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An Interesting Rolex

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Mark Distinguished Member

Mark

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This one came in for repair today. Notice something different about the watch back?

 

post-1-0-86752700-1391548876_thumb.jpg

 

post-1-0-72553200-1391548934_thumb.jpg

 

Possibly the back was lost at some stage and this glass was epoxied in its place. I'm going to have to be resourceful to remove that glass, and when the repair is done I will most likely have to restore it back to how it is now, as much as it pains.

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WillFly Distinguished Member

WillFly

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That sounds like a nightmare to sort out. I have a friend in upstate New York who's a watchmaker specialising in servicing and repair of Hamilton mechanical watches. He's actually an Amish watch repairer (no electricity or batteries for the Amish), and one of his specialities is taking the screw backs from watches and converting them into display backs - but there isn't a hint of epoxy in sight!

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autowind Distinguished Member

autowind

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How on earth did they manage to lose the case back?  or was it a deliberate act of vandalism?  

 

Mark,  I would imagine finding another case back would at best be expensive and at worst impossible.  So it looks like that despite your best efforts you will still end up with a Frankenwatch.  Looking at the balance wheel cock screw it looks like it has been mauled,  not a good start, it suggests a Gorilla has been let loose on it at some time.  I have every confidence that you will be able to achieve the best result possible given where you are starting from and would like to see the finished result.

 

RogerC

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Mark Distinguished Member

Mark

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Ha ha.. Well that was not so bad.

 

It's mineral glass epoxied in so two obvious solutions would be to break the glass out (not easy - it's domed, plus don't want to risk damage to the movement). The other option is to heat up the case - not really an option as it would potentially cause damage to the movement.

 

So my compromise solution - to use a diamond round head drill to make a hole over the bolt screw so I can take the winder out - then blow the glass off with compressed air through the pendant tube. And the glass just popped out, no damage at all.

 

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After drilling.

 

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Winder is out :)

 

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Sealed the hole in the glass with some rodico and created a seal around the pendant tube with a tiny hole for the compressed air to get in.

 

post-1-0-49649800-1391617241_thumb.jpg

 

This is the compressor attachment I used - a dust blower which I use for blowing dust out of a case before re-assembly.

 

post-1-0-45537400-1391617299_thumb.jpg

 

And the glass just popped out with no problems. Sweet  :thumbsu:

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Mark Distinguished Member

Mark

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From the pictures, the case looks as though it might be gold. Perhaps the back was sold for cash! :startle:

 

No - this is a rolled gold case so the back would have been stainless steel. My guess is that the knurling got so bad (people using the wrong tool to try to open it) that it became unusable. But that's just a guess.

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Mark Distinguished Member

Mark

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Nice solution.

I've heard of this as a technique for popping off the crystal from one piece cases to access the movement but never heard of it being adapted for removal of the case back.

 

Sometimes we have to get creative  :D

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  • 1 month later...
Mark Distinguished Member

Mark

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How did this job work out?

The owner did not invest in a back so I had no choice but to re fit another glass after service.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I wouldn't mind it wasn't even as off the movement was in superb condition & worth showing off! It incredible what some see as an exception.

I think the original was lost or damaged but I am not sure.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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