Reply With QuoteDid they mention how long this would take? i.e. is it days rather than weeks?Originally Posted by IMMY77
Just spoke to Bretling after sales at the bond st. Boutique. The chap said you get two free tests. One in the second year and one in the 4th year. No charge but has to be sent away. Can be taken to any AD.
Did they mention how long this would take? i.e. is it days rather than weeks?
I think he said a few weeks. I also asked if it affected the warranty, and he said it could do if the test was not done and they felt it was due to water, otherwise the warranty still stands.
Think I would rather have it done....my luck at the moment is zero....so I wouldn't risk it.
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I emailed Breitling customer services today about my B55 and got this reply on this matter:
"The B55 is a quartz model and therefore is issued with a 2 year manufacture warranty. We will perform the water resistance tests within the maintenance services."
So non Manufacture Breitling come with 2 year warranty and not dependent on a wr test (can be done within a maintenance service).
Hope that helps anyone considering wr tests and 2y or 5y Breitling models and guarantees
Martyn
I will aswell when the time comes. The watch doesn't get worn that much anyway, so can live without it for a while.
It's more than a service; basically they are saying it's necessary to replace everything except the case and dial! Crown, crystal, bezel, hands and bracelet. I want it serviced and water proofed and would like the slack removed from the bezel spring but I don't think they're offering what I want.
I am not spending over a grand on a watch worth half that. It runs fine, it's never worn anyway so this state of affairs will simply continue.
Not sure whether the movement's an ETA 2824 or 2892 in the OP's watch. However, I`m amazed at the mechanical parts they're wishing to replace. Unless the balance staff is broken or in very poor condition (unlikely) I fail to see why the watch needs a new balance! Even then I`d expect the balance to be no more than £75. The train wheel bridge is easily damaged on a 2892 but only by careless handling whilst working on the watch. The only parts that can wear are the jewels, and usually they last virtually forever. As for the auto-winding, again I'm struggling to see why this part has to be replaced.
Seems very odd to me. I question how differently the watch will run with or without replacement of these parts. There are parts I can understand them choosing to replace, but not the stuff they've listed!
Paul
Last edited by walkerwek1958; 16th February 2017 at 19:07.
Well my colt GMT came back last week, £857.46. It's now as new and fully recovered from the drop. The second hand remains square which I was a bit worried about after reading they changed them to the newer style. Cost breakdown;
Complete service £345.85
Exchange of crystal £83.08
Exchange of middlecase £239.46
Exchange of crown £32.16
Shipping £15
VAT £142.91
That looks phenomenal :)Well my colt GMT came back last week, £857.46. It's now as new and fully recovered from the drop. The second hand remains square which I was a bit worried about after reading they changed them to the newer style. Cost breakdown;
Complete service £345.85
Exchange of crystal £83.08
Exchange of middlecase £239.46
Exchange of crown £32.16
Shipping £15
VAT £142.91
Was the timeframe accurate? I've been quoted 8 weeks but I'm eager to get it back.
It took about 10 weeks, but I did send it in December so the Christmas break probably added the extra couple of weeks. I'm seriously impressed with the service. In a way I'm pleased I dropped it.
Looks good. If you like the watch and wear it that's the main thing.Well my colt GMT came back last week, £857.46. It's now as new and fully recovered from the drop. The second hand remains square which I was a bit worried about after reading they changed them to the newer style. Cost breakdown;
Complete service £345.85
Exchange of crystal £83.08
Exchange of middlecase £239.46
Exchange of crown £32.16
Shipping £15
VAT £142.91
What's a 'middle case'? Is that the part with the case sides and the lugs or is it something internal e.g. movement spacer ring?
Here's a great way to apply ink to bezel numbers - buy a ceramic pen. Fill it in, and wipe off the excess. Bake it in the oven for maximum take, I don't and it doesn't come out when washed.
Christ. Also read around that servicing an Oris can be around £600. An Oris!
I believe the bit that houses the movement so inside the case.
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com...e0cbbf85e6.jpg
I always thought the middle case was the main case, lugs ect
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It wasn't that long ago someone said an Oris service was quite inexpensive compared to Breitling and others.
A bit off topic, but does anyone know how Omega compare to Breitling in servicing costs?
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You can find Omega's charges on their website. In my experience, Swatch UK in Southampton who do the UK servicing, are more pragmatic in approach than Breitling appear to have been on this thread; for instance they will attempt to sympathetically refurbish case and bracelet parts rather than automatically replace.
On one of my watches they commented upon scratches to the sapphire crystal (which I'd not noticed) but they didn't recommend replacing it. I had a steel bezel replaced at a cost of £125 but it was at my request as a previous owner had messed it up and badly polished it.
By comparison a metal 'enlargement ring' AKA movement spacer ring that goes around the movement, for an Omega Speedmaster costs $82 from Otto Frei (admittedly, supplies of Omega parts are starting to dry up with third parties).
If it's internal I guess we'll never know.
That's good then, I'm buying a new SMPc next week from my AD :)
Providing I like the Watch in the flesh, but I think I will.
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A recent service on an SMPC (that I saw for sale elsewhere) appears to be:
£260 + £52 VAT for a simple service (no parts)
£90 + £18 VAT for case and bracelet refurb.
As an owner of no less than three Breitlings, I find some of the servicing costs quoted in this thread more than a little sobering! Mind you it should be quite a while before any of mine need attention, hopefully...
Simon
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Yep. My 2254 is in currently and will be over £400 for full service and case/bracelet refurb.
Did it never cross your mind to send it elsewhere? That's a lot of money to service one of these!
Paul
Last edited by walkerwek1958; 23rd February 2017 at 09:42.
Indeed and of course. Usual reputable suspects are not massively different for the service element vs STS. Case and bracelet refurb I agree though is a little steep.
Justified as the only service in 10 years so when you look at it 'that way' it is not too bad..........ish.....
I don't think the refinishing cost is bad; I've refinished several of these and they're not easy to get right. People fail to realiae whst's involved in the refinishing work, it's farmore time-consuming than servicing the movement.
I think the price for servicing what is a very atraightforward ETA movement, plus the cost of a couple of O ring seals , is high. I've done a fair number in the past and they're not the most difficult to sort out.
Paul
By way of an update, I received a letter from Breitling on Saturday telling me that the watch was complete and ready to be shipped. So, I have paid this morning and with luck the Breiters will be back tomorrow before 1pm. Pictures to follow!
But, a couple of (very!) dumb questions before that; With Saturday's documentation there was a note saying that upon receipt, the watch 'will need to be wound 40 times' to charge the mechanism. So, at the risk of sounding dumb - what's a typical 'wind' look like (can't believe I'm asking this, but very keen not to damage it!). Am I looking to complete 1 complete revolution of the crown and count that as a wind?
Or is it much more flexible and is just the action of thumb and forefinger wind, wind, wind etc.
Or, am I worrying too much, can you actually overwind? (never seen a definitive answer to that)
To the best of my knowledge you can't overwind a brietling and a full charge is around 32 full 1 revolutions of the crown I think, or that's what I used to do
I forgot to update this, mine came back polished and looking like a new penny. BUK certainly took my comments on board and delivered as promise, only thing is the date changes 5 mins early now where as it used to change nearer 12 rather than 11.55. But I assume that this is acceptable.
Not sure I could be as forgiving as you
I have actually emailed them about it and asked what the spec's are regarding this, if any! As it got me thinking, a quick google suggest that they wont deem it as an issue.
Also, I just noticed some slight lateral movement in the bezel, this seems to be more from 6-12 way than 3-9 if that makes sense. I dont know if it was there before to be honest but it maybe a case I am looking for problems.
I will await their reply and update.
The 'middle case' is the main case, minus the caseback, bezel etc, so yes, it is the sides and lugs and normally, as a service item, will be complete with the case tube fitted but a chronograph will not have the pusher tubes fitted.
That seems more reasonable for the prices quoted.
Well, the postie delivered the watch on Tuesday - pretty pleased as you might imagine. Breitling have done a great job, without a hint of hesitation it looks brand new. I'd forgotten over the years of wear that the Fighter bracelet had a brushed centre section, with polished outer segments, this really stands out now.
Some pics;
Before...
After...
Back...
Clasp...
The bare figures in this thread astound me. I have never been a huge fan of the Breitling look but bearing in mind what is being discussed here I thank god I have instead fallen for lesser, more down market brands like Omega and Rolex whose servicing costs are by comparison modest. I can't believe I just typed that but even at £500-600 an RSC service looks cheap next to the demands of these criminals at Breitling. STS are still circa £325 for an Omega Service including light refurb vs the £380 OSC now charge and I have recently discovered that STS's non Omega arm Swisstec will do Rolex servicing at a rather more bearable fee than RSC so there are options out there for the rest of us!
If you must persevere with Breitling, would an independent like Watchworks be worth a call I wonder?
That looks really good. I take it that you opted to keep your original bezel, which looks excellent. Did this then end up costing around £950?
Thanks :) and yep, pretty much exactly :)
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