Cartel 1665 bezel popped off: do i just glue it back on?

[superh3ro]

just got this in the mail and when i went to turn the bezel - pop - off it comes.

my question is, do i just glue it back on? should i use GS cement/super glue/ clear epoxy/ something else?

Thanks,

 

[manodeoro]

NO !!!!!... no glue

What you call BEZEL is in fact the BEZEL ASSEMBLY which is made of 4 parts :

1 - RETAINING RING - that comes on the plexi ... and should fit TIGHT on the plexi
2 - WASHER - that sits loose on the retaining ring
3 - BEZEL - that "pop on" the retaining ring and squeeze the washer
4 - BEZEL INSERT - that "pop on" the bezel (or is fixed with some glue/double sided tape/etc ...)

The pic below shows it all this disassembled ... except the retaining ring which is still on the plexi 'as it should)

So the first thing you should do is to carefully remove the bezel insert from the bezel then push the retaining with your fingers from upside the bezel to pop the bezel off from the retaining ring.
The washer will come loose and you will have the 4 parts separated.
Then you wait some time until me or somebody else continue this explanation ... because now I just have to go to work.
I will try to post later in the morning.

EDIT :
When your there (the 4 parts separated) you should take a pic and post it here.
Then we can help you go further

 

[superh3ro]

thank you - did some tinkering last night. will post some pics later today (after work)

 

[bobandshawn]

If it just "popped off"...I'm afraid some kind of glue will eventually be involved as the retaining ring is just too loose...

 

[Daft_Punk]

Glue is for sniffing .. not watches

 

[bobandshawn]

Glue is for sniffing .. not watches

Thank you for your years of experience and sage wisdom...

 

[Daft_Punk]

Thank you for your years of experience and sage wisdom...

 

[manodeoro]

If it just "popped off"...I'm afraid some kind of glue will eventually be involved as the retaining ring is just too loose...

As you said ... eventually.
But I would say that the best is to first try plexi + retaining ring only and see it can stay in place or it really too lose.

 

[superh3ro]

NO !!!!!... no glue

What you call BEZEL is in fact the BEZEL ASSEMBLY which is made of 4 parts :

1 - RETAINING RING - that comes on the plexi ... and should fit TIGHT on the plexi
2 - WASHER - that sits loose on the retaining ring
3 - BEZEL - that "pop on" the retaining ring and squeeze the washer
4 - BEZEL INSERT - that "pop on" the bezel (or is fixed with some glue/double sided tape/etc ...)

The pic below shows it all this disassembled ... except the retaining ring which is still on the plexi 'as it should)

So the first thing you should do is to carefully remove the bezel insert from the bezel then push the retaining with your fingers from upside the bezel to pop the bezel off from the retaining ring.
The washer will come loose and you will have the 4 parts separated.
Then you wait some time until me or somebody else continue this explanation ... because now I just have to go to work.
I will try to post later in the morning.

EDIT :
When your there (the 4 parts separated) you should take a pic and post it here.
Then we can help you go further

thanks - i was able to get the bezel assembly apart.

unfortunately the bottom of the crystal cracked when i tried to put it back on (maybe thats why it was loose)?

i decided fck it, might as well mod it, and bleach ghosted the bezel. sucks that it happened on a new watch, but might as well learn how to mod it.


am i right in understanding that a clarks t39 crystal would fit? also would a clarks t19 (for the submariner) also fit? i think i read somewhere that it was compatible, but it wasnt super clear.

 

[jimzkie]

A clark t39 fits like a glove with no play on mine but no luck on t19.

 

[superh3ro]

A clark t39 fits like a glove with no play on mine but no luck on t19.

did you get the service dome, super dome, extra super...

is ebay the best place to source?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/To-Fit-Rol...609974?hash=item3aec014776:g:Jf8AAOSwMVdYIiUy

 

[jimzkie]

Yes that’s the one i got , but double check see if they really fit .

 

[superh3ro]

cool. thanks for the help guys.


will provide an update once i get the crystal and get the bezel back on.

 

[manodeoro]

thanks - i was able to get the bezel assembly apart.

unfortunately the bottom of the crystal cracked when i tried to put it back on (maybe thats why it was loose)?

I'm not 100% certain to understand what you mean so I have 2 questions

QUESTION 1 :
When you write "when i tried to put it back on" do you mean
1 - the plexi (not crystal) on the rehaut of the case ?
2 - the retaining ring on the plexi ?
3 - the complete bezel assembly on the plexi ?

QUESTION 2 :
Did the plexi (not crystal) cracked :
1 - when you tried to put it back on the rehaut of the case ?
2 - when you tried to put the retaining ring on the plexi ?
If the answer is 1 then it means the plexi was too tight on the rehaut so you have to change the model
If the answer is 2 then it means the retaining ring is too tight on the plexi so I wonder how the bezel assembly did popped off at first

I think before ordering a new plexi you should get your callipers and check :
- outer side of the rehaut
- inner side of the retaining ring
and compare to the dimensions of the different "so-called" T39 you can get (Clarck, Sternkreuz, noname, etc ...)
Clarck T39 SHOULD fit your watch but you'd better check the diameters.
- Inner diameter of the plexi should be a little shorter (or exactly the same) than outer diameter of the rehaut
- outer diameter of the plexi should be a little larger than inner diameter of the retaining ring

 

[superh3ro]

I'm not 100% certain to understand what you mean so I have 2 questions

QUESTION 1 :
When you write "when i tried to put it back on" do you mean
1 - the plexi (not crystal) on the rehaut of the case ?
2 - the retaining ring on the plexi ?
3 - the complete bezel assembly on the plexi ?

QUESTION 2 :
Did the plexi (not crystal) cracked :
1 - when you tried to put it back on the rehaut of the case ?
2 - when you tried to put the retaining ring on the plexi ?
If the answer is 1 then it means the plexi was too tight on the rehaut so you have to change the model
If the answer is 2 then it means the retaining ring is too tight on the plexi so I wonder how the bezel assembly did popped off at first

I think before ordering a new plexi you should get your callipers and check :
- outer side of the rehaut
- inner side of the retaining ring
and compare to the dimensions of the different "so-called" T39 you can get (Clarck, Sternkreuz, noname, etc ...)
Clarck T39 SHOULD fit your watch but you'd better check the diameters.
- Inner diameter of the plexi should be a little shorter (or exactly the same) than outer diameter of the rehaut
- outer diameter of the plexi should be a little larger than inner diameter of the retaining ring

so the entire bezel assembly AND plexi fell out together. i put the plexi back on first but it didnt sit flush (some type of residue on the watch steel).

that said, i just left the plexi on, and tried to put on the bezel assembly but it was not tight.

i removed everything to clean away the residue and when i put the plexi back on, i noted some cracking on the bottom of the plexi.

 

[Jaqueslepro]

Hey man, I had the same experience with the never cartel cases. Mine fell off right out of the box. I bought a t39 from cousins uk and it fit very tight. So tight that the retaining ring just stayed in place (not coming off again after pressing it on) after I did some sanding and polishing on the inner ring of the retainer.

To my personal shame I have to admit, that I only could get the watch have a 10 bar water resistance ... shame on me ... by applying some hypocement on the connection between crystal and midcase. Then I immediately pressed on the bezel assembly and the watch is now super water resistant. But, I swim and dive with a 5514 now. Who would dp that! Lol

Regards
J.

 

[superh3ro]

alright so i got the t39 and t19 crystal in. the t19 was too small in diameter and would not fit - now i have an extra clarks t19 crystal...guess i need to buy a cartel sub?

t39 fit like butter. lubed up the bezel ring and used a crystal press to clamp that badboy down (no glue needed, just some slight pressure).

put the watch together, and faux aged the watch. gotta do something about that dial though...(oven bake it?)

now pics:

 

[Jaqueslepro]

Dont bake it! You will just get the dial printing turn brown long time before you change the black a bit tropical.

Bonesy did a nice turtorial here on vintaging the watch. If you want it a bit more tropical, you can use a wash of water and brown acrylic paint or heavily expose it to uv light (nail gel hardener etc.).

 

[kelt]

The sea dweller 1665 is a chunky bit of kit, too bad it has a date window even without the disgracious cyclops.

Too much aging makes the watch loose some of its appeal, I would rather keep it in a NOS or restored condition.

 

[jimzkie]

Very nice , .