ubiquitous Posted March 3, 2007 Report Share Posted March 3, 2007 For a while now, I've been feeling a little bored with my watches and with the hobby in general. As we all know, hobbies tend to remain interesting only when you have something to do, and when you don't... Well, boredom sets in. And then what? That got me looking at my collection. I'm pretty satisifed with what's in the watch box- A very small collection of watches that I've been working on over the course of the last few years. However, having both Zenith Daytona projects side by side, there was one striking difference that started to stand out in my eye- The dial on the black Daytona is a repainted dial, and was far inferior in comparison to the genuine white dial that graced the other Cosmograph. So... I set about searching for the right dial. After some patience and with a bit of chance, I finally found a dial that was suitable. In short order, I had it on it's way to me and finally got around to swapping out the old repainted black dial in my Daytona with a genuine dial. Much, much better... First a comparison of dials. Old (repainted) New (genuine) Old dial in the watch New dial in the watch And a comparison of genuine dials (black and white)... What a difference a dial makes. What's interesting is both were found in Italy So... Now that that's done... What next? Thanks for looking... R Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jetsons Posted March 3, 2007 Report Share Posted March 3, 2007 Darn, you're good at sourcing parts. I had a hunch your old dial was not as sharp as it should be and thought it was the photos or needed to have my eyes checked. Good to know my vision is okay. Glad you found your dial. The Daytona looks perfecto mundo! BTW, I think that new dial adds a tad more than just 1%. Enjoy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Falco Posted March 3, 2007 Report Share Posted March 3, 2007 Very nice improvement w/ the dial Now you got a perfect pair of Daytonas, Congrats! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RWG Technical Posted March 4, 2007 Report Share Posted March 4, 2007 "What a difference a DIAL makes..." ah, watch humour, it doesn't get much better than this... Nice work, and I agree, more than 1% improvement, I say 75% improvement since you see the dial at all times. Nice work, keep it coming. RG Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Watchmeister Posted March 4, 2007 Report Share Posted March 4, 2007 Very impressive. I feel myself weakening. Especially after the China meltdown last week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vaccum Posted March 4, 2007 Report Share Posted March 4, 2007 Nice...two expensive beauties!! vaccum Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elprimerozen Posted March 4, 2007 Report Share Posted March 4, 2007 Its not a litle upgrade....its simply a 100% new looking watch! The perfection that Randy has in his blood...tells me that when he is looking at this "new" watch he can see a totaly different watch! You are a perfectionist my friend! Regards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
By-Tor Posted March 4, 2007 Report Share Posted March 4, 2007 Beautiful as usual. What's next you ask? A GMT Master of course. You have all the great sports Rollies now... but not the nicest one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stilty Posted March 4, 2007 Report Share Posted March 4, 2007 Absolute perfection. You either go big, or go home. Good job! I'm still on my quest for my perfect franken... thanks for the motivation. T Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tribal Posted March 4, 2007 Report Share Posted March 4, 2007 Thats fantastic Randy, thats the best Daytona i've seen..... Best Franken ever... Fantastic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dieselpower Posted March 4, 2007 Report Share Posted March 4, 2007 Have you ever thought of applying to Rolex for a job? I'm sure they could use a talented person such as yourself! Great work, I am not worthy. Dieselpower. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manuel Posted March 5, 2007 Report Share Posted March 5, 2007 NICE! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted March 5, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 5, 2007 Thanks for the kind words everyone! Okay... So, maybe the upgrade is a little more than 1% It does make for a huge difference in eye appeal- Especially in the sun! The differences are subtle, but they are many- 1) The coronet shape at 12:00 is much better with much more defined edges, and slightly squared corners at the base of the coronet. 2) Dial printing is far crisper (yes, Serg- It's not your eyes, but the dial ). 3) Subdial rings are cream color (I think I actually liked the white better on the repaint), printing/font is bolder and the WG rings around the edge are thicker. 4) The hour indicies are smaller, thinner, and more 'precision'. 5) SWISS MADE is the correct size and correct color (i.e. on the old dial, you could see 'SWISS MADE' at 6:00 from across the room). I must say, gents... Pictures just don't do this dial justice. And with that said... My interest in the hobby is rekindled... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ekhunter Posted March 5, 2007 Report Share Posted March 5, 2007 Thats fantastic Randy, thats the best Daytona i've seen..... Best Franken ever... Fantastic Agreed! Words can't describe what a great job you've done. You are truly a master watchsmith! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
haveblue Posted March 5, 2007 Report Share Posted March 5, 2007 .....And with that said... My interest in the hobby is rekindled... Whew....that was close! I thought we were gonna lose you there for a second Randy! That Franken is simply beautiful....wear it well! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeff g Posted March 5, 2007 Report Share Posted March 5, 2007 Bump a rama. Very...Very...FINE. Daytona's would be nothing without you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thewightstuff Posted March 6, 2007 Report Share Posted March 6, 2007 congrats and a nice addition thats for sure. ive been seeing a few black daytona dials around recently and had thought of you each time id seen one. nice to know your one step ahead as ever Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
movingshadow Posted March 6, 2007 Report Share Posted March 6, 2007 sweet!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted March 6, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 6, 2007 sweet!!! Holy smokes... Now YOU'RE a blast from the past!! Where the heck have you been and what have you been up to, kind sir??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Falco Posted March 6, 2007 Report Share Posted March 6, 2007 I think someone just stole Ubi's daytona... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HauteHippie Posted March 7, 2007 Report Share Posted March 7, 2007 Ubi - HUUUUUUGE improvement in my opinion. It's like going from rep to gen IMO!!! Great find. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted March 7, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 7, 2007 Ubi - HUUUUUUGE improvement in my opinion. It's like going from rep to gen IMO!!! Great find. I must say... The white has always been my favorite, only because it looked cleaner to me. The black dial always had a tendency to look dirty, especially in direct sunlight as the indicies would reflect off the crystal, and then back off the dial and so on (much like all other glossy Rolex black dials). So, you'd see not only the indicies, but also the subdial rings and the sort reflected off the dial, and it just looked dirty. However... I must admit that the black dial is starting to grow on me. After having spent some time with this one on the wrist, I'm finding that it has more eye appeal than the white. I find myself reaching for the black dial more often as it's just gorgeous to look at. The repainted dial was horrendously bad at reflecting the dial markers and subdial rings as it was solid black and very gloss. The genuine dial helps diffuse the reflection a bit, as close inspection under light reveals that it's not really black, but more of a charcoal-grey with brown color. The surface is slightly more matte... It's very hard to describe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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