• Tired of adverts on RWI? - Subscribe by clicking HERE and PMing Trailboss for instructions and they will magically go away!

Looking to build a frankenwatch

rolex2029

Looking Around
11/4/19
1
0
0
Hello,

New here!

I've been eyeing the Noob v9 Submariner Hulk. I find the idea of gradually switching out parts appealing as well. I do have a couple of questions though:

- Where do the genuine parts come from? How is it that there's a surplus?
- How reliable are the asian clone 3135 movements?
- How big of a difference is there between genuine and replica hands? (searching the board is difficult for those terms)

Ultimately I would probably want to replace the bezel, the hands, the datewheel and the crystal. More than anything it's the bezel and the datewheels that concern me as the bezel has PVD-applied letters and the fonts on the datwheel are magnified and thus more suspect.

How much do these parts go for, on average, in the US? Also, are the green hulk gen parts less available than the black variant?

Thanks!
 

applestooranges

Known Member
18/7/18
145
83
28
The gen hulk bezel + insert is really rare and will set you back a pretty penny. I wouldn't really recommend it since the Noob V9 is already really good for 99% of the population. Gen parts used to be pretty abundant as b-stock from factories and parts that were replaced from gens and touched up by modders, though these are getting more rare now since Rolex has tightened up their control of parts flowing to the black market.

If you're new to reps, i would suggest getting the hulk first, then slowly replace the parts as you do your research. You need a good bit of luck and time to find gen parts anyway, and the cost is hard to justify if you can't even pick out the difference (ie hands).
 

watchengsketch

Active Member
21/5/17
209
27
28
The rep 3135 movements are alright, but will need servicing immediately since they're typically pretty dirty from the factory. Once serviced with a few replacement parts they'll run fairly reliably.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Vox Optimatium