Broken Ceramic Insert

[EddieK12]

Well, curiosity pushed me to see what the assembly of the insert is like myself in person. A normal pry in between the case and bezel popped it, and cracked it at the noon marker... THEN FIGURING OUT THIS FUNKY SPRING AND PLASTIC GASKET.
Put it back together, hard to rotate.. took it apart, put the gasket in clearly the wrong spot putting pressure on the insert from the inside out, pushed down to snap it in and BOOM. Figured someone would enjoy some ceramic Pepsi brittle..
It's a one time use gasket guys lol

[-Ally-]

That’s gonna hurt.

Oops.

[Seibei]

Man....

I hope you get this fixed with a minimal amount of pain. Thanks for sharing.

[woof]

Wow..... I was also going to open up my watch ... Now, I won't. Thank you for sharing and please keep us up to date on the fix.

[1665fan]

Looks like you broke a mark1 Insert and I’m sure they are only making 2 inserts so that will have to your replacement.......not very smart

[EddieK12]

Originally Posted by 1665fan

Looks like you broke a mark1 Insert and I’m sure they are only making 2 inserts so that will have to your replacement.......not very smart

Lol thanks.. thus the double

[77T]

Originally Posted by EddieK12

Lol thanks.. thus the double

Thanks - for your honesty and good cheer in the face of adversity.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

[SearChart]

Yeah it is a washer gasket and you'll need a good set of Rolex tools to reapply the bezel without killing the gasket...

I always pry the bezel off with a knife though and never have I broken a ceramic insert, you gotta be careful though.

[EddieK12]

Originally Posted by SearChart

Yeah it is a washer gasket and you'll need a good set of Rolex tools to reapply the bezel without killing the gasket...

I always pry the bezel off with a knife though and never have I broken a ceramic insert, you gotta be careful though.

What tool do you use to reapply? Didn't bother doing any searching on the forums, just asking since it's convenient

[SearChart]

Originally Posted by EddieK12

What tool do you use to reapply? Didn't bother doing any searching on the forums, just asking since it's convenient

The Rolex bezel press with a set of dies.

You apply a new gasket into the bezel, then place a special metal ring to keep the gasket in place on the crystal, then press the bezel on swiftly. Once the bezel is placed you can apply the insert.

[HogwldFLTR]

Originally Posted by SearChart

Yeah it is a washer gasket and you'll need a good set of Rolex tools to reapply the bezel without killing the gasket...

I always pry the bezel off with a knife though and never have I broken a ceramic insert, you gotta be careful though.

When I swapped out the bezel on my DJII for the WG one, the first shop I went to thought they could do it but after a week notified me that because of the larger watch size and older press, they couldn't. There is apparently only one shop in the Boston area with the correct tool.

[lightingball2]

i'm curious, but why would you want to take a part your watch if you are not a watch maker. I have NO desire to even attempt that......that sounds like an expensive oopsey!

[SearChart]

Originally Posted by lightingball2

i'm curious, but why would you want to take a part your watch if you are not a watch maker. I have NO desire to even attempt that......that sounds like an expensive oopsey!

With the older ones it was easy for hobbyists to swap a bezel insert and clean underneath the bezel when it started to turn hard. Not everyone knows that the ceramic ones are off limits to DIY, sucks but happens...

[padi56]

Originally Posted by SearChart

With the older ones it was easy for hobbyists to swap a bezel insert and clean underneath the bezel when it started to turn hard. Not everyone knows that the ceramic ones are off limits to DIY, sucks but happens...

Have to agree one of the downfalls of ceramic its been posted hundreds of times on forum the ceramic is not a DIY job unless you have the correct tools.Trouble some will not listen or go on the net perhaps look at Utube then some think its a easy job, and break insert and now left with quite a expense to replace hope they learn from their mistakes.

[lovetherolex]

Originally Posted by padi56

Have to agree one of the downfalls of ceramic its been posted hundreds of times on forum the ceramic is not a DIY job unless you have the correct tools.Trouble some will not listen or go on the net perhaps look at Utube then some think its a easy job, and break insert and now left with quite a expense to replace hope they learn from their mistakes.

He didn’t even have a DIY objective, just some good old fashioned curiosity that killed the cat and the bezel.

Glad he shared it though. Thanks OP

[EddieK12]

Originally Posted by lightingball2

i'm curious, but why would you want to take a part your watch if you are not a watch maker. I have NO desire to even attempt that......that sounds like an expensive oopsey!

I don't think you should think that you need to be a watchmaker to do some basic things on a watch. You can swap your bands, swap metal inserts out, and open your case back to check it out. Those are all things that are simple in my opinion..

With little knowledge and experience, you can take your movement out with a small flat head screwdriver, a thin pin, and a some steady hands :)

From there it gets a little more advanced but still not to difficult.. If you break something, it will cost you some money, but that's a lesson.

[MSchott]

Originally Posted by EddieK12

I don't think you should think that you need to be a watchmaker to do some basic things on a watch. You can swap your bands, swap metal inserts out, and open your case back to check it out. Those are all things that are simple in my opinion..

With little knowledge and experience, you can take your movement out with a small flat head screwdriver, a thin pin, and a some steady hands :)

From there it gets a little more advanced but still not to difficult.. If you break something, it will cost you some money, but that's a lesson.

Can't say I agree about opening the case back on a fairly high WR watch unless you have a replacement gasket and a pressure testing device.

[EddieK12]

Originally Posted by MSchott

Can't say I agree about opening the case back on a fairly high WR watch unless you have a replacement gasket and a pressure testing device.

No offense, but that is like those who use a torque wrench to tighten their oil drain bolt.. It's not really a necessity to replace the case back gasket just because you opened it a few times, I would say time is the gaskets worst enemy.. not having common sense with a case back opening press and stripping the teeth is another battle I can see some running into though.

[dba]

Originally Posted by lightingball2

i'm curious, but why would you want to take a part your watch if you are not a watch maker. I have NO desire to even attempt that......that sounds like an expensive oopsey!

This exactly. No one ever told you, "If you don't know what you're doing, don't muck with it?"

[ajas]

Oh, I can feel your pain

[BisonHead]

Wow thats ballsy, but great.

I take it the Ceramic inserts are quite expensive compared to the old skool ones?

[SearChart]

Originally Posted by BisonHead

Wow thats ballsy, but great.

I take it the Ceramic inserts are quite expensive compared to the old skool ones?

Yes... This is MSRP excluding VAT and the cost of placing the bezel.

[BisonHead]

Yes... This is MSRP excluding VAT and the cost of placing the bezel.


Yep thats a fair few pennies right there.

[JacksonStone]

Originally Posted by SearChart

Yes... This is MSRP excluding VAT and the cost of placing the bezel.

Is labor a mandatory, additional charge? I assume RSC won't just sell the part to a customer to install himself. What's the final cost on this kind of repair?

[SearChart]

Originally Posted by JacksonStone

Is labor a mandatory, additional charge? I assume RSC won't just sell the part to a customer to install himself. What's the final cost on this kind of repair?

Yes labor is mandatory, we would charge €50 for that.

[JacksonStone]

Originally Posted by SearChart

Yes labor is mandatory, we would charge €50 for that.

That's some spendy curiosity.

[One Ping Only]

Originally Posted by JacksonStone

Is labor a mandatory, additional charge? I assume RSC won't just sell the part to a customer to install himself. What's the final cost on this kind of repair?

Well, we’ve seen what happens when you do it yourself

[RichM]

Ouch! Good luck with the repairs.

[904VT]

Originally Posted by SearChart

Yes... This is MSRP excluding VAT and the cost of placing the bezel.

Sorry to hear OP. These are actually much less expensive than expected. Considering the cost of the watch ~$500 for something that in theory maybe needs replacing once it its lifetime if unlucky is not too bad at all.

Come on Rolex you can make more of these SS BLROs if that's all you want to replace the insert.

[jfmiii]

Originally Posted by SearChart

Yes... This is MSRP excluding VAT and the cost of placing the bezel.

ummm...if anyone can get one for CHF 471, ill gladly pay 2x that!