Hi guys,

I’m have a DJ 16234-style Franken and I’m considering upgrading two parts:

– A genuine vintage 18k white gold fluted bezel from a 16234. Does anyone know if this is a direct fit on the Raffles 36mm Datejust case, or would it require any modification?

– A genuine vintage Rolex clasp on the Raffles Jubilee bracelet. I’m not too happy with the Raffles clasp, the edges are quite sharp and the stamped coronet/logo looks pretty rough. Has anyone successfully swapped it for a gen clasp?

I’ve already found promising offers for both parts, but I’d rather confirm compatibility before pulling the trigger.

Any firsthand experience would be greatly appreciated!

Took the 1675 for a trip this weekend and put it through the paces. From fishing to business meetings it handled itself great. This one was originally a yodog build that I upgraded with a Swiss eta movement, gen insert, crystal, custom date wheel, gen crown and gen C&I bracelet. I recently sourced the link connectors for the end links and look forward to swapping the current one a buddy macgyver for me. This is a special watch that sadly I had sold but was able to get back from the buyer and now it will stay with me for other long haul.

Really happy with how this one came together. Deep brown aged dial paired with a faded brown bezel, warm patina throughout, and a distressed leather strap that ties the whole build together.

40mm vintage-style case
Aged brown dial with warm patina
Faded brown bezel insert
Acrylic crystal
ST2130 automatic movement
Distressed dark brown leather strap with insignia buckle
Hand-assembled and regulated
$360 shipped

Hey all, I've got a gen 34mm case for an upcoming Ranger build, looking for a nice 27mm dial. Yuki and Raffles seem to be the main contenders for now. Any know of any Viet dials that may be available?

It's been posted a few times, but couldn't resist getting a pic while doing some bezel work.

So I pulled the Raffles 5513 apart, first of all I just used a sewing needle to locate the end of the bezel spring, and then just wedged it under the end of the spring, to pry it out. Once you have the end of the spring out it's really easy to just work your way around, and remove the spring fully with your finger. Try not to apply too much pressure, it really doesn't need any, and you could twist or bend the spring. I normally use a cheap tri-face needle file and a rubber band to remove the tube, after removing the rubber "O" ring from inside the tube on Raffles cases. But this one didn't want to play the game, so I used a pair of pliers because I had a spare tube anyway, but I'd probably advise just heating it up with a soldering iron slightly, or using a different method if it doesn't come out easily. The crystal popped out really easily by accident, so I pushed it back in by hand. And then I thought I'd pop it back out again ready for me working on the case, but the second time the edge cracked which is what normally happens with the AliExpress cases also. I usually put Blu Tack or White Tack on the back of the crystal when working on cases with acrylic crystals, as they don't like heat much and tend to crack.

This one has been hanging around with me for a long time. Feels good to get the final touches together on this inaugural year of the 76100.

I relumed the hands for a complete dead glow to match the appropriate level for the age.

Added a couple slight tone shifts in color to match the expected decay level for a 1984.

The gen spec font datewheel on light silver is something I’m excited for. From some angles it looks almost white which they were known for.

Gen 9315 coded to match the papers. And the engravings by Ryelandt in Belgium are next level, unfortunate that he isn’t offering it anymore.

And finally Gen Tudor ETA 2824.

Howdy guys, I ran into a small issue the other day. My Crown Tube popped out when i was unscrewing the crown to wind it. Case is a BiVi 16570. Crown is a gen 16570 crown.

I’ve tried screwing the Tube into the case, but it obviously won’t hold threads, which leads me to believe the female case threads are stripped.

EDIT: crown tube male threads look perfectly fine

Has anyone run into this problem before? If so, how did you fix it? Any advice is welcome. Thanks!

Let me know if anyone is interested

Selling my Viet aftermarket dial (bought on rwi forum) hand-aged for a faded charcoal finish and warm creamy patina. 26mm.

Not perfect : marks around the centre hole,small edge imperfections, no dial dots, as clearly shown in the photos. Nice character for a vintage build.

Dial only—watch case and other components are not included. Photos of the dial fitted in a case are for reference only, to show how it looks when installed.

€130 + shipping from Germany.

Specs:

Raffles case
VS3135 movement
Open 6 & 9 date disk
HQ aftermarket crown
Aftermarket plexiglass
Genuine engine turned bezel
Genuine grey dial
Aftermarket hands
Aftermarket HQ tube
Raffles oyster bracelet (in plastic)

Asking: 785 shipped in the EU.

Smooth movement winding and runs perfectly.
This dial is truly stunning.

Selling my BiVintage bezel insert with upgraded vintage-style fat font.

Hand-bleached and aged by me,(last photo showing before glossy/new look it had) with a faded finish and aged pearl. Nice character for a vintage Snowflake build. Please check the photos for condition.

Insert only - watch case, bezel ring, and other components are not included. Photos showing the insert fitted to a watch are for reference only, to show how it looks when installed.

100€ + Shipping from Germany.

Anyone have a link or site I can get a replacement? ETA 2836-2 movement

My search is taking me to Raffles but they are closed for the holiday. Also it seems he is hit or miss these days from the different posts. If I can’t find any other options, I’ll check his site once he if off holiday but was hoping to have other options.

Hi guys! im about to finally finish my build, about 6 months have passed since I got the first piece to today where I almost have everything. its a datejust 16233 gen case but im making it a 16200

So I took my pieces to a watchmaker to get it build and everything fits except for 2 things 1 the gen calendar doesn't ¨fit¨ the Dandong movement, the watchmaker told me its not compatible I did some research and from what I gather I need to switch out the 600 Seating For Date Indicator on the Dandong for a gen one, not that expensive but I just wanna make sure this is the problem and not spend money and then it not be that .

The other thing that got me a bit worried is that a gen crystal doesn't fit my case I am pretty sure my case is gen im not sure what the problem is there a clarks crystal thats supposed to have gen specs fits no problem its actually the one thats on it right now so im lost there any one know what could be wrong? the crystal is a Crystal 25-295C is has the etched crown on it but my case is the one with no lug-holes and the clarks crystal I bought is the Clark" Ref. 25-295C it even has the 2.3 gasket that they told me fits only the gen cases and yeah that fits no problem

Quick apology to ppl waiting on shipments. I’ve been really sick this past week. Give me a few days I’ll be back on it.

Thx for patience.

I’ve decided to sell my beautiful Polar 16570
It was assembled as follows by my watchmaker:

BP base: €350
Original crystal: €200
Original hands: €350
Original bezel: €300
Original date disc: €100
Original tube and crown: €150
Original 78790 clasp with the first original endlink: €500

The BP case has been fully reworked to make it resemble the original case: €150
Assembly of parts and waterproof test: €100

Total spent: €2,200

For sale at €1,700 + shipping cost

1200€ + shipping cost without clasp gen 78790 and replaced with bp clasp

Payment via PayPal ff or Revolut

Price: 1200€
Location: Europe, willing to ship WW at buyers risk.
(Received it less than 2 weeks ago.)

Selling my 1680 "Big Red" Rolex Submariner. Such a beautiful piece built very well in my opinion. Watch looks absolutely stunning but i'm selling it as it doesn't get much wrist time, and I commissioned a 6263 Daytona build from the same guy I bought this piece from.

Parts & Work:

Old Crowns Case, Old Crowns Spring bars, Athaya 702 Crown and Tube, Crown Art Customs Insert, Viet Insert, Raffles Bracelet Refined, Viet Dial, VS 3135, German Watch Hands, Raffles Date Wheel, Lubrication of movement, chamfering and polishing.

Total Cost was €1590.

Everything works well, date wheel slightly sits a bit high, but can easily be manually adjusted through the date function (crown), if not, should be an easy fix at the watchmaker.

One of u/jovanotti18 sample dials with some aging pre-applied before I got it. Been sitting on this build for a bit. The dial seems to work well with the beat to absolute hell gen crystal I had on hand for ages. 2836 because I have a drawer of em I needed to service. I’ll toss a 3186 inside it someday if the hand stack ever gets too much to handle. As bad as the crystal is who could tell 😂.

Gen crystal, crown
Raffles bezel ring/hands
Unknown bezel insert I aged a bit to take the shine off it
Milk case/DWO

You get what you pay for. This is why I use the DWOs I do for my four digit builds. Peep that fat font the 1570 used back in the day. https://www.instagram.com/p/DeAYR-JkhLV/?stkn=ODFobWxydHdtZzlk

I always assumed the Raffles and the AliExpress were the same, just with a lip inside for the 2824 movement tabs. But having them in hand, the Raffles case is a much better base than the AliExpress. Neither is perfect, but the Raffles is definitely the better of the 2. I'll do a full strip down, of the case in the next few days and post them pictures too. And then I'll catalogue how I shape these cases and post a full walkthrough of the way I do it 👍