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SB56667

Here goes nothing...

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SB56667

It was this that made me fall in love with Panerai:

 

Panerai-Radiomir-1.jpgPa-3646-1-1.jpg

 

And now that I've got a nice 183 from Robert, the next logical step was a vintage build. I love the 2533 dial, but can't pull off a 47mm. I decided to make a 45mm. Digging around among the various parts suppliers here and on HomageForum, it became clear that would take some improvisation. So the following is on its way:

 

- case: Jackson 45mm Radiomir

- movement: Molnija 3602

- hands: gold from Jackson

- dial: my own! (copied 2533 design in Illustrator and ordered a whole sheet from a custom cutter/engraver so I can experiment -- will post results as they come)

- strap: masterpiece from the very generous gottahaverolex in the free strap giveaway (thanks again, GHR!)

- toasting: Black & Decker 4-slice Countertop Oven

- steak sauce: A1

 

Updates to come as the parts arrive. This is when this whole thing does from hobby to obsession, yes? :)

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JohnG

Looking forward to it, make sure the indices are nice and thin, the most common mistake I see on the 2533 dial is fat indices...

 

If it were me, and I wanted the most accurate vintage possible (without spending a fortune), I would leave the 6497 in it and put on a thick solid caseback. The best Molnijia for a vintage is the 3601, but even when engraved with Rolex, the bridge shape is wrong. The solid caseback solves this problem, plus it is less hassle and money. And the original gens didn't have display backs, those were all added later.

 

Good luck and post plenty of pics!

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gB.

Uh oh, dingle's got some competition on a vintage PAM build. Should we do a friendly competition thread, non-contentious of course...? :)

 

 

 

:popcorn:

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SB56667
Uh oh, dingle's got some competition on a vintage PAM build. Should we do a friendly competition thread, non-contentious of course...? :)

 

:popcorn:

 

Ha! What do you say, dingle? What's the handicap for starting with a 14,400-post advantage? :D

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gB.
Ha! What do you say, dingle? What's the handicap for starting with a 14,400-post advantage? :RIP:

Don't let that intimidate you. 95% of that post count is word association and popcorns.

 

:(

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dingle
Ha! What do you say, dingle? What's the handicap for starting with a 14,400-post advantage? :D

Don't let that intimidate you. 95% of that post count is word association and popcorns.

 

:popcorn:

 

+1

:popcorn:

 

 

 

:)

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rsea

You ordered a whole sheet of dials? Holy crap how big is the sheet!?

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SB56667
Ha! What do you say, dingle? What's the handicap for starting with a 14,400-post advantage? :D

Don't let that intimidate you. 95% of that post count is word association and popcorns.

 

:popcorn:

 

+1

:popcorn:

 

:D

 

:rofl: :rofl:

 

You ordered a whole sheet of dials? Holy crap how big is the sheet!?

 

11.75" square. I'm getting about 50 pieces. I made a few different models and sizes. It'll take weeks for them to show up, but if they're good, I'll make the extras available here.

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rsea

an entrepreneurial gent :D

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SB56667

Molnija with 3602 showed up yesterday. Not as pretty as the 3601, but built like a tank from the looks of it, keeping good time so far.

 

Dials should be in the mail today too. I'll post photos.

 

IMG_2069.jpg

 

IMG_2070.jpg

 

IMG_2071.jpg

 

IMG_2072.jpg

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Member X

3602 should have the high cannon pinion as well so it's a good choice :)

 

Be careful though, they haven't got any shock absorber thing on them so if you drop them it can get expensive...

 

 

 

I've got a 3603 lined up for a build but I really don't want to have to sand and smooth one of Athaya's plexi dials so I'm waiting for him to finish his high-hands set... :D:)

 

 

I will post pictures of mine too when I get a chance! :)

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SB56667
Be careful though, they haven't got any shock absorber thing on them so if you drop them it can get expensive...

 

Ah, thanks for the tip. Do the 3601 or 3603 have some kind of shock-absorption? While HomageForum's been down, I've lost track of all those details on which movements need the brass rings, which drop right in to what size case....

 

On the up side, Jackson just wrote saying the case and hands are on the way! :D I'm now in the ridiculous position of wishing I weren't going away on vacation, since it's going to take me away from watchmaking. :)

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Member X

Only 3603s have shock absorbers on the rotating spring jewel (technical term :lol: lol), the rest are older so didn't!

 

 

HF is back up as read only now so get reading again :D lol

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SB56667
Only 3603s have shock absorbers on the rotating spring jewel (technical term :P lol), the rest are older so didn't!

 

HF is back up as read only now so get reading again ;) lol

 

Good to know! Yep, I'm going to be all over that forum next few days...

 

Are you going to fill in the engraving with solder and re-engrave? On one hand, seems like much too much work. On the other hand, a bit odd having a Soviet movement sitting in a vintage PAM homage. :Whistle:

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SB56667

Dials arrived! A whole slew of 'em, 35mm, 37mm, and 38.5. Not flawless, the laser cutting is a little chattery, and the Rolex engraving was clearly to fine for it to handle, but I think I've got plenty to work with here. Edges can mostly likely be cleaned up during painting/luming, and the Rolex engraving can presumably be filled in and replaced with decals. The 2533's turned out quite nicely.

 

They're in 2-layer ABS, white core, black top. Most have shallow engraving for big indices/numbers and deeper engraving for text and smaller indices. There are two kinds of 2533 dials: ones with slots cut straight through the dial, and ones that just have engraving:

 

fourdials.jpg

 

IMG_0003.jpg

 

IMG_0004.jpg

 

IMG_0002.jpg

 

IMG_0005.jpg

 

Man, this is going to be fun! :)

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cajarana

Very nice dials mate, I like it.

 

How made them ?

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Member X

The use of two layers of plastic is quite cool :)

 

What's the texture of the finish on the black? Glossy or quite matte?

 

How thick are they? if they're something like 1.5mm thick you will need to sand them down from the back to under 1mm (or thereabouts...) and use H3 Cannon Pinions and Hour Wheels in your movements!

 

I think I prefer the 2533 with full cut-out indices - you can apply the lume from the back so it is suspended in the gaps, and then a short while later use a small air blower thing (not an air can! lol) from the front to gently 'push' the lume in to form nicely indented indices ;)

 

 

Here are my efforts!

 

20110525001a.jpg

 

20110525002a.jpg

 

20110525008.jpg

 

20110525009.jpg

 

20110525010d.jpg

 

Not perfect but not too horrific for my second ever dial...

 

Note how close the hands are with a 'normal' cannon pinion / hour wheel - and that's with a single sheet of metal with no backplate or anything...

 

 

Oh, and why do I prefer fully cut-out?

 

Because luming from the front is difficult!! :D

 

20110519001a.jpg

 

20110519001b.jpg

 

;)

 

 

But it does lume like a beast :P lol

 

20110519003b.jpg

 

20110519002a.jpg

 

 

 

I'm looking forward to seeing your progress! :)

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rsea

1.5's will go under a H3 or you can order special handsets from Athaya

Sanding these plexi dials is an accident waiting to happen

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Member X

Yeah, I did see Athaya's hands :unsure: I'm waiting for the cali hands to be done! :) lol

 

In the meantime I might get some of River's $20 pencil hands for the other couple of my builds... :thumbsup::D

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SB56667

Member X, you're the man! That dial looks fantastic. Hard to believe it's the second one you've ever done! :imnotworthy:

 

And the "front lume" job? :unsure::)

 

Thanks for the info and the tips. :thumbsup: The dials are indeed 1.5mm, so there may be some (very careful) sanding in my future. The upside is I've got a whole bag full of dial blanks to experiment with. They're not quite glossy, but they're smooth enough that they needed a good scuffing-up with #600 to take any paint. Speaking of which...

 

IMG_0006.jpg

 

As you see, these don't yet have resin fill, let alone lume, and this is pure experimentation, but these are the best three so far, and I'm having too much fun not to share them!

 

IMG_0007-1.jpg

 

IMG_0008-1.jpg

 

IMG_0009-1.jpg

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Member X

Ok, I need details of paint / techniques NOW...

 

 

 

 

:D

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Ska

Holy fuck those are cool!!

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SB56667
Holy fuck those are cool!!

 

Thanks so much!! :lol: God, this is fun. :Whistle:

 

Details on materials and technique coming soon, plus a few more I made today...

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dingle
IMG_0007-1.jpg

 

this is awesome....do tell :)

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Member X

Looking forward to more! :lol:

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