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What AP Franken(s) do you have in the works?!

Tompa

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Jurgenk it surely wasn’t but at least i don’t need to pay for plating on this one ;)

It was sold to me as new, from the 90’s. What I know for sure is that it’s not from the first batch.

Garuda I think it’s a dark blue but not entirely sure right now. Will find that out later.

Tompa that thing has the height of a Big Mac. I’m hoping domi will bring it down to gen thickness.

I think it will be verry dificult, the polished surface is verry big and the brushed area is verry small, but if its one man in this world ho can fix this its domi. So we will see. I realy hope he can fix that, it will save the future for franken builds :)
Realy nice dial buddy. Cant wait to se a complete watch


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legend

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Jurgenk it surely wasn’t but at least i don’t need to pay for plating on this one ;)

It was sold to me as new, from the 90’s. What I know for sure is that it’s not from the first batch.

Garuda I think it’s a dark blue but not entirely sure right now. Will find that out later.

Tompa that thing has the height of a Big Mac. I’m hoping domi will bring it down to gen thickness.

It’s the E series dial. I’ve the gen 25th anniversary 26237st beast coming in and your dial looks closer to the one I’m going to own, VS the one tosoboso has. On the wrist, the beast is the beast and the very minute differences are indiscernible. I am liking your project already!

One issue which you need to consider is that the date font of the beast (either 25721st or 26237st) is different from the usual ROO classic or modern ones and there is no aftermarket dw for it.

For example look at the date “7” font in this 25th anniversary. None of the datewheels will be correct like I mentioned.
564e0edfdbefc701a8ed74bf619711d3.jpg


That’s the reason I think that the 26237st 25th anniversary is one model which cannot be properly frankened and the best anyone can do is to build a fantasy. Building the 25721st is using the JF 25th anniversary case set will also result in parts with inaccurate details.

Inaccuracy aside this is still one of my favorite ROO frankens to look at. I’m genuinely excited to see your build. Congrats for obtaining the dial/tachy/hands set! :)


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Revolper

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It’s the E series dial. I’ve the gen 25th anniversary 26237st beast coming in and your dial looks closer to the one I’m going to own, VS the one tosoboso has. On the wrist, the beast is the beast and the very minute differences are indiscernible. I am liking your project already!

One issue which you need to consider is that the date font of the beast (either 25721st or 26237st) is different from the usual ROO classic or modern ones and there is no aftermarket dw for it.

For example look at the date “7” font in this 25th anniversary. None of the datewheels will be correct like I mentioned.
564e0edfdbefc701a8ed74bf619711d3.jpg


That’s the reason I think that the 26237st 25th anniversary is one model which cannot be properly frankened and the best anyone can do is to build a fantasy. Building the 25721st is using the JF 25th anniversary case set will also result in parts with inaccurate details.

Inaccuracy aside this is still one of my favorite ROO frankens to look at. I’m genuinely excited to see your build. Congrats for obtaining the dial/tachy/hands set! :)


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Thank you for your input. The detail about the date wheel I put a lot of thought on because, as you mentioned, there is no accurate rep. I’ll have yours and all the mikey ones to chose from and will decide which one to use in the actual process (I’m going to be with domi when it is assembled).
I’m looking at it as a carrier for the best gen parts I was able to obtain. IMO, in the end every single franken ROO should be considered as such given the case geometry is never period correct.
It means a lot to me you like what Im doing here.
 

Jurgenk

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I would second the idea that this is going to be a great build with all the parts you have. Like Tompa said getting an E series caseback will give you nicer results than the 25th anniversary JF Rep caseback unless JF changes its parts— not all recent JFs or even modern JF reps have that feature as I can attest based on a real Batman from May of this year. If you could find a Noob caseback and have Domi bring it down to 1.7 mm that would give you the nicest result and brushed side reveal. Assuming the caseback engravings are otherwise correct for this vintage— I have little idea of that.

Even though your dial resembles the new 25th edition that legend is getting I think using his white datewheel is probably the best choice.

Thanks for sharing this and good luck!
 
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Revolper

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Thank you guys for the input on the case back. I’ll take that into consideration.
From what I’ve read this is a second generation beast dial but definitely not a 25th anniversary, I’m sure about that.
 
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Jurgenk

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Judging by all the recent activity it seems that franken APs have enjoyed a little rebirth, despite the scarcity of everything from base watches, aftermarket parts, modder availability and gen parts. The AP ROO franken is dead. Long live the AP ROO franken.
 
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flofas

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It seems like old JF casebacks (or Noob ones) are going to go up in prices. I got a JF Rubberclad V2 a couple of months ago and I was amazed at how thick the new caseback is. I immediately replaced it with an old shaved caseback from another modded JF because I was feeling like the "top heavy" feeling of rep APs was literally magnified x 2. Its crazy what one or two millimeters of dimensions can do in a wristwatch.
 

Jurgenk

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So true— if you happened to get a fire sale classic Noob AP ROO this summer it might be more valuable as a parts donor to your other projects... Sorry Noob.

A wise bit of advice I’ve received is that for any rep that you really like, having a spare for parts / reconstitution is a good idea.

A final note— we’ve really come full circle with frankening the AP ROO. MBW and Watchmeister/Kruzer00 were the first to do this using the beast dial 10-15 years ago. The current Domi and other builds are lightyears beyond those builds but I am amazed by how far we have gone to end up in the same place.
 
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Revolper

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Well said Jurgenk . All the parts can be had. It’s all about commitment.

I’ll have to further investigate the case back issue with domi. Thanks again for pointing this out guys. I was almost there... you know the feeling ;)
 
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JF v5 in the process of being modded with gen white dial. It’s been thinned to gen spec and prof xtal installed
 

Hublot1704

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Finally I received my gold themes franken back from Domi and flying tommy yesterday :) It is a stunner and the gold plating of flying tommy is just amazing in person ! the Lwo movement runs perfectly smooth and it is so nice to use the chrono without worrying about crashing the gears :D I know that this one is still far away from gen also regarding the open case back and the wrong movement inside but damn I love this one and it I am proud and happy that I could get some of Domis awesome work to enjoy ! :) As my highspeed internet on my smartphone ran out pics will follow later this day :D
 
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Revolper

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Finally I received my gold themes franken back from Domi and flying tommy yesterday :) It is a stunner and the gold plating of flying tommy is just amazing in person ! the Lwo movement runs perfectly smooth and it is so nice to use the chrono without worrying about crashing the gears :D I know that this one is still far away from gen also regarding the open case back and the wrong movement inside but damn I love this one and it I am proud and happy that I could get some of Domis awesome work to enjoy ! :) As my highspeed internet on my smartphone ran out pics will follow later this day :D

Congratulations. I’ve held this particular piece in my hands before and agree that it is nicely built.

Don’t overextend the chrono though!
 

legend

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Finally I received my gold themes franken back from Domi and flying tommy yesterday :) It is a stunner and the gold plating of flying tommy is just amazing in person ! the Lwo movement runs perfectly smooth and it is so nice to use the chrono without worrying about crashing the gears :D I know that this one is still far away from gen also regarding the open case back and the wrong movement inside but damn I love this one and it I am proud and happy that I could get some of Domis awesome work to enjoy ! :) As my highspeed internet on my smartphone ran out pics will follow later this day :D

Please remember that the LWO 283 chrono (or any piggyback chrono module including the gen AP 3126/3840) is NOT bulletproof in design, and definitely not as reliable as the integrated chrono movement like the Rolex 4130 caliber. I have seen and addressed more chrono issues in the LWO movement than I cared to count. So please be aware, and understand that it is still a relatively precarious function, especially if you do not have the gen chrono hand/sub dial hands. Hand slippage is a common issue with non-gen hands, and it may or may not reset properly back to 0 after N times. My unsolicited advice to you is the same as what I tell my fellow gen AP owners: leave the chrono function alone if you want longevity and reliability in your mvovement!

And don't worry about what anyone tells you about the datewheel being inaccurate. Remember that none of the aftermarket datewheels (mine/edge's included) are 100% accurate too and in this regard, all are flawed in this regard. Some builds are worse in this regard by using the wrong datewheel series in their builds (cal.22226, 2326, the 26237ST beast, the montoya, RB2 etc)

Enjoy your watch and congrats in advance! :D
 
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Rolemars

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Finally I received my gold themes franken back from Domi and flying tommy yesterday :) It is a stunner and the gold plating of flying tommy is just amazing in person ! the Lwo movement runs perfectly smooth and it is so nice to use the chrono without worrying about crashing the gears :D I know that this one is still far away from gen also regarding the open case back and the wrong movement inside but damn I love this one and it I am proud and happy that I could get some of Domis awesome work to enjoy ! :) As my highspeed internet on my smartphone ran out pics will follow later this day :D

:ttiwwop:

Looking forward to seeing this beauty!
 
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Hublot1704

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okey thanks for that Info :D I just tried it once and as I don't use any chrono in my daily life this will probably be one of the last times :D but good to know so I will be careful, thanks ! :)
 

flofas

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okey thanks for that Info :D I just tried it once and as I don't use any chrono in my daily life this will probably be one of the last times :D but good to know so I will be careful, thanks ! :)

Please take as many pics as possible and from many angles and at different lighting. I believe a lot of people here would like to see flying-tommy's gold plating result and how great the overall watch will look with the color-changing dial.