How I built my Franken Submariner 16610 JF

[mega12]

Ok, I couldn’t resist and built another watch. This time, a super Franken. IMHO this beauty can be considered even as a complete gen. Why? Because everywhere you see Rolex, you either get Rolex or genuine Aftermarket parts that are not considered as Replica. E.g. Caseback is a customized sapphire one, mid case is a sterile ST one, movement, only 19 parts are sterile yuki ones (remember, a 3135 movement has more than 80 parts). Rest on this watch comes directly from R Factory and is gen! Maybe not always period correct or in an existing combination, but I love it.

- ST case with lug wholes
- Hybrid movement (80% gen parts - see pic overview. Built by my friend kcireseals. Great build! Thanks a lot for your support!)
- Gen Date Disc champagne
- Customized Sapphire Caseback
- Gen Bluesy insert
- Gen Bezel assembly
- Gen or TC v6 Diver extension Seller was not sure if diver extension is gen or TC, anyway for me it seems perfect and very smooth like gen - that’s the only part on this watch where I am not sure to call gen, but I do also own a TC and would say, this could be definitely considered as gen
- Gen used Clasp 93250 - Clasp code PJ12 (2008)
- Gen used bands 93250 - SEL Code 801 (2001). First SEL.
- Gen tube 24-7030-0
- Gen crown 7mm
- Gen 16808/16803 Blue dial Could be 16613/16618 dial. Can’t tell difference as usually the only change was length of dial feet. But this wasn’t a problem while mounting, so seems for me like a 16613.
- Gen Gold YM 16623 hands Not correct, but beautiful. They are same size as LV maxi hands, but in nice gold. And I prefer maxi hands.

 

[mega12]

My own Tudor BlackBay Homage

 

[m.rad]

Epic post mega12! Thank you so much for sharing.

Doing it yourself is a lot more fun, despite of the risk of failure.

 

[mega12]

Epic post mega12! Thank you so much for sharing.

Doing it yourself is a lot more fun, despite of the risk of failure.

Thanks for your feedback man!

 

[mega12]

Damn guys. One of my LV inserts turned out to be fake. Be careful with this. Purchased for a high price. Will post later what I learned again and how to identify rep vs gen

 

[mega12]

Member JackJ1980 shared with me the following information regarding fake inserts:

Every gen Rolex insert for the 16610 has four distinctive marks where it was punched into the aluminum. It’s the one thing the rep people haven’t figured out yet. Often you see rare inserts with gen pearls, but you’ll see it’s glued and not punched in. Obviously, mine doesn’t have those marks.

Here’s a thread were this has been discussed as well
https://forum.replica-watch.info/for...el-gen-or-fake

Thus, be careful with those rare gen things. I would say, a high percentage is still faked although it’s sold as gen and comes in „opened“ blister.
I hope I can get my money back... But chances are rather low. Let’s see and mind your purchases

 

[mega12]

Rolex 16610 lv bezel gen or fake
https://r.tapatalk.com/shareLink?sh...mobiquo/redirect.php?tid=6887131&share_type=t

 

[JackJ1980]

Member JackJ1980 shared with me the following information regarding fake inserts:

Every gen Rolex insert for the 16610 has four distinctive marks where it was punched into the aluminum. It’s the one thing the rep people haven’t figured out yet. Often you see rare inserts with gen pearls, but you’ll see it’s glued and not punched in. Obviously, mine doesn’t have those marks.

Here’s a thread were this has been discussed as well
https://forum.replica-watch.info/for...el-gen-or-fake

Thus, be careful with those rare gen things. I would say, a high percentage is still faked although it’s sold as gen and comes in „opened“ blister.
I hope I can get my money back... But chances are rather low. Let’s see and mind your purchases

You wouldn’t be jumping into the hobby head first and having fun if it didn’t happen to you once. A rite of passage almost

 

[ginopino]

Lovely thread mate!!! Congratulations... I also love the faded blue insert on the LV ... but during the summer I switched back to green
Can you give more info about the blue bracelet you install with in the photo?

 

[mega12]

Lovely thread mate!!! Congratulations... I also love the faded blue insert on the LV ... but during the summer I switched back to green
Can you give more info about the blue bracelet you install with in the photo?

Thanks man. Highly appreciated.

The blue bracelet was a rather cheap china copy of a rubber b (~25€). As I do also own a gen rubber b, I can feel 1000% the difference of material and wouldn’t recommend this to any other. Anyway, it looks nice and there is an official gen version rubberb.com, which I would definitely recommend if you wanna have a nice Franken

 

[mega12]

 

[mega12]

Just changed the insert of my Rolex Black Bay Homage.

JF case, dial hands, clasp
Gen DateDisc
ST bezel assembly
WSO insert
No name rep leather bracelet
Serviced SH3135 movement

Honestly, after trying several gen spec cases, I have to say that JF case and watch is IMHO not the one I would recommend. It‘s not water resistant after my mods (of courses can be made water resistant again, but other cases dont need extra work), bezel construction „click“ sounds very cheap, maxi dial hasn’t the same nice glance like gen or TC and after comparing once I can never get this out of my head and this one looks really not nice compared to those.

Bracelet is ok. But clasp is not good even compared to an old TC V2 while opening and closing feeling.
Insert (LV) is really good IMO (even so good that I have been cheated while buying this „gen“ one but in fact it was a JF). Hands are also nice.

 

[mega12]

*Update movement*
According to my above created list, what can be changed within an SH3135/Yuki to make it more reliable, I did some more research and figured out that the following parts might have a good impact:

Mandatory - should be changed
- [ ] 3135-625
- [ ] 3135-614
- [ ] 3135-623
- [ ] 3135-280
- [ ] 3135-645
Parts will cost approximately 200€

If you find them cheap, you can also change:
- [ ] 3135-204
- [ ] 3135-205

I will try exactly this scenario and let you know if there was an improvement

 

[mega12]

While there is different bezel assemblies out there I do not want to hide the following comparison:
Green = Gen
Black = TC V6
Red = ST

All bezels seem to have similar diameter. Anyway, just by touching them there is few differences. TC feels a little bit slimmer than gen. ST feels a little bit wider in diameter.
This results also in the fact, that gen inserts can be snapped into gen and TC without any problem. But ST requires some glueing because it snaps in, but isn’t really safe then.

Regarding compatibility to retaining ring,
TC and Gen are interchangeable and work well. TC can be also mounted on ST retaining ring, but only without tension ring. Otherwise tension is to strong and you cannot rotate the bezel. Didn’t try gen, but assume same might apply here.

Bezel finish and teeth are very nice on all three of them. Anyway, ST is polished in wrong way, because upper and lower side of bezel teeth are polished. On gen and TC only upper side is polished and lower side is matte. (Hard to see on pictures)

Although most of bezel assemblies have same construction like gen (tension, retaining ring, click spring...) their sound and “click” is different. IMO this is related to the inner side of the bezel.
While Gen bezels have very filigran and proper inner teeth, some others do not have the same depth of teeth etc. Not sure if I explained correctly, but have a look at pics.

Personally I prefer gen - of course
But TC is also very good and I like them being interchangeable. Now I can switch easily my gen LV insert to TC LN insert by swapping the whole bezel. This is way faster than swapping inserts because you don’t have to align pearl with 12 o clock position every time. Just swap the whole bezel.

ST is nice to start and after I bought a gen Tension ring and filed it down a little bit (otherwise it’s to strong) it had also a proper click sound. I just don’t like the fact that I have to glue inserts.

Thanks for reading.

 

[Dino2018]

Dear mega12 all I can say is that yours is a mega post! fantastic!

 

[jamestown]

I have loved reading this post, you sir are a man I envy so much! I would love to have the balls to attempt this kind of work!

 

[mega12]

Thanks guys! Do really appreciate your feedback! Will keep this post updated as much as I can

 

[pcghill]

Excellent post! A must read to all potential 16610 JF modders

 

[mega12]

Bracelet Review

Before I can give you the promised update on my final recommended movement parts, I’d like to show you some differences between TC and Gen Bracelets.

First, there is a wonderful link from another member to identify your rep bracelet by its codes:
https://forum.replica-watch.info/fo...cas/333294-known-rep-clasp-bracelet-sel-codes

I had the chance to own a JF, TCV2, TCV6 and a Gen Bracelet with clasps

While gen is always gen, I was wondering that TCV6 was not as good as expected. I owned the V2 first and was impressed by its quality. But V6 was in some points better and in some worse. JF is a proper mix from everything.

Gen:
I own a gen Clasp 93250 with Clasp code PJ12 (2008). It has still a nice crown, which hasn’t being polished off, and some typical marks and use of wear. Separately, I purchased a pair of gen used bands with SEL Code 801 (2001) which represents first SEL version. SEL sits perfectly on my ST case with no gap between lugs.Bands have some stretch, but even with stretch, gen bands are different than any rep I’ve ever had. I don’t know if it’s because of the 904L steel, but gen bracelets feel a little bit more cold if you touch them. Might sound stupid, but they are different. The stainless steel has a different touch of coldness. Anyway, this is just something you might notice if you are very deep into the game. For me, the major difference in every rep clasp is the safety bracket which closes ne clasp. No other clasp has this smooth and easy feeling of opening and closing but stays strong at the same time.


TVv2
Overall quality is very good. Anyway, the brushing of the whole bracelet and clasp is a bit too light. Nothing dramatically, but you can see it with your eyes (IMO). Even if you are not having a gen besides. It might just need a polishing and this shouldn’t be an issue anymore. The safety bracket is ok, but too strong in opening. Nevertheless, it’s pretty nice filed inside to open with your thumbnail easily. The crown is nice, but no real 3D effect. SEL is ok on TC case, but little gap on ST.

TCv6
The brushing is more gen like. Also SEL is better in terms of gap between lugs. One side of my watch still has a gap (see pic), but I think this is because of the case itself.
Crown looks pretty nice. And the safety bracket is very good with regards to ease in open and closing. Anyway, what annoys me is the fact, that the rivet, where the safety bricket is mounted, is bit too long on both sides. This makes a wrong look and stretches the wide of the bracelet. In addition, as the safety bracket is closed, it seems to be uneven...
Last but not least, diver extensions is way to lose and opens every time if you put this watch onto your wrist.
All in all, it has some very good points, but the last three weaknesses are enough to not wear it. A diver extensions that opens every day twice (maybe just mine), a rivet that makes the bracelet looking wrong and a safety bracket which is uneven. All things that will annoy me daily.

JF
JF is a good mix of everything. Nice color and brushing, good crown with 3D effect, good diver extension, nice rivet and look and feel and good SEL. Only safety bracket is a bit too strong and not filed on the inside to open easily as TC. Apart from this, a fair bracelet.

Maybe I will use a mix of TC and JF to have the best out of everything.

Look how good the safety bracket is polished inside on the V2

 

[mari115]

where do you source your parts?