i finally (12-18mo since starting) finished restoring an old datejust, just intime for my dads 65th birthday/retirement bash on saturday! its been a long process, and lots of lessons learned along the way. the spec changed a couple of times too, but i'm very happy with the way it turned out..
its a "bitsa" and theres no paperwork, but everything is gen and (as far as im aware) correct, except the bracelet; i put this one on to finish it off, hopefully the gen one i brought will turn up before the weekend as i'm not very happy with the fit-up of the end-links on this bracelet and would rather have it 100% done before gifting it
ended up getting a good deal on a bare 3035 movement which was missing a couple of bits and needed a total overhaul and service. I sourced replacement parts from cousinsuk and found an old guy near my house to strip it, clean, service, re-assemble and regulate it for me, and he did a great job for very little money! its running around +2s a day which i'm very happy with given the age of the watch..
the rest of the parts were collected over the course of the last 12mo and finally assembled by my own fair hand last night. The crystal is slightly out of alignment (cyclops angled slightly upwards vs. datewheel window) but i can't remove it to re-align so decided to leave it be rather than risk damaging it
anyway, few pics, hope you all approve!..
