DIY GMT Master Crystal Replacement

[TonyMonatana44]

That one will fit the rep 126710, gen or rep crystal. I just gave that link as an example. He also has listings for other gasket heights. Or message him for which heights and how many you want.

I think that link you sent will work for the Sprite I have coming in as well since it's basically the same case as the 126710, just rotated. I will also message the eBay seller to tell him I need it for the Sprite and a few different mm's.

I read on RWI that someone used the same height gasket that CF used and it achieved the "gen" magnification window of 2.5x. I just hope the crystal doesn't sit too high up with the Deep Xtal with the same gasket height as the CF.

 

[KJ2020]

I think that link you sent will work for the Sprite I have coming in as well since it's basically the same case as the 126710, just rotated. I will also message the eBay seller to tell him I need it for the Sprite and a few different mm's.

I read on RWI that someone used the same height gasket that CF used and it achieved the "gen" magnification window of 2.5x. I just hope the crystal doesn't sit too high up with the Deep Xtal with the same gasket height as the CF.

Yeah sitting height is a secondary concern and sometimes you have to have to compromise on both goals to get a happy medium. Date mag is king though in my book unless your second hand isn't clearing the crystal underside.

Second hand catching on crystal

 

[TonyMonatana44]

Yeah sitting height is a secondary concern and sometimes you have to have to compromise on both goals to get a happy medium. Date mag is king though in my book unless your second hand isn't clearing the crystal underside.

Second hand catching on crystal

That sounds like a lot of work (shaving the seconds hand down).

If all else fails by putting a lower height gasket (and it interferes with the seconds hand), I will just use a 2.7mm gasket to start and move my way up to 2.8mm if needed.

I think the 2.7mm will work as I've read the CF gaskets come at around 2.8-2.85 mm in height. I don't think .1 mm will affect the seconds hand but I might be wrong. I think the 2.7mm will fix most of the issues along with helping the mag on the date window and the xtal height.

 

[Artyfowl]

I think you should not mess with the Noob DSSD. Someone gave me a beat up Noob V7 years ago to mess around with. I had a bitch of a time getting the bezel off, and as many retaining rings as I've removed I never wanted to mess with this one. It sits on top of the ring lock ledge which is built into the case on Noobs and is super tight. Getting it off may not be too bad but re-pressing it would not be fun I think. You would need a custom metal die to miss the crystal and catch the top edge of the retaining ring.

I put a gen crystal in an SD43 and had to use a vise to get the retaining ring all the way down.

Some links you can look at

https://forum.replica-watch.info/threads/possible-to-source-gen-crystal-for-dssd.237747/

RWI DeepSea 116660 Mega Thread - Gen info and teardown plus rep comparisons

The intention of this post is to archive, in one place, all available information about the Rolex Deep Sea Sea-Dweller and to provide a single source for all comparisons to past, present, and future reps. I often see posts made by newer members looking for good information on the Deep Sea. I...

forum.replica-watch.info

Absolutely superb help thank you so much for taking the time to help with that mate

you’re bang on the money… my DSSD is about 13 years old now… I wonder if it may be worth getting a new watch, fitting profs crystal to that and then transferring the movement over? I love the watch, it’s been serviced but the stock factory crystal really lets it down…

 

[TerryRobot]

If going to the effort or swapping out the xtal would it not just be better to get a gen one and gen gasket, considering there are quite a few seeminly available? The only thing to wathc out for I guess woudl be the LEC being the correct one as most of the adverts ive seen on ebay are bit lacking in actual details

 

[KJ2020]

Absolutely superb help thank you so much for taking the time to help with that mate

you’re bang on the money… my DSSD is about 13 years old now… I wonder if it may be worth getting a new watch, fitting profs crystal to that and then transferring the movement over? I love the watch, it’s been serviced but the stock factory crystal really lets it down…

I would just get a new one and let Prof change the crystal if you get one of his - he has all the right tools and skills. For $60 I think he charges it's well worth the saved hassle.

Besides your old movement is either a 2813, 2836, or an SA3135. First two not compatible with a new top tier rep, last one not desirable.

 

[TonyMonatana44]

Just confirmed on my old (like 2-3 year old batman - Unsure what factory) that the crystal gasket is super flimsy. (i didn't open the watch just to check, i had a spec of dust inside and decided it was a good time to test the waters to see if I can remove all parts and put them back together).


That being said, I will definitely order a new/better crystal gasket.

Also here is the magnification on my batman. Doesn't look too bad compared to a gen from what I see in pictures, but i think if the crystal was thicker and had a lower gasket, it would be much better i believe.

If going to the effort or swapping out the xtal would it not just be better to get a gen one and gen gasket, considering there are quite a few seeminly available? The only thing to wathc out for I guess woudl be the LEC being the correct one as most of the adverts ive seen on ebay are bit lacking in actual details

I definitely would If I could find a gen GMT Master II Sprite crystal and gasket. Seems to be a lot harder than regular handed GMT's. I saw one on RWI being sold for the Sprite but it was gone already and I dont have a lot of time to wait since I am leaving to Europe for 6 months maybe more.

So the Deep xtal is the next best thing to gen.

 

[TerryRobot]

Just confirmed on my old (like 2-3 year old batman - Unsure what factory) that the crystal gasket is super flimsy. (i didn't open the watch just to check, i had a spec of dust inside and decided it was a good time to test the waters to see if I can remove all parts and put them back together).


That being said, I will definitely order a new/better crystal gasket.

Also here is the magnification on my batman. Doesn't look too bad compared to a gen from what I see in pictures, but i think if the crystal was thicker and had a lower gasket, it would be much better i believe.


I definitely would If I could find a gen GMT Master II Sprite crystal and gasket. Seems to be a lot harder than regular handed GMT's. I saw one on RWI being sold for the Sprite but it was gone already and I dont have a lot of time to wait since I am leaving to Europe for 6 months maybe more.

So the Deep xtal is the next best thing to gen.

Fair enough you could use a normal GMT xtal as the only difference would be where the LEC is and that is only noticeable under alot of mag or UV light on gens so could be a stop gap till you find a let hand version and swap out later, keep the blister for the right hand gen and it will always sell on

 

[Artyfowl]

I would just get a new one and let Prof change the crystal if you get one of his - he has all the right tools and skills. For $60 I think he charges it's well worth the saved hassle.

Besides your old movement is either a 2813, 2836, or an SA3135. First two not compatible with a new top tier rep, last one not desirable.

Mine has a Swiss eta in it and has just been serviced so I’d be keen to keep it. If I was in the states then yes I’d def use prof but I’m in the Uk and his crystals are already enroute to me. Perhaps I’ll drop him a line and ask for some tips as o have spent about 1.8k on crystals with him

 

[KJ2020]

Mine has a Swiss eta in it and has just been serviced so I’d be keen to keep it. If I was in the states then yes I’d def use prof but I’m in the Uk and his crystals are already enroute to me. Perhaps I’ll drop him a line and ask for some tips as o have spent about 1.8k on crystals with him

You'll need a custom metal die to re-press the retaining ring for sure. I cracked the insert and bent the bezel getting it off mine so you can always use the movement in another rep if you have similar luck, haha. Granted I was much less experienced at the time and the case was already trashed so I know I wasn't ultra careful with it.

Now that I think about it I'm pretty sure the bezel had a wire clip configuration. So you can't just pry these bezels off. Maybe there will be some more info in those threads I linked previously. If the bezel is held on by a wire clip, the insert needs to removed first, then the wire clip fished out. On 5 digit Subs and GMTs with a wire clip bezel the crystal is pushed out from the inside to allow you to get behind the insert and remove it safely. You won't be able to do this on your DSSD. So soaking the case in soapy water or using heat (hair dryer) to soften up the glue will help you pry it out from the front. Then you can get to the bezel wire.

How to remove a bezel attached by a wire clip

 

[Artyfowl]

Ooooooh…. interesting re the bezel… so this won’t help me then?

 

[KJ2020]

Ooooooh…. interesting re the bezel… so this won’t help me then?

If it has a wire clip configuration then no. But those are great tools to have. They are way cheaper on AliExpress though.

 

[Artyfowl]

Bloody hell. It SO is going to have a wire retainer isn’t it!

 

[Artyfowl]

Best get Steve on standby to get me a latest DSSD

 

[TonyMonatana44]

I reached out to Clark UK on EBay and he told me that the Sprite uses the 295 gasket. So the link @KJ2020 sent will work for the sprite as well.

However, when I go on his ebay page, I only see two items listed and don't see the gaskets that I viewed yesterday. I tried adding the 2.5, 2.7, and 2.85 mm gaskets to my cart and they're not showing on his items he sells for some reason. Tried another browser and still nothing. Super weird.

 

[TonyMonatana44]

Also - Looks like Cousins UK doesn't have any other gaskets than the 2.7mm that i'm looking for. I don't see 2.5 and 2.85 mm at all on their website? Unless I'm looking at the wrong place.

 

[KJ2020]

I reached out to Clark UK on EBay and he told me that the Sprite uses the 295 gasket. So the link @KJ2020 sent will work for the sprite as well.

However, when I go on his ebay page, I only see two items listed and don't see the gaskets that I viewed yesterday. I tried adding the 2.5, 2.7, and 2.85 mm gaskets to my cart and they're not showing on his items he sells for some reason. Tried another browser and still nothing. Super weird.

Clark (Gary) only lists parts that he currently has in stock. If you message him about what you need he might get them back in stock sooner.

 

[TonyMonatana44]

Clark (Gary) only lists parts that he currently has in stock. If you message him about what you need he might get them back in stock sooner.

He had a bunch of gaskets listed on his ebay last night when you sent me that link. He had the 2.5, 2.7 and 2.85 all on his site. It also said he had more than 300 items on his page, now it only says he has 2.

I'll shoot him a message and see what he says.

 

[TerryRobot]

Thos 5 digit wire config bezels form BP are a pita nothign like the gen which is pretty easy to swap out, the wire configs I remeber on cheap models years back would often pop the xtal out at the same time if you didnt remove the insert first. The insert on this type will be stuck in rather than snapped in. This is only on the older stlye 5 digits GMT's and Subs though.

It thought this was the new style which I thought most had the gen style builds unless some of the really cheap ones dont in which case Im not sure of the point in upgrading it at all. All that said Im sure I probably missed something in this thread somewhere!

 

[KJ2020]

All that said Im sure I probably missed something in this thread somewhere!

The discussion about a wire clip bezel was for a 13 year old Noob DSSD