I want to talk to you about your experience with Michael Young and Classic Watch Repair. Please PM me if you have a story to share. I want to try and determine if I've just been very unlucky (twice), or if there is a pattern here that the community at large should be aware of. I don't want to post anything publicly right now. So please PM me. We can at least trade stories, and maybe organize a response, if merited. Thanks for reading.
I have no knowledge of these people but, everyone nowadays has a website and you can make some judgments before sending your watch to a watchmaker. Things to look for: 1. Dirty and stained watch mat/working area. 2. Parts scattered around the bench while working. 3. Movements only partially disassembled for cleaning. 4. Handling movement parts without finger cots (not everyone needs finger cots though, if they never touch anything). 5. Handling bridges with steel tweezers and levering bridges off with screwdrivers 6. Dials and hands left on the workbench without a cover. 7. Spinning up trains at high speed after oiling. 8. Handling crystals with anything that will mark them. These are just poor procedures really although as it's not a regulated business, anyone can set up and you can only judge them on what you see. Just a start above. It's not easy to be able to spot all these things but some are obvious. Regards, Chris