Hi all

I have an old Zenith which keeps good time but has issues winding. Perhaps 30% of the time the crown will only turn 4 or 5 times even though there is little to no power.

I brought the watch to a repair shop, explained the problem, and they took it for two weeks.

When the watch was returned to me, I could see no progress had been made (same problem with the winding) but I kept the watch two or three weeks for testing.

During this test period I discovered the watch had developed a time keeping problem. Overnight it lost one hour, and during another day it gained 15 minutes.

I brought the watch back to the repair shop and explained the problem (no progress on the winding issue; new time keeping issues) and they took the watch for another two weeks.

I'm testing the watch again and I can see the original winding problem is still there.

So basically there has been no progress and I've lost a lot of time dealing with them.

I'm not sure how to proceed.

Am I right in thinking these guys can't fix the problem? Or is this sort of back and forth normal when it comes to watch repairs?

Thanks for your comments.

 

Around $150. They are vintage specialists.

 

I would disagree.

You need to find a competent watchmaker who can diagnose and rectify the issue.

 

Haha but you don't know who I sent it to.

They are a well known Asian vintage specialist.

 

Strange story. I would advise to go and get your money back and find a real watchmaker.

 

If they're any good at what they do, they should have told you what the issue was and what they did to fix it.

 

Immediately after POSTING A PHOTO of the watch. We get cranky without pictures.

 

You are right we don't know who you sent it to. Please do tell us so we can avoid them.
You give it to them with a winding problem, and it comes back with a time keeping problem in addition to the original problem. You give it back to them and get it back again still with the winding problem. They really don't sound like the "specialists" you seem to think they are.

 

It's pretty hard to say what's wrong with this watch, without watch and pictures

It sounds like the spring slips through the spring housing....

To your problem

1. Go to another watchmaker
2. This watch repair shop should refund you the money
3. A specialist would never give you a watch back with such a time discrepancy, without to mention he can't fix it

 

Hi all

Just a little update. I brought it back to the shop and they said they would send it to a different watchmaker.

I told them if it still doesn't work, no more chances.

I'll let you know when I get it back in 2 or 3 weeks.

 

Yeah smart choice, they should have either given yiu your money back or at the very least stood behind their work and cover it under a warranty.

 

So does this mean you are taking the watch to a jewelry store that is sending their work out to different watchmakers, and it's not being worked on by the person you are dealing with directly?

If so, this is not an ideal way of getting a watch repaired IMO. The watchmaker in question is doing trade work, so he is getting paid maybe 1/2 of what you are being charged, and the shop is taking the rest. This means you are potentially getting a $75 service...which can't be much of a service...

In addition there are often communication issues where problems with a watch don't get properly communicated to the person doing the work - sounds very much like a possibility in your situation from what you have described. If you want them to give it another try that's up to you, but if they don't get it fixed, I would suggest finding a watchmaker that you can work with directly to get the watch repaired.

Cheers, Al

 

Find a watchmaker you can discuss the issue with directly. Such a consensus of opinion is difficult to argue with.

 

I have an update on this.

So it turns out the shop just send the watch off to different repairmen, so JimInOz is correct that these guys are basically just jewellers.

They think the problem is I don't know how to wind watches properly, so they want me to come in every day and wind the watch in front of them.

I went in today and wound the watch as I normally do: I hold the watch by the strap (where it connects to the lugs) and started winding. After a few winds it stopped winding. The staff member then made it wind some more by using some force to wind it. He said I need to hold the watch firmly (index finger on back case, thumb on crystal) and use a bit of strength. I should point out I'm in my 30s and I go to the gym, so I'm not weak. The watch again stopped winding and he was able to make it wind more using some force.

I feel like I may be getting scammed here. I was always able to wind the watch if I forced it (for example, if I use a rag to get a good grip and use strength when winding), but shouldn't a watch wind smoothly?

What is an 'acceptable' level of force when winding a watch?

 

The operational word here is "scammed"...

 

Well done for being right Jim.

What do you think is an 'acceptable' level of force when winding a watch?

 

Watchmakers generally can fix broken watches. But watches that are not being fully wound? Nothing a watchmaker can do about that. One thing that you don't tell us in all your posts is whether this watch is auto wind or manual wind! Either way, if your watch is unreliable because it is running down, nothing a shop can do about that!

 

It is manual wind.

Are you sure a watchmaker can't do anything about a watch which won't fully wind? I would have thought every watch problem can be fixed. Just need to pay for new parts and servicing.