GMT-Master II Pepsi Bezel Comparison

The red and blue "Pepsi" ceramic bezel is one of the hardest watch components to manufacture. In the replica world, getting the exact shade of cherry-red and deep navy-blue—with a clean transition split and platinum numerals—has been a multi-year quest. Here is our direct comparison of Clean, VSF, and Xing ceramic bezels.

The Technical Challenge of Bi-Color Ceramic

Ceramic bezels are made by firing zirconium oxide powder at extremely high temperatures. Creating two completely different colors on a single solid piece of ceramic without blending at the color split line requires incredibly advanced chemical doping and masking techniques.

Clean Factory Pepsi Bezel (The Former Standard)

Before their closure, Clean Factory was famous for their V2 and V3 Pepsi bezels:

• Colors: Excellent representation. The red had a slightly matte, cherry tone, while the blue was a deep navy that shifted to dark black under low light, closely matching modern genuine references.
• Color Split: Razor sharp at the 9 and 3 o'clock markers. There was no color bleeding or overlap.

VS Factory (VSF) Pepsi Bezel

VSF introduced their GMT-Master II line to fill the void, creating their own ceramic Pepsi bezel:

• Colors: The blue is incredibly accurate, but the red has a slightly brighter, more vibrant crimson tone compared to Clean. It looks gorgeous in direct sunlight, though it is slightly brighter than modern genuine bezel inserts.
• Platinum Fills: Outstanding. VSF uses genuine platinum dust deposition inside the engraved bezel numerals, ensuring the numbers never fade or turn yellow over time.

Xing Ceramic Bezel (The Ultra-Premium Custom Choice)

For serious collectors who want the absolute perfect bezel, the aftermarket "Xing" bezel is the ultimate mod.

• The Look: The Xing bezel replicates the genuine Rolex MK3 Pepsi bezel insert. It has a slightly purple-tinted blue and a rich brick-red. It is considered 99% identical to the genuine Rolex bezel.
• Modification: At TimeMax, we offer a custom mod service where we can source a VSF GMT-Master II and professionally install an aftermarket Xing ceramic Pepsi bezel for you, creating the absolute ultimate GMT replica.

The Verdict

While the stock VSF Pepsi bezel is outstanding and offers the best VS3285 movement on the market, upgrading to a custom Xing Bezel on your VSF watch gives you the absolute best of both worlds: perfect movement reliability and the most accurate Pepsi color split available on the planet.