Great project here! I'd buy some even though I don't have any ROO reps at the moment. The problem with projects though is getting people to follow though on making the purchase in the end. I'm sure there will be enough interest, but until the final product and price is out, its a risk you're going to have to take. The other thing that would really compliment this project would be a datewheel with a more accurate font. Not an easy project though...
-
Tired of adverts on RWI? - Subscribe by clicking HERE and PMing Trailboss for instructions and they will magically go away!
AP 7750 Cyclops TIME TO CHANGE.
- Thread starter Watchgasm
- Start date
Not easy for sure. And if you're an obsessive perfectionist it becomes a major pita project. Been working on this for a few weeks now and its starting to get somewhere. Am scaling, positioning each digit one by one and redoing them tens of times over and over to get it all properly lined up. The new one is getting closer but the 'old font' gives you an idea of the scrutiny involved.
Still have a long way to go.
Bro the big obstacle for create overlay is run out space after you glue on datewheel. you need find manufacturer make a thin datewheelNot easy for sure. And if you're an obsessive perfectionist it becomes a major pita project. Been working on this for a few weeks now and its starting to get somewhere. Am scaling, positioning each digit one by one and redoing them tens of times over and over to get it all properly lined up. The new one is getting closer but the 'old font' gives you an idea of the scrutiny involved.
Still have a long way to go.
Remove the print finish of the old DW, you have room even for an overlay. Rep factories could use gen-spec dials (pushing the DW into correct position) with the A7750 if they did an overlay correct.
PM sent to you brother, willing to help out on this to create an actual datewheel and no overlay. Do you have the tech sheet of an A7750 dw because that will be needed.
The ETA 28XX dw is totally different.
It is really nice to see Edge back as an active member. So many senior members have left, I feel lonely otherwise. Maybe London lunch with zorro will cure me.
thank you Edge, that is fantastic.
I have a 2824-2 sheet but not an A7750 and would be more than happy to redo them (again) on an actual date wheel format if someone can send them to me. I can then reposition them to the correct space using what I have done till now.
Actually, initially I started them as actual date wheels, first only the 2824, from a scan of a gen, and a rep, to a sheet, to both and all overplayed. Then came along the A7750. Both new and old. Using scans, high res images of a gen, anything that would help narrow it all down. Quite a lot of calculation and customizing of the fonts involved, like i said before, spacing and kerning each digit as I go along.
First the plan was to print overlays. Tr0y has a place that is able to print raised but I understood only on a white background, which wouldn't help all the crooked JF v7 diver people out there. Likewise, I imagine a lot of people would go nuts trying to position them spot on.
To be continued...
If people are ripping up their dials to install date wheels, they sure as hell will be ripping them off for a proper gen-spec cyclops.
Problem is: the initial investment on cyclops development and production is over $10,000 at some places.
Problem is: the initial investment on cyclops development and production is over $10,000 at some places.
Not sure if this would help you at this point, but this is a scan of the A7750 datewheel from a J12 Bumblebee.
Here's some other information I was able to gather from before:
Outside diameter of A7750 datewheel = 24.6mm
Date window dimensions of A7750 movement = 2.65mm x 2.18mm
Thickness of ETA 7750 datewheel = 0.53mm
Thickness of A7750 datewheel = 0.36mm
The biggest issue you'll face is getting the actual brass component. The ETA ones aren't compatible as the A7750 wheel is much thinner in order to clear the transition gears of the sec@12. Otherwise the 2 wheels are identical. My watchmaker tried installing the ETA wheel into the A7750 and it works fine with the base movement. I explored getting the brass wheels punched in China but the upfront cost of the precision tooling is quite substantial.
I suppose you could order the ETA wheels and sand them down, but that's a lot of work...
Here's some other information I was able to gather from before:
Outside diameter of A7750 datewheel = 24.6mm
Date window dimensions of A7750 movement = 2.65mm x 2.18mm
Thickness of ETA 7750 datewheel = 0.53mm
Thickness of A7750 datewheel = 0.36mm
The biggest issue you'll face is getting the actual brass component. The ETA ones aren't compatible as the A7750 wheel is much thinner in order to clear the transition gears of the sec@12. Otherwise the 2 wheels are identical. My watchmaker tried installing the ETA wheel into the A7750 and it works fine with the base movement. I explored getting the brass wheels punched in China but the upfront cost of the precision tooling is quite substantial.
I suppose you could order the ETA wheels and sand them down, but that's a lot of work...
Thanks for this very valuable info, much appreciated. My efforts will unfortunatly and forcibly be limited to the design. As I live in oil rich gen-land, finding a supplier of any kind (or even a decent plumber/printer/repairman/driver) or whatnot will be next to impossible.
There's an AP (and about any other) flagship store 2 minutes from my place, and they had a gen safari in the window....the difference compared to my JF (with killer new HB which I still need to show off) is huge. Apologies for the crappy Iphone pics.
So, I will do my best to make the best representation I can manage of a
A7750 - Black on white - old font
A7750 - White on black - old font
A7750 - Black on white - new font
A7750 - White on black - new font
2824.2 - Black on white - new font
2824.2 - White on black - new font
But as very rightfully pointed out, the DW font can only be so much bigger in the window we have. The rest will need to be a cyclops that magnifies it correctly.
That's funny, the printing on the gen doesn't look that much better than the rep datewheel. And the font actually looks close, just much thinner on the gen.
And a lot bigger due to the cyclops magnification.
And a lot bigger due to the cyclops magnification.
True. The font I have spot on to the gen specs, and given there is some 'leftover' space in the window it allows a very narrow margin to increase the font. This might offset some of the extra magnification of a gen cyclops. Am doing one as per exact gen font size now, one by one again and will do one where I make the font proportionally bigger, i.e. as big as the window allows.
Not saying we don't need better cyclops, which we absolutely do, but perhaps increasing the font size might play visually help till then.
NOTE, below image font kerning is NOT corrected yet, just doing a quick mockup of a first few digits to give you an idea of the excess space in the window.
I wonder if we can explore the idea of not only increasing the font size, but also enlarging the date window cut out to allow for an even larger font size. There certainly seems to be enough space from your picture above (not sure how much to scale it is though). The window on the 2014 ROOs should also be square not rectangular.
You would have to re-machine a bridge of the sec@12 since the DW cut out is inherently part of it. My own experience tells me it will be difficult to preserve the precise corners and parallel geometry. Still, probably a good way to deal with DW offset. But still, the cyclops is key.