Gen vs Rep Daytona 1165xx Hands

[freddy333]

I just received a set of new gen Daytona 1165xx hands today (these are the later, wider version, so the comparison will not be a perfect one)

I thought everyone would like to see how they differ. Of course, the most obvious difference between the 2 sets is that the gens are wider & the reps, which came from my 3.5 year old 116520, are narrower (the first batches of gen 1165xx Daytonas came with these narrower hands & I believe all rep Daytonas to date come with these also). Aside from the dust on the rep, there is not much visible difference between the 2 based on the appearance of the metal. However, the thing that literally jumps out at you is the difference & quality of the paint applied to the top of the hands. The rep paint is thin, matte & somewhat unevenly applied (the edges appear jagged at close magnification), it looks almost like it was applied with a magic marker. The gen paint, by contrast, is thick (almost like nail polish), gloss & as you would expect from Rolex, applied with near-perfection

The small sub dial hands are another story

As you can see, the gen hand has a much higher grade of finish compared to the rep hand. Also, the crimp at the end of the tube where it is bent over onto the hand to hold the tube in place is much cleaner and, I assume, heartier, so there will be less chance of the hand coming loose and swinging freely about the tube's axis (a common problem with Daytonas & some other chronograph models).

None of the 6 gen hands (3 small subdial hands, 2 minute/hour hands & 1 large chrono seconds hand) fit the 7750's pinions out-of-the-box. The minute & hour hands are both too small, and all 4 of the other hands are too large.

However, through a process of trial-and-error (squeezing the tube with a pair of jewelers' pliers to reduce the tube's inner diameter & then broaching the tube to enlarge it to the correct size), I was able to fit all 3 of the subdial hands as well as the large chrono seconds hand to the 7750

(Ignore the appearance of the hands in this picture - They were just broached (by hand) & are covered with fingerprints, which will be removed before final reassembly)

Unfortunately, the tube diameter of the gen minute & hour hands is just too small & broaching them would be out of the question.

So unless someone (Ziggy) knows of a trick here, I think I will probably have to refit the original rep hands.

But the only visible difference I can see between the gen & rep minute and hour hands has to do with the quality & application of paint. So if I can figure out a way to mask off the unpainted areas, I should be able to reproduce the thick gloss black paint of the gen hands with either black nail polish or model paint.

Stay tuned as I will be adding some additional pics & info over the next hour or two......