freddy333 Posted October 11, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 11, 2008 FINAL UPDATE (sort of) After dicking with 2 legless 6542 dials for nearly 3 weeks & failing to come up with a suitable, stable & permanent process for attaching dial feet, I have reinstalled the previous 1675 dial. I am therefore calling the 1st phase of my backup 6542 project complete, as there will be no reason to post further major updates until the 2nd phase begins sometime in the next 1-2 weeks. At this point, the interim 'slow beat' 2846 movement is non-quick-set, non-hacking with a non-adjustable GMT hand & 2-position stem. In its current incarnation, the movement is functionally analogous to the Rolex 1035 GMT that powers the gen GMT. Similarly, the hands are now correct for the 6542 model. So, until phase 2 begins (when I swap the 1675 dial & 2846 movement out for the 6542 dial & 1035 GMT movement), I consider this to be my state-of-the-art take on the Rolex GMT 6542 (The discoloration on the index at 6 is due to 1 of my failed dial vintagizing experiments) p.s. I am aware that the today is the 10th day of the month & the watch reads '23'. Such is life with a non-quick-set watch (& an owner who does not want to spend the next 10 minutes winding a stem). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polexpete Posted October 11, 2008 Report Share Posted October 11, 2008 Nice one Freddy she's looking good. This looks be toughest project for you so far huh? and you've done some tough ones... P. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddy333 Posted October 11, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 11, 2008 Nice one Freddy she's looking good. This looks be toughest project for you so far huh? and you've done some tough ones... Thanks. So far, the only tough parts have been grinding down that inner ring that happened to reside where the insert wanted to be (this was not really difficult, it just took a bit longer than I expected) & trying to fit feet to these 6542 dials so I could use 1 with the 2846. I figured out the ring/insert problem, but ended up wasting alot of time & effort (not to mention 4 dials, including my runner-up 6542 dial) trying to find a way to 'weld' the feet onto the back of the dial, without coming up with anything workable. Other than those, I am actually surprised how quick & easy it has been, considering that this is truly a Frankenstein with virtually every part meant for use in a different watch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanuq Posted October 11, 2008 Report Share Posted October 11, 2008 That is a spectacular result my friend. Well done! I can only imagine how it will look in gilt 6542 dress. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddy333 Posted October 11, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 11, 2008 Thank you, Nanuq. I really appreciate that. Unfortunately, I do not have any pics of the assembled watch with either of the 6542 dials, but here is 1 I took during a test fitting of the GMT hand & this is the dial that will probably be installed in the final (1035-powered) incarnation (assuming the date window aligns correctly) And here is a new wristie of the completed watch a friend took last night Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanuq Posted October 11, 2008 Report Share Posted October 11, 2008 WOW. That gilt dial is over the top gorgeous. You're building, in my opinion, the finest Frankie I've seen. Certainly there are others like the Snowflake and Oli's COMEX. But I'm a sucker for small, thin cases. I'm preparing a place for a 300T or 600T in my watch shelf and that will be nice. But I can never hope for a 6542. Spectacular. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddy333 Posted October 11, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 11, 2008 WOW. That gilt dial is over the top gorgeous. You're building, in my opinion, the finest Frankie I've seen. Certainly there are others like the Snowflake and Oli's COMEX. But I'm a sucker for small, thin cases. You & me, both (& thank you for the compliment, which means alot since I know that you know your stuff). The new issue of Esquire magazine agrees (both GQ & Vogue came to the same conclusion earlier this year). The era of the big watch can now officially be pronounced as dead as a leisure suit. I'm preparing a place for a 300T or 600T in my watch shelf and that will be nice. But I can never hope for a 6542. Spectacular. Well, such a nice compliment merits another pic (or 2) Anyway, if I can figure out a way to semi-mass produce these, you will be at the top of what I suspect will quickly become a lengthy, gen SS Daytona-like waiting list. Also, I am still hopeful that my main 6542 project (with DW) will produce multiple 'fruits', if you know what I mean. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanuq Posted October 11, 2008 Report Share Posted October 11, 2008 Lordy, Lordy, Lordy... someone get me a chair before I fall down. Wonderful results. Some fine day you'll get that gilt dial mounted up and the watch reassembled, and you'll post a picture. All I can ask is, please preface that post with a warning. Make the letters about 3" tall and bright blinking red... so I have a reasonable chance of avoiding a heart attack. Thin cases rule! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StormTooper4 Posted October 11, 2008 Report Share Posted October 11, 2008 Wow that small gmt hand is just wonderful great stuff ST4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddy333 Posted October 11, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 11, 2008 Wow that small gmt hand is just wonderful great stuff ST4 It is actually 3 hands in 1 & thank you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddy333 Posted October 11, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 11, 2008 Lordy, Lordy, Lordy... someone get me a chair before I fall down. Wonderful results. Some fine day you'll get that gilt dial mounted up and the watch reassembled, and you'll post a picture. All I can ask is, please preface that post with a warning. Make the letters about 3" tall and bright blinking red... so I have a reasonable chance of avoiding a heart attack. Thin cases rule! Hopefully, in about 2 weeks, you might have a reason to keep a handful of nitro tabs by your monitor. Until then, I can only say 2 things - a picture like that is worth a thousand words & 1 good thin case pic deserves a couple more Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddy333 Posted July 25, 2016 Author Report Share Posted July 25, 2016 Bump for new members. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carlytoss Posted March 8, 2018 Report Share Posted March 8, 2018 Hey @freddy333 do you think you could update the links to your pics? I know it's a very old thread but this watch is a grail. It'll be awesome. I'm trying to build one myself and I'd like to gather the most info around. Thank you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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