Tropic 19

[Kylehartz25]

Can anyone help lead me in the right direction?

Looking for a tropic 19 Dome or Superdome sapphire crystal for my 1976 Sub 5512. before is was serviced it had what I think was a tropic 19 dome on it and I hate the service crystal on it now... any help would be greatly appreciated!

[jdmi32]

Even if you could find an authentic T19 and are willing to pay the price, there is no guarantee that it would pass the pressure test. My suggestion is to contact LA Watchworks. They take Rolex service crystals and turn them into this:

[stmoore]

This ... see above

[Jinfu]

Hi, micheal young sells superdomes, i bought two, they fit awesome and look great.

[cpefy3]

http://www.classicwatchrepair.com/en...-domed-crystal

[Kingface66]

I'm a little wary of replacement crystals. Around the same time (about a year and a half ago) I had two 1680s that I wanted to replace the cyclops crystals on. I got a T-19 from a well-known dealer here on the forum, and a replacement T-19 from Michael Young.

When looking straight on, one distorts/stretches-out the hour markers, while the other doesn't.

[roh123]

Personally I’ve never seen a an aftermarket crystal which looks perfect. Shape and distortion is always off. Also they tend to break as the fit isn’t really perfect. That said; finding an authentic superdome is tough. Almost impossible. It is a very annoying task.

The logic solution is an aftermarket. I would still try to hunt down an original one. Even if the cost is crazy and the risk is that it is fresh made. Or just give up and get a sevice crystal. Then you could go all the way and change the crown, gaskets etc and make it water proof.

Good luck!

[mattedialdoc]

What did you hate about the service dome?

I’m going to be a dissenting opinion here, and understand my hardcore vintage buddies may disagree.

When I have my vintage subs serviced, I choose to have a new service dome and crown/tube installed. This insures the waterproof state of the watch and reassures me that my investment is protected. I save the old parts and if I sell the watch in the future the new owner can decide what makes them comfortable.
Keep in mind that an aftermarket product or an aged “NOS” superdome will not provide your valuable piece with the integrity it requires to function as designed. This is just my opinion. But there are numerous examples of catastrophic failures of aged and aftermarket crystals.



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[SubKing]

Last year, I paid $600 for an original sealed dome. After about 8 months, I started to get stress cracks on the crystal from the sides going up.

Old crystals you can never be too sure about.. They are really old, even if never used, once under the significant pressure that the retaining ring puts it under, there is no guarantee it won't crack while installing or eventually. In my case, 8 months.. I never knocked It on anything either.

[Kylehartz25]

Thanks for all the comments everyone! This is for my Dads watch. He pasted away about three years ago and this was his prized possession. This watch means everything to me and I am trying to get it back to the original look. He got it serviced about 6 months befor he pasted away and I hate the edge on the service crystal. The only one used to sit flush with the bezel and this one just doesn’t look good at all. Also there are already stress cracks in it.

[Kylehartz25]

Originally Posted by Jinfu

Hi, micheal young sells superdomes, i bought two, they fit awesome and look great.

How do I get in contact with Michael Young?

[Kingface66]

There’s a link to his company further up in this thread. They’re around $60.

[Kylehartz25]

Originally Posted by Kingface66

There’s a link to his company further up in this thread. They’re around $60.

Awesome! Thank you so much!

[SubKing]

Just a couple pics to show you what I was referring to. This was a NOS dome and after a few months, the retaining ring that holds the crystal onto the case started to crack on the sides and some spidered out towards the top of the crystal. The retaining ring puts a fair amount of constant pressure evenly distributed around the crystal to ensure a water tight seal. But some times these old crystals cannot handle the pressure anymore due to age, even if never used.

As much as I love domed crystals, i wouldn’t go out of my way to spend this kind of money on one again. For those of my watches that already contain a dome, they will stay in there until they start to crack; at that point I will replace with a service dome with no issues.

[mattedialdoc]

Originally Posted by SubKing

Just a couple pics to show you what I was referring to. This was a NOS dome and after a few months, the retaining ring that holds the crystal onto the case started to crack on the sides and some spidered out towards the top of the crystal. The retaining ring puts a fair amount of constant pressure evenly distributed around the crystal to ensure a water tight seal. But some times these old crystals cannot handle the pressure anymore due to age, even if never used.



As much as I love domed crystals, i wouldn’t go out of my way to spend this kind of money on one again. For those of my watches that already contain a dome, they will stay in there until they start to crack; at that point I will replace with a service dome with no issues.

Thanks, Jordan, for posting those pics. Definitely a sign of impending doom and unhappiness, and so glad you found it early.

To the OP: I understand wanting to return an heirloom piece to its original state. If you plan on storing it away and not really wearing the watch, I’d be ok w that. However if you plan to make this a watch that is actually worn I encourage reconsidering the crystal issue. Good luck!



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[05carbondrz]

Originally Posted by jdmi32

Even if you could find an authentic T19 and are willing to pay the price, there is no guarantee that it would pass the pressure test. My suggestion is to contact LA Watchworks. They take Rolex service crystals and turn them into this:

Which looks nothing like a real T19 Superdome....

[saskmh]

Originally Posted by Jinfu

Hi, micheal young sells superdomes, i bought two, they fit awesome and look great.

I bought a Michael Young T19 superdome as well. While I agree that it looks great, and it seemed to fit nicely, it cracked after a few weeks on the watch. And on top of it, while the watch was on the winder. No impact, no temperature changes...just sitting on the winder. So unless I got a dud, I'm not 100% convinced on Michael Young's crystals.

Also, the dome does look good but is a little off when compared to an original that I have. It does slightly distort the markers around the outside as Kingface showed in his post above.

[stmoore]

Originally Posted by 05carbondrz

Which looks nothing like a real T19 Superdome....

They are very close and I feel the best option.
What then is your recommendation?

[jdmi32]

Originally Posted by 05carbondrz

Which looks nothing like a real T19 Superdome....

Yes, but I do have an authentic Rolex domed crystal that passed the pressure test. Compromise is something that all vintage collectors will eventually have to face.

[roh123]

The LAWW solution is good as it uses Rolex crystals to begin with. Every aftermarket crystal I have tried have cracked. Quickly and without external factors. They are just not good enough to handle the tension.

I’m sure some migt do the trick but my luck never worked out. And I have tried it four, five times by now.

[springer]

Originally Posted by roh123

The LAWW solution is good as it uses Rolex crystals to begin with. Every aftermarket crystal I have tried have cracked. Quickly and without external factors. They are just not good enough to handle the tension.

I’m sure some migt do the trick but my luck never worked out. And I have tried it four, five times by now.

Good points. But in fairness, there are quality aftermarket crystals being manufactured and sold to the masses - it is a very big industry for aftermarket parts.

As far as cracking goes, I've replaced dozens of Rolex genuine acrylic Rolex crystals the past few decades and everyone of them was cracked.

I have used the domed crystals from M. Young once or twice, as well as other vintage aficionados that I am friends with and none of us have had problems with his crystals or some of the other aftermarket Swiss or German crystals made for Rolex.

[mattedialdoc]

Originally Posted by jdmi32

Yes, but I do have an authentic Rolex domed crystal that passed the pressure test. Compromise is something that all vintage collectors will eventually have to face.

I agree. And the *compromise* is to accept the structural advantage of the contemporary service dome. I am as rabid as the next guy for keeping my vintage Rolex as "correct" as possible, but not by putting the contents of the case at risk. Makes no sense. These things are pricey and irreplaceable one of a kind items.


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Instagram: @mattedialdoc

[SubKing]

Originally Posted by mattedialdoc

I agree. And the *compromise* is to accept the structural advantage of the contemporary service dome. I am as rabid as the next guy for keeping my vintage Rolex as "correct" as possible, but not by putting the contents of the case at risk. Makes no sense. These things are pricey and irreplaceable one of a kind items.


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Instagram: @mattedialdoc

X2 agreed 100%. The crystal isn’t as important to me as the rest of the watch is. Any of my pieces that retain domed crystals, I keep a very close eye on em and will replace the crystals with service ones without hesitation, at the first sign of a crack. As I did with the crystal above.

[peterdavid911]

Hi Kingface66
Which one is the Michael Young T19 crystal in your photos above in post #6.
Thanks.

[saskmh]

Michael young is on the left. They slightly distort the round markers.

[peterdavid911]

Thank you that's great, it's exactly what I want.
I have a 5513 MK1 Maxi dial and will look great on that.