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Thread: A Preview of my "Mark MCXLVIII" Project Watch

  1. #1
    Grand Master
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    A Preview of my "Mark MCXLVIII" Project Watch

    Well, it took almost as long as a pregnancy ... ;-)

    Jack @ IWW sent pictures of my relumed "Mk. MCXLVIII" project watch today.

    It is a PRS-53 case from Eddie, ETA 2824 automatic movement, Bill Yao Type 48 dial and hands relumed in C3 (Bill uses C1 on his dials), and a few other extras. I eventually wanted the date version as I intend to make this my office watch, and I'd be lost without the date at the office.



    Here are a few previous pictures from before the watch was sent to IWW (originally a no-date dial was used in the project):





    The caseback has been sterilized lest the watch be mistaken for a variant of the original Precista (fakes, and all that jazz ...):



    Please note the beautifully domed acrylic crystal which was the main reason for choosing this particular watch as the donor watch.

    Cheers,

    Martin ("Crusader")


  2. #2
    Craftsman
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    This is great news. The lume from Jack is just excellent. I hope it arrives well in Germany.

    Why did you choose a white date weel. I know you like the black one on your Sinn 656? The love of legibility in contrast?

    Cheers

    Henrik

  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by Stokport
    Why did you choose a white date weel. I know you like the black one on your Sinn 656? The love of legibility in contrast?
    I prefer white or black date disks on the basis of optical balance.

    In this case, the white date disk balances the 9 better than a black one would. On the 656, the date needs no balance, hence subdued is better. On my ex-Seiko Navigator, the lots of white script on black disks balanced the thinner numbers at 9 better.

    So I go case by case. But by and large, as I like dates, I stand by them and don't need to compulsively hide the date.
    Cheers,

    Martin ("Crusader")


  4. #4
    Master
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    Cool project Martin! 8)

    So what happened was a Mk dial fitted then, or the old dial cut out??

    Regs

    Bry

  5. #5
    Master doug darter's Avatar
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    That's going to be a crackin' watch Martin.

    I'm sure you'll regard the wait as worth it.

  6. #6
    Grand Master Dave E's Avatar
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    Nice, Martin, any news on when you'll actually get it back?
    Dave E

    Skating away on the thin ice of a new day

  7. #7
    Apprentice
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    That lume looks really bright. Is it as bright in real life?

  8. #8
    Thomas Reid
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    Looks good, Martin.

    Best wishes,
    Bob

  9. #9
    Craftsman
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    Nice watch, crusader, very nice. The new lume looks great.

  10. #10
    Grand Master abraxas's Avatar
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    C3 Rocks! :king:

    john


    PS I better not say what C4 does.
    "Owning one is almost as satisfying as making one." ~ Rolex 1973

  11. #11
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    Very nice project! I must say I'm always impressed by how much thought goes into your custom watches my hat's off to you!

    You've explained the meaning behind Zegarek Zubrow (do I have that right?) to me, and I really liked the story. So why is this one called the 1148? Because the Mk.11 was first introduced in '48?

    Guntram

  12. #12
    Master quoll's Avatar
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    Very nice! The Mk XI dial really does look better under acrylic doesn't it?

  13. #13
    Master
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    Very nice :D The C3 is indeed great and I like the light green hue in the unexcited state. I also agree about the balance offered by the white date wheel. At 30 cm and beyond, it will be less conspicuous than the "missing marker" impression a black date wheel might give.

    Bonne chance,
    Gert

  14. #14
    Hi Martin

    This is indeed a long project...

    ..but worth the wait. The lume shot is excellent.!

    Looking forward to the finished watch complete with that huge domed acrylic crystal.!

    Thanks
    deano

  15. #15
    Master
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    Nice! Will it be here until the the 20th?

  16. #16
    Grand Master
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    Quote Originally Posted by MichaF
    Nice! Will it be here until the the 20th?
    I am afraid not, as Jack is holding off shipment until a new crystal for another project (GG-W-113 refurbishment) arrives. :( I launched both projects before we hit financial hardships this summer, or else they would have been canceled. Maybe this was fortuitous, from a WIS point of view. :wink:

    As to Guntram's question, "Mk. MCXLVIII" is not menaat to be a combination of the Mark 11 and 1948 (the lucky combination only dawned on me after I had settled on the name) ... it's much simpler: 1148 was the year that the Crusaders attacked Damascus in the course of the Second Crusade, an episode on which I have devoted a part of my more scholarly activities to. I chose the name as a tribute to those endeavors (both the Crusaders' and mine :wink: ).

    Not entirely coincidentally, this project was officially launched on 15 July 2005, the anniversary of the liberation of Jerusalem by the Crusaders in A.D. 1099. :D I thought it would be finished by 15 July 2006 at the latest, but you know how it is with the boys home by Christmas and all that Jazz ... :twisted:

    The watch isn't actually so much a homage to the Mark 11 (lacking special antimagnetic protection, and I think the Speedbird 3 will be a much better homage to the original 8) ) as to the IWC Portofino 3513 with Mark 11 dial ... this was my first expensive mechanical watch (just before the Mark XII came out), and one that has kept a place in my heart, although at 34mm and with those feminine lugs it would be no longer wearable. (The Hamilton GG-W-113 with decent lugs is just wearable on my 9"-wrists.) The Mark MCXLVIII will be a nice office watch with a - to me, but YMMV - perfect face.

    Even with all the energy I have put into the Mark MCXLVIII, I am thrilled by the Speedbird 3 project. Go, eddie, go! :D
    Cheers,

    Martin ("Crusader")


  17. #17
    Craftsman
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    Hadn't thought of the watch as an attack on Damasko, but now that you mention it... :wink:

    Thanks much for the explanation, Martin - I really enjoy reading those stories of yours. Now, obviously, there must be a centuries' old thread somewhere which explains why you're so into the crusades in the first place, but I can't seem to find it. Would it be too bold to ask for the gist of it?

    Guntram

  18. #18
    Martin,

    verrry nice watch - but are you sure it's hard enough to take on Damasko? And what's this about the 2nd Crusade - I don't want to have to plough through Runciman again, working out which feller whose names begins with B is which.

    Kam

    ps - I know this is off-topic, but is the auto movement the original one for the watch or one which you've subbed in?

    Kam

  19. #19
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    Quote Originally Posted by Kamraj
    ps - I know this is off-topic, but is the auto movement the original one for the watch or one which you've subbed in?
    Jack has sourced a new élaborée grade 2824 after the cheapo one inside (already a replacement of the original) was deemd incapable of delivering reasonably constant rates.

    I would want to see a top-grade ETA 2824 in there, but my interest in the project doesn't extend to purchasing a Sinn 656 or a Stowa and slaughter it just for the movement. Top-grade ETAs are hard to come by, I understand, even from parts houses.

    It's a very different watch from a Damasko, or even the Zegarek Zubrow. The Mark MCXLVIII isn't meant to be a toolwatch, just a pleasant companion throughout a dreary office day. :)
    Cheers,

    Martin ("Crusader")


  20. #20
    Grand Master abraxas's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Guntram
    Hadn't thought of the watch as an attack on Damasko, but now that you mention it... :wink:
    ................

    Guntram
    Yeah right ... him and whose army?

    john
    "Owning one is almost as satisfying as making one." ~ Rolex 1973

  21. #21
    [Cue mock-epic Discovery Channel voiceover] "And on the walls of Damasko the defenders stood, taunting the besiegers with cries of "come on then if you think you're (ice) hard(ened) enough..."

    John, please don't ask him whose army - what I recall about the Crusades (not that I was there, you understand) is that them crusading chaps spent most of their time bickering about that precise question.

    Kam

  22. #22
    Craftsman
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    Quote Originally Posted by abraxas
    Yeah right ... him and whose army?

    john
    Good question! Considering Martin's sophisticated naming conventions, I'd suspect that "Jack at IWW" is actually his way to spell "WWI" backwards. Now if only I could figure out which army is meant by "Jack"... :wink:

    Guntram

  23. #23
    Grand Master abraxas's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Guntram
    ............ Now if only I could figure out which army is meant by "Jack"... :wink:

    Guntram
    Jack is an americanised version of John ... it sounds as if Crusader has got hold of King John's army ... oh my god ... we all know about King John and why England will never have a King John again. :twisted:

    john
    "Owning one is almost as satisfying as making one." ~ Rolex 1973

  24. #24
    Master
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    Good one Martin,

    Well done!

  25. #25
    Grand Master
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    Quote Originally Posted by Guntram
    Good question! Considering Martin's sophisticated naming conventions, I'd suspect that "Jack at IWW" is actually his way to spell "WWI" backwards.
    Still 800 years too late ... :roll: :lol: :wink:
    Cheers,

    Martin ("Crusader")


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