1675 Small arrow set?

[Ascari_2]

Hello all,

I recently purchased a small lot of parts because I needed a few pieces from that lot and as part of the whole package I got a set of hands. It was briefly mentioned that they were off an Explorer GMT (but there wasn't a clear picture of them). However, having received the parts, I am sure these are not Explorer and they look a lot more like the small arrow 1675 hands. I don't have a macro lens, so these are the best pictures I can get right now, but does anyone have any thought on whether or not this might actually be a complete 1675 small arrow set? If it helps, checking these under a Geiger counter, I get no response, so they are definitely not radium hands.

Any feedback would be appreciated.

Click the images to see full resolution.

[Ascari_2]

If it helps, the lume glows fairly bright after being exposed to a UV flashlight on the hour and minute hands (also on the remnants of the lume material that's left on the seconds hand), but reduces in intensity to a barely visible glow over a few minutes. This, combined with the greenish hue of the lume material, makes me suspect that these are Tritium-Zinc Sulfate lumed hands from a 1966-1967 1675 GMT. The GMT hand also exhibits a faint glow after exposure, but on a considerably lower scale.

[springer]

I'm not quite sure what you have there but the 24-hour red hand looks aftermarket. The aftermarket hands are longer on the two sides when compared to the back side. On the genuine hands. all three sides appear to have an equal length.

Below are some genuine red hands for comparison. Notice how the genuine hands appear to be almost a perfect triangular shape.

[roh123]

Personally I would be very careful to call it aftermarket from those pics. There are more than one version out there and I am not as confident as the poster above on the authenticity. The small gmt hand was used for ten years and we see small differencies on many things during these years.

It is pretty obvious the set does not belong together if the lume is untouched. The gmt hand is a completely different color than the rest and I would guess it is older than the mid 60’s hour, minute and seconds hand. How you describe the glow as well would at least to me sound like it could be a late 50’s gmt hand. Does i glow in this fashion? Mid 60’s tritium vs earlier radium.



Each to their own though. I would not call it out as fake based on these pics and that description.

[Ascari_2]

Thanks for the feedback. I will do some measurements later today and will post those results with better pictures then. Also will have some UV shots posted.

Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

[springer]

Here are a few more examples of the Rolex 24-hour hand compared to another variation of the aftermarket variety. In this aftermarket variety, you can observe a slight bow or outward curve on the backside of the triangle where it attaches to the red arm of the hand. There are more than one variation of the aftermarket small 24-hour red hand while the genuine Rolex hand retained the same appearance through the years of production.

[roh123]

So you are saying this one is curved? :)

There’s more than one original version. You will see different lengths for example. Some go past the chapter line while still being original.

[harry in montreal]

Thanks JP. You are a great resource

[Ascari_2]

So hopefully these are helpful. On the subject of the lume, the hour/minute hands light up rather strongly under direct UV light from a flashlight. This glow is also lightly visible from the remnants of the lume material on the seconds hand and also a bit on the GMT hand. The second lume photo was taken immediately after tuning off the flashlight. The third lume photo was taken about 3 minutes after and is a bit deceptive. While it shows a noticeable glow, this is just the effect of the camera trying to turn up the gain in the picture. The glow was virtually gone and this is one reason the photo is blurry ... the camera couldn't get enough light to even focus correctly.

[roh123]

They are fine to me. Each to their own though.

[springer]

Originally Posted by roh123

So you are saying this one is curved? :)

There’s more than one original version. You will see different lengths for example. Some go past the chapter line while still being original.

Per, you misread my post. I never said any such thing about his 24-hour hand being curved at the back. I was simply presenting another variation of the aftermarket small red hand.

Additionally, my comments have been directed at the shape of the triangle and at no time did I mention the length of the hand or there being only one length of hand.

All is good in GMT Land on my side of the world!!!

[springer]

Originally Posted by Ascari_2

So hopefully these are helpful. On the subject of the lume, the hour/minute hands light up rather strongly under direct UV light from a flashlight. This glow is also lightly visible from the remnants of the lume material on the seconds hand and also a bit on the GMT hand. The second lume photo was taken immediately after tuning off the flashlight. The third lume photo was taken about 3 minutes after and is a bit deceptive. While it shows a noticeable glow, this is just the effect of the camera trying to turn up the gain in the picture. The glow was virtually gone and this is one reason the photo is blurry ... the camera couldn't get enough light to even focus correctly.

Those photos are much better and in my original post, based on the lesser quality photos, I said it "looked" aftermarket. Based on your most recent photos, it appears genuine.

[Claven2]

Genuine imho, but I think the 24h hand is likely radium. Not from the same set in my opinion.