I'll start by just saying that I picked this piece up.
A few things I'll mention in the leadup... I had been following the listing from its start. The communication with the seller had been initially a little sparse but he had other high-end sales and I didn't rule out based on low post counts...turns out he was a decent guy, I just don't think he was into protracted back and forths with tire-kickers and I think for him this was a quite minor piece in his collection...but hopefully I'm establishing I was in no hurry here (was following for more than 6 months) and was only going to proceed when I felt comfortable. Next thing, I did as much homework on A386's and this piece as was possible. The piece is listed on the Alpha Hands reference page, so I knew the ownership trail from when it was listed on Hodinkee. In the last month I was also aware of this thread, so I was cognizant of some of the opinions on the condition. The thing with A386's is, the likelihood that I was going to pick up an unpolished example given what I am looking for and willing to spend...well, it wasn't going to happen now or any time in the near future. I don't have a problem with the case polishing and the subdial coloring looks really good...that's not an issue either. The service crown and lume color is probably the most overt thing that is keeping this piece from the next strata up, price wise. But...I buy my watches to wear and a bit like an old car I recently picked up, I'm not really bothered at all by them being time-worn.
All of this is really to say, I was looking for an A386 to wear and waiting for an example at a price point where that could become a reality. So I'm proud to say I'm very happy with this piece and the price I ended up paying (which I'll only say was lower than the most recent reduced listing). Like all of my watches, I take good care of them so that I can continue to wear them unimpeded for years to come. This A386 is working just fine with a couple minor quirks. The next decision I'm weighing is whether I have LA Watch Works do the mechanics or whether I go the full Zenith-service route. I'm not in any hurry to make that decision, but it is the reason I'm outing myself here. Obviously going the Zenith route is a bit of a chore...I'd probably wait for a trip back east to visit the LVMH service center myself, put in for the extract and certification while I'm doing the service... or perhaps that's not worth it. Like I said, it's for wearing but I know these vintage El Primero's can be finicky service jobs and going the Zenith route would take the guess work out of that.
Long story short. I'm the happy owner of this piece. I do appreciate the opinions and honest takes this forum and thread provided.
