could make the valve shaft to be a light press fit into the hole in the case. I did not use an O ring on the non operating valves but tapered the underside of the valve head to match the valve seat angle as close as I could get it and used non hardening 'Three Bond' sealer on the valve shaft and seat. It sealed past 100 psi (about 7atm).

I do not take in any work because I have more than enough projects of my own and because I do not want to take a chance on damaging someone's case etc...I only screw up my own stuff.  

Btw...I would probably go with a Yuki case if using a genuine movement but would try to go with a lower cost case if using an Eta etc. Phong cases are fine but at twice the cost of a Yuki case they are not for me.

http://www.onlinemetals.com/merchant.cfm?id=7&step=2&top_cat=1

[azbank]

Thanks for the information! Looks like it is all about the case here. However a good dial is also hard to come by. I started at the wrong end with the dial . however I think that the Whoopy dial deserves a nice case its really nice so given your info I will make my choice and let you guys now the result. There are vintage builds like Paul Newman Daytona that is not only about the case, but also the dial and the movement which is difficult to source, so you are so right about getting the facts and the wants straighten out before diving into these builds. 

[ww12345]

Sounds a lot like my build - I started with the dial first then wound up getting a Phong case from Freddy. I have a different case (unknown origin) and while it is good neither it or any of the other 5514s I've seen measure up to a phong case. Buy high cry once; buy low cry twice...

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