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5500 Air-King Precision with patina dial - circa 1975

manodeoro

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Today I am really happy to introduce you to my newcomer, a 5500 Air-King Precision circa 1975.

That watch shows a really nice patina dial and offers a thrilling experience on the wrist ... for vintage watch lovers of course.

And it's been a really long journey to get that petite on my wrist.

I'll tell you the complete story a little later but for the moment … i just hope you'll enjoy the pics.



















 

kilowattore

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Really nice! Subscribed and waiting to hear how did you get there :)
 
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manodeoro

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Some close-up pics … I’m definitely in love with that crown

But I swear the complete story will come soon














 
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Kdawggy

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I'm not a huge fan of Rolex designs in general, but that dial is beautiful.
 

369mafia

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beautiful piece enjoy it!! I look fwd to hearing the story!
 

manodeoro

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Hi guys !!! Thank you

I have finished sorting the pics so ... here is the complete story




It all started when I saw, on a UK site, a watch showing a beautifull patina.

That 5500 Air-King was at £3.000, a fair price IMO though I really had a better use for such an amount at that very moment.

But I must admit that I fell in love at first sight and I craved to have one.



















I already had 2 Air-Kings, 14000 models in my drawers.

One was a DHGate I got from English Gent for the amazing amount of £67 shipped.









The other one I bought from Silix, only $100 shipped, just to check if a$30 difference could imply a difference in the making.

And yes there was a real difference as the Silix had a better dial, a better movement and a much better case and bracelet.




Then, considering the fact that the DHGate one was a little small (not exactly 36mm) and spent almost all its time in the drawer despite the fact that she was really nice on the wrist, I decided that I could take my chance.

So I decided I could try to transform a soso 14000 into a nice 5500 ... thus the really long journey.




First I had to mod the dial.









I removed the bar indexes and the crown and put them aside then I stripped all the letterings, using acetone and Q-Tips and only kept the "soleillé" (sunburst)














I had already designed a 5500 Air-King Precision patina dial and had printed it on clear decal paper so I just had to put it on














I picked the "right" indexes and a better crown from my spares, put them on the dial - with cyanolit because their positions had to be moved a little more close to the rehaut (about 1/2mm).

I used 8 "thin" indexes and 3 "bold" indexes (at 3/6/9) and I reworked the crown a little with a diamond files so that it could look a litte more "genlike".

Then of course a set of 5500 Precision hands and some dots of DIY vintage lume.



















Before putting the dial and movement in the case I had to rework it a BIG lot :

- thinned the case and lugs a little to get closer to the 34mm size

- drilled the lugs from scratch so that they could get vintage spring bars

- filled the existing lug holes with solder so that the spring bars could not be "stucked" inside

- erased the engravements on the rehaut and thinned it a little so that it could receive a Tropic crystal

- reworked the bezel to the outer size of the Tropic Crystal

- thinned the lugs and bezel again while smoothing everything

- chamfered the inner side of the crwon so that the final look could be more « gemlike »

- mod standard springbars to vintage 1,8mm springbars




I did not took pics of all the phases along the process but here are some
























So what could I add ?

That it’s been a long but really interesting process and that I’m really happy with the final result.

Hope you enjoyed the story.
 

lorenzo1910

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Wait! Those hands... where they are from?!
You still have the 21J Asian in the watch, right?

Great job mate... I'm thinking about sending to you my Silix Air King... :w00t:
 

manodeoro

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Wait! Those hands... where they are from?!
You still have the 21J Asian in the watch, right?

Great job mate... I'm thinking about sending to you my Silix Air King... :w00t:

Hi buddy :) YES ... I still have the 21J in the watch
The hands come from an Oysterdate Precision I have in my projects drawer (it will become something "other" so I didn't need the hands anymore).
 

mascob1

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I am always impressed by the quality of your work and your inventiveness!
great work Mano!
 

kilowattore

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Excellent and thorough work!!
 

manodeoro

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I am always impressed by the quality of your work and your inventiveness!
great work Mano!

Thank you my friend
Still waiting for you to show here the work you're doing on your Oyster Perpetual ... the one with home-made smooth bezel and home-made crystal gasket

Excellent and thorough work!!

Thanks ... coming from you the mention "excellent" means a lot to me

Great job mate... I'm thinking about sending to you my Silix Air King... :w00t:

If you just want 14000 with patina dial I could think about that ;)

But if you want an accurate 5500 Air-King then starting from a Silix Air-king wont be a good idea as Silix Air-King is strictly 36mm so really larger than the 34mm 5500 size.
Plus after drillling the lugs from scratch you would stil have to source the correct hands-set which could be a PITA.
A much better idea would be to start with a 34mm Oyster Precision from Silix (ROL260 or ROL244) :
- 34 mm case wtih a "Tropic" plexi
- predrilled lugs (so re-drilling to the accurate diameter is much easier)
- accurate handset
You still would have to source a Sunburst no-date dial and silver bar-markers but perhaps Michelle at Silix could sell you a spare Air-King dial.
Then the "bubble" caseback of the Precision would still be innacurate and I'm not certain you can source a 5500 caseback fitting the 34mm Precision case.
When back home I'll try to put the caseback of my Silix Air-King on my 34mm Oyster Precision case and I'll tell you if it fits.
 

manodeoro

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Now that I have 2 Air-Kings ... 14000 and 5500 ... I seriously consider building a specific collection ;)

Next one could be a 4499 model (circa 1950) though I have no idea if I really can build such an oldie :p

 

Nur-Uhr

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Congratulations - this AirKing 5500 build is stunning.
I always like your building / modding threads.
It is always a pleasure to read and see your richness of detail for your works.
 

manodeoro

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Congratulations - this AirKing 5500 build is stunning.
I always like your building / modding threads.
It is always a pleasure to read and see your richness of detail for your works.


Really, really nice. Right in my wheelhouse...

B

Thanks buddies ;)

If I only had an access to a Rep-friendly pad printer that build could have been even better
 

manodeoro

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manodeoro Many thanks for your hints... now (because of you) I have another project in my mind... ;)
You'll see it's a long but great journey .. just feel free to ask if you need any advice along the way

Envoyé de mon Moto G (5) Plus en utilisant Tapatalk
 
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