J!m 289 Posted December 31, 2013 (edited) So I love my 5517 rep. What true Rolex guy doesn't? I've been doing continuous improvement on mine, including a nos low-beat Swiss movement. So the next level is a big jump- gen movement. Easy enough to find a movement, and I have hands already; but the dial can be tricky... To all the veterans here: who has the best 5517 dial that fits the gen movement? It could even be a 5513 with the "T" added- I'd be ok with that too. Thanks! (Ps: if this works out I will document the re-build and have some very nice parts available for a 5517 rep) Edited December 31, 2013 by J!m Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
J!m 289 Posted December 31, 2013 So for anyone looking at this (not many people since there are no boobs present aparently) I am trying to determine the correct crystal for the 5517. I have scoured the internet and came up with the following: 5512 - T19 5513 - T19 5516 - T13 5518 - T22 I see NO LISTINGS for the 5517 anywhere. The 5512/13 seems like the obvious choice, and there are three variations on the T-19 crystal (see ofrei.com) and it seems to be age dependant. There simply are no crystals listed as 5517 crystals, so I don't know what it is supossed to be. I'd prefer to have the st accurate crystal possible, but no info! If anyone has anythoing, please let me know. Thanks! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sardonix 1 Posted December 31, 2013 A tropic 25-19 is the correct crystal. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
J!m 289 Posted December 31, 2013 (edited) Yeah, my continued research seems to indicate it really is a 5513 with fixed bars (if a bit oversimplified). Now to determine which crystal shape is correct. I have three differing tropic 19 crystals to choose from; aparently there was a design change at Rolex at some point, so even genuine ones might have a slightly different dome shape and/or OD chamfer/taper/straight wall... Continuing my research... Edit: Three varities it seems G-S PA462-67 G-S PA462-66 SK XS 305.451 which appears to be the same as the PA462-67 (but German rather than Swiss made) There is also a G-S 462-20A but that seems to be quite a bit thinner on the top surface and probably not suitable for a watch rated to 200 meters. It also seems to be 30.30 Vs. 30.45 which would lead me to believe the bezel rtainer ring will not fit snugly on the OD. The other detail to remember is that the 5517 was a '70s watch, and would therefore have the later style crystal in my estimation. I presume the -66 crystal is the earlier version (best for an early 5512/13) and the later 5513/17 would be good with the -67 crystal. I'll probably go for the -67. Less than ten bucks at ofrei too... Edited December 31, 2013 by J!m Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JimmyV 0 Posted December 31, 2013 Wow this is a great read and subscribed to this thread since I think it's a great topic. I love vintage rollies they are my favorite. My 5517 is on the way and I can't wait to do some mods to it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sardonix 1 Posted December 31, 2013 If you plan a gen movement, considder a gen crystal. Bit stupid to a 5517 with gen movement and a 10 dollar crystal. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
J!m 289 Posted December 31, 2013 (edited) Except no one but me and my wallet can tell the difference. The Swiss made G-S crystals are very good quality. I have no issue using them. I placed an order at Ofrei and I got both crystals and better fitting o-rings than the rep one I have in this case now. I have studied a bunch of photos of 5517's and there is no consistency to the crystals at all- people fit whatever (to gen watches) so I feel comfortable with my "10 dollar crystal". I have even sen flat top ones which don't look right at all... The side profile is the reall difference, and it is a very slight difference. Maybe once I have them in-hand I will post them up for reference. I do have a line on a gen crystal for $150.00, but since I will be wearing this watch, it sems silly to waste $150 on a crystal that WILL get damaged. If it was a "safe Queen" that expense might make a lot more sense. (From what I can see this gen crystal looks exactly like the G-S -67 model). There is no magnifier to be "wrong" as a tell, so I'm not concerned. By the way: I will make another post for the general group here, but ofrei has a 9-pc (with spare blades) Bergeon screwdriver set for under $100.00, which we all know is a great price! [merry Christmas to me!] Edited December 31, 2013 by J!m Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
J!m 289 Posted December 31, 2013 Oh, big update: The gen 1560 movement is inbound! Lookingfor a good dial- I have an (actually two) OK rep dial, but a reproduction would be better I think, plus I don't like to use dial dots. Ever. The search continues... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
George. 34 Posted December 31, 2013 My 5517 is sitting at home waiting for me... Got to wait till the 7th to open! I'm also interested in putting a gen movement in Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DeLaForce 2 Posted December 31, 2013 Did you try NDT? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
J!m 289 Posted January 1, 2014 I have been looking at the usual suspects... Yuki has a decent looking dial for $135.00 I may go for. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dingle 57 Posted January 2, 2014 how about some pics? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
J!m 289 Posted January 2, 2014 Patience, young padawan... No changes have been made yet; just a lot of $pending and now waiting... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
J!m 289 Posted January 3, 2014 So, I'm looking at dials, and I am wondering if anyone has first hand experience with Jewelrey and Watch as compared to Yuki. The latter is less expensive (and I presume more widely used because of that) but I was hoping some of the veteran modders could highlight the pros and cons of both vendors. Is the JaW dial worth nearly twice as much? The quality of the lume is of interest. I do not expect a torch (that looks odd on a vintage watch) but it would be nice if there was some glow to it. Is the Yuki white lume brighter than the yellow lume (or vice-versa), and is the glow color correct for Tritum? I have a gen Tag from the late 80's with tritium and it had (now faded) a distinctive green glow that I assume would be appropriate. It still glows faintly but nothing like before the turn of the century... Thanks! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
J!m 289 Posted January 4, 2014 And so it begins... The rotor is loose- not sure why yet, but it has been rubbing the mainplate and mainspring barrel for a while. The rest appears OK but I'm going to pull the autowind bridge and find out the cause of the problem... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
J!m 289 Posted January 4, 2014 Everything looks OK at this point... But I did find an (unrelated) problem that is minor as far as I'm concerned- one of the jewels is cracked, but it is for the center auto wind wheel (don't know the correct term) that connects the ratchet wheels to the mainspring barrel. The bore still looks good, but this will have to be changed at the next service. This has nothing to do with the problem... The reason I tore this down is because there is horrble run-out in the rotor, and it has been rubbing on the movement as it spins. It looks as if the rotor axle was recently changed, and the upper weight jewel looks fine as well- I suspect it was changed with the axle. So, I need to take out some "end shake" in the rotor, and I have an idea how to do this. I am going to try and put a 2824 hour wheel spring washer between the rotor and rotor plate (on the rotor side- it will foul the ratchet wheels on the other side) and see how that does. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
J!m 289 Posted January 4, 2014 (edited) That shim trick seemed to work, but the movement is running intermittently. The hour wheel that was included with the movement is incorrect. It has the date drive top gear on it, and it is too tall. It also fits too tightly onto the cannon pinion, and may have been causing binding. It appears I need a 7890 hour wheel I will look for now. I have it wound and would like to see it run overnight becfore I would consider casing it up. If it fails this "test" I will see about having it overhauled. Edited January 4, 2014 by J!m Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
scope 3 Posted January 4, 2014 What case are you using for this build? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
J!m 289 Posted January 4, 2014 (edited) I'm hoping I can use this case: Movement is still humming along by the way, so I suspect the incorrect hour wheel was binding it up. I'm out for a few hours now so we'll see if it's still running when I get back... Edited January 4, 2014 by J!m Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
J!m 289 Posted January 6, 2014 Movement eventually stopped so I'll be doing a tear down and rebuild on this. Stay tuned campers! More stuff inbound! PS I'm still trying to sort out the dial situation. Comments on that welcomed. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
solkryssare 109 Posted January 6, 2014 Who made the case? http://vintagewatchesmq.com/minhquy/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl&product_id=949&category_id=98&keyword=5517&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
J!m 289 Posted January 9, 2014 I'm not sure who made the case on this. It was a complete watch purchased before I joined here. Not on the TD list currently, but I did not have any problems. In fact, he sent me a second watch (this one) when the first one had the cheezy tubes over the spring bars... Anyway, I don't know what factory made it. How much is that dial you posted? I am close t getting a Yukki dial, but that looks nice! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
J!m 289 Posted January 9, 2014 OK So I figured I'd try a dry fit before I got too much deeper into this case: It fits! A bit of extra room around the movement (with no ring) so maybe I need a ring, maybe I don't... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
myaz 3 Posted January 9, 2014 I like this thread. Informative, keep it up. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
J!m 289 Posted January 9, 2014 (edited) Next up was a crash-course in Rolex keyless works... This one was messed up, but nothing broken. By the way, no push-button release here. You have to loosen a screw to release or capture the stem... Oh, and it really sucks when one of the keyless cover screws goes flying into you. I managed to find it on my shoe. (probably a $10.00 screw) All back together, setting and winding correctly now. I've had these 5517 hands for years and I finally get to try them out: I timed it for a minute and it was within 1/2 second (by eye) so not bad for crusty, beat up movement. Edited January 9, 2014 by J!m Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
