Given how brilliant your straps are, that's a hell of an offer. Thanks very much! However, there's a long way to go yet and some very very fine watches in the competition. Not least yours!
I found the movement shot and it really demonstrates that all it was was a lot of filing, sanding and polishing. Nothing clever. I stripped off all the gold to leave brass and then kept going until it stopped looking like a dodgy Indian refurb and more like a brassy pebble.
Mind you, as I started with this and ended with this
I'm pretty chuffed whatever happens.