Okay, so, I’ve been wanting to get my hands on a Patek Philippe Golden Ellipse 5738R for a while now. It’s a beautiful watch. But, you know, the price tag is way out of my league. So, I thought, why not try to remake one myself?
I started by looking around online, seeing what information I could gather. I found some info about the watch on a site called Chrono24. There were some nice pictures. They mentioned it’s the “grande-taille” rose-gold version and that it was made to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Golden Ellipse. I guess that makes it extra special.
I also checked out First Class Timepieces, it looks like they have a bunch of different Patek Philippe models, including this one. But again, it’s not something I could just buy.
Then, I dug a little deeper into what makes this watch so unique. I learned that its design is based on something called the “golden section.” It’s some kind of mathematical ratio, 1 / 1.6181, that the ancient Greeks came up with. It’s supposed to be this perfect proportion that’s pleasing to the eye.
Armed with all this newfound knowledge, I got to work.
Gathering Materials
First, I needed to find materials that looked like the real deal.
- I found some rose gold-colored metal sheets that I thought would work for the case.
- For the strap, I got some nice brown leather.
- I even found a little buckle that looked similar to the one on the original watch.
Shaping the Case
This was the trickiest part. I had to shape the metal into that unique elliptical shape.
- I used some small tools, and it took a lot of patience. I bent it slowly and carefully.
- I kept comparing it to pictures of the real watch.
- After a lot of trial and error, I finally got it to look right. It wasn’t perfect, but it was close enough.
Making the Strap
The strap was a bit easier.
- I cut the leather to the right size and shape.
- Then, I attached the buckle. I had to punch some holes in the leather and sew it all together.
- It took some time, but I was happy with how it turned out.
Putting It All Together
Once I had all the parts, I just had to assemble everything.
- I carefully attached the strap to the case.
- For the watch face, I found a simple watch mechanism online and put it inside the case.
- I even printed out a little dial that looked like the one on the Golden Ellipse and stuck it on.
And there it was! My very own “remake” of the Patek Philippe Golden Ellipse 5738R. It might not be the real thing, but it’s something I made with my own hands, and I’m pretty proud of it. It’s not perfect, of course, but it captures the essence of the original, and that’s good enough for me.
Click to consult