stilty Posted March 30, 2008 Report Share Posted March 30, 2008 After a few bumps and delays, this baby came to life today. Unfortunately, I am only the surrogate father and this will be off to the lucky owner after a few days in the nursery. I will monitor the first 48 hours of life before releasing to make sure all is fine! Genuine Rolex 16234 case with White Gold Fluted bezel to match case number. Genuine sapphire crystal. Genuine crown. Genuine dial. Clark hands Cubic-works overlay Fully service NOS Mido movement. I figured I would share a few photos I took today as I was wrapping up assembly. Here is a straight on shot after I was finished, date and time set. I synched with www.greenwichmeantime.org The date overlay font is a bit bigger than gen. The date nearly fills the dial window. It was very long and tedious installing this overlay as there was no room for error. It had to be perfect. It is hard to see in the picture, but that white gold bezel screams! No rep can even come close. I'm sure Freddy can agree... The Rolex WG bezel has to be seen in person to be appreciated. The case that was sent to me was in mint condition. Here are a few shots. I was done everything, but hand installation, otherwise I would have taken more pictures. All I did today was install hands, and case the movement. Here is a shot after I installed the minute hand. I was checking to make sure the hand cleared the dial markers. Looks pretty good to me! The hands are installed nice and level with the dial. No hand bending or any shortcuts like that! I took this picture after I installed the sweep second. I let the movement run a few minutes to examine the sweep second as it made a few laps around the dial. All looks good! And how could I go without taking a couple shots of the movement. These movements are very well made and finished. Too bad I can't get anymore. Hence one of the reasons I had some 2892-A2 holders manufactured. Look at the beautiful etching and finishing on the plates and rotor. I'm quite pleased with the results, even with the rep overlay. I'm sure the owner will be pleased as well. This project took a lot longer then expected as I ran into a few problems with the parts I received and replacement parts needed to be sourced. My first and last commission. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddy333 Posted March 30, 2008 Report Share Posted March 30, 2008 I think your creation looks too good for that datewheel, but I think the owner should be very pleased. Good work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stilty Posted March 30, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 30, 2008 Thanks Freddy. Yes, I wish the owner went for the genuine disc for an overlay, considering the time and effort that went into this. But it still turned out great even with the rep overlay. A genuine disc would have been icing on the cake and made a fool proof franken. If I had a spare gen disc, I probably would have installed it... to go this far, especially with the high quality movement and genuine parts... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mezzanine Posted March 30, 2008 Report Share Posted March 30, 2008 Awesome work... Great pics, too. Excellent sequence of steps...always helpful to be able to get some shots of the dial and movement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HauteHippie Posted March 30, 2008 Report Share Posted March 30, 2008 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest carlsbadrolex Posted March 30, 2008 Report Share Posted March 30, 2008 Absolutely stunning! Congratulations to the proud parent! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
POTR Posted March 30, 2008 Report Share Posted March 30, 2008 Very nice Stilty... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alligoat Posted March 31, 2008 Report Share Posted March 31, 2008 Beautiful job, Stilty. That spacer ring for the 2892-2 movt is fantastic and makes it just that much nicer of a franken. And you're right about those white gold fluted bezels- they really are nice. Congrats. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heywood Posted March 31, 2008 Report Share Posted March 31, 2008 Another great looking Franken, Stilty. Thanks for the photos too. Frankens are the best bang for your buck without a doubt and this is a fine example. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxmilian Posted March 31, 2008 Report Share Posted March 31, 2008 awsome as usual, and I hope its not your last commision Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stilty Posted April 1, 2008 Author Report Share Posted April 1, 2008 Thanks! I'm sure I'll build a few more down the road as I have a few on the back burner... I just don't think I'll build for others as it stresses me out too much! Not that the owner was stressing me out or anything... in fact he was pretty "Kool & the Gang" about the whole process, especially when a few of the parts he sent me went sideways. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted April 1, 2008 Report Share Posted April 1, 2008 Have to agree... That WG fluted bezel really pops! Gave this one to my Dad after building. These 16234's are such understated classics! Looks great as always, T! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
llsteve80 Posted April 1, 2008 Report Share Posted April 1, 2008 Awesome stilty. What are the advantages to the 2892 in the 162xx case as opposed to the 2824? I have my friends franken back, ready to install the new MOP diamond dial for him. I am also never again making a watch for anyone. Unlike you, I get hassled, and I'm already nervous about it because it's not mine. Anyway, I'm planning my next franken, modeled after this: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...A:IT&ih=008 Can't do rose gold, but the basic idea will be the same. I have this sudden obsession with TT watches, and I am against plated anything so I want to go all out and go with solid. I found this band: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...A:IT&ih=021 And I'll get the new style clasp from probably josh. Now you have me wondering if I should use a 2892 on this project. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stilty Posted April 1, 2008 Author Report Share Posted April 1, 2008 What are the advantages to the 2892 in the 162xx case as opposed to the 2824? Advantages: Higher quality movement. If you are going all out on the Franken with gen parts, you might as well get a high quality movement. Nothing wrong with the 2824-2, but the 2892-A2 is a definite leap ahead. Especially the -A2, it has been compared to the Rolex 3135. The 2892 is easier to install in the case with stem alignment. The movement I used above is a 12892. It is a larger diameter, very close to Rolex. But they are hard to find now, so it will be easier to use 2892-A2. The 12892 above is a very high quality movement in finish and performance. After monitoring performance. The watch above currently gained +3 seconds in 30 hours dial up. Also, with the thinner 2892-A2 in the Rolex case, you have enough room to use a genuine Rolex date disc. It can easily be glued to the eta disc with enough room to function under the dial without being hung up. Disadvantages: Cost of the 2892-A2 is almost double the 2824-2. At least if you buy new. I just picked up a brand new from ETA 2892-A2 from my supply house for $259 tax in. But buying new saves on a service and overhaul of used movement. That can run you $80-100, so it works out in the end. While fitting the genuine Rolex date disc is easy, it is also expensive and they are not easy to find. They can cost anywhere from $75 to $100. Fitting the 2892-A2. To do it properly, requires a holder. I had a custom CNC milled holder manufactured especially for the 2892 to fit in a Rolex 3135 case. This took care of everything in one holder, stem alignment, case fitting, and space for the genuine date disc. Holder for ETA Problem is, I only have a couple left and want to use them for a few upcoming projects. I can easily get more made, but they are expensive. The cost for a second run will be cheaper as I don't have to pay for the computer setup of the model. Only the tool set up and machine time now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir-Lancelot Posted April 1, 2008 Report Share Posted April 1, 2008 Very nice. You did great work. I agree about the cubic works overlay. That one process has aged me 5 years on my 1680 rep. It is a total pain in the a$$. On any given day, I can look at it and want to open itup and start over. I know it's just because we are picky about small details, but damn! This is not an easy thing to do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
llsteve80 Posted April 1, 2008 Report Share Posted April 1, 2008 Also, with the thinner 2892-A2 in the Rolex case, you have enough room to use a genuine Rolex date disc. It can easily be glued to the eta disc with enough room to function under the dial without being hung up. I thought the date progression on the eta and rolex were opposite? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
w.genzo Posted April 1, 2008 Report Share Posted April 1, 2008 3135 has the same ETA progression, 3035 goes in the opposite way. A 16234 uses 3135, so it will work If you build a 160xx datejust (3035 mov), you'd need a dw overlay (not gen) with open 6 and 9 font, that runs in the same ETA direction Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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