Can’t get a 116500? Well....

[samuel019]

You can make/build one. Well ladies and gents one of my favorite things about owning Daytona’s is having the ability to make soooooo many changes. It started for me way back in 2014 when I picked up my 116”523” and being in love with the font on the bezel of a 116508. Subtle differences I know but we like what we like. So what did I do? Well get a bezel from a 116508 and swap mine. Ironically enough Rolex must’ve liked my idea so they “borrowed” it and it’s now a 116503.

So when I picked up my Z serial 116520 this month I was already on a mission. Make changes!! Differences between my 520 and 500? Not many. Clasp and bezel. So away I went and after a TON of of research and shopping around I was done. Sourced both. Just needed a watchmaker. So after finding the right guy I present my modded 520/500.

Worth it? 1,000,000,000%. It feels like I have a totally new watch. The ceramic bezel cures the ONE minor minor thing about the Daytona that I don’t like, it wears kinda small. Something about the proportions of the ceramic makes it wear bigger which is odd. The SS bezel and ceramic bezel have the exact same diameters. So why does it seem to wear bigger? I have no idea but it does. As far as the clasp? Mine had the older version, not fat buckle. Newer version is heavier, not as flimsy, and a tad more comfortable. So for me all the effort was well worth it and as the owner that’s all that matters. Not to mention it’s completely reversible but I have zero intent on that. Plus I can recoup some of my investment by selling a few left over parts.

By the way thank you to all the forum members I reached out to along the way for help and advice. You know who you are! Thank you thank you