Why build a franken?

[Q5?]

Debating right now...

Sell off a few pams to fund a $2500 to $3500 gen vintage or sell off a couple and make a franken for half that?

After searching for vintage rollies and tudors I am debating if they are even worth it...

If I build a franken I can have the lume color I want and the dial modded to look exactly how I want. I can proceed to mod the bezel to how I want as well. As for the case I want to keep it mint.

I also can put a reliable swiss eta in it that I dont have to pay exorbitant amounts of money to get serviced...

It just seems logical to build a franken...

Thoughts?

Go Franken then. If you need advise, I will help!

 

[giobo]

Besides the most of the posts which i agree and due to the fact i now will start a franken project, already have modded a dssd, another fact excists which makes me like these projects.
It makes me remember when i was a little kid and i was having fun with modelling..I was making little cars , aeroplanes etc...So when i try to modde a watch or trying to find the correct parts for a franken makes me remember this and gives me a lot of joy..

 

[ispytonyv]

:rofl:

haha, I was just WAITING for someone to drag this thread out!

... seriously though, to me buying a franken for $2500 below the cost of a gen (and less than the sum of the parts, let alone skilled labor), makes sense. I couldn't justify a franken PO that only saves maybe $800 off a lightly used gen though.

Who knows though, maybe in 6 months I'll be bragging about my sweet franken PO

 

[Mr. Pap]

I paid around 1000 euros for my franken PO. The one and only decent used i found was at 1800 euros. I saved 800 euros,if you ask me that is a lot of money, and i got a watch that looks almost like the gen. If you want to fool 99.99 of the people there you go you have it. I dont care about that though, i wanted that watch from the moment i saw it but i never could justify the price of it. We all know that the ads make a lot of money and thats why the prices are that high, so for me a franken PO was the best option. I wont have to go to an ad ever and pay a lot of money for a service or taking a look if everything is correct. I enjoyed all the stages building it and i am really very satisfied. You can pay if you want the extra money and be a proud owner of a gen po but as you ask us if it does worth spending the money building a franken, i can ask you the same question, does it worth to pay all that money to get the gen one? I think all the people that have franken can understand what i am talking about, the rest of you you will have to make one and find out!

 

[Q5?]

haha, I was just WAITING for someone to drag this thread out!

... seriously though, to me buying a franken for $2500 below the cost of a gen (and less than the sum of the parts, let alone skilled labor), makes sense. I couldn't justify a franken PO that only saves maybe $800 off a lightly used gen though.

Who knows though, maybe in 6 months I'll be bragging about my sweet franken PO

Gen PO's go for around $1800-$2000 used. I paid under $800 for my Franken BTW.

If you take any rep and are not happy with the lume, what do you do? You get it lumed. How much does that cost? $100-$200? If you decide to do that you will risk an inferior job. I have seen too many poor lume jobs.

My Gen dial and hands were under $300. I can always pull them off and recoup some of my money and write off my loss on use and wear and tear. The upside is they are perfect.

Same for the crystal. I could flip it later if I wanted. I could have paid half of what my Gen cost to get my rep crystal AR'd. But the time and hassle to remove, ship wait, wait, wait and wait, then have it installed again sucks. So I paid for the Gen and swapped it the same day. It is perfect.

If you have an issiue in swapping the crown/tube, then you don't know diddly squat.

So that handles the watch head.

The bracelet or rubber strap is another deal. Maybe start a thread titled, "Why buy a Gen PO Bracelet or Rubber?" I will answer in that thread.

opcorn:

 

[Inushuk]

+1 Q5 ... totally agree with your comments ...

 

[jiddy]

That's no doubt the best answer.

The journey... the emotions one gets when finding that exact part... the joy when those parts are a bargain! .... the journey in general is what most franken builders and project builds seek.

You also end up with a very exclusive piece that makes you feel all warm and gushy...

Agree 100%.
It´s more about the collecting/ building that´s fun And top of that you get an even nicer rep!
Especially if your into vintage versions of old Rolex or PAM´s there is no way anyone even with a slightly larger paycheck could find one for an affordable sum.

Been eyeballing lots of the vintage work nightwatch does on PAM´s and trust me, after seeing the results I would rather have a custom built vintage rep PAM then any brand spanking new from an AD.

So mixing rep and gen parts = unique watch with a ton of love and feelings invested in it

 

[bartcz]

I dont' know, if it is the best thread to ask (if not, just let me know), but could somebody help me with one matter?
CousinsUK have got in their offer complete case for Omega PO 42 mm (055SU1681651). They do not inform, exactly which parts are included in the complete case.
If, lets say, I bought one, would I need to buy e.g. hands?

Could somebody help me with this? I'm completely new in reps...

 

[Q5?]

The complete case from ofrei does not include hands.

It includes case, whole bezel assembly. crystal and gasket, crown and tube, caseback and gasket, movement holder.

All you need is Gen movement w/ stem, dial, hands.

The Gen case takes only the cal2500 Omega movement. Not the ETA or Asian 2824.

 

[bartcz]

Thanks very much.
I've seen this at oferei's, but as for cousinsUK, I found this:
http://www.cousinsuk.com/PDF/categories/4073_Omega 168.1651 ST.pdf

thats why I wondered.

As you are aware, I can't contact them by mail...