docthor Posted April 13, 2017 Report Share Posted April 13, 2017 First I'd like to say... A BIG RESPECT!!! ...to you modders, watchsmith and tinkerer out there! It was always clear to me that it's not that easy to work on those tiny watches...however...now, after killing several movements, dials, hands and even cases, I know from my own experience how nerve-racking and frustrating but yet satisfactory this work can be. For me the whole process was more frustration than satisfaction and I don't think I'm going to do it again. I have Domi living next door and even though in most cases I don't find the time to visit him it's less frustrating to find a time slot than destroying another watch But...my last try is, at least, back together and working. I tried to vintagize a 1665 comex and give it a "I've seen a lot in my life, died but am back living" look. I'm quite happy with the dial but don't like the damage I've done to the case. The dial was processed with fresh orange juice then roasted on a boiling plate and finished with a blowtorch. The case was in a bag with lots of screws and I shook it about 20min to give it that rugged look. Maybe it's getting better when I polish it but right now I don't like the result. The frustrating part for me was putting the dial back on the movement and getting the hands back in place. While flaming it with the blowtorch the dial lost its spacer which is glued to the dial. Putting these two tiny things back in place was pretty annoying since the spacer always fell down...but after 15min I made it...phewww... Okay...dial in place now to the hands. I've seen it so many times at Domis and when he's doing it's just a flow...easy task I always thought... But not for me...I have pretty shaky hands (always had but it doesn't matter when you work on old engines ) and big fingers too. It took me several tries and almost 1h (and I do have the tools that are necessary!!) to bring these three hands back in place and now they are bent...interesting look and it's working but it shouldn't be like that... After I finally managed to attach the hands to the movement I was so happy that I immediately started to case the movement. Unfortunately I forgot to clean the plexy from the inside It's almost invisible on the wrist but I doubt that it's any good at all...but hey...I'm going to visit Domi next week...I don't want to decase that movement atm...just happy that it's back in and running...I effed up too many the last months. So...here it is...my butchered vintagized 1665 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phener9 Posted April 13, 2017 Report Share Posted April 13, 2017 I actually think this dial looks OK. Sent from my SM-A300FU using TapatalkBpff at Barmouth Beach. Still my favourite watch Sent from my SM-A300FU using Tapatalk 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manodeoro Posted April 13, 2017 Report Share Posted April 13, 2017 Nicely done ... though "butchered" is almost an euphemism there.I'll add just one comment :"Next time you dive 2000ft down you'd better keep your watch INSIDE the u-boat" Envoyé de mon XT1068 en utilisant Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imajedi Posted April 13, 2017 Report Share Posted April 13, 2017 Clean the crystal so that only the dial is vintagized. That's what really makes vintage watches pop. Also, the hands need to have some aging to match the dial. Maybe polish the case to remove some of the sharp edges. All in, I think it looks good. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docthor Posted April 13, 2017 Author Report Share Posted April 13, 2017 I'll give it a good polish overall. Just found my Dremel and the polish bits last weekend .With the hands...no way that I remove these hands again...never Many thanks for your nice words gents...I was just happy that I managed to get all things together and now I feel like I've done well with my rough mechanical skills Gesendet von meinem SM-A310F mit Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sogeha Posted April 13, 2017 Report Share Posted April 13, 2017 I rather like the effect on the dial. I would try to try for the overpolished look. I would never pay gen prices for an overpolished piece, but I think it can look great on rep. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docthor Posted April 20, 2017 Author Report Share Posted April 20, 2017 Found the time and the courage to decase the movement and clean and polish the plexy...looks wayyyy better now 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phener9 Posted April 20, 2017 Report Share Posted April 20, 2017 Yeah that looks better, maybe an aged strap now? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eunomians Posted April 20, 2017 Report Share Posted April 20, 2017 Looks nice. One big thing I've noticed with vintage reps versus genuine vintage Rolex are the edges of the lugs... Reps have sharp as hell edges on the lugs. No vintage piece ever does unless it's totally NOS unworn. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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