Does anyone have a pic of Sealed hands done by Mr. Ridley?

[SubKing]

Originally Posted by cruvon

Thanks for the detailed technical explanation. Also you said the dial was a service replacement, were the hands service replacements too because if the hands were from 1955 could that have been radium? I ask because radium might react differently to say if tritium was sealed using the sealant used.

Hi there,

the dial and hands are both service replacements.
If I send the dial to Bob to have the dial sealed, the markers will darken just like the hands, but maybe not as much as the dial tritium plots are much thicker than the hands, so they may react different.

you never really know.. Which is why one of the first things bob will tell you when asking him to stabilize, he will say "there is a chance your hands will darken a bit." he is being upfront and honest in the chance that it does... But in most cases it doesn't.. So even Bob doesn't know most of the time until it's done.

[cruvon]

Originally Posted by SubKing

Hi there,

the dial and hands are both service replacements.
If I send the dial to Bob to have the dial sealed, the markers will darken just like the hands, but maybe not as much as the dial tritium plots are much thicker than the hands, so they may react different.

you never really know.. Which is why one of the first things bob will tell you when asking him to stabilize, he will say "there is a chance your hands will darken a bit." he is being upfront and honest in the chance that it does... But in most cases it doesn't.. So even Bob doesn't know most of the time until it's done.

Thanks, I do understand the technical grounds on which you chose epoxy to future proof your hands. In Bob's case and examples guess since he doesn't use epoxy, might be the reason why there is none/not much change in colour compared to if epoxy was used since no one has posted any examples with a drastic change in colour when sealed using lacquer/acrylic. Offcourse as you mentioned, that could be because of the tritium itself(shade, age, etc.) that can cause different results for different people and might not depend on whether epoxy or lacquer was used.
The only other thing I would do now in an attempt to get the colors to match is try to get the plots on the dial sealed and hope they turn darker like the hands, nothing to loose trying that I guess if done well since the plots can get only darker, not lighter. I would also like to see some more examples of watches sealed using epoxy if possible.

[Cannop]

Originally Posted by SubKing

this is part you should read cannop..

Very interesting read SubKing, thank you. I wasn't sure what to use when i did mine, I thought there would probably be something on the market that could do the job better than laquer. In the end I used a sample that my watchmaker sent me, he has been using it for over 20 years on his customers watches and hasn't had one back yet so I thought that'll do for me!

[SubKing]

Originally Posted by cruvon

Thanks, I do understand the technical grounds on which you chose epoxy to future proof your hands. In Bob's case and examples guess since he doesn't use epoxy, might be the reason why there is none/not much change in colour compared to if epoxy was used since no one has posted any examples with a drastic change in colour when sealed using lacquer. Offcourse as you mentioned, that could be because of the tritium itself(shade, age, etc.) that can cause different results for different people and might not depend on whether epoxy or lacquer was used.
The only other thing I would do now in an attempt to get the colors to match is try to get the plots on the dial sealed and hope they turn darker like the hands, nothing to loose trying that I guess if done well since the plots can get only darker, not lighter.

doesn't bother me, so I don't think I will be getting my dial sealed.. the pictures dont do justice.. in real life it doesn't look as dark as the pics.

[CaveDiver]

Originally Posted by cruvon

The only other thing I would do now in an attempt to get the colors to match is try to get the plots on the dial sealed .

If you coat the plots of the dial, it will permanently change the appearance of the plots. That practice is not recommend.

[SubKing]

Originally Posted by CaveDiver

If you coat the plots of the dial, it will permanently change the appearance of the plots. That practice is not recommend.

bob offers to seal the dial's of vintage watches, but he does not do the service him self.. He sends the dials out to be done.

Still, Im with you and it's much cheaper to replace the hands in the future than it is to replace a dial if you are not happy with the outcome of the service

[cruvon]

Originally Posted by SubKing

doesn't bother me, so I don't think I will be getting my dial sealed.. the pictures dont do justice.. in real life it doesn't look as dark as the pics.

Cool, aslong as you are happy, that's all that really matters and the the rest are only opinions:). You could always look for matching hands if absolutely required instead of sealing the dial I guess since dial lumes won't deteriorate as quickly as hands though not sure how difficult getting hands on an early watch like that is.

[jedly1]

i've said it before and i'll say it again ..i've had the hands sealed by Rolex in Uk as part of pretty much every Milsub i've owned and had serviced by them..(i' ve owned 29 and of that 20 have probably been to UK RSC)..

.NONE have ever darkened noticeably....the only conversations i remember having with them was that they didn't use heavy solvent based because realistically product as they had no idea what long term effect a fairly chemical substance would have /emitt within a sealed environment over time... from memory i have vague recollection of the use of alcohol based shellac but that might be me crossing two things over

[SubKing]

Originally Posted by jedly1

i've said it before and i'll say it again ..i've had the hands sealed by Rolex in Uk as part of pretty much every Milsub i've owned and had serviced by them..(i' ve owned 29 and of that 20 have probably been to UK RSC)..

.NONE have ever darkened noticeably....the only conversations i remember having with them was that they didn't use heavy solvent based because realistically product as they had no idea what long term effect a fairly chemical substance would have /emitt within a sealed environment over time... from memory i have vague recollection of the use of alcohol based shellac but that might be me crossing two things over

I have said this more than once and ill say it again as well,
Tritium has a mind of it's own.. every watch ages differently.. not every watch responds the same to stabilizing..

here is a pic of a mill sub with sealed hands. notice the hands are darker than the dial.


this is a picture of a natural aged mill sub with baton hands. this is actually considered to be attractive among collectors according to jakes blog......


the color my hands turned after the service is actualy similar to the color of the mill sub photo just above. So i'm happy with my watch and thats all that matters.

the point is TRITIUM HAS A MIND OF ITS OWN! depending on the age/color it will react differently then other watches.
the only way to prove me wrong is if you had a clone of my watch and used a different agent to seal it and see what happens, but since thats not possible..
I'm sure if anyone emails BOB R and asks him if hand can darken from this service and has he seen it happen, he will tell you the same thing he told me on the phone which is "YES IT HAPPENS SOMETIMES"
I don't need to beat this dead horse any longer

[T5AUS]

Originally Posted by sailmed

Also, check recent thread "Just Back from Spa Ridley"
I sent my 1680 Red Sub and just got it back.
The hands are sealed, and I have included (lower in the thread) pictures of before and after.

There is no perceptible difference to my eye pre and post sealing

I took a look and as you say sailman, they both look identical, a great result.

[jedly1]

sorry , certainly not trying to suggest you shouldn't be happy or put your watch down in anyway ...what i am saying is that whatever product rolex themselves use it doesn't have an effect so we probably need to let them do it ..or find out what they use ...i'll get on that.

for the record ..the milsub in top pic doesn't have its original hands and the ones it does have are in poor condition and i would suggest that is why they are a slight mismatch...out of interest do you have a pic with the circle t showing ...it looks 'odd' from the bits poking out but could be perspective...

the pic from the second watch was a friends watch and had the MOD green relume to the hands which had disintegrated along the way and thats a pre restoration shot.

[SubKing]

I was talking to Ken aka Steelerfan in PM and here is what he had to say as far as input on this topic.

Originally Posted by SteelerFan65

It looks like you did a good job. Bobo Ridley as offered to do for a few of mine and I actually I have chosen not to only because there is slight risk it could darken hands. I am not willing to take risk on super expensive pieces and will live with that. Just my take. Good input though by you!!

So it does happen, not often but it does.

[bobbipiazza]

This thread was brought to Bob's attention, so we reviewed it briefly. Please allow us to clarify one minor misunderstanding.

Sealing a dial is generally Bob's measure of last resort. Only twice in 35 years has he provided this service, and both times with cautionary regard for the permanence of the action.

This is not to say that Bob is giving a formal opinion that sealing is either correct or incorrect. Unlike mechanical repairs, where there is a clearly-defined "right way" vs. a "wrong way", aesthetic restorations are subjective in nature.

While Mr. Ridley can advise and offer what services could/should be rendered with a view of maintaining market value, as well as preserving the integrity of the watch, our principle in vintage repair/restoration is to be responsive to the desires and aesthetic sensibilities of each individual owner.

[GeoGio Greece]

Originally Posted by Cannop

I did my Tudor sub myself, the thread is here:

http://50.30.33.71/~trfcom/showthread.php?t=201246

but here are the relevant pictures:





As has been said it shouldn't change the colour of the hands at all as the substance used to seal is a clear laquer applied to the rear of the hands.

I just checked the thread. Excellent job !! It takes somes .....guts to do it. Congrats !!

[larryccf]

Originally Posted by ArcticMoose

Thanks for the photos and information!

Do you have any experience with hands that already have visible damage, such as the ones in the attached photo?

Attachment 250237

i'll try to find the photo and post, but Jack at IWW sealed mine -they were in similiar already cracked condition, and part of the tritium fell out - about 25% of the center of the minute hands tritium left for parts unknown - it was likely already fragile and contact from the brush or maybe even the weight of the sealant he used was the straw that broke the camel's back. I don't fault Jack, as he warned me and indicated he was only suggesting it as they were fragile ( the hands were first born about the time Moses was still in shorts), and this was purely an attempt to stabilize them for a bit longer.

I think the sealant is a great idea for preserving good condition hands, but there's a risk on fragile hands

found the shot - and there was a "crack" in the tritium at one end of the now cavity