Cleaned up my 5513...

[Robbyvm]

I purchased a '66 meters first that was in desperate need of some TLC... so i gave it to her and she accepted

before






Some scotschbrite, polywatch, water, time... an other ff insert but above all : love & care







the 45 year tritium even continues to glow in the dark, amazing....

[Keeperoftime]

WOW! Very nice.

[dddrees]

Looks a whole lot better now.

[sailmed]

Looks terrific!!!

[bigwatchman]

Nice job.

[Michael M.]

Nice!

[conrail]

Looks very nice! Did you plug the crack at the "30" on the insert? Came out very well if so!

[azguy]

That's my birthyear and I have been lloking for one with no luck, good for you, it looks great

[jdc]

Good work looks great

[swish77]

Fantastic! That lume glow looks better than modern Rolexes! Congrats!

[Tcaviglioli]

Great job well done! I am curious, how did you get rid of the scratches on the bracelet so well?

Very nice watch btw!

Cheers

[Robbyvm]

the scratches were removed with a moist scotchbrite pad (green)... bracelet removed and polish very gently and in one direction. Works great !
i was a little nervous about rmessing up when i started to do this but it is fairly easy to do and i think the result is nice
the crystal is done with polywatch, same rules to apply

i did'nt want to send the watch to a RSC to polish because they remove to much material my intention was just to clean it up...

[Fredrik]

Originally Posted by Robbyvm

the 45 year tritium even continues to glow in the dark, amazing....

How did you get the phosphor to glow like that? There would be only about 7% of the tritium left and as far as I know that is far from enough to make it glow at all. In theory you could illuminate the paint with a massive amount of UV to get it to glow for a short while but I have never managed that myself.

[hatidua]

Originally Posted by Robbyvm

the 45 year tritium even continues to glow in the dark, amazing....

That's impressive!

[Robbyvm]

i did'nt touch the inside... i read on several sites that these 5513's are known to keep their glow
wanted to test it and there you go

[mjclark32]

Wow, great job

[93 Turbo]

Excellent work, your watch looks like NOS.

[phillycheez]

Looks like there's a lot of glow left.... I have never seen that before. Amazing!

[goldminer]

Very good result, well done

[BH13GMT]

Originally Posted by Robbyvm

i did'nt touch the inside... i read on several sites that these 5513's are known to keep their glow
wanted to test it and there you go

Did u wear it on a sunbed?

great pics, an impressive DIY restoration.

[Submarino]

Great restoration. Nice results!!! Nice awesome watch!

[michel33]

Originally Posted by Robbyvm

I purchased a '66 meters first that was in desperate need of some TLC... so i gave it to her and she accepted


the 45 year tritium even continues to glow in the dark, amazing....

Well done, very nice watch.
But your dial has been resumed imho. Tritium (25 millicuries: T<25) can't glow like that after 40 years, it is just impossible and every scientist would confirm that.
Does it glow for a few seconds only (the phosphorescent material that is no more exited by the "dead" Tritium can be exited by the light for a few seconds) or does it last for several minutes/hours before the lume declines? (that would be the Luminova signature).

Or is the lume "perpetual", which would be a later Tritium relumed dial?

[michel33]

But your dial has been resumed imho: I meant relumed, of course.

[liptonnr]

One heck of a clean up ! Very nice!

[Robbyvm]

it only glows for a short amount of time... i know where it comes from so i'm sure it has never been relumed
if you read up on the net you will notice that the old 5513 is know for this phenomena

[Andad]

Nice work Robby.

[Tcaviglioli]

Originally Posted by Robbyvm

the scratches were removed with a moist scotchbrite pad (green)... bracelet removed and polish very gently and in one direction. Works great !
i was a little nervous about rmessing up when i started to do this but it is fairly easy to do and i think the result is nice
the crystal is done with polywatch, same rules to apply

i did'nt want to send the watch to a RSC to polish because they remove to much material my intention was just to clean it up...

Ok great, no surprised for the crystal, but I am really surprised by the result on the bracelet, turned out really nice, I ought to try it one day!

Many thanks for the trick!

Cheers

[michel33]

Originally Posted by Robbyvm

it only glows for a short amount of time... i know where it comes from so i'm sure it has never been relumed
if you read up on the net you will notice that the old 5513 is know for this phenomena

Yes, I red such testimonials on the Net, but still I can't figure out how it is possible as it is simply not compatible with the elementary rules of physics and chemistry, as it is clearly stated on the dial that the luminescent material is Tritium<25...... (unless "a short amount of time" means less than a few seconds, wich would mean the phosphorescent material is still active and activated by the ambient lighting.)

So I would be grateful if someone has a rational explanation, because otherwise, I see no other explanation that that the dial has been relumed.

[Beaumont Miller II]

Originally Posted by swish77

Fantastic! That lume glow looks better than modern Rolexes! Congrats!

I agree that watch cleaned up nicely. I find it interesting that these old sub dials continue to glow. Mine from '67 glows as well.

[jedly1]

Originally Posted by Beaumont Miller II

I agree that watch cleaned up nicely. I find it interesting that these old sub dials continue to glow. Mine from '67 glows as well.

His dial is not relumed.

It's exactly what you allude to ..Throughout the 60's Rolex used different mixtures for the luminous material .. The 67 ish watches with big 'half Malteser' plots are particularity light sensitive ... If you excite the phosphor you get a strong bright glow ( especially if you go from v strong light to totally dark) ..... And yes it's measures in seconds not minutes ...