freddy333 Posted November 20, 2008 Report Share Posted November 20, 2008 On Monday, I received what was supposed to be a pair of mint 702 Triplocks. They were 703s & not mint. Fortunately, the seller had good, clear pics of the crowns he was selling & these ain't them. So, once I actually hear back from him, assuming he just sent the wrong pair (& did not pull a bait & switch scheme on me), I may be able to get this problem sorted out. If not, another pair of relatively expensive parts may end up in the parts box. Yesterday, after receiving the 3rd or 4th set of parts that I have been collecting (at great cost in time & money) for my 1030-to-1036-gmt conversion (Come Fly With Me), it suddenly became clear that I can't get there from here. Beating 1030 1 of the screws that screws into the main plate to attach part of the calendar (date change) mechanism does not have a screw hole to screw into. So, apparently, contrary to what I thought, other movements that are based on the 1030 (1035, 1036, 1066, etc) must use a different or modified 1030 base plate, with additional screw holes & other changes. So a rare & costly gen movement may end up in the parts box, awaiting the next opportunity (though I may just have enough parts to build a gen-powered, 6536 franken ). Then, today, I finally received my gen 6542 caseback, which looks & screws into the Silix case perfectly (I had been worried that the case/caseback threads might not mesh or fit), but the caseback does not cover enough of the gasket cut-out in the back of the case to look right. So another expensive part goes into the parts box & awaits the next opportunity. So it has not been a great week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hyster Posted November 20, 2008 Report Share Posted November 20, 2008 Sorry to hear that Freddy, I have pretty much gave up modding reps as I just found it too frustrating. Hope it starts to come together for you mate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddy333 Posted November 20, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 20, 2008 Sorry to hear that Freddy, I have pretty much gave up modding reps as I just found it too frustrating. Hope it starts to come together for you mate. Thanks & I appreciate the words of encouragement. But, in the end, these projects always seem to work themselves out. I just look at franken-building like gambling - I never bet with more than I can afford to lose. That way, the inevitable 'bad throws' are just set-backs & not life-changers. I just received word about the crowns - the correct pair are on their way (with an apology from the seller) & I get to keep the wrong pair in exchange for a good seller rating. The seller even offered me a good deal on a 700 (not dots) crown. So, 1 problem solved & I even get a couple of bonuses out of it. I am weighing options for the 1030. I contacted someone who makes watch parts in the hopes that he might be able to machine the missing screw hole & surface indents into my plate for a reasonable fee. If that option does not prove workable, I will either sell/trade the 1030 for another with the proper plate or just keep it for another project that I am thinking about. And I am waiting to hear back from Natalie to see if I can work out a deal for a middle 6542 case (at a good discount) & use the gen 6542 caseback for that. You just have to be creative & think outside the lines. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shundi Posted November 20, 2008 Report Share Posted November 20, 2008 Bit of good news about the crowns... sorry to hear that some of the parts aren't working out the way you thought they would but I'm sure that whatever you end up doing will come out well...it sounds like you already have some thoughts as to what you can do with the remaining parts! Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddy333 Posted November 20, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 20, 2008 Thanks Shundi. The only real difficult part is that I have been amazingly successful (even surprising myself) in tracking down most of the parts I needed for the 1036-to-1036gmt conversion, & I almost have them all. So to come so close only to find out that I may end up having to get another movement & start all over, not to mention not needing parts that are still on their way to me, is just more depressing than usual. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cableguy Posted November 20, 2008 Report Share Posted November 20, 2008 Freddy sorry to hear that its been a bad week, but it is good news that the seller did not pull a bait and switch on you. and on a side note one of the benifits of getting gen parts that dont work with your current project is an excuse to build ANOTHER project :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddy333 Posted November 20, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 20, 2008 and on a side note one of the benifits of getting gen parts that dont work with your current project is an excuse to build ANOTHER project :-) Exactly. Sometimes a dead-end leads to an unexpected & even more beautiful road than the 1 you started out on. The watch on the left rose up out of the ashes of another failed project Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddy333 Posted November 20, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 20, 2008 It just occurred to me, as I posted the last pic, that even if my collection were limited to just those 2 watches, I do not think I could ever have a truly bad week with either 1 of them in my possession. Sometimes, I think we (I) tend to lose perspective & forget how fortunate we are to have even 1 of the reps or frankens that routinely grace the pages of RWG these days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RWG Technical Posted November 21, 2008 Report Share Posted November 21, 2008 Well some ups and downs. But I guess that comes with trying to re-create watches with parts that were long ago produced. One day I would like to find the mother load, an old watchmaker's collection of Rollie parts, before Rolex pulled the plug on the independent repair shops. Hopefully the movement can be modified... RG Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lanikai Posted November 21, 2008 Report Share Posted November 21, 2008 Sorry to hear of your set back Freddy.. but think of it as jus that .. this is jus so the end reward will be that much more rewarding.. it's the road we travel no ?? things will look better tomorrow.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddy333 Posted November 21, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 21, 2008 Well some ups and downs. But I guess that comes with trying to re-create watches with parts that were long ago produced. One day I would like to find the mother load, an old watchmaker's collection of Rollie parts, before Rolex pulled the plug on the independent repair shops. Hopefully the movement can be modified... RG Sorry to hear of your set back Freddy.. but think of it as jus that .. this is jus so the end reward will be that much more rewarding.. it's the road we travel no ?? things will look better tomorrow.. While I do enjoy 'the hunt', more & more I am finding that I enjoy ogling these rare beauties (in their completed form) even more I forgot to mention in my original post about the 1030 problems that around the time I began receiving my 1st set of calendar & gmt components for the 1030 conversion, I was offered a reasonable deal on a 1035 (same movement, but with all of the calendar components already installed). As the other movement had an all-black date wheel, I opted, instead, to continue the search for the remaining 1036gmt parts, thinking the money would be better spent on new or NOS parts & a 'Roulette' date wheel. In addition, I thought my total parts costs would ultimately total (along with the 1030 movement) less than the cost of the other movement. In hindsight, that was probably a bad decision since the cost to machine my base plate will likely put my total cost a good deal beyond what the other movement would have cost me. And I would already have all but 1 of the required parts to convert a 1035 over to 1036gmt form. But such is life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dieselpower Posted November 21, 2008 Report Share Posted November 21, 2008 These things are sent to test our mettle and by the looks of your collection your mettle is pretty sound. I am sorry to hear about these setbacks but chin up old chap dig deep and soldier on - it will be worth it in the end. All the best, Dieselpower (waiting for the return of the EE6263 ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddy333 Posted August 3, 2016 Author Report Share Posted August 3, 2016 Another thread containing useful technical info bumped for the benefit of those who missed it the 1st time around & might still find it useful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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