Building a 5513 - Tutorial

[mvx15]

hello, here are some pictures of the Rafflesdials that I replaced the plexy for one fro aliexpress:



I think it is quite close to original...

The plexy is the 30.5 aliexpress plexyglass

Best regards

 

[Yellowhammerwatches]

hello, here are some pictures of the Rafflesdials that I replaced the plexy for one fro aliexpress:



I think it is quite close to original...

The plexy is the 30.5 aliexpress plexyglass

Best regards

You’re the GOAT for this crystal. Gonna swap mine out on my raffles build.

 

[Yellowhammerwatches]

Such an amazing thread it inspired me to buy a gen 5512 dial off eBay and about to order a bivintage case for it. To scratch the itch after realize Raffles case wouldn’t fit my gen dial I ordered his 5513 milsub dial and completed this build. I had some NH yellow lumed hands from another project and aged/distressed them and the dial in coffee. Used my tweezers to scratch the hands up and managed to knock out some lume on the hour hand. But the color matches now. Haven’t swapped crystal or case shaped yet. When I get the bivintage case in I’ll reshape to more closely match that one. Fun little project.

 

[Yellowhammerwatches]

Such an amazing thread it inspired me to buy a gen 5512 dial off eBay and about to order a bivintage case for it. To scratch the itch after realize Raffles case wouldn’t fit my gen dial I ordered his 5513 milsub dial and completed this build. I had some NH yellow lumed hands from another project and aged/distressed them and the dial in coffee. Used my tweezers to scratch the hands up and managed to knock out some lume on the hour hand. But the color matches now. Haven’t swapped crystal or case shaped yet. When I get the bivintage case in I’ll reshape to more closely match that one. Fun little project.

 

[369mafia]

A mysterious packaged arrived yesterday from far off lands , opening it to discover my dials from our Homie @Caboose had arrived. so I wasted no time swapping one in my 5513

I absolutely love the gilt print on these dials , it pops!! So naturally I had to swap in a set of gilt hands to match.

notice anything different??
I also received my crystals from Alix that our new member @mvx15 had recommended earlier on in this thread.
They Fit the raffles case , however not quite as secure as I had hoped so I added a bit of GS as some insurance.

I really like the profile of the watch overall now. The crystal , combined with a bit of case work and adding that chamfer to the bottom side of the bezel really elevates this watch case , Its good enough for the girls I go with , as they say.

Big Thanks to Caboose for the hook up !!

 

[Karbon74]

I need to try a Raffles 5513
I was reluctant to do so as the JKF is nice to work with

But now I did some work with wire spring bezels and it’s not that bad.

With that crystal and a NH38, it can be pretty nice

 

[369mafia]

I need to try a Raffles 5513
I was reluctant to do so as the JKF is nice to work with

But now I did some work with wire spring bezels and it’s not that bad.

With that crystal and a NH38, it can be pretty nice

They are a good base if you can look past that nothing is gen spec on it... for the price .

I honestly dont mind the wire retaining ring , you never have to worry about the bezel slipping or popping off. The bezel will bend like the lid of a tuna can before it comes off

This crystal really seals it for me , the profile is quite nice and feels svelte and almost UFO -esk in appearance now.

I do like the taller superdone crystal that goes come on the case originally because of the distortions that it creates at various angles ,but as many have noted that it throws the profile and proportions off , so I think I am going to swap one onto my Milsub this morning after breakfast as the crystal does have its own unique distortions to it while being lower profile.

 

[Karbon74]

@369mafia wait, is that the build with a 3130 ?

 

[369mafia]

@369mafia wait, is that the build with a 3130 ?

No this is ETA however I do plan on trying one , sooner or later.

 

[est4129]

With the cost of Vietnam cases has anyone welded up and then drilled out the crown tube hole in the correct position on a JKF sub case? I found 3mm 904 stainless bolts that should be able to be threaded into the hole.

 

[Singapore9]

With the cost of Vietnam cases has anyone welded up and then drilled out the crown tube hole in the correct position on a JKF sub case? I found 3mm 904 stainless bolts that should be able to be threaded into the hole.

Yes - have a look here: https://forum.replica-watch.info/threads/jkf-5517-milsub.10972221/

I am very interested in that modification for the same reason.

 

[mvx15]

@369mafia wait, is that the build with a 3130 ?

I did my build my 5513 with a 3130 chinese clone, it fits as good as the 2824-2 BUT the hands I found were way too white... and thicker / different proportions than the vintage ones available for the 2824...

If you find proper vintage & aged hands for 3130 movement, please add the link to the thread...

If I do not find proper hands for the 3130 I'll use the ETA C07611 that I received last week... is like 2824 without date... so no need to worry about it... and uses same hands as 2824 that I already have from raffles...

Final point will bea aging the bezel dot that I do not like removed... any suggestion how to darken it?

Best regareds and good builds

 

[Karbon74]

I did my build my 5513 with a 3130 chinese clone, it fits as good as the 2824-2 BUT the hands I found were way too white... and thicker / different proportions than the vintage ones available for the 2824...

If you find proper vintage & aged hands for 3130 movement, please add the link to the thread...

If I do not find proper hands for the 3130 I'll use the ETA C07611 that I received last week... is like 2824 without date... so no need to worry about it... and uses same hands as 2824 that I already have from raffles...

Final point will bea aging the bezel dot that I do not like removed... any suggestion how to darken it?

Best regareds and good builds

Raffles carries 3135 hands
Those don’t work out?

 

[mvx15]

A mysterious packaged arrived yesterday from far off lands , opening it to discover my dials from our Homie @Caboose had arrived. so I wasted no time swapping one in my 5513

I absolutely love the gilt print on these dials , it pops!! So naturally I had to swap in a set of gilt hands to match.

notice anything different??
I also received my crystals from Alix that our new member @mvx15 had recommended earlier on in this thread.
They Fit the raffles case , however not quite as secure as I had hoped so I added a bit of GS as some insurance.

I really like the profile of the watch overall now. The crystal , combined with a bit of case work and adding that chamfer to the bottom side of the bezel really elevates this watch case , Its good enough for the girls I go with , as they say.

Big Thanks to Caboose for the hook up !!

I'm a bit confused on your build, golden hands, dial and hands not aged & not looking like original aged tritium... removed bezel dot (I particularly do not like it) and then good modification of Crown seat that is more realistic that base raffles...

But as mine the glass replacement that makes it more realistic although I understand that you prefeer the original raffles. On my buid I did not glue it and after a month it has not moved but I avoid at all cost water close to the watch.

 

[mvx15]

Raffles carries 3135 hands
Those don’t work out?

Did not try those, I'll add a set on my next order... thank you for the advice...

 

[Karbon74]

I'm a bit confused on your build, golden hands, dial and hands not aged & not looking like original aged tritium... removed bezel dot (I particularly do not like it) and then good modification of Crown seat that is more realistic that base raffles...

But as mine the glass replacement that makes it more realistic although I understand that you prefeer the original raffles. On my buid I did not glue it and after a month it has not moved but I avoid at all cost water close to the watch.

Look at the dial.
It’s a fantasy RWI branded build.
It’s supposed to look over the top

 

[drvintage]

I need to try a Raffles 5513
I was reluctant to do so as the JKF is nice to work with

But now I did some work with wire spring bezels and it’s not that bad.

With that crystal and a NH38, it can be pretty nice

Bro, JKF is closer to gen - Raffles 5513 is fantasy vintage looking case with hexagon spring bezel.
His new 1675 case is other level, I hope they will upgrade theirs sub case.

 

[Karbon74]

Bro, JKF is closer to gen - Raffles 5513 is fantasy vintage looking case with hexagon spring bezel.
His new 1675 case is other level, I hope they will upgrade theirs sub case.

I know. i love the JKF and already built two from that

I did not know thr raffles case was so bad

 

[drvintage]

I know. i love the JKF and already built two from that

I did not know thr raffles case was so bad

Yes I was absolutely disappointed about the case. In my opinion it is ok may be for a very entry level builds or just for fun… better to invest 50 bucks more and get jkf where all proportions are right.

 

[Yellowhammerwatches]

Raffles case is perfect for what it is - a kit to cut your vintage teeth on, that’s tough to mess up. Crystal pops right out with your fingers for a swap, or you can mess around with scratching it up. Dial is cheap to learn how to age it. Plenty of case material to shape and learn with. Takes an NH movement. If you’re trying to learn the process, it’s a great case to start with. If you want genlike OOTB then look elsewhere.

That being said it is hands down the most fun build I’ve ever done. It’s so cheap I didn’t care if I messed anything up. I was sloppy with aging the dial and hands, tossed an NH38 I had laying around in it, and threw the whole thing in a bag of spare change to age it up. Learned how to work with octagonal bezel rings with this build as well as crystal swaps. If you want a beater 5513 build that will scratch the itch and is fun as hell to mess with then look no further. I’ll save the gen 5512 dial for the bivintage case when it gets here.