Hey guys, I know there are a lot of threads on frankening an AP but I thought I would start a thread from an AP noob perspective with no machinery skills or equipment as well as with the most current information about the process that I could find. I am normally a Pam guy but about a month ago I decided to give the AP brand a try. After buying an AP fc v3 and a Montauk Highway, I was hooked. I had to get an AP franken. After reading the forums daily about the frankening process I finally decided to pull the trigger and start the process. Being a Pam guy and a lume freak I chose an AP model with bright lume. It came down to the AP white themes or the rubberclad with white face. Having read that the rep rubber bezel in the rubber clad is pretty cheaply made and the difficulty and cost in getting a gen bezel, screws and crystal, I decided to go with the white themes. Also for some reason, this dial is more easily found on ebay or chrono24.
Movement
I sourced a complete LWO movement(CP, hour wheel and cyclops included) from Namor who is a member here. I was specifically looking for a complete LWO 283 movement because although previously it may have been easy and cheaper to purchase the movement without the cp, hour wheel and cyclops and source them later this no longer seems to be the case. They seem to be impossible to find or buy for the average person. As a result it has been advised to seek a donor watch such as a hamilton or tag chorno 2000 etc.. with the LWO movement. These usually run for $600-$1200. If you can't find a complete LWO 283 or donor watch then I would pass on any incomplete movement you find on ebay. Another option is a 2890 with Dubois-Depraz module. This seems harder to find and I can't seem to find a complete movement. From what I read this seems to be a higher quality movement.
This is what I have with an arrow pointing to the hour wheel and washer that comes with a complete movement.
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Dial and Tachy
Next comes the dial. The non special editions are easier to source. You can get them from ebay, chrono24 or your local downtown jeweler if they have a relationship with you. I got mine from ebay. They combo will run you about $1,000-$1,300. If you source just the dial it should be cheaper.
Here is my gen dial and tachy that I received.
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Hands
Good luck finding them. I have scoured the internet trying to find these. If anyone can help me that would be great. Bottom line, if by some lucky chance you come across a set, buy it or post the link here! The rep hands will fit with a little help from our trusted watchsmiths.
Crystals
Ok, the gen Roos do not have any AR on the main crystal. None. But...the gen crystal is of better quality then the rep sapphire. Ideally you would get a single layer ar on the rep crystal or source a high end sapphire crystal. The cyclops seems to have ar though with a purplish tint. If you can source one of those let me know please.
Case mods
Ok, here is where most AP frankening projects fall apart. Finding a local watchsmith who can do it besides Dom seems to be very difficult and expensive. Without the case mods, this project is dead in the water. The most important case mod is the filling and relocating of the crown tube to fit the LWO movement. If you can't fit the movement, then no dial and no watch, I found a CONUS watchsmith that says he can do it. I will report back the results when I get a rep AP white themes.
The next step is to thin the bezel gasket to allow the crystal to sit flush against the gen tachy. The rep tachy is taller than the gen so the gasket needs to be thinned for a proper fit.
Once these two things are done you can quit. You now have a fully functional franken.
If you have the skills or know someone who can do the rest then you can proceed to mill the mid case to gen thickness(i don't know exactly how thick that is), then bead blast it, then brush and polish as needed. You can then thin the case back to gen thickness which should be 2mm. It seems the proper way to do this is the mill the outside of the caseback and then re engrave it, then bead blast then brush it in a circular pattern. I would think you would to shorten the case back screws to accommodate the thinner case back but i'm not sure.
Anyway, this is as far as i've gotten. If anyone can add more or help the process I would appreciate it! I will add more as I learn more.
Movement
I sourced a complete LWO movement(CP, hour wheel and cyclops included) from Namor who is a member here. I was specifically looking for a complete LWO 283 movement because although previously it may have been easy and cheaper to purchase the movement without the cp, hour wheel and cyclops and source them later this no longer seems to be the case. They seem to be impossible to find or buy for the average person. As a result it has been advised to seek a donor watch such as a hamilton or tag chorno 2000 etc.. with the LWO movement. These usually run for $600-$1200. If you can't find a complete LWO 283 or donor watch then I would pass on any incomplete movement you find on ebay. Another option is a 2890 with Dubois-Depraz module. This seems harder to find and I can't seem to find a complete movement. From what I read this seems to be a higher quality movement.
This is what I have with an arrow pointing to the hour wheel and washer that comes with a complete movement.
Dial and Tachy
Next comes the dial. The non special editions are easier to source. You can get them from ebay, chrono24 or your local downtown jeweler if they have a relationship with you. I got mine from ebay. They combo will run you about $1,000-$1,300. If you source just the dial it should be cheaper.
Here is my gen dial and tachy that I received.
Hands
Good luck finding them. I have scoured the internet trying to find these. If anyone can help me that would be great. Bottom line, if by some lucky chance you come across a set, buy it or post the link here! The rep hands will fit with a little help from our trusted watchsmiths.
Crystals
Ok, the gen Roos do not have any AR on the main crystal. None. But...the gen crystal is of better quality then the rep sapphire. Ideally you would get a single layer ar on the rep crystal or source a high end sapphire crystal. The cyclops seems to have ar though with a purplish tint. If you can source one of those let me know please.
Case mods
Ok, here is where most AP frankening projects fall apart. Finding a local watchsmith who can do it besides Dom seems to be very difficult and expensive. Without the case mods, this project is dead in the water. The most important case mod is the filling and relocating of the crown tube to fit the LWO movement. If you can't fit the movement, then no dial and no watch, I found a CONUS watchsmith that says he can do it. I will report back the results when I get a rep AP white themes.
The next step is to thin the bezel gasket to allow the crystal to sit flush against the gen tachy. The rep tachy is taller than the gen so the gasket needs to be thinned for a proper fit.
Once these two things are done you can quit. You now have a fully functional franken.
If you have the skills or know someone who can do the rest then you can proceed to mill the mid case to gen thickness(i don't know exactly how thick that is), then bead blast it, then brush and polish as needed. You can then thin the case back to gen thickness which should be 2mm. It seems the proper way to do this is the mill the outside of the caseback and then re engrave it, then bead blast then brush it in a circular pattern. I would think you would to shorten the case back screws to accommodate the thinner case back but i'm not sure.
Anyway, this is as far as i've gotten. If anyone can add more or help the process I would appreciate it! I will add more as I learn more.
hwell:
