Rolex 214270 Explorer 39mm light franken

[APjumbo 3,031]

Off come the dial feet easily with tweezers.

Used aftermarket posts. Followed NCrich tutorial that I linked above. Filed, cleaned, 5 min epoxy

[APjumbo 3,031]

I always struggle with hands. Usually trying to get them more perfect and scratching them or bending them in the process.

Turned out pretty good this time.

 

A little struggle but the ARF crystal and bezel fit on the BP case.

[APjumbo 3,031]

Cut the bloody stem too short, it works but not quite perfect. Was 12mm

Cut a new one slowly down to 12.6

much better.

[APjumbo 3,031]

I’m absolutely thrilled I got through that without fucking up the keyless.

Just need to reassemble the ARF leftover watch.

Really thrilled with this build, enjoyed this modern build more than my vintage Tudor.

Final result:

BP case, caseback, hands

ARF bracelet, crystal, bezel

Gen crown, tube, dial.

ETA2824 movement with no ghost date.

[Flextime 2]

Thank you for documenting this. I am about to go on an ARF based journey and this is very insightful.

[APjumbo 3,031]

29 minutes ago, Flextime said:

Thank you for documenting this. I am about to go on an ARF based journey and this is very insightful.

ARF with a BP or gen dial is a really nice combo. 
I think I updated my posts above but if you missed it, someone filed down the hump on the piece of the keyless that moves the crown from wind to date to time set.

This eliminates the date position.

Which means using a VR movement from a sub and doing this no date mod would be really neat and you would have a really nice VR movement in there.

[Flextime 2]

ARF with a BP or gen dial is a really nice combo. 
I think I updated my posts above but if you missed it, someone filed down the hump on the piece of the keyless that moves the crown from wind to date to time set.
This eliminates the date position.
Which means using a VR movement from a sub and doing this no date mod would be really neat and you would have a really nice VR movement in there.

I think I am going to put a VR3130 inside and get a BP dial along with it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[MA123 85]

@APjumbo awesome thread - very informative-  thank you for time invested in sharing  

I’ve owned the ARF and BP.  The ARF felt superior in almost every way - on the wrist it felt very gen like with great finishing.  The BP may have a slightly better dial, but this was hardly noticeable, and the bracelet/case etc ‘felt’ like a rep. So kept the ARF. 

The only remaining thing that bugs me is the rehault. 

Now I might be mistaken - but think the OP39 case is the same as Exp39, with exception of the bezel (smooth on OP39 / flat on Expr1). 

ARF’s OP39 was considered a super rep with rehault pretty much spot on. So one option I’ve considered if I want to improve my Exp1 is to use the ARF OP39 as a donor case to get rehault i want, and then switch the bezels over.  ie - put the Explr bezel on the ARF OP39 case. 

Do you reckon this could work? (Clearly you have many more hrs than me invested into this model..!). 

[APjumbo 3,031]

3 minutes ago, MA123 said:

@APjumbo awesome thread - very informative-  thank you for time invested in sharing  

I’ve owned the ARF and BP.  The ARF felt superior in almost every way - on the wrist it felt very gen like with great finishing.  The BP may have a slightly better dial, but this was hardly noticeable, and the bracelet/case etc ‘felt’ like a rep. So kept the ARF. 

The only remaining thing that bugs me is the rehault. 

Now I might be mistaken - but think the OP39 case is the same as Exp39, with exception of the bezel (smooth on OP39 / flat on Expr1). 

ARF’s OP39 was considered a super rep with rehault pretty much spot on. So one option I’ve considered if I want to improve my Exp1 is to use the ARF OP39 as a donor case to get rehault i want, and then switch the bezels over.  ie - put the Explr bezel on the ARF OP39 case. 

Do you reckon this could work? (Clearly you have many more hrs than me invested into this model..!). 

I have never heard this suggested, but it sounds like a good idea. The rehaut on the ARF explorer was crap, I couldn't get a nice alignment no matter how I tried.

The bezel is super easy to pop off, I think I just taped it off and used a razor blade then case opener.

I don't know if the OP case is the same as I am not a rolex expert.

I don't know if the explorer bezel would fit an OP case but I would guess that it would be close.

It would be really nice to see someone try this.

[MA123 85]

@APjumbo thanks for reply. I’ll have a think and might consider trying this - will let u know if I do. (Would probably need to call on some expert help though to avoid butchering it up myself..!)

[Flextime 2]

[mention=104557]APjumbo[/mention] thanks for reply. I’ll have a think and might consider trying this - will let u know if I do. (Would probably need to call on some expert help though to avoid butchering it up myself..!)

Seems like a worthy experiment. I love the OP (maybe more so than the Explorer), so it’ll be difficult for me use one as a donor. But hey, I really want to see this done, so you have my (an internet stranger) full support!

[Eaglez 1]

Very insightful. Thanks for sharing.  I’ve got a BP and have been playing with the idea of getting an ARF bracelet. Having read this I think I might go for it. 

[Plaasbaas 750]

Only saw this awesome thread now, thanks for the effort. Very well done, Sir.

[APjumbo 3,031]

40 minutes ago, Eaglez said:

Very insightful. Thanks for sharing.  I’ve got a BP and have been playing with the idea of getting an ARF bracelet. Having read this I think I might go for it. 

The BP bracelet itself not not bad at all, but the end links that fit to the case aren’t great. If your BP has good end link fitment or you wear it on natos anyways might not be worth it. 
My endlink  fitment with my BP bracelet was poor and wearing on nato got old quick. So to me it was absolutely worth the trouble.

[Eaglez 1]

10 hours ago, APjumbo said:

The BP bracelet itself not not bad at all, but the end links that fit to the case aren’t great. If your BP has good end link fitment or you wear it on natos anyways might not be worth it. 
My endlink  fitment with my BP bracelet was poor and wearing on nato got old quick. So to me it was absolutely worth the trouble.

The SEL aren’t bad actually and the SEL recess is acceptable. It’s the clasp that bugs me, it just doesn’t feel right, the flip lock bit looks and feels cheap… I’m I little concerned if I get an ARF the SEL recess wouldn’t  be as good and that would probably bother me more that the clasp… 

Thanks for feed back, I’m back in indecision LOL 

[Triumph Toledo 0]

Thanks for sharing your experiences its really helpful

I to have a BP 214270, I really like the watch but there are a few issues that bug me,

I have a poor fitting end link which leaves an unsightly gap next to the case and a loose feeling to the watch, inspired by your thread I have ordered an ARF bracelet which I'm hoping will fix this issue, 

The other issue is the hands, the Mercedes hour hand in particular, they look really flat on my watch almost like a 2d print, In contrast I have a CF 114060 Submariner and the hands have much more depth and shape which gives them a real gen look (to my novice eyes) 

I want to fit a GEN ETA 2842 so this really limits my options, is broaching the hand(s) an option or modifying the ETA?

in terms of replica I guess only ARF is an option?  can I ask if you felt they were an improvement over the BP ones?

I couldn't even find the part number for genuine hands let alone the hands themselves 

 

 

 

[APjumbo 3,031]

On 01/11/2022 at 12:42, Triumph Toledo said:

Thanks for sharing your experiences its really helpful

I to have a BP 214270, I really like the watch but there are a few issues that bug me,

I have a poor fitting end link which leaves an unsightly gap next to the case and a loose feeling to the watch, inspired by your thread I have ordered an ARF bracelet which I'm hoping will fix this issue, 

The other issue is the hands, the Mercedes hour hand in particular, they look really flat on my watch almost like a 2d print, In contrast I have a CF 114060 Submariner and the hands have much more depth and shape which gives them a real gen look (to my novice eyes) 

I want to fit a GEN ETA 2842 so this really limits my options, is broaching the hand(s) an option or modifying the ETA?

in terms of replica I guess only ARF is an option?  can I ask if you felt they were an improvement over the BP ones?

I couldn't even find the part number for genuine hands let alone the hands themselves 

 

 

 

The ARF bracelet should fix the poor fitment.

As far as hands it’s unlikely to find gen ones at a reasonable cost. If you do find them they are probably for the older version of explorer with the solid 3,6,9 some people swap those short hands out woth the longer ones through an rolex service.

 

I have a hard time telling the difference with quality of hands. I have heard about this 3D effect with higher quality hands but haven’t been able to tell the difference myself.

Startime supply or some other place would be a source for high quality hands but as far as I can tell nobody has aftermarket long hands for the explorer I.

I remember searching myself for some time without luck.