Possible solution for indices on ceramic bezel

[Federico1203]

@alterporsche... are you thinking in it?
Molotow Liquid Chrome Marker http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/311626501842

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[altesporsche]

Already tried it and it's not good at all. I bought the 1mm and it's far too shiny and metallic for the I indicies. 

[manodeoro]

19 hours ago, altesporsche said:

Exactly @mrsoundman ! That was my point and the whole reason I posted this. 

 

Model paint for the most part is acrylic so you need to seal it and still it's just paint and will wear much easier than the chemical based paints used in a simple sharpie marker lol 

 

we use the gold version of this marker for marking stainless tooling that we send several thousand feet below the seabed to drill rock.. so it's a tad more durable than acrylic paint ?

 

im not crapping on what this guy is doing, but yea I inquired about getting one done for a watch I'm building my brother (don't want to buy a gen insert to give away lol) and when he came back with it having to be removed (which is expected and quite easy for someone who's done it before) but for the majority of people who feel better sending it out to be removed, it becomes a pain in the ass. Then ship to Singapore, turnaround on his end is 2 weeks for his 99.99% platinum (which is impossible for this application) as there are only a few ways you can plate or coat non metal ceramics and plastics, one is electroless plating which would involve submersing in an etching bath that would ruin the polished surface as well, then you have sputtering which is the process of applying plating in a vacuum chamber and quite costly equipment (not worth it for this application)  then you have electroplating which cannot be completed unless the electroless plating is performed as a means for the materials to adhere to in the plating process, then finally you have spraying which is taking a powder form of a metal and basically brazing the material (no go with Plastics) and I can't see this with ceramic due to the high melting temp of the 6 platinum group metals being between 1770deg C  and 3050deg C, it's actually unlikely that even Rolex uses pure platinum as a plating on ceramic. I can see if the service included an insert and then you send your old one back etc.. but $290 is steep for "plating" as only the GMT will need the cleaning up of the edges (again visible under 10X not the eye unless really really looking for it) anyways 

that's just my 2 cents worth from 10 years of experience with precious and noble metals and a Phd in mechanical engineering.

 

In my eyes with my gens next next to the "sharpies mod" lol  it's much more worth it than giving someone almost $300 usd or more after having someone else remove it etc.. in which you are half way or more to the cost of a LN insert , just to make it look the same as spending an hour with a $8 marker that is nothing like the "old school" model paint mods.. 

Very great thread @altesporsche ... thank you VERY MUCH 

Though I dont have any ceramic bezel (I'm stucked on vintage and "early modern" watches so only metal inserts) I really appreciate the informations you provide here. 

Sharing experience is a great and very honorable behaviour.

 

So it seems you work in subsea engineering ... oil & gas or else ?

If YES you could be interested by the 16800 COMEX I'm building for my elder son (oil & gas instrument engineer in Norway) ... I'll create of thread about that build as soon it's finished, possibly next week.

[Nivka]

Thanks for sharing. Just ordered mine

[altesporsche]

2 hours ago, manodeoro said:

Very great thread @altesporsche ... thank you VERY MUCH 

Though I dont have any ceramic bezel (I'm stucked on vintage and "early modern" watches so only metal inserts) I really appreciate the informations you provide here. 

Sharing experience is a great and very honorable behaviour.

 

So it seems you work in subsea engineering ... oil & gas or else ?

If YES you could be interested by the 16800 COMEX I'm building for my elder son (oil & gas instrument engineer in Norway) ... I'll create of thread about that build as soon it's finished, possibly next week.

 

Im a big fan of a vintage stuff as well ? I

am also in the process of building a COMEX, but the earlier 5514 version lol it's been a two year or more process because I'm anal about parts. 

I will look forward to following your thread on the Comex for your son, I always loved the 16800's 

you are damn close on the Subsea engineer ? And yes on the oil and gas. I worked as a tooling engineer for ROV's for a while then a subsea engineer for some years and now back into my field of fluid power working as a hydraulic engineer for the complete drilling package and subsea systems. I get to get my hands dirty a little more and it keeps the mind fresh lol 

You must be Norwegian ? Or your son won the lottery lol as Norway is the dreamland for offshore workers. Everyone wants to work there but it's nearly impossible. 

Id go there in a second even with a hefty pay cut lol but a lot of it is because I love the country and would use it as an excuse to move there. 

Cheers and thanks for reading ! 

I'll be looking out for that project. 

[manodeoro]

2 hours ago, altesporsche said:

 

Im a big fan of a vintage stuff as well ? I

am also in the process of building a COMEX, but the earlier 5514 version lol it's been a two year or more process because I'm anal about parts. 

I will look forward to following your thread on the Comex for your son, I always loved the 16800's 

you are damn close on the Subsea engineer ? And yes on the oil and gas. I worked as a tooling engineer for ROV's for a while then a subsea engineer for some years and now back into my field of fluid power working as a hydraulic engineer for the complete drilling package and subsea systems. I get to get my hands dirty a little more and it keeps the mind fresh lol 

You must be Norwegian ? Or your son won the lottery lol as Norway is the dreamland for offshore workers. Everyone wants to work there but it's nearly impossible. 

Id go there in a second even with a hefty pay cut lol but a lot of it is because I love the country and would use it as an excuse to move there. 

Cheers and thanks for reading ! 

I'll be looking out for that project. 

My 16800 build is a low budget (I'm not Norwegian and I dont work in oil & gas) so I'm trying not to be anal about details.

I just bought a BP 16610 Sub and mod it myself to a "year 1984" 16800 COMEX :

1 - mod the dial to a COMEX one (remove the indexes, DIY decal, put the indexes back ... it turned to be an easy mod)

2 - drill the lugs for 2mm bars (most difficult part of the job ... almost ruined the case)

3 - drill a 93150 bracelet and 380 endlinks to accept 2mm bars

4 - rework the lugs to a thinner profile and redo the chamfers (work in progress)

5 - remove the engravings on the rehaut (just kept the serial number)

5 - engrave the caseback (diver's number will be 193 ... my son's size in centimeters)

6 - build a vintage service box

I'll add a vintage leather strap from cheapnatostraps (I already made some myself but I'm short in time so I jsut bought one) with a rolex buckle (brushed with a polish coronet), put everything in the DIY service box and give it to my son next sunday ... if everything goes well.

 

Here's a pic of the dial and one of the "service box)

 

 

 

I'm definitely NOT Norwegian ... just French.

My son studied instrument engineering in France (INSA) then oil & gas engineering in GB during 6 months.

He needed an internship for his 5th academic year so he sent a resume to Aker Solutions in Oslo and got a 6 months job as an engineering assistant ... and they never let him leave.

He lives there since 9 years now and since 2 years I have a Norwegian grandson 

BTW ... considering what he's earning there I'm not certain you would get a huge pay cut if you get a job in Norway.

Norway and oil & gas jobs make everybody dream ...

That's why my youngster son did quite the same studies and works as an instrument & control engineer for a small consultancy company.

He's based in France so he earns much less money than his elder brother but he does a lot of consultancy missions abroad (only 26 and he's already worked in Norway, Singapore and Russia) so he really enjoys his work ... and he still hopes to get a permanent job in big oil & gas company.

 

Edited April 11, 2017 by manodeoro

[MAHLER]

Thanks very helpful..

 

But but bad luck ...$7.99 + $19.55 Shipping Cost to Italy or $7.93 & FREE Shipping (This item does not ship to Italy.)

Well, I found another way, I ordered on ebay. Maybe was not so bad: Item $ 6.29 + $ 5.51 Shipping to Italy.

[P4GTR]

honestly that looks pretty damn good all things considered. It's really the easiest, attainable solution anyone can do and afford. I have a decent PPM that I use but I think I will pick up one of those sharpies to see what it's like in person. I always wondered how they would do, thanks for sharing.

[mmoderni]

Thanks very helpful..
 
But but bad luck ...$7.99 + $19.55 Shipping Cost to Italy or $7.93 & FREE Shipping (This item does not ship to Italy.)
Well, I found another way, I ordered on ebay. Maybe was not so bad: Item $ 6.29 + $ 5.51 Shipping to Italy.

You can find it easily also here in Italy, just google it


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[altesporsche]

5 hours ago, manodeoro said:

My 16800 build is a low budget (I'm not Norwegian and I dont work in oil & gas) so I'm trying not to be anal about details.

I just bought a BP 16610 Sub and mod it myself to a "year 1984" 16800 COMEX :

1 - mod the dial to a COMEX one (remove the indexes, DIY decal, put the indexes back ... it turned to be an easy mod)

2 - drill the lugs for 2mm bars (most difficult part of the job ... almost ruined the case)

3 - drill a 93150 bracelet and 380 endlinks to accept 2mm bars

4 - rework the lugs to a thinner profile and redo the chamfers (work in progress)

5 - remove the engravings on the rehaut (just kept the serial number)

5 - engrave the caseback (diver's number will be 193 ... my son's size in centimeters)

6 - build a vintage service box

I'll add a vintage leather strap from cheapnatostraps (I already made some myself but I'm short in time so I jsut bought one) with a rolex buckle (brushed with a polish coronet), put everything in the DIY service box and give it to my son next sunday ... if everything goes well.

 

Here's a pic of the dial and one of the "service box)

 

 

 

I'm definitely NOT Norwegian ... just French.

My son studied instrument engineering in France (INSA) then oil & gas engineering in GB during 6 months.

He needed an internship for his 5th academic year so he sent a resume to Aker Solutions in Oslo and got a 6 months job as an engineering assistant ... and they never let him leave.

He lives there since 9 years now and since 2 years I have a Norwegian grandson 

BTW ... considering what he's earning there I'm not certain you would get a huge pay cut if you get a job in Norway.

Norway and oil & gas jobs make everybody dream ...

That's why my youngster son did quite the same studies and works as an instrument & control engineer for a small consultancy company.

He's based in France so he earns much less money than his elder brother but he does a lot of consultancy missions abroad (only 26 and he's already worked in Norway, Singapore and Russia) so he really enjoys his work ... and he still hopes to get a permanent job in big oil & gas company.

 

 

 

Sorry didn't mean to insult if you took it that way when i assumed you were Norwegian   Just assumed so as its quite hard to get into that sector of offshore. Its a great spot to be as im sure you know this from your son. The money is good but the schedule is the best you can get offshore. International Contracts are much higher paying, but you also dont get the same treatment as you would in the Norwegian sector. Ive been wanting to for years, but you would have to know Norwegian and mine isn't that great even after living there for a while.  I was there with National Oilwell Varco, Aker's rival lol 

I almost went down the instrumentation road a while ago before i went to university. its a great field and pays well, also with the way the industry is now on a low they continue to be in demand, so a good place to be. Im sure when things pick back up your younger son will have no problem hooking a big job with an oil and gas company. Once you are in the industry you can pretty much pick what you want to do and where you want to go when the markets are up. I remember back 5 or 6 years ago, you could literally quit and have a job somewhere else the next day, i miss those days lol and the money was just insane. I had mechanics on my rigs making over a quarter of a million USD. 

 

That dial looks great !! how did you do the comex on the dial ? screen print or transfer ? it looks really good ! looking forward to seeing the finished watch. and budget builds are nothing to look down on.. ive seen some builds that were pretty damn fine and cost very little to do. It sounds like you have a lot into this one and im sure it will be well appreciated by your son !  looking forward to seeing the photos ! 

 

Cheers !

C.

[manodeoro]

 
 
Sorry didn't mean to insult if you took it that way when i assumed you were Norwegian   Just assumed so as its quite hard to get into that sector of offshore. Its a great spot to be as im sure you know this from your son. The money is good but the schedule is the best you can get offshore. International Contracts are much higher paying, but you also dont get the same treatment as you would in the Norwegian sector. Ive been wanting to for years, but you would have to know Norwegian and mine isn't that great even after living there for a while.  I was there with National Oilwell Varco, Aker's rival lol 
I almost went down the instrumentation road a while ago before i went to university. its a great field and pays well, also with the way the industry is now on a low they continue to be in demand, so a good place to be. Im sure when things pick back up your younger son will have no problem hooking a big job with an oil and gas company. Once you are in the industry you can pretty much pick what you want to do and where you want to go when the markets are up. I remember back 5 or 6 years ago, you could literally quit and have a job somewhere else the next day, i miss those days lol and the money was just insane. I had mechanics on my rigs making over a quarter of a million USD. 
 
That dial looks great !! how did you do the comex on the dial ? screen print or transfer ? it looks really good ! looking forward to seeing the finished watch. and budget builds are nothing to look down on.. ive seen some builds that were pretty damn fine and cost very little to do. It sounds like you have a lot into this one and im sure it will be well appreciated by your son !  looking forward to seeing the photos ! 
 
Cheers !
C.

The dial is designed with Illustrator then printed on white decal paper, put on the dial plate then 5 coats of varnish.
I first tried to keep the original dial and put the COMEX and SWISS-TSo I modded the whole dial.
I will show all the process in a specific thread went RWI is really back.

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[Federico1203]

Hi @alterporsche. I used your solution and it works well. Thanks for share it with us!

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[sgtguk]

Great cheap mod mate, that's a nice low cost option to enhance the rep insert 

 

New Sharpie on order.....thanks for the tip bud 

[GPSydney]

Is that a water or oil based Sharpie? We have both options here in Australia.


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[JoeyB]

I am located in the suburbs of Chicago, USA. Went to 'Michael's' craft store, the 'Sharpie Metallic Fine Point Permanent Marker Silver' is $2.49. On line coupon is 20% off. So that's $2.00 plus sales tax. That's a nice fix. 

[altesporsche]

I have even done it on the V7 insert and it also brings that closer to the vibrance of the silver tone of the gen inserts. 

 

It may may be a cheap fix but it's better than the other solutions out there. 

[JoeyB]

Well done!

[sgtguk]

Just finished my ceramic models and well happy with the results considering how long it took me


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[hologramet]

I stand corrected. Awesome mod, and absurdly easy to get it right without too much hassle...

 

Before:

 

After:

 

 

[altesporsche]

2 hours ago, hologramet said:

I stand corrected. Awesome mod, and absurdly easy to get it right without too much hassle...

 

Before:

 

After:

 

 

Looks great ! Glad you like the outcome 

 

Love that crystal !! Looks like it's not there.  Did you have it AR'd or is it the angle ? 

[hologramet]

@altesporsche: ProfSteve 2xAR . Get's rid of the cyclops. Me no likey.

[mrsoundman]

That Insert looks great and that crystal looks amazing!  I've seen a few done with the Cyclops and it's looks to be floating in mid air.  Ironically, I drafted an email to the Professor this morning to potentially have him 2xAR my 214270 Explorer I crystal. 

[hologramet]

43 minutes ago, mrsoundman said:

That Insert looks great and that crystal looks amazing!  I've seen a few done with the Cyclops and it's looks to be floating in mid air.  Ironically, I drafted an email to the Professor this morning to potentially have him 2xAR my 214270 Explorer I crystal. 

You won't be disappointed! 

It's great dealing with pros. And he sure knows what he is doing... 

[highoeyazmuhudee]

the added depth to the dial and the watch itself is amazing with a complete crystal AR. looks great

[svshawn]

Tried something different with mixture. Let me know what you guys think.