Alright, folks, gather ’round, let me tell you about my latest project. I got this wild idea to try and remake the Patek Philippe Golden Ellipse 5738R. Yeah, you heard that right, the fancy one that usually goes for big bucks. Now, I’m no watchmaker, but I do love a good challenge, and I figured, why not give it a shot?
So, first things first, I started digging around for any info I could find on this beauty. Scoured the internet, read up on its specs, and of course, drooled over a bunch of pictures. From what I gathered, the 5738R is part of the Golden Ellipse collection, which is all about that “golden ratio” – you know, that fancy 1 / 1.6181 proportion the ancient Greeks were all about. Classy stuff.
The real deal is made of rose gold and has this sleek, ebony black sunburst dial. Apparently, it was released to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Golden Ellipse model, so it’s got some history to it, too. I saw that the original thing costs tens of thousands of dollars but it’s also on the pre-owned market for a little less. Anyway, far from my budget, that’s why I started this whole DIY journey.
Now, onto the fun part – the actual making. I knew I couldn’t replicate it exactly, especially with my limited tools and skills. But I was determined to capture its essence. The case was the first hurdle. Rose gold was obviously out of the question, so I found a similar-shaped case in a more, uh, budget-friendly material and tried to give it a bit of a polish to get that fancy gleam.
The dial was a whole other beast. I experimented with some black materials and tried to mimic that sunburst effect, It wasn’t easy, and let’s just say there were a few failed attempts, but I eventually got something that looked halfway decent. Not exactly Patek Philippe level, but hey, it’s got that DIY charm, right?
- Sourced a similar-shaped case.
- Experimented with black materials to create a sunburst-like dial.
- Assembled the parts carefully.
- Spent countless hours on the details.
The Final Result
After a lot of trial and error, I finally put the whole thing together. It is not perfect, far from it. But, I gotta say, holding it in my hands, it felt pretty darn good. It’s got the basic shape, the black and gold vibe, and it tells the time – what more could you ask for? Sure, it’s not going to fool any watch experts, but it’s a fun little project that I’m proud of. Plus, I learned a ton along the way about watch design and that elusive “golden ratio.” Now every time I look at it, I remember the effort put into it, and it puts a smile on my face. All in all, a fun experience.