So, I decided to give it a shot at remaking the Patek Philippe Gondolo 7042/100R-010. Yeah, I know, sounds kinda nuts, but hear me out. This ain’t my first rodeo with watches, but it’s definitely the fanciest one I’ve tackled.
First things first, I got a hold of a bunch of pictures and info about the real deal. The original one, you know, it is seriously pricey, going for over 200,000 USD. Crazy, right? Anyway, I needed to see all the little details, the way it’s put together, the materials, everything. And I found some info saying it is made of rose gold and the manual movement, as well as fitted with a pearl rose gold strap.
Next up, I had to figure out what I was gonna use to make my version. Obviously, I’m not using real gold or diamonds, I used some rose gold plated alloy that I thought looked pretty close. And the strap, I just picked a matching color and the diamonds on it were replaced with shiny crystals instead.
The real challenge, the movement.
I got a cheap mechanical movement I found online, the Caliber 215, that worked in a similar way. Disassembling it was, let me tell you, a pain in the neck. Tiny screws, tiny parts, you need the hands of a surgeon for this stuff.
I start to assemble the case. I tried to get the shape and the look of the Gondolo 7042/100R-010 as close as possible. And then I had to carefully put the crystal on the case. After that, I carefully put the movement into the case, making sure everything lined up perfectly. Then I secured it with screws. It was nerve-wracking, but I managed to do it without messing anything up.
Putting it all together was like doing a puzzle.
- I started with the case, making sure it looked as close to the original as I could get it.
- Then came the dial, and I made sure to put every single number in the right spot.
- After that, the hands, which was a real test of patience.
- Finally, I attached the strap, and voila, it actually looked like a watch.
I gotta say, seeing the finished product was pretty cool. It’s not perfect, of course. There are some differences here and there, but it definitely looks like a Patek Philippe Gondolo. And the best part? It actually tells the time! When I first tried it on, I felt a little bit of pride. I mean, I basically made a watch that looks like it costs more than a house, for just a tiny fraction of the price.
So yeah, that’s my little adventure of remaking a super expensive watch. It was tough, it took a lot of time, but it was also a lot of fun. Would I do it again? Maybe. But next time, I might pick something a little less complicated. I just want to share this cool thing I did. It was fun, and hey, now I’ve got a pretty sweet-looking watch to show off.
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