watch_my_six
·So I took my Navitimer 806 re-edition to a Breitling boutique in December to have a cracked arcylic crystal replaced (after trying to find a genuine replacement online/eBay with no luck), and the boutique employee generously offered to send it in as a warranty repair even though the warranty had expired. I asked if she could please note my request to only replace the crystal since it was a relatively new watch and likely didn't need any other servicing, and that if any other work was to be performed, to give me a chance to accept/reject the other work, to which she said yes and that that was likely doable (silly me?).
Fast forward to a few weeks ago when I called to get an update, and the boutique said that the service center decided to do a complete service (which was already in-progress), and that since it was entered as a warranty repair, now I wouldn't get any breakdown of the recommended work or a chance to accept/reject (go figure).
So today they called and said that the watch is ready for pickup (which on the plus side took only 2 months rather than their original admittedly pessimistic estimate of 6-8 months), but that along with the complete service and crystal replacement, the hands and crown were replaced (d'oh?).
So my question is, is this the type of thing that would "bother" folks, or could detract from its value? Obviously for vintage watches, having service hands/crown can affect the value a lot, particularly when said parts are visibly different / not period correct. But in instances even for vintage watches, if for some reason the hands/crown were replaced within a few years of the watch being new, and the parts are indistinguishable in terms of manufactured origin and aging, does it even matter? Should I file this under the "it totally doesn't matter, forget about it", "that's kind of annoying but not really a big deal", or "you screwed up, live and learn" category?
Edit: here's a photo of the watch pre-service for viewing pleasure since I have yet to pick up the watch post-service.
Fast forward to a few weeks ago when I called to get an update, and the boutique said that the service center decided to do a complete service (which was already in-progress), and that since it was entered as a warranty repair, now I wouldn't get any breakdown of the recommended work or a chance to accept/reject (go figure).
So today they called and said that the watch is ready for pickup (which on the plus side took only 2 months rather than their original admittedly pessimistic estimate of 6-8 months), but that along with the complete service and crystal replacement, the hands and crown were replaced (d'oh?).
So my question is, is this the type of thing that would "bother" folks, or could detract from its value? Obviously for vintage watches, having service hands/crown can affect the value a lot, particularly when said parts are visibly different / not period correct. But in instances even for vintage watches, if for some reason the hands/crown were replaced within a few years of the watch being new, and the parts are indistinguishable in terms of manufactured origin and aging, does it even matter? Should I file this under the "it totally doesn't matter, forget about it", "that's kind of annoying but not really a big deal", or "you screwed up, live and learn" category?
Edit: here's a photo of the watch pre-service for viewing pleasure since I have yet to pick up the watch post-service.
Edited: