Which watch brands have provided you the best servicing experience?
Hello everyone,
I'm putting a little money aside each month for when I turn 35 (currently 30) in the hopes of getting a good mechanical watch which I would like to last for the rest of my life.
A worry for a lot of us watch enthusiasts that we will buy a lovely watch and then no support will be given by the manufacturer after a number of years.
I've never had a watch in for a service (all my timepieces are less than 2 years old) and I wanted to know which brand provided you with the best service and if you could talk about how it went(How much it cost, customer service and wait time etc).
My budget for the watch would be a max of £3000 . I heard that "Longines" has provided good servicing and I have seen the CEO on YouTube state that servicing is a core arm of the business(Might just be PR so take that with a pinch of salt).
Thanks for reading.
Hi, I got bitten by the watch bug late last year and safe to say I am thoroughly addicted to all things related to watches. It's been fun learning all the cool details about watches like movements, ca...
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If you buy from the established brands, they will be able to service most watches from their own brand.
If you buy from a microbrand, most use common Seiko/Selita/ETA movements, so servicing from a local watchmaker would not be an issue.
A conservative estimate will be to set aside $150-$200 per year per watch for servicing with the brand and $80-$100 per year per watch if servicing is done at your local watchmaker. Either way, you have to factor in service costs into the entire cost of ownership.
You'd probably only need to bring in your watch to service every 8 to 10 years or when the performance noticeably drops. Many people have commented in various forums that they do no see any benefit servicing at regular/fixed time intervals.
If you buy from the established brands, they will be able to service most watches from their own brand.
If you buy from a microbrand, most use common Seiko/Selita/ETA movements, so servicing from a local watchmaker would not be an issue.
A conservative estimate will be to set aside $150-$200 per year per watch for servicing with the brand and $80-$100 per year per watch if servicing is done at your local watchmaker. Either way, you have to factor in service costs into the entire cost of ownership.
You'd probably only need to bring in your watch to service every 8 to 10 years or when the performance noticeably drops. Many people have commented in various forums that they do no see any benefit servicing at regular/fixed time intervals.
Thanks, good to know that I would be able to keep my Seiko's going for a number of years. I think it's sad the idea of a watch becoming a glorified paperweight because of no parts/service available.
Thanks, good to know that I would be able to keep my Seiko's going for a number of years. I think it's sad the idea of a watch becoming a glorified paperweight because of no parts/service available.
For the Seiko NH movements, many have said it might be cheaper to just replace the whole movement when it finally breaks down - I'm not at that stage yet, but when the time comes, I might look for a local modder to help swap out the movement. Ha ha!
Cartier
For the Seiko NH movements, many have said it might be cheaper to just replace the whole movement when it finally breaks down - I'm not at that stage yet, but when the time comes, I might look for a local modder to help swap out the movement. Ha ha!
Huh - I didn't think about swapping out the movement. That's a great idea - thanks!
Tudor have a five year warranty that is with watch…not the owner. So if you decide to sell on…
I had an issue with a Pelagos 42, two of the lume markers came out of the bezel while swimming. (Apparently a know manufacturer error)
Took it to an AD… they sent it to Tudor for appraisal.
Tudor replaced the bezel in about six weeks.
Nb… I purchased the watch pre owned.
Tudor have a five year warranty that is with watch…not the owner. So if you decide to sell on…
I had an issue with a Pelagos 42, two of the lume markers came out of the bezel while swimming. (Apparently a know manufacturer error)
Took it to an AD… they sent it to Tudor for appraisal.
Tudor replaced the bezel in about six weeks.
Nb… I purchased the watch pre owned.
That's pretty bad that the markers just fell off (I would expect a lot better at that price point!) but at least you were covered. Sounds like a horrid time ☹
That's pretty bad that the markers just fell off (I would expect a lot better at that price point!) but at least you were covered. Sounds like a horrid time ☹
It was a shock certainly…but looking at forums..talking to the community. It was a bad batch. From a particular year.
Truthfully… until then I’d always been abit meh about Tudor in general.
The only one I liked being the Pelagos. Since my dealings with AD etc etc… I’ve purchased the Pelagos 39 and the BlackBay 54
It was a shock certainly…but looking at forums..talking to the community. It was a bad batch. From a particular year.
Truthfully… until then I’d always been abit meh about Tudor in general.
The only one I liked being the Pelagos. Since my dealings with AD etc etc… I’ve purchased the Pelagos 39 and the BlackBay 54
I've never had a watch with a GMT function. Tudor and Longines seem to offer some real compelling options at the price-point I'm capped at for when I'm 35 (£3K)
I've never had a watch with a GMT function. Tudor and Longines seem to offer some real compelling options at the price-point I'm capped at for when I'm 35 (£3K)
Don’t discount pre owned… I bought this one pre owned, I’ve had it ten years… it has been faultless.
Don’t discount pre owned… I bought this one pre owned, I’ve had it ten years… it has been faultless.
That's a lovely watch! Your right: I shouldn't discount pre-owned, I think I just get intimidated because of all the scams I hear about. I'd be crushed if I got swindled.
My Willard cost £80 & 2 months just to have the bezel replaced - tho it should have been £120 but they honoured the original low estimate.
My SM300 cost £485 & 4 months for complete service and crown repair, came back looking & running like a brand new watch.
Don’t discount pre owned… I bought this one pre owned, I’ve had it ten years… it has been faultless.
That's beautiful 😍
That's beautiful 😍
They call them Neo vintage… it’s from 2000! I have watches that are 80 plus years old.. more accurate that some modern automatics.
That's a lovely watch! Your right: I shouldn't discount pre-owned, I think I just get intimidated because of all the scams I hear about. I'd be crushed if I got swindled.
Buy the seller not the watch… as they say. It’s a lot of money… it’s understandable to be nervous.
You also have all the people on here to ask questions. Don’t be afraid to ask… the watch community, will happily chat for hours about a bezel action 😆😆😆
A new NH35 is $25. You can watch an uncut YouTube video of someone swapping one out in 25 minutes. Your tastes, values and requirements could change a lot in 10 to 20 years.
A new NH35 is $25. You can watch an uncut YouTube video of someone swapping one out in 25 minutes. Your tastes, values and requirements could change a lot in 10 to 20 years.
That's very true
Don’t discount pre owned… I bought this one pre owned, I’ve had it ten years… it has been faultless.
That bezel is awesome, perfect for my aging eyes 😁🥴🤣👍🏾
A new NH35 is $25. You can watch an uncut YouTube video of someone swapping one out in 25 minutes. Your tastes, values and requirements could change a lot in 10 to 20 years.
I'm slowly building a watch tool set just for this reason. I eventually want to learn modding as well.
Rolex and TAG have provided great service, just maintenance and surprisingly the TAG service was more costly. Both took a little longer than I wanted, which the AD chalked up to “parts” shortages. Tudor was okay. It wasn’t maintenance but the movement just went to crap. They changed out the movement and it took the fastest. It did return with some scratches on the case and bezel, took it back to the AD, said it’d take a few months, decided not to, the scratches were noticeable, but all my watches have scratches and it wasn’t too bad. I’m impatient.
I recently sent this Seamaster 2531.80 in to Omega for an overhaul. I bought it back in February in Japan at a second hand store, for what I think was a killer price. It is 18-19 years old, and I don't think it had ever been serviced before. It was pretty dinged up and was losing about 20 seconds a day. The overall service timeline took about 3 months, and it cost $1,200. It was $700 for the service for an automatic watch and the dial had to be replaced due to damage which cost another $450. On top of replacing the dial, they replaced the hands, date wheel, pins for the bracelet and some parts within the movement. Also, the bracelet and case were lightly polished, and it is now running about 3 seconds fast a day. Overall, I am happy with the experience.
I would recommend Jaeger LeCoultre. They just serviced a 62 year old watch for me and did a fantastic job. Yes it was expensive, but completely worth it.
I have had good luck with Omega and Hamilton. Hamilton ran $300 and the Omegas were $500 (non coax) and $700 as I recall. Both companies did great work and also gave me a new two year warranty. Took 3-4 months.
Great experience with IWC on both newer and older watches. As others have said, consider warranty too, Oris for example have 10 year warranty and service interval on their calibre 400 models, which are lovely. Not the cheapest but reasonably quick on a service - which I think means under three months.
A more standard simple movement will be cheaper to service than a complicated watch or likely an in-house movement. Keep in mind also that a number of brands restrict parts from going to third party repairers.
Very sad to hear about your experience from Seiko and Citizen
Great experience with IWC on both newer and older watches. As others have said, consider warranty too, Oris for example have 10 year warranty and service interval on their calibre 400 models, which are lovely. Not the cheapest but reasonably quick on a service - which I think means under three months.
A more standard simple movement will be cheaper to service than a complicated watch or likely an in-house movement. Keep in mind also that a number of brands restrict parts from going to third party repairers.
I hadn't thought of Oris, 10 year interval is bonkers!
I’ll attest Longines as the only brand I’ve had serviced through an AD as opposed to a regular watch repair shop. They polished my watch up quite nicely and had it running well within chronometer standards. All said and done it was 8 weeks from leaving my local Tourneau and cost about $300, not cheap but I do like the watch and it was running poorly.