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Something to keep in mind and know before you buy a watch

1K views 17 replies 14 participants last post by  slcbbrown 
#1 · (Edited)
Anyone considering the purchase of one of these watches should inquire whether the brand will provide repair parts to the independent watchmaker of the customer's choosing, or if the watch can only be repaired at the manufacturer's repair facility. The brands noted below are reputed not to be willing to sell repair parts to independent watchmakers.

It's worth noting that repairs are differ from service such that in some cases the part that needs to be replaced as a part of routine service is generic enough that it can be sourced from sources other than the maker. Other parts, though not exactly generic, aren't unique to the point that an independent watchmaker cannot fabricate what's needed from a third party supplier. For example, one's watch may call for a 35mm diameter crystal. The watchmaker can conceivably cut a 40mm one to make it a 35mm one.


A. Lange & Sohne
Alfred Dunhill
Bertolucci
Blancpain
Breguet
Breitling
Bulgari
Cartier
Certina
Chaumet
Chopard
Daniel Mink
David Yurman
Dior
Doxa
Ebel
Fossil
Frederique Constant
Franck Muller
Guess
Glycine
Hublot
Harry Winston
Krieger
Jaeger-LeCoultre
Marcel Watch
Luminox
Mont Blanc
Meylan Stopwatches
Piaget
Parmigiani
Raymond Weil
Pierre Balmain
Sector
RGM
Tourneau
Skagen
Ulysse Nardin
Tutima
Van Cleef & Arpels
Vacheron Constantine
Zodiac

I have watches from one of the makers noted above, Breguet, and I've had it serviced by D.C. watchmakers. Of the remaining makes of watch that I have, I've I've not tried to get them serviced. I have a Cartier watch, but it's a quartz watch from the 1980. All I've ever done with it is replace the battery from time to time, and I didn't send it to Cartier for that.

Just sharing info I came across. Do with it what you will. Personally, I think it in the consumer's interest to make clear to a watch seller, especially if it's a brand boutique with whom one is dealing, whether being able to obtain service from a local watchmaker matters to oneself. I know for myself, if the maker wants $1K+ and six to 12 weeks, and a local fellow will do the work for $500 in two weeks, it matters.

EDIT
Please note that in no way do I think the list above reflects the reality that is applicable to watch makes that aren't listed. It's just a list to indicate what one watchmaker has observed with regard to the noted companies. There are far, far too many watch companies for any one person to have had direct experience with repairing all of them. (http://www.watchuseek.com/site/brandslist.htm)

All the best.
 
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#9 · (Edited)
Anyone considering the purchase of one of these watches should inquire whether the brand will provide repair parts to the independent watchmaker of the customer's choosing, or if the watch can only be repaired at the manufacturer's repair facility. The brands noted below are reputed not to be willing to sell repair parts to independent watchmakers.

It's worth noting that repairs are differ from service such that in some cases the part that needs to be replaced as a part of routine service is generic enough that it can be sourced from sources other than the maker. Other parts, though not exactly generic, aren't unique to the point that an independent watchmaker cannot fabricate what's needed from a third party supplier. For example, one's watch may call for a 35mm diameter crystal. The watchmaker can conceivably cut a 40mm one to make it a 35mm one.


A. Lange & Sohne
Alfred Dunhill
Bertolucci
Blancpain
Breguet
Breitling
Bulgari
Cartier
Certina
Chaumet
Chopard
Daniel Mink
David Yurman
Dior
Doxa
Ebel
Fossil
Frederique Constant
Franck Muller
Guess
Glycine
Hublot
Harry Winston
Krieger
Jaeger-LeCoultre
Marcel Watch
Luminox
Mont Blanc
Meylan Stopwatches
Piaget
Parmigiani
Raymond Weil
Pierre Balmain
Sector
RGM
Tourneau
Skagen
Ulysse Nardin
Tutima
Van Cleef & Arpels
Vacheron Constantine
Zodiac

I have watches from one of the makers noted above, Breguet, and I've had it serviced by D.C. watchmakers. Of the remaining makes of watch that I have, I've I've not tried to get them serviced. I have a Cartier watch, but it's a quartz watch from the 1980. All I've ever done with it is replace the battery from time to time, and I didn't send it to Cartier for that.

Just sharing info I came across. Do with it what you will. Personally, I think it in the consumer's interest to make clear to a watch seller, especially if it's a brand boutique with whom one is dealing, whether being able to obtain service from a local watchmaker matters to oneself. I know for myself, if the maker wants $1K+ and six to 12 weeks, and a local fellow will do the work for $500 in two weeks, it matters.

All the best.
Out of curiosity, where did you come by this list?

If accurate, this is definitely worth knowing. This information would be more consequential in some cases than others. If I owned a Lange, no local watchmaker would be touching my watch, so this information is fairly moot. On the other hand, I might be ticked off if it were impossible to get parts for a more affordable watch that would seemingly not require specialized knowledge.
 
#10 ·
I've got some questions about the list as well, due to some inconsistencies.

For example, why Certina, when Tissot, Hamilton, Mido, etc. aren't listed. We do know that ETA limits supply to non-certified watchmakers, but presumably at least some repairs could be done 3rd party (buying parts through ETA directly or by other means.

Then you have stuff at the low end like Fossil group (incl. Zodiac and Skagen) but again the other brands are missing. In that case, you've got generously long and easy-to-use warranties, short product lifecycles and (for brands other than Michele and maybe Zodiac) near-disposable products if they do die outside the warranty period. They're also simple enough that pretty much the only thing that couldn't be fixed would be cosmetic anyway. Same for Guess and Sector, probably.

Then as noted stuff like Harry Winston, RGM, etc. at the top of the list are so specialized that you're not going to be able to do anything else other than have a factory repair.

It's the stuff in the middle that gets the squeeze-- Doxa, Raymond Weil, Luminox and Glycine stick out to me as brands that aren't "cheap enough to be disposable" by any means but inexpensive enough that a serious repair bill could be very problematic relative to the value of these mid-priced brands. Again-- presuming it's generally accurate.

--

And of course pretty much nobody is going to sell the watchmaker *every* part to combat counterfeits and other questionable activities.
 
#18 ·
Can't speak to Omega, on this issue, but Rolex has never been a problem. Live in the Dallas area where we have one of the RSC, but I have only used non-Rolex guys for service. My last Rolex serviced was my father's 1959-sh t-bird, done about a year ago by Manny Chamois. We have several first rate repair shops that specialize in Rolex. My other brands are all a crap shoot or back to the factory.
 
#17 ·
Thanks for the list Tony, and sorry for this detour, but where in DC do you recommend for servicing? I have an AP with a cal. 2003 that I'd like to get a basic servicing done at some point. Not knowing much about servicing, would it be safe to assume that if the movement says adjusted to 5 positions it would be again as part of the servicing? Thanks in advance.
 
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