Do You Ever Service Your Rolex?

[Trurolexer]

Hi, do you ever service your Rolex?Where do you service it? In RSC or in other service centre? What do you think about service? After 5 year used we must service our Rolex or not?Please your reply here.Thanks. Best Regards, TR.

[jasonbellevue]

Every 5 years, as recommended by Rolex and only at the RSC. I have always been satisfied with the level of service at the RSC, and the refinishing of the case and bracelet, IMHO, is 2nd to none.

[SPACE-DWELLER]

Yes, I DO have my watches serviced every 5th. year, in theory, at is, since I have actually never owned a Rolex long enough to need them getting serviced.

When service is due, I will get them serviced by my AD Rolex-trained watch maker.

Anyway, I think the service charges (like 500 US $+) are a bit of a pain in the a..(ahem)....neck. 500 Dollars are a lot of money, at least to me, and since I have bought my SS Cos and SS GMT IIc only a couple of months apart, I am going to have to pay approx. 1,000 heard earned Dollars to maintain the condition of those two watches pretty much at the same time. It IS actually a problem for me raising that kind of money.

Sometimes this makes me wonder if I should drop having automatic watches, altogether, although I do love them.

Your thoughts on this?? And please don't come with tosser comments like "Send them to me, I will take care of them!!", etc.

[Earl Camembert]

Originally Posted by SPACE-DWELLER

Anyway, I think the service charges (like 500 US $+) are a bit of a pain in the a..(ahem)....neck. 500 Dollars are a lot of money,

Yes but you get a swell green cardboard box to take home.

[Orchi]

Err buddies...so far Orchi only managed to send the 16013 Datejust for routine service by trusted watchsmith buddy...becos Orchi has been using it regularly.

The rest of the Rolexes are kept in safekeeping...collecting dusts...so no need to send those for service lah.

[Lol-x]

Originally Posted by Orchi

The rest of the Rolexes are kept in safekeeping...collecting dusts...so no need to send those for service lah.

Even if you don't wear or use the watch you still should have it serviced periodically as the lubricants lose their lubricating properties and so you can damage or cause greater wear and tear on your watches if you do use them to any extent at all LAH :.

[Orchi]

Originally Posted by Lol-x

Even if you don't wear or use the watch you still should have it serviced periodically as the lubricants lose their lubricating properties and so you can damage or cause greater wear and tear on your watches if you do use them to any extent at all LAH :.

Err buddy Steve... the wiseone has spoken...his wish is Orchi's command.

[Lol-x]

Originally Posted by Orchi

Err buddy Steve... the wiseone has spoken...his wish is Orchi's command.

I'm not giving you a command lah, just don't want to see you with a big $$$ service bill. Anyway I'm sure you take good care of your watches lah

[striker27]

I have had watches that I have been serviced regularly and those that I have not. I usually bother getting them serviced when something has happened, say a chipped crystal. Or when the band has become scratched and damaged to the point where it would look unsightly. So on daily wearing watches probably every 2 to 3 yrs. On some other stuff rarely if at all.

I had so many problems with an old wind up Daytona I stopped wearing it all together I would always over or underwind the watch and it seemed to cause problems. That one I wore for about a week and it was keeping excellent time. I wore it maybe in the early 90's. My grand fathers Explorer has not been woren since 95 I wore it the last 3 weeks and it is spot on. It has not been serviced in over the last 12 yrs.

I think service is a crap shoot even at the RSC I have had to send a watch or two back a few times for stupid little things!!

[Alex Stylianou]

Mine has just had it's first ever in 50 years !

[Trurolexer]

Originally Posted by Earl Camembert

Yes but you get a swell green cardboard box to take home.

That's what I'm talking about bro...The big bucks I spend for that service and only bring that stupid box home...LOL!!!

[Trurolexer]

Originally Posted by Alex Stylianou

Mine has just had it's first ever in 50 years !

I do have 1500 like yours too around 1947 maybe. Can you post your 1500 pics here? I wanna see it, bro. And when they service your 1500 what they said? The movement is already rusty and dusty or something like that? Or the movement still OK?

[walds11]

If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

[SPACE-DWELLER]

Originally Posted by walds11

If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

I will say it differently:

If you don't fix it, you will be broke.....

.....when you get the bill for the exchanging of worn out Rolex parts.

[ROLEX MAN]

Please Bo don't get rid of your rollies: YOU WILL REGRET IT!

as I have painfully and then had to repurchase to sooth my soul!

[away36]

Originally Posted by Trurolexer

Hi, do you ever service your Rolex?Where do you service it? In RSC or in other service centre? What do you think about service? After 5 year used we must service our Rolex or not?Please your reply here.

I recently had my vintage Rolex serviced. Yes....it was a heavy hit and I could actually hear my credit card company cheering when I paid the bill, but I have no regrets. If I had a really expensive car, I wouldn't dream of driving it for years without changing the oil, so why would I treat a luxury watch any differently? The RSC does an amazing job. The bracelet on my vintage is solid gold, and it had a stretch gap at one point near the case. They did a remarkable job repairing that. As well, it comforts me to know that the parts I can't see are working as well as the parts I can.

[joey m]

Hey Bo,

I've got my one and only Pepsi, but i'm also in the process of acquiring an LV as well. Having two watches being serviced at the same time seems daunting when i think of the cost. Servicing them both twice is worth a very nice 2nd hand Seamaster in Australia, but no matter which Auto you buy, they'll cost money to maintain.

I have an F1 Tag Quartz also, but twice the Chronograph spring broke, and Tag wanted AUD$625 (USD560) to repair it. No way Jose, i took it to a reputable Watchmaker in Sydney, who fixed it for AUD$185 3 years ago and is still perfect.

Yep, i think having two Rollies to service at the same tiem will cost us all some funds, HOWEVER, people are still astounded that Rolexes keep such good time for self-winding timepieces, and that's when i'd never purchase a Quartz movement.

[jme]

Originally Posted by Trurolexer

Hi, do you ever service your Rolex?Where do you service it? In RSC or in other service centre? What do you think about service? After 5 year used we must service our Rolex or not?Please your reply here.Thanks. Best Regards, TR.

Yes twice by Rolex USA , great job.

J

[Paulie]

GMTII at 5 years from creation (early y-series) but 4 years of wearing. I want my 2003 model GMTII to make it to the same age as the wife's "new" 50 year old Oyster Precision! :)

[Trurolexer]

Originally Posted by SPACE-DWELLER

I will say it differently:

If you don't fix it, you will be broke.....

.....when you get the bill for the exchanging of worn out Rolex parts.

LOL!!! Funny...Seriously I wanna service my GMT soon, maybe service the movement clean the dust and oiling. Change the spare part when they can't work normally. Can you guys help me to calculate how many bucks I must spend? Oh dear I hate when must spend money for just servicing...with the big bucks!!!

[Alcan]

Originally Posted by Trurolexer

I wanna service my GMT soon, maybe service the movement clean the dust and oiling. Change the spare part when they can't work normally. Can you guys help me to calculate how many bucks I must spend?

The basic fee is usually around $450. The watch is completely disassembled, all parts are cleaned and inspected, worn/defective parts replaced, reassembled and oiled, timed, case and bracelet refinished.

Additional parts (crown & tube, etc) are, of course, extra cost but you get back an essentially brand new watch.

[Trurolexer]

Thanks Al!!! One more question, if someday I wanna sell my GMT, is that service paper is make the better value?

[BigHat]

Originally Posted by SPACE-DWELLER

Yes, I DO have my watches serviced every 5th. year, in theory, at is, since I have actually never owned a Rolex long enough to need them getting serviced.

When service is due, I will get them serviced by my AD Rolex-trained watch maker.

Anyway, I think the service charges (like 500 US $+) are a bit of a pain in the a..(ahem)....neck. 500 Dollars are a lot of money, at least to me, and since I have bought my SS Cos and SS GMT IIc only a couple of months apart, I am going to have to pay approx. 1,000 heard earned Dollars to maintain the condition of those two watches pretty much at the same time. It IS actually a problem for me raising that kind of money.

Sometimes this makes me wonder if I should drop having automatic watches, altogether, although I do love them.

Your thoughts on this?? And please don't come with tosser comments like "Send them to me, I will take care of them!!", etc.

I figured you for the last guy on the boards to consider dumping your watches.

[SPACE-DWELLER]

Okay, that'll teach me never to use irony in writing unless you use a smiley afterwards.

[StanGMT]

As a professional engineer I can tell you that any mechanical device, whether it be large (railway locomotive), or high-tech (aero engine), or small (Rolex movement), needs regular cleaning and re-lubing if it is to remain reliable and achieve its design life. Modern synthetic oils are fantastic - but they are not perfect and they do eventually degrade and need replacing.

Would any of you in the 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' brigade fly on an aircraft that hadn't been serviced in ten years? Or want to be put on a heart by-pass machine that hadn't been checked or relubed recently? I appreciate that watches aren't 'life-or-death' machines, but the principles are the same. Either you want a watch that is in good condition or you don't. Not getting a high-quality watch like a Rolex serviced regularly really is wasteful of a fine machine. And Alex - the fact that your watch is still going well after 50 years of not being serviced is only testimony to the Rolex quality plus an element of luck - I bet your watch movement is significantly more worn than that in my 40 year old GMT.

Stan.

[SUPERDOC]

A doc I work with sent his in for it's first servicing after >10yrs.
He finally bit the bullet because it was losing time.

When he got it back...my god it was a completely new watch!!

He had a two tone DJ on jubillee. He had never taken it off it 10yrs...so it was beat up.

I'd say he definitely got his money's worth on the service.

So I plan to follow his example....
I have no intention on sending in a well functioning clean looking watch just because of it's birthdate.

[Earl Camembert]

If one wants to save money on watch repair get a digitial quartz watch.

[mike]

Originally Posted by Trurolexer

Thanks Al!!! One more question, if someday I wanna sell my GMT, is that service paper is make the better value?

Yes. From RSC no question as to parts used.

[GoldenBear]

It doesn't make sense to "save" money by not properly servicing/maintaining your watch. You spent the money to buy it, why not spend the money to maintain it? Think of it as insurance. It's kind of like NOT going to the dentist...you save money in the short run, but in the long run it will be that much more costly and painful.

[Cephas]

Here is an article with pictures of what happens to automatic watches if you don't service them. The guy who wrote it serviced a Submariner:

http://www.people.timezone.com/mdish...135/3135_1.htm

He has a bunch of similar articles here:

http://www.horology.ru/workshop.htm

They are in Russian though. Good pictures of movements.