16710 Bezel Help - Not rotating correctly

[dberman3]

Hi all at TRF! I could really use your expertise.

I recently bought a 16710 GMT, T serial circa 1995 which I love. However, the bezel doesn't rotate easily at all and although I don't really need to rotate it very often, it bugs me when things don't work the way they're supposed to work. So I searched all of the threads, watched all of the youtube videos I could find and set off to clean the watch and bezel with warm water, a soft brush and a little bit of dish soap, thinking it may have just gotten gunked up over time.

I was beyond careful and put it all back together exactly as instructed, but the problem persists. It still clicks as the spring is in place, but the bezel just doesn't turn freely. It turns if you muscle it, and I really mean muscle it, but I know it shouldn't need that much effort.

So my suspicion is that maybe someone over the years replaced the bezel with an aftermarket bezel, or added glue to the insert, (which I could't separate from the bezel and didn't want to do damage) and if so, maybe the glue dried and added mass that's causing friction during rotation, or maybe this is something that needs a drop of oil? I'm really hesitant to put oil anywhere near this watch with out some guidance and this is why I'm coming to TRF for help.

So, before sending this off for service, or ordering a new bezel, is this common? Is there something that I might be missing? Should I use a drop of oil and if so, what type of oil?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[Ron P]

Official guideline fro Rolex is to put Fomblin (a thick white teflon like grease) on the inside off the bezel (the teeth) and on the seating of the bezel too.

Is the bezel rotating free without the spring?


RonP

[dberman3]

Originally Posted by Ron P

Official guideline fro Rolex is to put Fomblin (a thick white teflon like grease) on the inside off the bezel (the teeth) and on the seating of the bezel too.

Is the bezel rotating free without the spring?


RonP

The spring is in place and it does click, but the bezel isn't rotating as easily as it should. I'll get some Teflon grease and try it. It couldn't hurt. Thanks!