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Stilty's 1680 project


stilty

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Well, I ended up with a nice 1680 case. It was destined for friend, but we ended up making a deal for something else, so now I have it to play with.

I quickly threw it together to get a feel for it. SO, please excuse the hands. They are all I have to work with at the moment. Replacements on order soon.

I snapped a few pictures in hopes of getting some feedback from the resident experts. Please feel free to respond or PM me your thoughts on this case.

First off, I love the machining and finish on this. Also the steel color is excellent. The crystal is a vintage stern 127. Bracelet is a vintage 93150 with 580 hoods.

Keep in mind this is a work in progress, but I wanted some feedback on the case.

Here we go:

Full Frontal

1680face.jpg

Side shot:

1680upright.jpg

And another:

1680upright2.jpg

Side profile:

1680side.jpg

Back:

1680back.jpg

Another back shot:

1680back2.jpg

hood and bracelet fitted:

1680color.jpg

nice beveled lugs:

1680bevel.jpg

crown guards and beveled lugs:

1680cgandlugs.jpg

Crown unscrewed:

1680opencrown.jpg

And again:

1680crown.jpg

Nice vintage buckle:

1680buckle.jpg

I'm somewhat of a rookie when it comes to vintage sport models. I mainly work with vintage and modern franken datejusts.

soon to upgrade gen dial and hand set. But I think I'm off to a good start on this.

Feedback is appreciated.

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Hi Stilty,

nice case indeed. My only suggestion would be to slightly smooth the top edges of it too get rid of that brand new look. You can see the difference on my Tudor...

stilty1.jpg

It just needs a light going over with fine grit paper and a polish with a dremel and rouge.

I like the dial, is it from Classicwatchparts ?

And your datewheel is awesome, any news for us on production.. ?

Cheers

P.

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Dial is from Yuki.

Date discs are on my mind daily as I have a lot invested, but no time to work on it. There are a few samples out there for testing. Unfortunately, it is looking like I won't be able to focus until May. Everything is in place expect my time. I was so close, but got held up.

The case will definitely need some "wearing in", but I'll cross that bridge when I find a few more parts.

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I have a question for the vintage rolex experts....I had my MBW 1680 worked on to make it more like the gen. Looks good but the one thing that bothers me is that I cant see very well the ends of the springbars through the lug holes. I really like that look and my first impresion was that the wrong size spring bars were used but I was sworn that they were.......any ideas?

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I have a question for the vintage rolex experts....I had my MBW 1680 worked on to make it more like the gen. Looks good but the one thing that bothers me is that I cant see very well the ends of the springbars through the lug holes. I really like that look and my first impresion was that the wrong size spring bars were used but I was sworn that they were.......any ideas?

Could be a number of things. If the holes are not pefectly in line the springbar may not be fully extended or holes could be too small although most re-drilled holes i've seen are actually too big. Try cleaning the holes out and lubricating them and post a pic but better start a new thread for this..

P.

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Hi Stilty,

nice case indeed. My only suggestion would be to slightly smooth the top edges of it too get rid of that brand new look. You can see the difference on my Tudor...

stilty1.jpg

It just needs a light going over with fine grit paper and a polish with a dremel and rouge.

Cheers

P.

Ditto.

Looking real nice Stilty. Please give us some more details on the case?

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I have a question for the vintage rolex experts....I had my MBW 1680 worked on to make it more like the gen. Looks good but the one thing that bothers me is that I cant see very well the ends of the springbars through the lug holes. I really like that look and my first impresion was that the wrong size spring bars were used but I was sworn that they were.......any ideas?

Perry563,

If they are aftermarket springbars they often have shorter pins I've noticed, the same holds true if they're used gen bars -the springs loose tension over time so you'll suffer from the same issue.

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Thanks for the comments everyone. I think it is a good base to start.

Case is from Yuki. Out of the box. It ships with no crystal, tube, or crown. I installed a vintage Sternkreuz Cyclop 127. Made in the Federal Republic of Germany!

Also installed an early model 703 Rolex tube.

Yes, the case looks spankin' new. But I think I will leave it the way it is and let day to day wearing age it naturally. I've seen a few gen out there that still have the factory finish on the lugs before overpolishing.

Only problems so far, is the bezel is too loose. I will have to replace the tension spring to stiffen it up. Also, the lug spacing is a hair too wide. There is a slight spacing on the end pieces.

Some great bonus points. The gen tube fits perfectly. Screws in nice and tight and perfectly recessed. The caseback screws in nice and smooth. The crystal snapped on tight. Lugholes are perfectly aligned and the gen springbars fit perfect.

Oh yes, the engravings are not too bad either. To me, they look a bit modern in the font, but definitely better than the usual rep laser engravings.

modelz.jpg

Here is another dial shot from this morning. Date disc is a test print. Good news, is all the number fit and align with the date window!

dial.jpg

Next step is a 1570 with gen dial and hand set. I'm actively searching for a 1570, so if anyone out there has one they would like to part with, please let me know.

I've given up my franken 16610 and it is available in the sales section. I think the 1680 is a project worth pursuing.

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Only problems so far, is the bezel is too loose. I will have to replace the tension spring to stiffen it up.

Some of these cases have a thin metal spacer below the bezel. You can tighten the bezel by arching the thin metal spacer. The spacer is designed to put a slight amount of upward pressure on the underside of the bezel, which keeps it in position (press down on the bezel to turn it). Of course, if your case is fitted with the spring that runs around the inner circumference of the bezel, this is not an option.

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hands are temporary. I just put it together to get a feel for it. I have a set of aged hands on the way as replacements.

Also, have a new RSC dial, hand set, and insert on the way. Now she will look spankin' new as if she just came from the Rolex spa. LOL.

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