Watch service stories? What they find inside!

[skywatch]

Being fond of vintage watches, I get the "pleasure" of spending more money than I should with watchmakers. It's money well spent, if the watch is special, but it's also a frightening future cost looming up ahead for those of us whose collections got a bit out of hand.

In July I showed you folks the lovely 1968 Longines Ultra-Chron hi-beat I found at an estate sale. My common sense told me to have a good watchmaker look at it before I started wearing it a lot. I have a usual guy I go to, who is quite affordable but not always at the top of his game, especially when it comes to more esoteric watches. So I went to an expert watchmaker I have known about for 35 years, a bit farther away, who is a lot more expensive. I'm glad I did!

He found that some previous watchmaker years ago had made quite a kluge on a repair, and while the watch did keep good time still, it may very well have worn itself down to oblivion. The previous repair involved some lead solder, and a shaved area on the plate under the date wheel for unknown reasons (perhaps for better clearance.) Amazingly, he had the correct replacement parts NOS in his drawer. Who keeps 50 year old movement parts to a rare high-beat movement? He's been in business for 60 years, and he opened his little shop in 1968, same year as this watch. Awesome.

So, over $300 later (ouch), I have a watch like brand new. It's a jewel in my humble collection.