- 10/6/14
- 14,018
- 4,052
- 113
So a buddy that I do work for owns an auction house in NY. He sent me pics of a 16622 that he picked up with a solid gold sub LN. Looking at the pics I told him the solid gold sub was amazing but I had a lot of questions on the Yachtmaster. The dial was very faded. The hands were way too yellow (Looked like patina tritium) also someone pressed the crystal on wrong.
He didn’t listen to me. LOL. Sold it at auction for $9000 ish plus he also collected 20% fee.
It got kicked back to him a month later saying that Rolex would not approve it. So he called me up. I drove with my tools to his shop. On inspection, I saw that the crystal was not Rolex. The dial looked really bad but had to take it apart to verify it was or wasn’t real. Then I also told him that the hands were not correct or of they were they were not off that watch.
Here were the auction pics.
So I got it to my shop here at home and took it apart. I verified the crystal was not Rolex. The date Cyclopes did not line up. I saw that the hands were not Rolex. I took the dial off and it was not Rolex. Even the clasp was not Rolex. I think it is a TC clasp. The case, and movement and band sides were all real. I had questions on the bezel because I have worked and built YM’s before, both the 16622 and the 16623. All the Rolex bezels for YM that I knew of, the bezel insert doesn’t come out. Well this one did. So in my mind I thought fake right away.
I put it back together and told Ron, the owner, what I found was fake. At that point he asked me how much it was worth. I told him around $2500 for the movement and $1500 for the case and band sides. So he asked me if I would take it off his hands for $3500. I said sure. LOL.
Now I had to see what I could do to make this a fully real Rolex for a reasonable amount of $.
I got a real dial from Firstclass dials on EBay.
I had a set of sub hands. I reused the red seconds hand but have one coming in.
I got a real crystal from Sub007 here on RWI. Great seller.
I got a real clasp from Gina over at Fierygems on eBay.
Ordered a real click spring.
Went to my jeweler and had the insert tested and it is platinum.
Put it all together and man am I a happy camper.
Here are some pics when I did the crystal, dial and hands.
So right now, I am about $2000 in plus the $3500. So I have the 16622 back to what it should be.
Only doubt I have is the bezel. I asked around and no one sales a platinum insert. My sub/gmt bezels will not fit. The crystal ring is a YM crystal ring. I am on the look out for a full bezel assembly just for my mind to be 100 satisfied. The insert hold in with out glue or anything. Asking other watchmakers, they also do not know of an insert that is real platinum. I have seen white gold aftermarket and the cheap regular aftermarket. My best guess and if anyone knows me, I hate guessing, is that someone didn’t have the tool and replaced the non repairable insert (with out the tool). I have seen the inserts sold alone but one needs a tool to take them off and put them together. If anyone else has experience in this please let me know. Only guy I know that services the non repairable ones is in Florida. Also if anyone has a fully real 16622 bezel please let me know.
Here is the watch today. I have been wearing it for the last 2 months.
He didn’t listen to me. LOL. Sold it at auction for $9000 ish plus he also collected 20% fee.
It got kicked back to him a month later saying that Rolex would not approve it. So he called me up. I drove with my tools to his shop. On inspection, I saw that the crystal was not Rolex. The dial looked really bad but had to take it apart to verify it was or wasn’t real. Then I also told him that the hands were not correct or of they were they were not off that watch.
Here were the auction pics.
So I got it to my shop here at home and took it apart. I verified the crystal was not Rolex. The date Cyclopes did not line up. I saw that the hands were not Rolex. I took the dial off and it was not Rolex. Even the clasp was not Rolex. I think it is a TC clasp. The case, and movement and band sides were all real. I had questions on the bezel because I have worked and built YM’s before, both the 16622 and the 16623. All the Rolex bezels for YM that I knew of, the bezel insert doesn’t come out. Well this one did. So in my mind I thought fake right away.
I put it back together and told Ron, the owner, what I found was fake. At that point he asked me how much it was worth. I told him around $2500 for the movement and $1500 for the case and band sides. So he asked me if I would take it off his hands for $3500. I said sure. LOL.
Now I had to see what I could do to make this a fully real Rolex for a reasonable amount of $.
I got a real dial from Firstclass dials on EBay.
I had a set of sub hands. I reused the red seconds hand but have one coming in.
I got a real crystal from Sub007 here on RWI. Great seller.
I got a real clasp from Gina over at Fierygems on eBay.
Ordered a real click spring.
Went to my jeweler and had the insert tested and it is platinum.
Put it all together and man am I a happy camper.
Here are some pics when I did the crystal, dial and hands.
So right now, I am about $2000 in plus the $3500. So I have the 16622 back to what it should be.
Only doubt I have is the bezel. I asked around and no one sales a platinum insert. My sub/gmt bezels will not fit. The crystal ring is a YM crystal ring. I am on the look out for a full bezel assembly just for my mind to be 100 satisfied. The insert hold in with out glue or anything. Asking other watchmakers, they also do not know of an insert that is real platinum. I have seen white gold aftermarket and the cheap regular aftermarket. My best guess and if anyone knows me, I hate guessing, is that someone didn’t have the tool and replaced the non repairable insert (with out the tool). I have seen the inserts sold alone but one needs a tool to take them off and put them together. If anyone else has experience in this please let me know. Only guy I know that services the non repairable ones is in Florida. Also if anyone has a fully real 16622 bezel please let me know.
Here is the watch today. I have been wearing it for the last 2 months.