BP 16710 Pepsi — About the insert & bracelet

[Kalfo]

Hello there!

Owning several gens (rolex 1601 & 14060, IWC Portuguese Chrono, ...) and I’ve been lurking here a lot these past months. I discovered a totally unknown world (reps) with its true genius, aficionados and specialists! You guys are amazing, I learned so much about what seemed to be a shady world at the beggining, but turned out to be an art.

Long story short, I decided to jump in two weeks ago, buying a BP Factory 16710 Pepsi on jubilee, from Li (Jtime).

Received my first QC, RL'd (DW sitting way too low) then my second batch yesterday, that I'm about to RL again as the 12 marker is way off/crooked. (so far nothing unusual)

But I have two questions that you guys may be able to help me with :

• Bracelet: in the pictures, end links seems shockingly loose, have you ever experienced that ?! Is this a major issue? On my Datejust 1601 (from 1977), it is also a bit loose, but not as much as it seems to be on the pictures. Easily fixable?

• Bezel insert: That's my main concern, dots on the bezel are way bigger and wrongly placed than gen, but also than all the BP 16710 that I saw online (TD websites, forums, i.e. amazing review from KJ2020, ...). Does anyone have an explanation on this (wrong batch)? I could buy a gen insert (or aftermarket bezel if needed), but not sure about the fitting.

Sorry for the long post, can't wait to discuss about this with you guys. Will provide more explanations and pictures if needed, but I don't wanna spam you with my QC pics (cf. rules!).

Have a wonderful day, wear your reps in good health!

Note: English is not my native language. Be kind.

 

[KJ2020]

Sup bro, couple of points.

1. When assessing the position of the DW, you have to first account for the relationship between the cyclops and the date window. Things are not always as they appear in pics. Both the DWs you RL'ed may have been OK. See this post

https://forum.replica-watch.info/for...el-is-centered

2. The end link you refer to to a hollow end link. Those are bendable to a degree, down to the springbar collars. I put a correctly sized small paintbrush handle in the HEL, forward of the collars and bend the top front of the HEL (the curve against the case) down with a flat stiff piece of wood. This bends the HEL to a shorter height and conceals it behind the lug from the side view. The oyster bracelet on these models is a SEL, so that issue is not there.

3. The insert dots will vary with batch. Inserts are easily replaceable among 40mm sport models. I buy a lot of inserts and seem to always have one or two waiting to be swapped around. No worries there, don't RL because of that. The next sample will likely the same.

Some insert swap examples (this is in my signature block, but many people turn that off).

 

[Kalfo]

IHey KJ2020 ​​​​, thanks for your
Indeed about the cyclop alignement, nothing was wrong, just the DW placement on the window for the first batch.
Second batch was RL’d for the 12 o’clock marker (as you can see on the picture on OP).

Your info about the bracelet are pretty clear, I understand that it can be tweaked in many ways. No problem here then.

Same goes for the bezel, it won’t be an issue then. I’ll get another one if needed. Do you suggest to go for a gen? I heard that rep insert are glued, how do you proceed? I guess its easier to change the complete
bezel, or can you un-glue the insert and stick in the new one? -_-

Thanks again

 

[KJ2020]

IHey KJ2020 ​​​​, thanks for your
Indeed about the cyclop alignement, nothing was wrong, just the DW placement on the window for the first batch.
Second batch was RL’d for the 12 o’clock marker (as you can see on the picture on OP).

Your info about the bracelet are pretty clear, I understand that it can be tweaked in many ways. No problem here then.

Same goes for the bezel, it won’t be an issue then. I’ll get another one if needed. Do you suggest to go for a gen? I heard that rep insert are glued, how do you proceed? I guess its easier to change the complete
bezel, or can you un-glue the insert and stick in the new one? -_-

Thanks again

Gen inserts in a 5 digit are pressure snap fit. Some aftermarket inserts will fit securely enough the same way. If not, 3M tape rings are the best solution. Ask some more when you get ready to do it about how to approach it. There are some differences among reps regarding removal. Gen inserts are pretty expensive, you should be able to find a suitable aftermarket.

​https://www.ebay.com/itm/10-HQ-3M-A...T-FOR-ROLEX-SUBMARINER-GMT/311735707180​​​​​​

 

[Kalfo]

KJ2020 Thank you for this precious infos, will ping you as soon as I start approaching this! By PM or even on this thread so everyone willing to attempt this can have a look.

 

[KSolid21]

IHey KJ2020 ​​​​, thanks for your
Indeed about the cyclop alignement, nothing was wrong, just the DW placement on the window for the first batch.
Second batch was RL’d for the 12 o’clock marker (as you can see on the picture on OP).

Your info about the bracelet are pretty clear, I understand that it can be tweaked in many ways. No problem here then.

Same goes for the bezel, it won’t be an issue then. I’ll get another one if needed. Do you suggest to go for a gen? I heard that rep insert are glued, how do you proceed? I guess its easier to change the complete
bezel, or can you un-glue the insert and stick in the new one? -_-

Thanks again

Following along this thread. I just purchased a Noob 16710 from @Micha Nbg - and I was wondering where I could get another insert. I would love to get something closer to the fat font style or just a good batch to mess around with insert fading. I've seen some aftermarkets on eBay and Ali, but they all seem to have the hanging 2's, and also seem to be more visually off. I've tried looking through the thread, but may not be looking in the right places. Any suggestions?

 

[KJ2020]

Check Raffles dials and Raffles time. Also check out Tiger Concepts. Gen insert is 30.6mm / 37.6mm +/- .1 or .2mm

 

[KSolid21]

Following along this thread. I just purchased a Noob 16710 from @Micha Nbg - and I was wondering where I could get another insert. I would love to get something closer to the fat font style or just a good batch to mess around with insert fading. I've seen some aftermarkets on eBay and Ali, but they all seem to have the hanging 2's, and also seem to be more visually off. I've tried looking through the thread, but may not be looking in the right places. Any suggestions?

Thanks, mate.

 

[Kalfo]

Hey guys, just following up on the thread. I just received my 16710 (BP) and starting to search for the right bezel insert to fit in.
KJ2020 I took a look at Raffle dials, but I would like to see some more to have a choice. Your previous eBay link is dead, do you have preferred eBay sellers you like to shop from?
Cheers!

 

[KJ2020]

Hey guys, just following up on the thread. I just received my 16710 (BP) and starting to search for the right bezel insert to fit in.
KJ2020 I took a look at Raffle dials, but I would like to see some more to have a choice. Your previous eBay link is dead, do you have preferred eBay sellers you like to shop from?
Cheers!

Vendors swap their stuff around so you just have to keep looking.

Be aware that the BP insert is NOT the same size as gen, so you have to be careful what you buy.

Gen 30.6mm / ~37.65mm
BP 30.6mm / 37.4mm

Many vendors do not list sizes accurately or state models that fit accurately, so if you want to ask me about one post a link here. You CAN buy the gen spec size one if you are willing to sand it down a little. It's not terribly difficult, I can tell you how if you get one. That would also mean getting one that has some blank space at the outer perimeter so you can shave off .1mm all the way around (.2mm total) and not eat into the numbers or the triangle.

Just put in 'GMT insert Pepsi' in ebay and look at them all. I've bought from WSO, Tiger Concepts, Vostok, AliExpress, also look at ebay.uk and ebay.it, Amazon

Vostoks will fit without sanding

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Aluminium-i...r=621706267609

This is an acceptable aftermarket

 

[tbtheone1]

Hello there!

Owning several gens (rolex 1601 & 14060, IWC Portuguese Chrono, ...) and I’ve been lurking here a lot these past months. I discovered a totally unknown world (reps) with its true genius, aficionados and specialists! You guys are amazing, I learned so much about what seemed to be a shady world at the beggining, but turned out to be an art.

Long story short, I decided to jump in two weeks ago, buying a BP Factory 16710 Pepsi on jubilee, from Li (Jtime).

Received my first QC, RL'd (DW sitting way too low) then my second batch yesterday, that I'm about to RL again as the 12 marker is way off/crooked. (so far nothing unusual)

But I have two questions that you guys may be able to help me with :

• Bracelet: in the pictures, end links seems shockingly loose, have you ever experienced that ?! Is this a major issue? On my Datejust 1601 (from 1977), it is also a bit loose, but not as much as it seems to be on the pictures. Easily fixable?

• Bezel insert: That's my main concern, dots on the bezel are way bigger and wrongly placed than gen, but also than all the BP 16710 that I saw online (TD websites, forums, i.e. amazing review from KJ2020, ...). Does anyone have an explanation on this (wrong batch)? I could buy a gen insert (or aftermarket bezel if needed), but not sure about the fitting.

Sorry for the long post, can't wait to discuss about this with you guys. Will provide more explanations and pictures if needed, but I don't wanna spam you with my QC pics (cf. rules!).

Have a wonderful day, wear your reps in good health!

Note: English is not my native language. Be kind.

hey, can you link me this specific watch, thinking of picking one up but I cant find it on any site including jtime. CHEERS

 

[Kalfo]

Hey tbtheone1, I don't have a link to this specific watch as I contacted Li from JTime to find it for me.
You can do the same, he's incredibly accommodating and easy to deal with.
It's the 16710 from BP Factory.

Thanks KJ2020 for your answer and sizing details about the insert. I'll check this out and order knowingly then.
In case I make the choice of buying a gen sized insert, and therefore on the sanding process, do you have any recommendations? Do you wrap your sanding paper around a round item to make it as even as possible?

 

[KJ2020]

KJ2020Thanks for your answer and sizing details about the insert. I'll check this out and order knowingly then.
In case I make the choice of buying a gen sized insert, and therefore on the sanding process, do you have any recommendations? Do you wrap your sanding paper around a round item to make it as even as possible?

You should have a digital caliper to do this. Assess how much you need to take off and see if you can do that without sanding off the numbers. Start with ~800 grit, lay paper flat on bench. Hold insert on edge and swipe/roll it toward you. A swipe/roll will cover maybe 1/8th of the circle. Do about 5 swipe/rolls in one place then move around the circle to the next 1/8th and do 5 more. Constantly watch how much you are taking off and make sure you don't take too much off. If you need to be more aggressive, use 600 or 400. When you get close to it fitting, use 1000 or 1500. Overlap the shifts to next rolls so you don't have flat areas. Check progress often, don't let it get uneven around the circle. When done use sharpie marker to color the edge, You can wipe the marker off the top with alcohol if there's over-spill.

 

[Kalfo]

KJ2020 Thanks for the tips I’ll try this out!

Right now I’m trying to pop out the bezel, I’m having a hard time doing it. Do you have any advice for the manipulation? (I’m using a sharp screw with paper to avoid scratches)

 

[Kalfo]

Quickly bumping up the thread. I tried several times to remove my bezel on the BP 16710, without any luck...

The closer I got was when I tried with a sharp knife, the blade went under the bezel but I couldn’t pop it up, I encountered way too much resistance.
Am I missing something there?

Thanks!

 

[KJ2020]

You can't just pry these up bro. Well, you can but not without bending the bezel pretty good. I've actually had to do that once. You can use a vice and some narrow strips of hardwood planks to straighten it out reasonably close to normal. Then hang the still slightly bent edge over the end of a wood plank and beat it with a rubber mallet until it returns to the proper height all the way around. It's easier to do than it sounds. The bezels are sturdy and can take some bending, beating and shaping.

However, the better way is to remove the insert first. You may have to remove the crystal to get the insert out. Then you can access the 8 sided octagonal wire that is sitting under the retaining lip to keep the bezel on. Sometimes you get lucky and the gap to grab the wire is big enough so the task is easy. Find the end and pull it out one segment at a time. One I did recently the gap was so tight I had to hammer a jeweler's screwdriver in it to open it up enough to get to the wire.

Replacing the wire used to be a real headache too if the gap was tight. You feed the wire back in one segment at a time. It gets increasingly difficult the further along you get. On my last one I discovered that if you use bracelet protective tape to hold the wire in the bezel groove, you can simply place the bezel down then cut the tape and slide it out. Much easier.

I just happen to be wearing that watch today

 

[Kalfo]

Thanks KJ2020 for this precise step-by-step. It looks indeed way harder than popping then bezel out on the gen.
I used the good old 'insert-the-took-under-the-bezel' way, but maybe the engineering and construction is quite different on reps, that could explain my issues.

Is the crystal removing part mandatory? The space between the bezel and insert (exterior) is tight. I could try to remove the insert with a jeweler screwdriver, but along with the fact that it could scratch it, I'm not even sure how it's attached. It's glued right?

Thanks again for your time and advices, it's precious and very precise.

 

[KJ2020]

These inserts are stuck to the bezel with double-sided tape that is quite strong. I've managed to get some off after soaking the watch head (movement out of course) in hot soapy water for 30 minutes. It's best to not use anything metal on them. A sanded corner of an old credit card (to make it thinner) can work, or a sanded toothpick. If that doesn't work a razor blade is better than a screwdriver. Tape the crystal edge and use it for leverage to gently pry the insert up from the inner perimeter.

 

[Kalfo]

Oh yes, ok I get it.
I’ll try this way then, probably with the sanded edge credit card, or meticulously with the razor blade.
If the insert pops out, I guess I’ll just have to tape the new one in with a 3M circle.