Okay, so, I’ve been itching to get my hands on a Patek Philippe Calatrava 6119G-001 for a while now. You know, that fancy watch with the hobnail pattern, but man, that price tag! It’s steep. I heard it goes for something like $33,110, and even on the used market, it is still around $26,278. Crazy, right? And I even heard from some people that it’s easier to get this Calatrava than some other models, but still, it is a hard way.
So I thought, “Why not try to remake one myself?” I mean, I’ve always been into crafting, and I figured it would be a fun little project. It is not like I have got that kind of cash to throw around now anyway. It is not easy to start from scratch, so I started by searching online for any info I could find on this watch. The more details, the better, especially high-definition images of the dial and the movement.
Once I got a good idea of what I was dealing with, I started breaking down the watch into its parts. The dial, the hands, the case, the movement, everything. For the dial, I decided to go with a simple white base. Recreating that hobnail pattern was out of the question, so I figured a plain white dial would still look pretty classy. I found some old dauphine-style hands from another watch I had lying around and used those. They were not an exact match, but they did the job. I also found some faceted applied white gold hour-markers from the same old watch.
The case was a bit tricky. I did not have any fancy white gold lying around, so I used a stainless steel case from a cheap watch I bought online. I polished it up as best as I could to give it a somewhat premium look. As for the movement, well, that was the hardest part. Patek Philippe movements are like works of art. I picked up a basic mechanical movement from a local watch repair shop, and after some cleaning and adjustments, I managed to get it working. It is not a Patek Philippe movement, but at least it is ticking!
Putting everything together was like solving a puzzle. It took me a couple of weeks, working on it whenever I had some free time. I had to make a few adjustments here and there, and it definitely was not perfect, but slowly and steadily, it started to look like a watch.
Finally, I managed to assemble the whole thing. I wound it up, and it started ticking. It felt so satisfying to see it come to life. I know it is not the real deal, but it is something I made with my own two hands. It might not be worth $33,110, but it is priceless to me.
- Sourcing the Parts: Found most of the parts from old watches or cheap ones I bought online.
- Dial: Used a plain white dial instead of trying to recreate the hobnail pattern.
- Hands: Used dauphine-style hands from an old watch.
- Case: Polished stainless steel case from a cheap watch.
- Movement: Basic mechanical movement from a local repair shop.
- Assembly: Took a few weeks, working on it in my free time.
The Result
My remake of the Patek Philippe Calatrava 6119G-001 is not perfect. It does not have the same level of craftsmanship or the same materials, but it is something I am really proud of. It was a fun and challenging project, and I learned a lot along the way. Plus, I have got a unique watch that no one else has. It might not fool a watch expert, but to the untrained eye, it looks pretty darn good. And to me, it is a reminder that sometimes, you can create something special without breaking the bank.
I heard that the real Patek Philippe Calatrava retains its value pretty well. Some even say it is an investment piece. Mine? Probably not so much. But hey, at least I did not have to take out a second mortgage to get it. So, if you are ever thinking about getting into watchmaking, I say go for it! It is a blast.
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