thewightstuff Posted August 30, 2007 Report Share Posted August 30, 2007 posted on the other forum in the absence of rwg (where did it go to?) but hope no one minds putting it here. those of you with long memories may remember a project id started to look at quite some time ago with the idea of using up much of the surplus parts id aquired as parts of my spares collection for my gen 5512 and 5513. often id been forced to buy lots in order to get one or two parts i had actually wanted and had worn bits and all sorts kicking around though nothing that valuable. anyways, theres was a lot of gen vintage parts, many worn out plus a stack of new service parts so i decided to build a 5512 and an early comex 5514. once i began i decided to do it properly so picked up some additional parts for this like the new tubes and tudor hand sets that i felt were worth the expense. anyways, heres where im at so far. had a bit of a spurt on as im really want this out the way. still got tidying to do and final case sanding and polishing done. most of these early 5514s had no comex logo on the dial and also had no issue number on the back being divers tools first and foremost. it was only later that they started marking outside the caseback. i wanted to go for this as i much prefer the understatement of these earlier ones and the lack of a hulking great comex logo. i tough watch for a tough job. 5514. eta movement, unknown middle case, correct and functioning HEV valve (not engraved as on mbw), correct 5514 engraving and serial between lugs, lug holes drilled out to accept gen spring bars, crown guards modified, sourced caseback with correct external engraving and 5513 engraved inside along with date stamp. gen rolex 5513 dial which has been redone/relumed at some point and had ticks repainted. gen tudor hands set. genuine rolex 703 crown and case tube, gen rolex vintage 5513 bezel assembly and crystal ring, genuine rolex crystal, worn insert (assumed genuine) with lume dot to be added. heres some quick pics. the 5512 is here also. eta movement unknown middle case correct 5512 engraving and serial between lugs, lug holes drilled for gen spring bars and crown guards modified. sourced caseback with 5513 engraving inside and date stamp. gen rolex 5512 dial which was partially redone in the 70s, still got tritium though. gen tudor hands set, gen rolex 703 crown and case tube, gen vintage 5512 bezel assembly and crystal ring, genuine rolex crystal, used insert (authenticity unknown). heres a couple of pics, nothing fancy as im still waiting for a stem and some finishing. couple more quick ones with my gens. thought it made a nice shot and would also help for comparative purposes think thats about it for now. whats my own thoughts on them? on both theres the usual issue with case not being quite correct in shape for this and having more in common with the 1680 as is sadly the case with all the vintage reps though its not too obvious on these. the 5514 bezel is slightly rough to turn being well used. though all in all im pretty happy with this. may rethink the dial attachment. with the 5512 the bezel action isnt great either and in some ways it would benefit from the dial being replaced. i did think about it as i had access to a genuine rolex lume 5512 dial that would have matched the hands perfectly. it wasnt cheap though and not only would have pushed the value of this watch somewhere stupid imho but sort of beat the whole purpose of using up bits i had accumulated. in a way i like the character of the redial. id always take a redial over the terrible rep dials doing the rounds for this model thats for sure. a redial just says redial even to experienced rolex eyes, a rep dial just screams fake. anyways, i'll post up more once i get them fully finished up and tidied though there wont be much more to see. just leaves the issue of what to do with them really !!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alligoat Posted August 30, 2007 Report Share Posted August 30, 2007 Very nice, wightstuff. One observation, on your gen 5513 and 5512, the lugs appear longer and thinner than on the reps. I've noticed this on my gen 1680 and my WM 1680 also and on other gen/rep comparisons. Also, the cg's are typically alot fatter on the reps of these vintage watches. If I had that 5512 dial, I'd probably have it relumed to match the hands, or maybe age the hands, but my preference would be to relume the dial first- just my two cents. I just love clean old dials- like your 5514 dial. I bought the supposedly NOS lume dots from watchesandparts over in Hong Kong and stuck one in a 5513 rep and the other in a 1665 rep. For $27 each it was a cheap fix and a vast improvement over the previous pearls- no metal, just acrylic. And the nice thing was they just pressed in and then I added a drop of glue on the back side after popping off the bezel, while the insert was still in the bezel. Now if I could find a decent 5513 dial for my rep. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thewightstuff Posted August 30, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 30, 2007 (edited) thanks for the reply. ive actually got a pile of lume dots here and will put them in at the end, 5514 definately and 5512 most likely too. im not done yet and this is for the final stages when i cant knock them out and loose them im not set on those inserts yet as ive a few others too. im sort of sucking and seeing at the moment. well spotted ref the lugs, its a combination of the gens being worn down somewhat with age, the 5512 is 67, 5513 is 66 so over 80 years between them (my 5513 is thicker though the nato covers it) and the cases for this shape used by rolex being longer and thinner in profile than the 1680 shape which is used as the basis for all the vintage rep models. the 5512/5513/5514/5517 case is a different shape from the later 1680, i guess its a sort of transition between the flatter non CG models and the chunkier later types but its something thats always overlooked by the rep makers atleast. ive worked these down some but its still somewhat noticeable. theres no way round it save using gen cases, theres just not the room to eek out an exact shape match when viewed in profile. i think i may try working away some of the outside edge of the rep cases to simulate years of polishing and to see if it cant help them appear longer. the 5512 dial has its original and slightly shrunken tritium on there so it seems a shame to cover it up with lume i think though it does make hands matching tricky. the best options are to wash the tritium off the dial exposing the white plots underneath or age the hands. i havent had time to look into either yet. i have got a spare set of gen rolex tritium hands here but at over $1000 a set at the moment, if you can get them, i think i will pass sticking them in here lol. as i said in my main post itself, a nice alternative would be to replace this dial with a white lume gen 5512 service issue dial. you can, if you are lucky, pick them up for about $500 or so and it would match the hands shade and be mint. this is something i was tempted to do at the onset and havent ruled out still but theres no way id see either the cost or the enjoyment back out the other end and the point was to use as much as i had here where possible. maybe its something i can offer to whoever wants to buy the 5512 as i know where theres one sitting i can get my hands on pretty easily and swap out. i dont plan on keeping either watch when they are finished as im about to add a 1680 or a transitional matt 16800 to my collection and so these reps wont see any wrist time. it was just a project to see what could be done really and driven by the lack of quality of reps of these models. as for dial options for your build. you can pick up relumed dials or the later tritium with white gold surround 5513 dials for around the $500 region give or take and they can be found though not daily and to be honest i hate the look of the 5513 with WG surrounds. a good condition non WG with original tritium is going to hit you for quite a bit more though and there will be a queue of people looking for these. Edited August 30, 2007 by thewightstuff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alligoat Posted August 30, 2007 Report Share Posted August 30, 2007 Ouch, those Rolex parts prices are killing me wight! I'm like you on spending $500 on a 5512 dial in a rep, it just doesn't make sense. At that point, I'd probably wash the tritium off the dial and put it together- it is a 40 year old watch, so to speak. Same with my 5513 dial, I'm looking for something to get past 99.9% of the people and wear as a beater. I want it to look good, but I'm not trying to dupe anyone. I've been looking at the matte dial 16800's lately, but I'm also plodding ahead with building a 16800 rep franken- gen matte dial, insert, crown and tube, and a TW case w/ the damned off-center lug holes. Got all of the parts 'cept the case tube, but still trying to figure out how to center those lug holes up more. I guess I could just ignore them, but they bother me too much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thewightstuff Posted August 30, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 30, 2007 they are actually the current RSC 19s, very top hat shaped like the 1680 though not quite so proud. i think the photos are exaggerating somewhat, the side one for example makes it look like a mega dome but its just the lip at the far side playing up. talking of nice, hows that lush gmt doing with keeping a smile on your face? alligoat, agreed ref the sense of using vintage parts at the prices they are on the market just now. i was lucky to have both these dials in here with no use or homes for quite some time having come in used parts bundles. you should be able to pick up a modern triplock tube and crown easily i would have thought. they are pretty common and being current arent subject to crazy prices either. im stuck between the 1680 and the 16800. i tend to not have much love for sapphire but they for some reason keeping talking to me along with the less careful attitude one would require Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1665fan Posted August 31, 2007 Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 I'd love to get one of those cases, they look great! If anyone knows where to get them, and what they probably will cost, please let me know!! Regards Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thewightstuff Posted August 31, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 i have been looking at a 16800 actually, theres a cracking matte dial one im being offered but im jut not sure ref the sapphire. ive almost bitten the bullet but keep stalling just as i do for some reason. ive been rethinking a gmt vintage too after your posts since that covers date and gives me something different. an all black one might be nice. if you see any for a good price id appreciate a heads up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thewightstuff Posted September 1, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 1, 2007 (edited) haha, the idea of the cyclops is living on the edge enough for me. what can i say, im a conservative guy.....or miserable. cant decide yet Edited September 1, 2007 by thewightstuff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tribal Posted September 1, 2007 Report Share Posted September 1, 2007 Nice ones. They look great..... Keep us updated...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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