Watch stuck with watchmaker

Hi all,

Slightly long read but I feel this needs context. If you want to get to the summary, I've added a tl;dr below.

Five years ago, I bought a watch on eBay that was sold by an out of state watchmaker based in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. His business card was in the box and since I was looking for a watchmaker at the time we decided to connect. His rates were very fair but the tradeoff was slower turnaround times which was acceptable to me. Initially, everything went smoothly, and his email replies were always polite, detailed and prompt.

In the summer of 2018, I sent him a couple watches that needed work. As expected, things were a bit slow, but I was kept in the loop. Eventually though the emails became less frequent, and I was asked to check in every 3-6 months. I've since worked with other watchmakers and have realized that an email every 3-6 months is perhaps a bit unusual but regardless, I heeded that advice. Eventually in the summer of 2020 (two years later) I was sent one of those watches back in good order. The other, however, was still in his possession and I was informed that it would be fixed shortly.

Again, I tried to get updates every quarter but this time my emails went completely unanswered. In early 2021 he emailed back stating a personal matter was delaying things on his end and that he would fix the watch and send it shortly. Months passed, and after more unanswered emails, I was at my wits end as the watch had essentially sat with him for the better part of four years. I demanded the watch be returned and funds be refunded (I had paid for work done to the watch in 2017 but those issues were never resolved which is why the watch went back). In my frustration, I didn't check the amount I had paid him years ago and mistakenly asked for a larger refund. He took serious offense to that situation, and despite my apology and request to simply ship the watch as-is with me covering shipping costs has decided to completely ignore my emails.

Any advice or thoughts on how to proceed?

tl;dr: Out of state watchmaker has stopped responding and doesn't care to ship my watch back.

You do have some paperwork stating that you did put the watch in for repairs ? If no ,... well ohhhh dear ... If yes , as it should be , 4y is way way way overdue . I would ask my watch back , if he does not do so , put in official complaint . Meaning the shop owner needs to give you the promising things . This means walking over to police and put down official complaint , and is something nobody wants to do but having your watch in for 4y , that is too much . You can try warn him , but the way it is going i would not go there , unless you can visually see him . I would go in straight complaint , and send the police to him . If that means you do not get the money back , ok , but at least you try to get the watches back .

Let's hope not but definitely a possibility! Did you call the number on his card? I assume there is a phone number?

In 4 years you could mine the metal, refine it and create a new watch from scratch. Ridiculous!

Well, what’s the watch?
Next thing we see @blufinz52’s post: “I got shot for a broken Seiko Presage that isn’t even mine”

Let’s decide if it’s worth our blufinz52 taking a bullet for. Without seeing the watch, I’m a “maybe”, at best.

If you send somebody on your behalf, you need to give that person an authorisation. Legally binding and describe, what it is, how long it is gone, that it is paid for in advance. Stating that you can verify, that it is paid for and never returned. Add your details and passport/ ID numbers in case the Police has to get involved. Good luck !

@blufinz52 That is super kind of you, thank you for the offer. I will PM you details and we can discuss.

@JwRosenthal Thanks for the suggestions and laying out what seems like a very reasonable course of actions. I paid via Paypal for the original job before it had to be sent back. I'll try and find that receipt. Not a full service so not wasn't a substantial amount but still. The watch was purchased on OF via PM so no public listing.

@Dan S @SkunkPrince I sure hope not. Last I heard from him was June, 2021. His business card only included an email so we've never communicated over the phone.

@wristpirate That is indeed what happened and in some ways was expected until it went to this extreme. Basically, the watch was first sent for a regulation or partial service and came back not performing as expected. The crown action was also found to be a bit off so the decision was made to send it back and also find a new crown. Crowns for this model were difficult to find or were $$$ so I was OK to wait a while assuming the other work was completed. But obviously not this long. Good suggestion to call nearby shops as well.

@watchyouwant That is useful advice, thanks!

@ngo516 Fair. It's a vintage Zenith Defy with a pretty uncommon dial.

I hope he didnt sell it and has been stalling trying to find a replacement? Crappy situation though.

ok, I'm coming in with bluefinz52.
wait here, let me order us a pair of thick jackets.
That's a beauty. I hope you get it back.

Seems to be an example of "You can have it done quickly, you can have it done right, and you can have it done cheaply. Pick any two."