Just to clarify, if the OP sends this watch to an Omega service center in his country, it will likely be sent to Switzerland and the OP will be looking at thousands for a full restoration by the heritage department (or whatever it's called). If that's a consideration for him, he might as well give it a try and see what the quote looks like.
I literally don't know anything about this watch and I'm not about to pop the back off and mess anything up. Do you know what model this is or anything I can research about it?
... he might as well give it a try and see what the quote looks like.
Just because he sends it doesn't mean he's forced to pay it.
Unfortunately most of the southern part of the US is a couple decades behind much of the rest of the country in being LGBTQ accepting, so stating what should be the obvious is often necessary.
Just to clarify, if the OP sends this watch to an Omega service center in his country, it will likely be sent to Switzerland and the OP will be looking at thousands for a full restoration by the heritage department (or whatever it's called). If that's a consideration for him, he might as well give it a try and see what the quote looks like.
Oops, I never realized Omega did that too, my bad if i misunderstood.
I thought the specialized “heritage” department charging thousands was a Longines creation (and a relatively new one at that) due to history and “tradition” being their brand specialty and a core of the brand marketing. The “Brand Heritage” name is definitely a Longines one in any event.
Based on some accounts here I thought all Omega services (vintage or not) were pretty much handled in the same way with a basic charge of around 600 euros? (That’s not cheap to be sure but a service by an independent watchmaker in the US is also a significant cost if I’m not mistaken).
No, if it goes to Bienne the normal service prices do not apply...
So when you bring a watch to Omega for service somewhere in the world, the “normal” service would get carried out locally?
I thought all Omega services were being done in Switzerland. So why have we been hearing accounts (as I recall seeing here) about Omega services costing in the range of 500 CHf or dollars? Do they all cost in the range of thousands?
I’m very confused.
So you're basically repeating what I said but acting like you're correcting me. Clever. 🙄
You all have been great with your responses and information, it is a bumper movement as I can feel it in the watch. So to be clear, a factory service is a local shop, correct? I want to be sure I understand the difference between Omega service vs. factory.
There are also independently-owned service centers (I use Nesbit's in Seattle, a couple of blocks away from Omega's) that is factory-authorized. This means they will service Omega watches to certain standards, they own certain equipment Omega wants used in servicing their watches, and these service centers have access to factory parts.
Nesbit's is not a service center. They used to be, but now would be considered an independent shop.
Yes, for modern watches or not very old vintage, the service is carried out locally, and the standard service prices you find on the Omega web site apply.
When a watch is “Bienne only” then it goes to Bienne, and the local service rates no longer apply. The price is done via a quote, rather than a standard price.
Bienne only watches are mostly determined by the caliber inside the watch, but sometimes the case as well. For example locally cased watches are all supposed to be sent to Bienne and are not to be serviced locally.
There three basic service options:
There are local watchmakers who are independent. They are not owned by a brand, and may or may not have access to parts directly from the brand.
There are local Omega service centers - these are Omega branded and mostly Omega owned.
There is then Omega in Bienne.
For this watch if you take it to Omega, a bumper caliber will be sent to Bienne in Switzerland, as Omega local service centers are not allowed to service these. However a local independent watchmaker can if they want to.
Al, assuming that the OP is interested in replacing the dial, do you think that Omega would be able to provide a replacement dial to an independent for a watch like this? Or is it just hit or miss based on the specific reference?
