- 18/7/17
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Hello community,
Today I am pleased to share with you a unique and exciting experience: the review of a watch that represents not only an object of precision and beauty but also a personal journey in the pursuit of the perfect 4 digit Daytona.
Many of you here may already know that I have a weakness for vintage Daytonas. From my first encounter with a 6263 "Big Red" Cartel, with a basic yet captivating configuration (Viet dial + Viet bezel), I knew these watches would become my all-time favorites. As time passed, my adoration for these iconic chronographs blossomed even further, leading me to delve deeper into what makes each one special.
With this greater passion I thought it would be good to own a Valjoux build. As you may know, they are more expensive and involve more complications than a Cartel, but they have a much greater similarity to the real thing, the problem is that I didn't want to own just one, I wanted to build a small collection of Daytonas.... so I looked for alternatives to improve a Cartel and make it look for realistic. That's when I found @tripdog (GOAT), a true watch artist. With his ability to reduce the case and improve the lug shape, my watches acquired a more authentic look and, above all, an impressive integration with the wrist.
Reference of Tripdog´s work:
After experimenting with several steel Daytonas enhanced by Tripdog, I longed to own my dream Daytona in gold: the 6264 "Lemon PN".
To better understand the context, the 6264 is an iconic Daytona model, known for its pump pusher buttons and bakelite bezel, sharing similarities with its predecessor, the 6241.
An important distinction between the two lies in the movement used: the 6241 employs the V-722, while the 6264 incorporates the V-727. However, where they truly stand out is in their dials, the 6241 PN in gold features a champagne-toned dial with matching numerals, the 6264 PN boasts a "lemon" dial with white numerals, giving it a unique and desirable character. You can find more details about these differences in the attached link.
Now, returning to the modd issue... once tripdog tries to touch the gold plated case obviously, all the color was going to come off, so Tripdog proposed an ingenious solution: to modify a steel model and subject it to a post-modification gold plating process, I had never heard of anyone doing something like this for this Daytonas, but the idea made sense and sounded simple... however, I had to get a dial that matches the "lemon"
The dial proved to be a challenge as it is not a highly sought-after dial, but after some searching, Kuared finally managed to find one that perfectly suited my needs.
The dial was sent to Tripdog along with the Cartel base watch that we were going to use for the project. As expected, the result was exceptional. Tripdog managed to make significant adjustments to the dimensions of the watch. He reduced the case from 15 mm to 13.5 mm with crystal, (10.8 mm without considering the crystal). These modifications were particularly impressive, the perfect thickness for a chronograph.
Once the modifications on the steel watch were completed, the next step was to carry out the gold plating process. The initial idea was to plate both the case and the bezel and hands.
The case was successfully plated which began to give the watch a very good shape.
After that picture an waiting days for the next one, an unexpected obstacle arose: the hands did not accept the gold color, which posed the biggest complication of the project as there was no way to get these hands. Behind an exhaustive search among various suppliers, I finally found one that could provide me with the hands directly from the factory that produces the Cartel watches. However, this process of searching and waiting meant several additional weeks before the parts could be sent to assemble the complete watch.
Once the hands and the watch were assembled, the photo showed a more complete watch with a very good appearance.
By this point, I had already developed the virtue of patience quite well, so the shipping time didn't feel as heavy after all the time the process had taken. Upon arrival, the excitement of receiving the finished watch could not be contained, which is why I am sharing this experience with you today. After months of anticipation and dedication, I have finally added the missing cherry on top of my collection.
Today I am pleased to share with you a unique and exciting experience: the review of a watch that represents not only an object of precision and beauty but also a personal journey in the pursuit of the perfect 4 digit Daytona.
Many of you here may already know that I have a weakness for vintage Daytonas. From my first encounter with a 6263 "Big Red" Cartel, with a basic yet captivating configuration (Viet dial + Viet bezel), I knew these watches would become my all-time favorites. As time passed, my adoration for these iconic chronographs blossomed even further, leading me to delve deeper into what makes each one special.
With this greater passion I thought it would be good to own a Valjoux build. As you may know, they are more expensive and involve more complications than a Cartel, but they have a much greater similarity to the real thing, the problem is that I didn't want to own just one, I wanted to build a small collection of Daytonas.... so I looked for alternatives to improve a Cartel and make it look for realistic. That's when I found @tripdog (GOAT), a true watch artist. With his ability to reduce the case and improve the lug shape, my watches acquired a more authentic look and, above all, an impressive integration with the wrist.
Reference of Tripdog´s work:
After experimenting with several steel Daytonas enhanced by Tripdog, I longed to own my dream Daytona in gold: the 6264 "Lemon PN".
To better understand the context, the 6264 is an iconic Daytona model, known for its pump pusher buttons and bakelite bezel, sharing similarities with its predecessor, the 6241.
An important distinction between the two lies in the movement used: the 6241 employs the V-722, while the 6264 incorporates the V-727. However, where they truly stand out is in their dials, the 6241 PN in gold features a champagne-toned dial with matching numerals, the 6264 PN boasts a "lemon" dial with white numerals, giving it a unique and desirable character. You can find more details about these differences in the attached link.
Now, returning to the modd issue... once tripdog tries to touch the gold plated case obviously, all the color was going to come off, so Tripdog proposed an ingenious solution: to modify a steel model and subject it to a post-modification gold plating process, I had never heard of anyone doing something like this for this Daytonas, but the idea made sense and sounded simple... however, I had to get a dial that matches the "lemon"
The dial proved to be a challenge as it is not a highly sought-after dial, but after some searching, Kuared finally managed to find one that perfectly suited my needs.
The dial was sent to Tripdog along with the Cartel base watch that we were going to use for the project. As expected, the result was exceptional. Tripdog managed to make significant adjustments to the dimensions of the watch. He reduced the case from 15 mm to 13.5 mm with crystal, (10.8 mm without considering the crystal). These modifications were particularly impressive, the perfect thickness for a chronograph.
Once the modifications on the steel watch were completed, the next step was to carry out the gold plating process. The initial idea was to plate both the case and the bezel and hands.
The case was successfully plated which began to give the watch a very good shape.
After that picture an waiting days for the next one, an unexpected obstacle arose: the hands did not accept the gold color, which posed the biggest complication of the project as there was no way to get these hands. Behind an exhaustive search among various suppliers, I finally found one that could provide me with the hands directly from the factory that produces the Cartel watches. However, this process of searching and waiting meant several additional weeks before the parts could be sent to assemble the complete watch.
Once the hands and the watch were assembled, the photo showed a more complete watch with a very good appearance.
By this point, I had already developed the virtue of patience quite well, so the shipping time didn't feel as heavy after all the time the process had taken. Upon arrival, the excitement of receiving the finished watch could not be contained, which is why I am sharing this experience with you today. After months of anticipation and dedication, I have finally added the missing cherry on top of my collection.
