Franken v5 PO 42 advice

[pjsayer]

So it seems used prices for the older style gen PO 42s have gone up a bit in the past few months round my neck of the woods :facepalm:. I can't seem to source a 2500D model for anything under £2K which begs the question why not go Franken instead?

I was planning on changing the dial, hands and crystal initially, and then consider updating the crown/tube, bezel, He valve and bracelet at a later date.

So I have some relatively stupid questions to ask the PO Franken experts:

1. Will the v5 PO case take a gen bezel?
2. Is a gen He valve a straight fit and does it need sealing from the inside (like
a DSSD)?
3. Is the gen crystal available from Ofrei and Cousins UK the latest 'clear' AR
version or the older blue hue version?

 

[Danza1813]

1. Mine fit gen bezel with no problem.
2. Gen he valve was not a straight fit, there was no hole in the case, my gen he valve had to be sealed to the case and would not turn - it didn't leak though a the hole didn't go through the case. Not sure if that's the case in all v5 POs.
3. My gen crystal was from cousins and was the new ar which doesn't have the bright blue hue. Much more subtle grey type ar. Just sold it but here is the complete Franken;

 

[Mr. Pap]

As matt said

1. bezel is straight swap
2. he vale need sealing from the inside
3. mine also came from cousins and its the latest clear ar.

As per the prices, my franken costs around 200$ more since i built it. Parts are only getting more expensive so far...

 

[pjsayer]

That's good news re: the crystal AR and bezel - just what I wanted to hear. I'll probably leave the He valve for now as it's hardly a blatant tell. So here's my wishlist:

-Gen bezel (with insert)
-Gen dial
-Gen hands
-Gen crystal
-2500D DW overlay
-Gen crown and tube

I'll then try and source a decent second hand gen bracelet to finish it off, but that can come later. Using Cousins UK I reckon the total bill will come out £640 + base watch.

I'd happily buy a used gen, but the prices have gone up so much over the past 6 months that it's gone into silly territory and reminds me exactly why I got into reps in the first place. I paid £800 for my brand new gen 2531.80 in 2002. Now a brand new PO sets you back £3.5-4.0K. Too much IMO :spank:

 

[pjsayer]

1. Mine fit gen bezel with no problem.
2. Gen he valve was not a straight fit, there was no hole in the case, my gen he valve had to be sealed to the case and would not turn - it didn't leak though a the hole didn't go through the case. Not sure if that's the case in all v5 POs.
3. My gen crystal was from cousins and was the new ar which doesn't have the bright blue hue. Much more subtle grey type ar. Just sold it but here is the complete Franken;

Absolutely stunning by the way - why didn't you sell it to me?!!! :spank:

 

[Danza1813]

Not sure how easily available the 2500d date wheel is, I actually prefer the older style eta date wheel.

 

[dsmdave]

Not sure how easily available the 2500d date wheel is, I actually prefer the older style eta date wheel.

Here is the 2500D model date wheel http://www.ofrei.com/page1596

Model number : [FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Univers,Zurich BT]OME-2500-DD#13 its at the very bottom of the page.
[/FONT]

 

[justudor]

1. Mine fit gen bezel with no problem.
2. Gen he valve was not a straight fit, there was no hole in the case, my gen he valve had to be sealed to the case and would not turn - it didn't leak though a the hole didn't go through the case. Not sure if that's the case in all v5 POs.
3. My gen crystal was from cousins and was the new ar which doesn't have the bright blue hue. Much more subtle grey type ar. Just sold it but here is the complete Franken;

I am the lucky bastard to be the new owner of that beauty. Thanks again Matt.