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Franken'ly speaking....

jonnybaws

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I think I'm gonna do it..
Gonna try my hand at building (not myself) a Franken 42mm ROO and pop my Franken Virgin Cherry!
I'll document the progress here...
Nothing to report so far, haven't decided which model to go with, although there are a few earlier favourite's, Beast, White Dial Rubber Clad, Black Themes, Elephant...
Been reading up a bit on some of the Franken threads so have a rough idea of shopping list...

More totally irrelevant news to follow..
 
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Limpy

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Great idea. there are many beautiful potential builds- also fantasy frankens are interessting to look at.

There is a thread ‚what AP fraken have you got in the works‘. it shows the progress of modders and frankenbuilders on their projects. there are heaps of background infos also.

good luck on your journey - the goal is the way (german saying dont know if it makes sense translated ????)
 

slaughterer62

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Good luck. I am a Franken lover. Just try to keep your costs under control. Parts have gotten very expensive.
 
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Garuda

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good luck on your journey and we look forward to reading your progress.

before you pull the trigger on a dial. check that your can source the base watch from a TD or m2m.
 
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jonnybaws

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Cheers!

I narrowed it down to either a White dial Rubber Clad or the Elephant..
Most likely to White Dial Rubber clad given the closed caseback design.
And depending on how my first Franken build goes I may build the one that didn't make the cut first time round..

A good friend has told me what I need..
Gen Dial
Gen Tachy
SS JF 42mm rep as a donor for what bits are needed..
Micky DW
LWO movement
Been informed Gen Hands are as rare as rocking horse shit so unlikely to get them..

Once this is all obtained I then need to cuddle up to the recognised Franken builders and ask politely if they can assist with the build!
 

jonnybaws

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good luck on your journey and we look forward to reading your progress.

before you pull the trigger on a dial. check that your can source the base watch from a TD or m2m.

Thanks..
I already have a JF Black Dial Rubber Clad that I can use as a donor watch...
 
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QueTip

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Been informed Gen Hands are as rare as rocking horse shit so unlikely to get them..
Rare but absolutely worth it looking for tbh. Better get started looking already now whilst you're still in the process of sourcing parts and planning. Whatever it is, even if you change your dial and tachy set up, you'll still be able to use the hands so it's nothing lost there.

I share your point regarding the ccb vs ocb aspect. I just don't like to see a deco or LWO behind a open caseback personally.. For this type of builds it goes 'go gen movement or gen in general or don't go at all' for me.
 
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Limpy

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Rare but absolutely worth it looking for tbh. Better get started looking already now whilst you're still in the process of sourcing parts and planning. Whatever it is, even if you change your dial and tachy set up, you'll still be able to use the hands so it's nothing lost there.

I share your point regarding the ccb vs ocb aspect. I just don't like to see a deco or LWO behind a closed caseback personally.. For this type of builds it goes 'go gen movement or gen in general or don't go at all' for me.

i think you mean open Caseback.. these 4.5k spend on a gen movement must be considered as investment that probably will take the build to dimensions that are hard to resell at some point. i actually never had the problem even with closed caseback that someone looked under my tight on the wrist sitting watch. and tbh - i dont habd my watch people i dont know and would never state my watch is gen. if you go for a franken build, be aware that there are still areas of your watch that a hand full of people can pick out as rep/modded before they even take a look at the movement, and 98% wont look at your watch at all and the last 1.99% wont wven know where to look if its gen or not and will rather take your apearance as indicator if they should trust your watch.

i learned for my part, that there are many gen owners wearing franken for the fun of the journey to build one. If you feel the 600€ LWO does nit do your watch any service and a 4.5k movement works better you can swap it at any time.

in regards of the gen hands i have Pm for you.

enjoy the journey
 

jonnybaws

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Rare but absolutely worth it looking for tbh. Better get started looking already now whilst you're still in the process of sourcing parts and planning. Whatever it is, even if you change your dial and tachy set up, you'll still be able to use the hands so it's nothing lost there.

I share your point regarding the ccb vs ocb aspect. I just don't like to see a deco or LWO behind a open caseback personally.. For this type of builds it goes 'go gen movement or gen in general or don't go at all' for me.

Gonna break myself in easy with the first build, and if bitten the Franken bug, I'll go bigger next time... want to keep the costs under or around my budget, well that's the plan!
 

QueTip

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i think you mean open Caseback.. these 4.5k spend on a gen movement must be considered as investment that probably will take the build to dimensions that are hard to resell at some point. i actually never had the problem even with closed caseback that someone looked under my tight on the wrist sitting watch. and tbh - i dont habd my watch people i dont know and would never state my watch is gen. if you go for a franken build, be aware that there are still areas of your watch that a hand full of people can pick out as rep/modded before they even take a look at the movement, and 98% wont look at your watch at all and the last 1.99% wont wven know where to look if its gen or not and will rather take your apearance as indicator if they should trust your watch.

i learned for my part, that there are many gen owners wearing franken for the fun of the journey to build one. If you feel the 600€ LWO does nit do your watch any service and a 4.5k movement works better you can swap it at any time.

in regards of the gen hands i have Pm for you.

enjoy the journey
I did mean open caseback, you're right. I fixed it in my post. I wouldn't essentially consider a gen movement an investment to be specific lol. I agree with the point that any money spent making a franken more expensive will also make it harder to shift if you ever look to do so.

And now to get to the juicy part. Of course nobody has the problem that anyone can see the movement as soon as you care about that part of it, you're just trying to fool yourself and I don't need educating about the several flaws of a franken Offshore, especially if not done right lol, it's not about the fear of getting called out or anything, it just strikes against my inner OCD to see a LWO or deco inside an open CB for obvious reasons. If you know how the genuine movement looks like once you flip the watch over, it's something that's gonna stand out to you and bother you whenever you look at it, even if you have it strapped on. That's my way of thinking.

I consider builds or watches in general as a far expression of ones attitude and character and don't care what anyone thinks of me, if I do x, y or z, I do it. If I wanna rock out my Offshore with diamonds, I will, if I want to put it on a pink rubber and have a green dial, I will as well. This list can go on for ever.

Bottom line for everyone should be, do and execute your build to whatever suits you and your preferences. If you can live with a LWO behind an open caseback, absolutely fine, I'm happy for you. Just because I can't doesn't mean anyone else has to follow my thoughts. I never expect that from anyone and can respect everyones thoughts and feelings regarding stuff like this.
 

slaughterer62

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Personally, I would go for the classic White Themes RC Franken. For me, it was the first one I got my hands on. I traded my gen PAM 111 for it. I wore it every day for a long period away in California. I never really grew tired of it. The lume is ferocious on that dial. White dial APs are such a nice contrast to the usual black dial Rolex type watches. And the WTRC takes almost any strap you put on it. I have never ever thought of selling it. Just upgrading it. As far as costs, I tend to think you get what you pay for. Manage your funds with an eye towards what matters to you. If you really want a pristine gen rubberclad bezel get that, but when you bang it on a door frame the first time, it will gut you. So durability matters if you plan on using it and are not just going to stare at it in a winder until you sell it off on M2M. I think the worst enemy of the watch wearer is the collection, the display box, and the winder--and of course a watch that does not work. As far as gen AP calibers, I actually think a well sorted 2892-based LWO 283 is more durable than the AP movement, even if the AP movement is nice to look at through the display. When that gen AP movement breaks (and it might probably will at some point), you are going to have a hard time finding replacement parts for it, I guarantee. Whereas with a 2892, just go to Cousins or Ebay for the part. From the top, the gen movement will always have a nicer DW, and a nicer aperture, if that matters, as I know DWs matter alot to some. But, as brother QueTip says so well above, "everyone should be, do and execute your build to whatever suits you and your preferences..." Love you A, you are the man.
 
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jonnybaws

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Bottom line for everyone should be, do and execute your build to whatever suits you and your preferences. If you can live with a LWO behind an open caseback, absolutely fine, I'm happy for you. Just because I can't doesn't mean anyone else has to follow my thoughts. I never expect that from anyone and can respect everyones thoughts and feelings regarding stuff like this.

I'm not anal or too OCD but do agree, flipping an OCB ROO to see a non Gen movement isn't something I'd be a fan of or really want, if it could be avoided...
Good thing that the 42mm ROOs that I like are all closed case back.. :D
 
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jonnybaws

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Personally, I would go for the classic White Themes RC Franken. For me, it was the first one I got my hands on. I traded my gen PAM 111 for it. I wore it every day for a long period away in California. I never really grew tired of it. The lume is ferocious on that dial. White dial APs are such a nice contrast to the usual black dial Rolex type watches. And the WTRC takes almost any strap you put on it. I have never ever thought of selling it. Just upgrading it. As far as costs, I tend to think you get what you pay for. Manage your funds with an eye towards what matters to you. If you really want a pristine gen rubberclad bezel get that, but when you bang it on a door frame the first time, it will gut you. So durability matters if you plan on using it and are not just going to stare at it in a winder until you sell it off on M2M. I think the worst enemy of the watch wearer is the collection, the display box, and the winder--and of course a watch that does not work. As far as gen AP calibers, I actually think a well sorted 2892-based LWO 283 is more durable than the AP movement, even if the AP movement is nice to look at through the display. When that gen AP movement breaks (and it might probably will at some point), you are going to have a hard time finding replacement parts for it, I guarantee. Whereas with a 2892, just go to Cousins or Ebay for the part. From the top, the gen movement will always have a nicer DW, and a nicer aperture, if that matters, as I know DWs matter alot to some. But, as brother QueTip says so well above, "everyone should be, do and execute your build to whatever suits you and your preferences..." Love you A, you are the man.

Sage advice indeed, thanks!
 

mrsullivan

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Great start for debates and infos here, I'm about to jump in the ROO frankening as well. Soooo following this thread.

Envoyé de mon ELE-L29 en utilisant Tapatalk
 

jonnybaws

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Decision made.....





























White Theme Rubber Clad..
To be honest, its a watch that first attracted me to ROOs
I have a JF Black There Rubber Clad that can hopefully be used as a donor..

Now to start hunting for the parts..
 
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slaughterer62

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Nice choice. There is a Miami Ebay vendor who has the gen dial and tachymeters on sale right now. I would buy both together as it is difficult to get just the gen tachymeter separate right now.
 
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jonnybaws

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Nice choice. There is a Miami Ebay vendor who has the gen dial and tachymeters on sale right now. I would buy both together as it is difficult to get just the gen tachymeter separate right now.

Thanks, found said seller...
Found another too..
Both have some decent stock and 100% feedback so that ones less worry..
Only issue, there's some nice Black and Blue Theme dials (with Tachy's) up for sale...
Always was a fan of a Blue Themes on SS Bracelet...

May end up buying a Blue Themes Dial and Bezel as well as WTRC set...

Things could get messy and expensive!