Alright, let’s talk about this little project I dove into – remaking the Patek Philippe Calatrava 5227J-001. Yeah, the one from their official flagship store. It’s a classy piece, and I wanted to see if I could recreate it.
First off, I started by gathering all the info I could find. I scoured the internet, looked at the pictures from the official site, and dug up some details from a few watch forums. I noticed the watch is a 39mm, 18k yellow gold beauty, with a silver dial. It’s tagged as new for 2024, and the original box and papers were mentioned everywhere. Some sites listed the price around $38,000 to $41,710, which is, well, a lot.
Then, I got down to the nitty-gritty. I needed to find materials that looked the part. I spent days searching for a good quality 18k gold plating solution and a decent silver-colored material for the dial. It was a real hunt. I didn’t want to use real gold, obviously, so finding something that gave off that luxurious vibe was tough.
- Found a pretty good gold plating kit online.
- Settled on a silver alloy for the dial that had a nice sheen.
The next step was the assembly. I carefully measured everything out. The original is 39mm, so I made sure my version was the same. I read somewhere that the thickness of the movement is about 3.3mm, so I tried to keep my work as thin as possible too, though that was super tricky.
I started putting the pieces together. I plated the case with the gold solution, which was a bit nerve-wracking. I didn’t want to mess it up. Then, I crafted the dial, which took a few tries to get right. Cutting it to the perfect size and shape was a real test of patience. I won’t bore you with the details of my many failed attempts.
Putting It All Together
Once the individual parts were ready, I assembled the whole thing. It was like putting together a complex puzzle, but way more stressful. I was so worried about breaking something or messing up the alignment. But I took it step by step, and finally, it was done.
Honestly, it didn’t turn out half bad. It’s not a perfect replica, and I wouldn’t try to pass it off as the real deal, but it looks pretty good. It captured the essence of the Calatrava 5227J-001, I think. It’s got that elegant look, and the size is spot on. Of course, it doesn’t have the intricate movement of the original, but for a homemade project, I’m pretty proud of it.
This whole thing was a fun challenge. It taught me a lot about watchmaking, even though I was just fumbling my way through it. Would I do it again? Maybe. It was a lot of work, but seeing the final product was super satisfying.
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