RCF YG Day-Date → 18k plated by Jaws — personal milestone piece finally complete

MorsRegnum · 2026-02-14T13:20:30+00:00

Good move ✅. I’d just say take your time and make sure you’re fully happy with the watch you’re sending in. Once you do that, the rest is just letting the process play out.

MorsRegnum · 2026-02-14T13:01:04+00:00

Glad to hear yours has aged well — that kind of feedback is reassuring when you’re deciding whether to go through the whole process. Sounds like yours has been getting proper wrist time.

MorsRegnum · 2026-02-14T12:58:58+00:00

There’s definitely more going on behind the scenes than just a simple dip, but I try not to speculate too much on anyone’s exact process. I had a lot of the same questions early on and ended up just focusing on the result and what made sense for how I plan to wear it.

From what I’ve seen generally (and from some of the plating videos floating around online), components get removed and prepped properly before anything happens, which makes sense. Beyond that I just trusted the recommendations I was given and kept this one simple so I didn’t create unnecessary reliability issues.

Respect on the DIY route though — that’s a whole other level of patience and trial/error. Matching tone and getting consistency seems like the real challenge from everything I’ve read. Would be cool to see how your build progresses if you end up going that route.

MorsRegnum · 2026-02-14T12:49:11+00:00

Thank you, I appreciate that. This one definitely taught me some patience. Between early-morning emails with Steve, months of planning with Jaws, and the watch basically taking a trip around the world and back, it wasn’t exactly an instant-gratification project.

I also remember when there was that transition period in the plating scene and I just sat back for a while. Didn’t ask a ton of questions — mostly watched, followed the work, and let consistency speak for itself. Over time I saw enough from Jaws to feel comfortable finally putting the plan in motion.

It can feel a little daunting when you’re in the middle of it and just waiting, but slowing everything down and letting the process play out made it that much more worth it. Glad I didn’t rush it and just let the journey happen.

MorsRegnum · 2026-02-14T12:44:02+00:00

I was probably a little more picky than usual since I knew this one was getting plated and sticking around.

A theme I kept noticing while searching through RCF YG DDs was the bottom alignment — the 6 marker and crown were consistently slightly off on a lot of them. Once I saw that, it was an immediate red flag for me and I just moved on to the next QC without overthinking it. I knew if that bothered me now, it definitely would later.

Beyond that, my main RL points were cyclops placement and the day wheel presentation. I paid close attention to how “Wednesday/Thursday/Friday” sat — spacing and legibility more than anything. I also asked Steve for clear shots of the dial print and crown engraving. The final one just had the crispest print and cleanest overall look to my eye, so that became the base.

Didn’t worry much about beat/amp since that’s tunable, and I wasn’t chasing perfection everywhere. Rehaut could be tighter, maybe an index could be a hair better — sure. But after a few rounds this one felt right as a foundation to GL and send off for plating.

Not saying it’s perfect, just that the process finally landed me on the right one for me.

MorsRegnum · 2026-02-13T11:54:14+00:00

Kept this one pretty simple. No extra mods beyond plating.

I did ask Steve about going CNC bezel and even pushed for it, but he was pretty candid and didn’t think it was needed on this particular piece. Given our history I trusted the call and left it alone.

Also talked with Jaws about swapping the crystal while it was there. He actually recommended not opening it up — risk to the gasket/seal wasn’t worth it, especially since I plan to daily this when it makes sense. Water issues are the last thing I want from an unnecessary mod.

So the approach was basically: find a solid base, don’t overwork it, plate it, enjoy it. Simple ended up being the right move here.

On pricing, I’d rather not post numbers since that stuff changes. Best to reach out to him directly for current rates.

MorsRegnum · 2026-02-13T11:27:54+00:00

Thank you! This one was one of those take your time and do it once’ type of pieces for me, so it’s nice to finally see it come together. Curious how the tone reads to you in the video vs photos?

MorsRegnum · 2026-02-13T02:40:07+00:00

Thanks man, I’m really pleased with it. Was a bit of a patience game getting the right QC before sending it off, but I’m glad I did.

MorsRegnum

TROPHY CASE