ubiquitous Posted May 13, 2006 Report Share Posted May 13, 2006 Today, I took delivery of a brand new MBW 1680. As I had some genuine parts in my stock that were perfect for this watch, I went about performing some of the simple mods on these watches To start... Here is the watch as I received it. Very nice and clean in it's own right. Close up of the bezel insert- Profile; notice the shape of the crystal... Date mag is quite nice on the newer MBW's! Fills up the cyclops quite a lot! True MBW- The tell tale signs are all there... And, here's what we'll be working with. We have: -Hollow link aftermarket bracelet -Genuine bezel insert -Genuine Tropic 127 A comparison of bracelets. Stock MBW is solid link, while my aftermarket Oyster is hollow- Stamped ref's (aftermarket on left; MBW on right) Clasps (aftermarket on left; MBW on right) A quick look at bezel inserts- (MBW on left; genuine on right) We'll have a quick look at the crystals in just a sec. Alright then. Let's get down to business. I apologize now, as I didn't snap pics on removing the bezel. The process is easy enough; I simply use my debit card to wedge between the bezel and the case and the bezel assembly will pop right off. If anyone wants, I can snap some pics and add them later Once the bezel and washer spring have been removed and set aside, it's time to move onto the retaining ring. For this process I use a razor blade to wedge between the ring and the case like so: Here you can see it lifted slightly- I keep working my way around the ring, gradually working my way up using wider blades until it lifts off. A quick look at the crystals side by side... Profile of the old (again) And now the genuine. Date mag- So, now that the crystal is aligned and seated, let's get that ring back on. Out comes my trusty Omega case... Line it up Press down (almost completely seated) One more press and it's seated (sorry, forgot another pic) Next we move onto the bezel insert. This process is easy- Just press the old out from behind... Take the genuine and press it on from the front, and it's all set to be snapped back onto the watch. From here, just have to put the bracelet back on, and we're all finished up.... Some pics with friends Still have to install my genuine crown and aftermarket tube, along with drilling the lugs, modding the bracelet and end links for 2.0mm pins, and swapping the movement out for a slow beater. More to come soon... Thanks for looking Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marrickvilleboy Posted May 13, 2006 Report Share Posted May 13, 2006 damnnnn thats pretty! another one racked up Randy!? need to get a rolexxxxx...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sherrington Posted May 13, 2006 Report Share Posted May 13, 2006 Still have to install my genuine crown and aftermarket tube, along with drilling the lugs, modding the bracelet and end links for 2.0mm pins, and swapping the movement out for a slow beater. More to come soon... Thanks for looking Don't forget to trim those CG's to get it more vintage looking. Nice work Randy. Is the date font correct for a vintage? I don't remember seeing serifs before? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tribal Posted May 13, 2006 Report Share Posted May 13, 2006 Great Ubi, man, we have the same taste in watches i think... Great post at all.. Where do you get the aftermarket Oysterbracelet.... I love your inserts arghhh, i need one for my new 1680 Rg tribal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edge Posted May 13, 2006 Report Share Posted May 13, 2006 Great Job Randy, Thanks for sharing and Enjoy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jetsons Posted May 13, 2006 Report Share Posted May 13, 2006 (edited) Great post, Randy & awesome watch! I love these photo tutorials. Your crystal press is worth it's weight in gold. The OEM inserts and crystals make all the difference in the world on the MBWs. Thanks for sharing & look forward to your next installment. Jet Edited May 13, 2006 by Jetsons Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
By-Tor Posted May 13, 2006 Report Share Posted May 13, 2006 Fantastic pictorial Randy!!! It looks so easy when you have the skills and equipment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leitztozeiss Posted May 13, 2006 Report Share Posted May 13, 2006 I just got one of those wonderful crystal presses - makes life so much easier. But, the darn thing didn't come with a deep enough die piece, so I had to improvise. Not having a gold Omega case like yours, I ended up using a bottom cap of a large-size Maglite - worked/fit perfectly. Oh, and I managed to fix my lose bezel 1680 issue. My retainer lip was a bit on the thin side, so I installed the retainer ring raised about half a mm from the case - that was enough to give the ring something to 'grab' onto - kind of like love handles. Great post! Thanks for sharing! And, of course, great pics!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stac Posted May 13, 2006 Report Share Posted May 13, 2006 Nice post! I like the fact that MBW's are so presice that crystals and bezels can be swapped for genuine. An MBW is on my wish list Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted May 13, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 13, 2006 Thanks, gang! Kind words by all appreciated! I wanted to do a little write up of sorts on the easy mods- The ones that anyone can do. Yes, folks... These tasks are not difficult to perform- Just need the right tools! Don't forget to trim those CG's to get it more vintage looking. Nice work Randy. Is the date font correct for a vintage? I don't remember seeing serifs before? Ahhh... Yes. The CG's. I'll probably do those when the tube/crown are replaced. I do mine by hand using a file. Old fashioned? Yes... But I prefer this method over the dremel... Just personal choice, I suppose. As for the date font- Serifs are okay. Here's a gen with the dates in serif font... Great Ubi, man, we have the same taste in watches i think... Great post at all.. Where do you get the aftermarket Oysterbracelet.... I love your inserts arghhh, i need one for my new 1680 Rg tribal Tribal- I do believe we have the same taste in watches! Vintage is so very nice! I've obtained my bracelets over the past few years via trades, and purchases here and there. The hollow aftermarkets with the loose end links don't come around very often, but when they do, I pick them up Thanks again, everyone for the kind words! These little write ups are fun to do, especially for you guys! Best regards, Randy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cib0rgman Posted May 13, 2006 Report Share Posted May 13, 2006 I do not where you get all those parts, where do I get an aftermarket bracelet Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silvio Posted May 14, 2006 Report Share Posted May 14, 2006 That's one Polex I like! :-) Great write-up Randy & Thanks for sharing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SubFrog Posted May 14, 2006 Report Share Posted May 14, 2006 Absolutely Fantastic Post. I really enjoyed seeing the whole (as you say, easy) process. Thumbs up and quite informative. In the running for the best post contest. I actually like the MBW clasp better...but, that's neither here nor there. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tribal Posted May 18, 2006 Report Share Posted May 18, 2006 By the way Ubi, I think without the right tools is not a easy mod... My one was very hard job to replace the retaining ring... Rg tribal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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