1680 Red Sub project complete

[Nanuq]

 

I’ve been after this project since forever. I always missed having a Red Sub in the lineup. I dabbled here and there and each time the results were horrible. Finally I found an old school MBW and the game was on.

 

I watched from the sidelines until the “right” dial showed up, then I found the right bezel and started aging it. I went with a very early pointy-four insert and amber pip. Then an original Polex Pete silver flat-three overlay washed up on these blissful shores. I tried 1,000 different T127 crystal and ring and bezel combinations until settling on the Sternkreuz.  Then I filed and sanded the MBW ring until it all went together. 

 

Then I sent it all off to my ever-patient builder and gave him very minimal guidance: “use your artistic eye”. He machined the case and worked the details until it all fell together, and now it’s home and finished. I still need to have the PP overlay installed, but everything else is DONE.  And what a beauty.  It’s more than I hoped for. Thanks again to NeckyZips for being reliable, and being patient with me. The man is an artist nes plus ultra.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[p0pperini]

Very pretty. Congrats sir!


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[Sogeha]

I know that build was a bit of a bumpy ride, but what a result

[Nanuq]

Yeah that one took a couple years off my life.  But the result... wow.   All the little details are there, from the ever so slightly rounded tops of the bezel teeth to the subtle inset of the insert, tapered seconds hand, understated droop to the crown guards ... it all adds up.  Now I'm biting my lip until I get the silver flat-three overlay put on, it will be exactly centered in the date aperture and exactly centered beneath the cyclops.  It's all planned out.  I also have a gen 702 crown sitting here smiling at me.  I'm holding onto it for the 1665 SD if that one ever fails, but it's sure tempting.  Maybe I can find a 700 crown and tube somewhere?   

[FxrAndy]

Nice work

[Nanuq]

You guys are too friggin kind ... nobody called me out on the insert being way too glossy?   

 

So I fixed it.   

 

[alligoat]

Beautiful! You could pick up a set of 580 end pieces from WSO and that would help a little. The 702 crown and tube assembly from Athaya is another possibility, although I think some people have had a problem with the crown spring. 

[Revere]

Very pretty. What hands did you use?

[Nanuq]

Unless I forgot a step somewhere, I think those are the stock MBW hands it came with all those years ago. They were slightly sanded and shaped then relumed and aged.

[automatico]

Nuq...

That is one fine looking watch! 

It would fool me and I am one heck of a fool.  Don't throw it at a bear next time you run out of arrows.

 

"You could pick up a set of 580 end pieces from WSO and that would help a little."

 

I'd go 'long wid dat. 

 

The WSO 580 end pieces are pretty good, especially for the $$ compared to genuine. 

I have used a few WSO sets with good results but learned the hard way that the tubes inside them are not soldered very good. 

 

 

On another note:

Free worthless advice for anyone who has not  had the 'pleasure' of fitting end pieces...

To prevent trouble with the soldered tubes coming loose, fit the end piece to the case first without the bracelet.  After any grinding/bending needed to make it fit on the 12 o'clock end...mark it and use it only on that end.  Do the same for the one to be used at 6. 

You want the rising curve of the end piece as even with the curve of the top of the lug as possible.  This is tedious and not easy because there is the danger of leaving marks on the outside edge of the end piece when bending it.  I use homemade 'round jaw' pliers made from a set of needle nose pliers and cover the newly 'ground round' insides of the jaws with plastic electrician's tape. 

Most members will not need to go through all the hassle but this is how I have done it...successfully most of the time.  Ha!

 

The rounded top edge of the end piece needs to be just a little bit lower than the bezel so the rotating bezel (or fixed bezel) will not rub against the end piece when the end piece moves.  Sometimes this takes a lot of 'ons and offs' to get it right.  This is also where a lot of the trouble with the spring bars passing through the lugs and hoods comes about...the curved end of the end piece is too tight against the case and holding the end piece away from lining up with the holes in the lugs.

The short answer to fitting end pieces is basically trial and error.

 

Once in a while I had to slightly curve the spring bar but if you curve it very much it will not pass through the tubes.  Put the spring bar crossways in a soup spoon and press another soup spoon down against the spring bar to make the curve. 

For tighter curves or shorter spring bars use smaller spoons.

[Nanuq]

Good advice Auto, to get the right surface curve I like to use thick chopsticks and pick the thickness I need somewhere along the taper. Push the stick inside the clamshell then press the outer surface against a rubberized edge to get a bit of bend. Then apply different bends along the chord of the semicircle until it fits.

I had a heck of a time making a Yuki band fit my 6204 case. I had to grind out the curve where it touches the case between the lugs too, while changing the surface curve. In the end I got a good result. I made it a touch flatter than it should actually be, but it looks like a tinny cheap Rolex band all worn and pressed down over time. Just what I wanted.