My First Rolex: 1969 Meters First 5513

[MoparJTH]

Originally Posted by 1William

Congratulations.

Thank you!

[1675-David]

any chance of some more pics?

[MoparJTH]

Originally Posted by 1675-David

any chance of some more pics?

Sure, here are a few others. The crown is the worst looking part of the watch. It has a flat spot and has been polished down. Bob Ridley told me that at some point during its life they must have caught the watch on something and put a good gouge in it.

[MoparJTH]

I'm planning to have Bob replace the crown with an NOS period correct crown when it's in for service

[cajuntiger]

Its a beauty, congrats. One of my favorite references. Regarding the lume, it looks fine to me...but there is no way to access this from low res photos on the forum.

Originally Posted by 1675-David

Mega fat font kissing forty long five insert?

Kissing 4 is when the two numbers are completely joined...not just fat.

[joli160]

Originally Posted by MoparJTH

Thank you and I definitely will do that. I'm still undecided about whether or not I should have the lug bevels redone when I send it out for service. What do you guys think?

I would LAWW work their magic on the case

[cajuntiger]

Originally Posted by MoparJTH

Thank you and I definitely will do that. I'm still undecided about whether or not I should have the lug bevels redone when I send it out for service. What do you guys think?

Personally id leave it as-is...its part of the story. Redoing the lugs is like buying fake tits...quite obvious and nothing like the real thing.

[Franks07]

Originally Posted by cajuntiger

Personally id leave it as-is...its part of the story. Redoing the lugs is like buying fake tits...quite obvious and nothing like the real thing.

To each their own. To me it makes no sense to “live with” an otherwise all original and beautiful watch that has sadly been subjected to a poor polishing sometime in it’s past. Kinda like not going to a trained and experienced hair stylist after getting “butchered” by an untrained barber...why tolerate the incompetence?
I had my gorgeous MK1 Maxi 5513 with very fat lugs indicating only one previous polish polished (not recut) by LAWW to bring back the proper “case geometry” and could not be happier with the results. As stated at the outset...each to their own.



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[cajuntiger]

there is nothing butchered about the OP's watch...its 50 years old it should look like this.
I prefer character over refinishing which stands out like a sore thumb....but thats just me, ive always been odd. Truthfully though, I've always gravitated to the real thing, I tend to avoid the overly polished or perfectly restored cases. Perfection is overrated....but this is as close as it gets.

[1675-David]

Originally Posted by cajuntiger

Kissing 4 is when the two numbers are completely joined...not just fat.

Thanks for taking the time to clear that one up for me...

[MoparJTH]

Hi again guys, thank you for all of the recommendations and advice. I've really been enjoying this watch a lot since I got it! I stopped by my local watchmaker to have him take the case back off today so that I could see how it looked on the inside. I was really excited to see that it's in great shape on the inside as well! I also cleaned up some of the crud built up around the bezel insert and used some polywatch on the crystal a few days ago. The crystal turned out awesome with most of the scratches cleaning up. She's definitely a keeper!

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[E46seca]

Originally Posted by MoparJTH

Hi again guys, thank you for all of the recommendations and advice. I've really been enjoying this watch a lot since I got it! I stopped by my local watchmaker to have him take the case back off today so that I could see how it looked on the inside. I was really excited to see that it's in great shape on the inside as well! I also cleaned up some of the crud built up around the bezel insert and used some polywatch on the crystal a few days ago. The crystal turned out awesome with most of the scratches cleaning up. She's definitely a keeper!

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Looks gorgeous.... do a service with Ridley or LAWW either are amazing and leave as is IMO

[mineral]

lovely 5513 and non date sub is the all time classic. I love to collect them as well. Congrats

[RouletteDate]

very cool!

[mmancari]

Philip Ridley at Watch makers international is the only place I trust my 5513. They use only vintage parts that are correct for your watch. They are top notch!!!!

[Spark]

I used to own this one & regret letting it go.
Enjoy!!

[MoparJTH]

Originally Posted by Spark

I used to own this one & regret letting it go.

Enjoy!!

That is a beauty! Thank you

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[vega234]

Originally Posted by swish77

Hmmm ... Looks as if the OP's bezel has been well polished through the years, so I wonder if that's changed the look.

However, comparing it to the bezel on my 5512 (3.7 mil.), which I believe to be original and unpolished, I see differences, although my watch is at least five years younger.

NICE