leitztozeiss Posted August 7, 2006 Report Share Posted August 7, 2006 Gorgeous. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madasboot Posted August 15, 2006 Report Share Posted August 15, 2006 Mark´s crystal on my 3646 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leitztozeiss Posted August 15, 2006 Report Share Posted August 15, 2006 Wow Marco. I love it. Good work Mark! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madasboot Posted August 15, 2006 Report Share Posted August 15, 2006 Wow Marco. I love it. Good work Mark! I´ll start a post in an hour. My photo skills are lousy so my wife is now taking some photos of the 3646 to do some justice to Mark's work. M. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rqthrottle Posted August 21, 2006 Report Share Posted August 21, 2006 I know a sapphire crystal is not historically correct, but does anyone know if a Davidsen fiddy glass will fit a molinja vintage MM? Finepics, are you offering the plexy crystal replacement service for members? I am interested Many thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted August 21, 2006 Report Share Posted August 21, 2006 Mark- Any chance you can do this with the 45mm Radiomirs (e.g. Blackseal)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finepics Posted August 21, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 21, 2006 @ rqthrottle - not sure about this and I am unable to measure a bezel as I don't have one spare. @ Ubi - Yes this should not be a problem. I will need the original crystal to take the measurements from as my man sets his cutting machine up from it then I hand finish them to give the correct curved edges. The crystal for the Radiomirs is not a bubble type (like the ones in the pics) but a much flatter dome shape that joins the bezel very slightly below the level of the bezel edge. I will post pics of mine that I have just finished later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted August 21, 2006 Report Share Posted August 21, 2006 Any chance that the tall crystal like flyback's can be done? Also... I'm assuming I'll have to send my crystal to be cloned? Or do you already have a 183/210 crystal that can be used as the basis? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rqthrottle Posted August 21, 2006 Report Share Posted August 21, 2006 Can a kind soul on this forum please measure the bezel of your vintage Marina Militare with Rolex crown? Finepics, it has to be 40mm to fit, correct? Many thanks, @ rqthrottle - not sure about this and I am unable to measure a bezel as I don't have one spare. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finepics Posted August 21, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 21, 2006 Any chance that the tall crystal like flyback's can be done? Also... I'm assuming I'll have to send my crystal to be cloned? Or do you already have a 183/210 crystal that can be used as the basis? Absolutely it can be done (I did it!!). Are you sure you want it to be this shape as here is a photo of what it should look like - this is a gen watch - look how tall the bezel is: The tall type crystal is normally found in the 6152 watches as in this pic of a gen: @rgthrottle - I need to have your crystal to set the machine up for the plexi crystal which is a solid 5mm thick at the centre - much much better than a sapphire!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
premiumdesigners Posted August 21, 2006 Report Share Posted August 21, 2006 Im in for 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rqthrottle Posted August 21, 2006 Report Share Posted August 21, 2006 Sent you a PM. @rgthrottle - I need to have your crystal to set the machine up for the plexi crystal which is a solid 5mm thick at the centre - much much better than a sapphire!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FxrAndy Posted August 21, 2006 Report Share Posted August 21, 2006 Can a kind soul on this forum please measure the bezel of your vintage Marina Militare with Rolex crown? Finepics, it has to be 40mm to fit, correct? Many thanks, Mesured mine today at 41.7mm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finepics Posted August 21, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 21, 2006 OK - here are some very rough quick pics of my current project. Ignore the dial and hands - they are just temporary while I wait for my new dial to arrive back from the printers. The casing is going away to my friend "Metta Rob" to have a strap stitched to the case in a few days (I would have sent it to Aaron but worried about it travelling all that way and Rob is just as skilled and more local). You can see (I hope) that I have made up new stainless steel strap bars as my watch was delivered with bars that had a spring bar in the middle of two ends that are glued into the case and were not SS. I had to drill them out and bend up new bars from 1.8mm SS wire and I also took the opportunity to sink the stem tube into the case and weld that up at the same time (please don't ask me to do this as it really is a one off - I had to take a day off work to go to my old work place to do this so unless you want to pay me a days salary as well!!!). First pic is of the watch as I got it - most of you who have this will know how crudely finished the case is. The corners are very badly defined and thick so a lot of time was spent refining the shape of the case as well. I have also spent time re-working the top flat surface of the bezel to make it look wider (the gen is really wide and very tall). The movt is sitting in there quite happily using the Molnija spacer (even though it is loose) which works well enough to leave as it is for the time being. The case back is odd in that is has a brushed face by chance (which is also like the gen) and I have rounded the edges of the corners. The most difficult thing was the crystal which is still not quite right but I don't think I can get it any better without the risk of ruining it. It is a little bit too rounded but is close enough that I will leave it like that. It started ouit like the ones shown for the 6152 so I had to re-shape it by hand and polish it. Trying to get a completely smooth surface was not easy but I got there in the end. As soon as I get the dial back (which is going to be rather special) I will update the post - meanwhile enjoy the pics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted August 22, 2006 Report Share Posted August 22, 2006 Mark... That is one gorgeous 3646!! I LOVE it!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madasboot Posted August 23, 2006 Report Share Posted August 23, 2006 U-N-B-E-L-I-E-V-A-B-L-E work Mark... this is state of the art. After this one is ready we should baptize you as "Goldfingers"!!! M. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyback Posted August 23, 2006 Report Share Posted August 23, 2006 Goldfingers, the man with the midas touch! Awesome work Mark! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finepics Posted August 23, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 23, 2006 Actually I spent most of this afternoon further refining the crystal - now it has that proper pointed dome shape rather than a semi circle like it was this morning!!! And the really funny thing is that Harrods Fine watch department are going to properly engrave the winding crown with the "Brevet" and Swiss cross for me!!! There's a sort of irony in that I think!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madasboot Posted August 24, 2006 Report Share Posted August 24, 2006 And the really funny thing is that Harrods Fine watch department are going to properly engrave the winding crown with the "Brevet" and Swiss cross for me!!! There's a sort of irony in that I think!! Lets just hope that this episode wont end recalled as the "Harrods Incident"... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madasboot Posted August 31, 2006 Report Share Posted August 31, 2006 Hey Mark, any further developments on this project of yours? Cheers, M. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oswald Posted August 31, 2006 Report Share Posted August 31, 2006 Here are a couple I just made: I think it needs to be somewhere between the two. I'd appreciate it if someone could send me the dimensions of the crystal at the thickest point. I used .250" plexi but I think I really need .375" The first is just flat .250 with the edges radioused and the second is with a slight dome and some artificial ageing. I could do short production runs in the US as I have my own machine shop and polishing equipment. The hardest part was figuring out how to hold it on the lathe without scarring it but I finally made a fixture that works pretty well. The setup took a lot longer than actually making the crystal! A nice full scale drawing of the dome profile would also be helpful. My machines are in SAE so dimensions in thousanths of an inch would be helpful. PM me if you're interested. I'm not looking to make any money... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finepics Posted August 31, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 31, 2006 Here's my latest version: And the real thing: If only I could get that bezel made but the cost is too much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oswald Posted August 31, 2006 Report Share Posted August 31, 2006 (edited) Here's my latest version: And the real thing: If only I could get that bezel made but the cost is too much. Looks good! It seems like your crystal is a little more "pointy" than the gen. If you could send me some dimensions on the bezel and some detailed pics I could make you one. The thick case back wouldn't be that big of a deal except the threads. I think the finest threads my little collet lathe will cut are 111 TPI but of course our reps are metric PM me, we could work out something in trade. Edited August 31, 2006 by oswald Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finepics Posted September 1, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 1, 2006 I would love you forever if you could make a bezel. The crystal is a touch more pointed but not too much that it bothers me. I will PM youi as I have taken dimensions and made a crude drawing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gattenda Posted September 8, 2006 Report Share Posted September 8, 2006 (edited) some pictures from my project. the crystal is the default one (looks crappy, i know), i need some more time on that one... I've over-killed the hour hand, so i'm going to ottofrei to get some lume to fix it up. in the meantime, i'm enjoying the super-beat up look. Only for those who attempted the project know the significance of the clearance between hands and the dial.... i've learnt a lot about mechanism of a simple mechanical watch...at 2am with a bottle of red... I'll probably make a few more, since i have 2 more vintage molniya's. thanks everyone who posted quality info and answered my questions along the way special thanks to Finepic and madasboot Edited September 8, 2006 by gattenda Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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