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Info please, I'm sweating a bit...

Cooper 009
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Hi All,

I got left a vintage Longines watch (1975ish) by my dad which was his favourite watch.

It's a 5038, which is a tank style, with a calibre 5601. One of its lugs has nearly worn through, to the point I'm afraid to wear it incase it falls off my wrist.

I've sent it to Longines in the hope that they can repair the lug, I've received a bit of a report from them saying, amongst other things, it needs a case exchange.

Looking on Google, it reckons that a case exchange would/could be included in a full service.

But here's the thing, with it being a vintage watch, does anyone know a ball park or what I'd be looking at for a service for a 5601? Apparently it's a simple 2 hand movement. Or am I able to buy a case direct from Longines?

I'm sweating as the 'vintage' tag could mean thousands, or am I panicking for nothing?

I appreciate that this may be a unique situation, but if anyone has had any experience around something like this, I'd love to hear

Any info will be appreciated

Thanks,

Cooper
 
ErichKeane
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Cooper 009 Cooper 009
Hi All,

I got left a vintage Longines watch (1975ish) by my dad which was his favourite watch.

It's a 5038, which is a tank style, with a calibre 5601. One of its lugs has nearly worn through, to the point I'm afraid to wear it incase it falls off my wrist.

I've sent it to Longines in the hope that they can repair the lug, I've received a bit of a report from them saying, amongst other things, it needs a case exchange.

Looking on Google, it reckons that a case exchange would/could be included in a full service.

But here's the thing, with it being a vintage watch, does anyone know a ball park or what I'd be looking at for a service for a 5601? Apparently it's a simple 2 hand movement. Or am I able to buy a case direct from Longines?

I'm sweating as the 'vintage' tag could mean thousands, or am I panicking for nothing?

I appreciate that this may be a unique situation, but if anyone has had any experience around something like this, I'd love to hear

Any info will be appreciated

Thanks,

Cooper
I'll bet a 'new' case is going to be pretty expensive, and is almost definitely not included in their service cost. Longines mechanical 2-handers are ~$380 for a full service, and service usually only includes movement parts. Hands, dial, case, etc are all going to be add ons, which I suspect are expensive.

@Archer is a Omega watchmaker here, and since they have the same parent company(Swatch), probably has access to the price list. I would doubt 'thousands', but wouldn't doubt 'mid hundreds'.

I would suggest finding an independent watchmaker with a Longines repair account and have them do a sympathetic service. You'll probably end up spending about the same, but they at least will keep the watch more original.
 
Cooper 009
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Thanks for the info, the service isn't really the worry, as I know I can get an independent to get that done, it's more the case that got me worried. I naively thought they may have offered a laser weld, which I know is pricey, but I wouldnt have thought as expensive as a new case
 
ErichKeane
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Cooper 009 Cooper 009
Thanks for the info, the service isn't really the worry, as I know I can get an independent to get that done, it's more the case that got me worried. I naively thought they may have offered a laser weld, which I know is pricey, but I wouldnt have thought as expensive as a new case
An independent who does a lot of case work could perhaps offer that, but you'd have to ask in advance. Otherwise they might be able to ship that out. Rule of thumb last I looked was laser-welding anything but a Precious Metal watch was probably worse off due to cost though.
 
Cooper 009
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ErichKeane ErichKeane
An independent who does a lot of case work could perhaps offer that, but you'd have to ask in advance. Otherwise they might be able to ship that out. Rule of thumb last I looked was laser-welding anything but a Precious Metal watch was probably worse off due to cost though.
Okay good to know, what do you mean, worse off due to cost?
 
ErichKeane
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Cooper 009 Cooper 009
Okay good to know, what do you mean, worse off due to cost?
That laser welding is 'typically' (or at least at the time) more expensive than just buying a replacement case. Unfortunately that is a somewhat difficult to find watch, else I'd suggest finding an identical one (they go for ~$800 when they sell) in perhaps cheaper shape (bad dial/hands/movement/etc) and replacing the case with a used one, but that doesn't seem to be an option either.
 
Cooper 009
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ErichKeane ErichKeane
That laser welding is 'typically' (or at least at the time) more expensive than just buying a replacement case. Unfortunately that is a somewhat difficult to find watch, else I'd suggest finding an identical one (they go for ~$800 when they sell) in perhaps cheaper shape (bad dial/hands/movement/etc) and replacing the case with a used one, but that doesn't seem to be an option either.
Ah right, that makes sense, thanks for clarifying, it's appreciated
 
Cooper 009
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Rasputin Rasputin
@Cooper 009: can you provide a photo of the damage?
The watch is currently with Longines, I didn't think enough to take any photos before hand. Where the lug has worn, it's on the underside of the case, not on the tip of the lug where I've seen it before
 
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