The Watch Appreciation Thread - Part two (Rolex, Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, Jaeger LeCoultre,

[sood]

it's a great bit . i think it's a toktok thing but it makes its way into twotter . I think that guy might be American lol

it makes into instogram as well

 

[double00]

it makes into instogram as well

and even styleforum ! dood has won

 

[double00]

ngl i'm liking panerai more now than back in the 000s

 

[Ebitdaddy]

How many times can you get something like a Tank Francaise polished without ruining the case shape and bracelet? I have one in large steel and another in yellow gold, also large. Both are 20+ years old though and definitely look beat to **** lol.

 

[LA Guy]

How many times can you get something like a Tank Francaise polished without ruining the case shape and bracelet? I have one in large steel and another in yellow gold, also large. Both are 20+ years old though and definitely look beat to **** lol.

Depends on who is doing it I guess. I found my watch repair/make it look nicer guy by word of mouth, and he specializes in minimally affecting on the case shape, lugs, bracelet. It’s been a bit, but But I’ve also seen local jewelry shops butcher a watch on polishing the very first time. I do think that a beat up watch has its own desirable character though. Ymmv.

Show us the beat up Tank please!

 

[mebiuspower]

 

[mebiuspower]

bleeding since 2015

 

[JamesInLondon]

The piling on to Bremont's recent launch reminds me so much of the similar reaction to AP's launch of the Code 11:59 a few years ago. There were a few people who thought it interesting and an entire shipload of commentators who, in their kindest analogies, compared it to a cheap version of a Christopher Ward. I noticed what defined the two groups, the former had been present at the physical launch and had handled the watches - the second group hadn't and relied on particularly crappy press release images.
And, so I wonder how many of these commentators piling on to Bremont now have handled the new watches, have sat down for an hour with the CEO for a one on one, and discussed how all this fits into the long term strategy; and, perhaps more importantly, have chatted to the people who really matter - the Bremont dealers - who, to a man, welcomed the new line.

There seems to be the impression that everything Nick and Giles created is being unceremoniously dumped in the garbage - not at all - the existing lines as well as the watches created for armed forces and police units will continue. The watches being introduced are an entry level line supplementing the current production, and make sense when seen as this rather than as a wholesale replacement for the current models

.

Although - to be honest - I genuinely have no idea why they introduced a TOURBILLON.

 

[Ebitdaddy]

Depends on who is doing it I guess. I found my watch repair/make it look nicer guy by word of mouth, and he specializes in minimally affecting on the case shape, lugs, bracelet. It’s been a bit, but But I’ve also seen local jewelry shops butcher a watch on polishing the very first time. I do think that a beat up watch has its own desirable character though. Ymmv.

Show us the beat up Tank please!

 

[pmeis]

The piling on to Bremont's recent launch reminds me so much of the similar reaction to AP's launch of the Code 11:59 a few years ago. There were a few people who thought it interesting and an entire shipload of commentators who, in their kindest analogies, compared it to a cheap version of a Christopher Ward. I noticed what defined the two groups, the former had been present at the physical launch and had handled the watches - the second group hadn't and relied on particularly crappy press release images.
And, so I wonder how many of these commentators piling on to Bremont now have handled the new watches, have sat down for an hour with the CEO for a one on one, and discussed how all this fits into the long term strategy; and, perhaps more importantly, have chatted to the people who really matter - the Bremont dealers - who, to a man, welcomed the new line.

There seems to be the impression that everything Nick and Giles created is being unceremoniously dumped in the garbage - not at all - the existing lines as well as the watches created for armed forces and police units will continue. The watches being introduced are an entry level line supplementing the current production, and make sense when seen as this rather than as a wholesale replacement for the current models View attachment 2176919 .

Although - to be honest - I genuinely have no idea why they introduced a TOURBILLON.

Yes, it's certainly easy to be an opinionated loudmouth online...and hating on stuff generally gets more clicks than liking stuff, so it's always best take ranters with a grain of salt.

But I don't know about your point about people who had hands on vs the not...I listened/read plenty of people who had hands on with the new watches, some of them whose judgement I've found to be aligned with my own experiences. The most damning thing from some of these "more trusted" voices is that in an industry where people generally either offer praise or no comment, there was a lot more damning with faint praise then I can recall from them previously. It was the closest thing to a full condemnation that I've heard from some of these people. (which in amongst itself is a bit of a condemnation of how the industry is covered)

 

[Dino944]

thoughts (~40k USD)? https://www.jaeger-lecoultre.com/us...ra-thin-perpetual-calendar-pink-gold-q114258j

A friend of mine has this watch with a silver/white dial and he's very happy with it. I think it's a nice watch, and a good value, but probably generally not the same value retention as bigger named brands (if you are someone who sells/trades comfortably). I'd have to see that dial in person, with rose gold. Generally, I don't love blue dials with rose gold, I prefer silver, brown or black dials with rose gold. Wishing you lots of luck and fun shopping for a perpetual calendar.

 

[Dino944]

How many times can you get something like a Tank Francaise polished without ruining the case shape and bracelet? I have one in large steel and another in yellow gold, also large. Both are 20+ years old though and definitely look beat to **** lol.

Gold is so soft that even if you have it polished, it will pick up faint hairline scratches on the polished parts very quickly. Even something as gentle as a soft cotton dress shirt cuff will cause that to happen after a few wears. So I tend to be hesitant about polishing watches, unless the condition is really bothering you, I'd leave it alone. Whenever you polish something (except platinum from which I've read is so dense and tough that when you polish it you are really just re-organizing the molecules and not really losing metal), you loose small amounts of metal. As the watches are 20 years old, I think if you did it once, you should be fine with it and the case shapes and edges should stay pretty close to the original tolerances. The real problems start happening when people start doing it every 5 - 7 years or so. However, I would only send it to Cartier (or whatever manufacturer a watch came from). I know lots of people try to avoid the manufacturers because of cost, thinking they are getting ripped of, but I have to tell you in my experience, Cartier is one of the most affordable companies when it comes to servicing watches. A few years ago I sent in a large TF auto for service, it was polished, and it was maybe $450-500. My Tank Louis XL went in for an overhaul last year, I requested it not be polished and I think it was just under $500. I can check the receipts if you are interested, but I've found they are far less expensive than Rolex or other well known brands. I tend to avoid independents, even if I one could save some money because I've seen far too many butchered cases and bracelets from independents. The manufacturer service shops have the original dyes and tools necessary to polish things properly and stay within certain tolerances. It's not merely a guy with a dremel tool eye balling things.

 

[mebiuspower]

Davide Cerrato looks great in every single photo online and he's very well dressed. In fact he does it so well that I wonder who much time he spends looking for his perfect outfit, staring at the mirror making a million poses before he walks out of the door and get some real work done.

What's his SF username?

 

[Ebitdaddy]

A few years ago I sent in a large TF auto for service, it was polished, and it was maybe $450-500.

Agreed re: sending to the brand. Helpful, ty!

They probably need service anyways. I have those two tanks, and ~3 others that have never been serviced and are quite old. I'm surprised they all still run totally fine.

 

[sood]

A friend of mine has this watch with a silver/white dial and he's very happy with it. I think it's a nice watch, and a good value, but probably generally not the same value retention as bigger named brands (if you are someone who sells/trades comfortably). I'd have to see that dial in person, with rose gold. Generally, I don't love blue dials with rose gold, I prefer silver, brown or black dials with rose gold. Wishing you lots of luck and fun shopping for a perpetual calendar.

Thank you, that's helpful, will certainly stop by the boutique to look at it in person!