16750 - stabilise hands?

[zwjk]

I just picked up this 16750 from a local seller. The hands have some corrosion which has affected the tritium. As you can see from the below photos, the tritium is starting to crack on the GMT and hour hand. I have heard of getting the hands getting "stabilised" to avoid further deterioration and possible damage to the movement.

This is my first foray into vintage Rolex so I am still learning. Is this a good candidate for stabilisation or should I just leave it as is?

[Tools]

Stabilizing the hands is used to stop further deterioration and "save" original examples..

In this case it appears that the dial is much newer than the hands, and my approach might be to source a better set of period hands to match the dial.

[springer]

I would echo Tools comments. The hands are in very poor condition. You could have them stabilized from the back side but that won't change the appearance. Besides the tritium corrosion, the hands themselves appear very corroded which will not improve with time.

[zwjk]

Originally Posted by Tools

Stabilizing the hands is used to stop further deterioration and "save" original examples..

In this case it appears that the dial is much newer than the hands, and my approach might be to source a better set of period hands to match the dial.

Originally Posted by springer

I would echo Tools comments. The hands are in very poor condition. You could have them stabilized from the back side but that won't change the appearance. Besides the tritium corrosion, the hands themselves appear very corroded which will not improve with time.

Thanks guys... I don't mind the look of the corroded hands. I think I may get it stabilised from the back to try to keep it in tact.

There's also reluming to consider, but I don't know anyone in Australia who can do it.

[Rebel]

Best luck with the project.

[crash_c]

LA WatchWorks did this exact work for my 16750. The watch looked PHENOMENAL upon return. Good luck!

[schaumburgla]

Which for this model are not too difficult too find because the quickset gmt's all use the same hands stack 16750, 16700, 16710 tritium hands are interchangeable
I have found several sets of tritium hands for under $400 recently.

J

[Vincent65]

I'd just leave it.

[007Sub]

Originally Posted by Tools

Stabilizing the hands is used to stop further deterioration and "save" original examples..

In this case it appears that the dial is much newer than the hands, and my approach might be to source a better set of period hands to match the dial.

Agreed. Source some hands that match better.

[smokd]

Source a set of matching hands. That is the optimal solution for this scenario as the dial is in great shape compared to the hands.

[springer]

Originally Posted by schaumburgla

Which for this model are not too difficult too find because the quickset gmt's all use the same hands stack 16750, 16700, 16710 tritium hands are interchangeable
I have found several sets of tritium hands for under $400 recently.

J

Most of the hands are the same but the post on the seconds hand is different on the 16750. Finding hands in the secondary market is possible, finding matching tritium hands in the secondary market is not that easily accomplished.

[zwjk]

I am having a terrible start to 2018 :( I sourced a set of matching hands from the US (took over one month to find) and they turned up damaged!




Anyone have a nice 16750 hour hands to sell me :(

[SubKing]

This is the burden of collecting vintage and many of us have dealt with this type of thing many times over..

Every vintage watch will have its issues.. To find find issues free pieces takes both a lot of time and money. So when you get a piece with issues and attempt to restore certain parts of it yourself, this type of thing is likely to happen.

So my advise to you is, contact LAWW “los Angeles watch works” talk to Edvi and see if he has a NOS set of tritium hands to match your dial. Send him a pic of your dial so he can have a good look at it.

There will be round trip shipping costs, labor costs and the cost of the hand set, but at least you will have a piece of mind knowing it will be done right and done to the highest standards. It might take them a little bit to do the work because I know they are always backed up, but it’s the route I would go.

Sometimes you have to pay a little extra to have something done right.
Best of luck.

[greekbum]

I have a few sets of nos hands for that watch if your interested contact me

[zwjk]

I love a happy ending!

[zwjk]

Double post!

[roh123]

Nice work!

[cpefy3]

Which route did you end up taking?

[Ci54]

That’s a beauty.. Enjoy it in good health..

[onthedial]

@o1314
Apart from servicing, I prefer to take a non-invasive approach to the appearance of my vintage watches...unless a particular element is too far gone. In your case I would have done exactly what you did--your 16750 looks fantastic.
_____________
Instagram: @onthedial

[Kennekam]

What did you do in the end? I have do something about my 1675's hands.

[zwjk]

Hi all, I ended up sourcing a second set of hands which was relumed by my watchmaker Lewis Watch Co here in Australia.