rennwerkes Posted November 6, 2009 Report Share Posted November 6, 2009 I lucked out with my ROO (seconds at 12) dying after only a few weeks of ownership. Didn't do my homework before buying. I've searched a bit but can't find my info on folks that service these watches. I see folks posting that they've had their watches by "so and so" but not much of anything else. Being a rep. I really don't want to spend much on the servicing and have seen folks mention that their service cost roughly $100 or maybe just a bit more. Can anyone provide some advice on who's done good work and is preferably in the US? TIA! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StormTooper4 Posted November 6, 2009 Report Share Posted November 6, 2009 send it back to the dealer and see if they can do it first Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
denimhead Posted November 6, 2009 Report Share Posted November 6, 2009 You can try 'domi66' but he's in Germany. He's done a full service and graphic treatment on my Rubberclad, i also got him to make the watch 100% waterproof, the watch runs like a Trojan. Might want to sit down before he quotes you in Euros! Depends on how long you intend on keeping it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rennwerkes Posted November 6, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 6, 2009 send it back to the dealer and see if they can do it first I've had issues with products I've bought before and usually never get a response back to my questions. Funny how quickly I get a response when I want to buy something. This one was bought from the original owner and I'm guessing he got it from Angus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bertieng Posted November 9, 2009 Report Share Posted November 9, 2009 Sorry to hear this. Servicing the APROO sec@12 won't be an easy task for an average watchsmith considering all the mods done on the A7750. Maybe you can try The Zigmeister in Canada. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rennwerkes Posted November 9, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 9, 2009 Sorry to hear this. Servicing the APROO sec@12 won't be an easy task for an average watchsmith considering all the mods done on the A7750. Maybe you can try The Zigmeister in Canada. Yeah, I think I'll be going with The Zigmeister. But heard from a few posters that others are doing the service for quite a bit less but no feedback so far. Seems as though The Zigmeister is one of the more reputable folks around but service costs reflects that. Actually, I'm kinda surprised that there aren't more posts on servicing. With all the mods everyone wants to do I'd have thought there'd be more discussion on servicing and servicing costs and who's good and whose not. Oh well... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeSentier Posted November 14, 2009 Report Share Posted November 14, 2009 I am wondering too. Asked some questions in the post concerning the graphite treatment, but it seems that nobody is interested to give any feedback, or is there just no experience? Thats sad, because I think we are sharing the same stuff and can of course learn a lot from each others experience. Asked, if a service on a brand new sec@12 could prevent breakdown, or if it should be serviced after wearing it a time. No response from the experts. Also heard that some movements broke down-can the be repaired, or is the sec@12 damned be be dead after a while? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rennwerkes Posted November 16, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 16, 2009 I am wondering too. Asked some questions in the post concerning the graphite treatment, but it seems that nobody is interested to give any feedback, or is there just no experience? Thats sad, because I think we are sharing the same stuff and can of course learn a lot from each others experience. Asked, if a service on a brand new sec@12 could prevent breakdown, or if it should be serviced after wearing it a time. No response from the experts. Also heard that some movements broke down-can the be repaired, or is the sec@12 damned be be dead after a while? Yeah, can't quite understand the lack of feedback on this issue. There's quite a bit of discussion on this issue but not much on specifically servicing it and who to send it to. I've heard of some folks doing it for around $100 which is fine for me since it's a rep. I can see spending $200+ on a genuine piece but am a little hesitant about spending that much to service a rep. But it seems as though The Zigmeister is the only watchmaker that I could find that services the rep's and knows about the problems of the seconds at 12 movement. From what I understand it just requires a servicing and need to periodically service the movement about every five years. Not bad, given the alternative is to through the watch away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prdubis Posted November 16, 2009 Report Share Posted November 16, 2009 Hi buddies, Anyone knows a watchsmith in Europe ready to service our rep ROO? I am in France and desperately looking for one as I have a few things to be done to my rep: one subdial hand is loose, the mvt needs graphite treatment and the case be waterproofed... Thank you for your help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toadtorrent Posted November 16, 2009 Report Share Posted November 16, 2009 Hi...servicing will unfortunately cost you closer to $200 + shipping. If you get servicing on an a7750 for the $100 mark it generally means is a dip and dunk servicing and not a complete disassembly, cleaning, proper oiling and reassembly. Servicing generally will take at least 3hrs for somebody doing a REALLY fast job and a lot of investment in equipment and experience...hence the price. The A7750's (seconds at 12 included) are reliable but need to be serviced within the 9-12 month mark to maintain being reliable. They are dirty and dry (no oiling) when they stick the movements in...so cleaning and proper oiling is required. Some will have movements that last 3x this unserviced...others less than this. For RELIABLE service, a complete breakdown, cleaning and oiling should be done. There aren't that many people that can service chrono movements relative to how many call themselves watch repairers. There aren't that many people who can reliably repair ASIAN chrono movements...that's the difficulty. I know of more who claimed they could, botched the movement and ruined a watch than actually understand the idiosyncracies of the A7750. IF serviced an A7750 (seconds at 6 EXCLUDED) and maintained properly, will last just as long as a genuine. Remember...a genuine needs to be serviced within 5 years...and every 5 years. The Asian just needs to be serviced 4 years sooner...otherwise you start wearing parts down because they are running dry metal on metal. Stay away from Michael Allen watchmaker though!! There are couple folks in EU...don't know of anybody in France. Francisco, Cortebert and a couple others are folks you might try PM'ing. Or, there's a guy in Spain who is supposed to be really good as well...I've never used either...but judging by the posts on this forum, you can decide for yourself. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
senator Posted November 16, 2009 Report Share Posted November 16, 2009 Hi buddies, Anyone knows a watchsmith in Europe ready to service our rep ROO? I am in France and desperately looking for one as I have a few things to be done to my rep: one subdial hand is loose, the mvt needs graphite treatment and the case be waterproofed... Thank you for your help! ask 'domi66', he is located in germany and his work is amazing!!!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RWG Technical Posted November 16, 2009 Report Share Posted November 16, 2009 I've heard of some folks doing it for around $100 which is fine for me since it's a rep. I can see spending $200+ on a genuine piece but am a little hesitant about spending that much to service a rep. Like most things in life, watch servicing is one area where you do get what you pay for. I am sure you can find someone who will "service" the watch for less than $100.00, they are around... It takes about 4 hours of bench time to service this movement, thousands of dollars in tooling, and experience and skill. The seconds at 12 version of the 7750 is heavily modified and has 11 more gears than the standard 7750 design, 2 more plates, which all adds to the time and difficulty. The problem is that your comparing the cost of your rep watch, to the cost of servicing. While the price of the rep is 1/10th or less than the genuine model, the movement design is not 1/10th as simple or less complex. You can't compare the price you paid for the watch to the cost to service it, they are not related. The only thing that is related, is that this movement is as complex and is much more difficult to service than the genuine one. If you paid $5000.00 for the watch, the $200 servicing cost would seem like a bargain, and in reality $200 is a bargain...most shops charge 2-3 times this amount to service a chronograph, with the going rate being $450.00 and up, a quick Google search on "watch servicing prices" will confirm that fact. Good luck in your quest getting it serviced. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickey Padge Posted November 16, 2009 Report Share Posted November 16, 2009 I also can 100% recommend Domi, his work and pricing is second to none! He is in the EU, but registered shipping should cause no problems, have a peak here: If you contact him and figure everything out, I am sure you will not regret it! Cheers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rennwerkes Posted November 16, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 16, 2009 Like most things in life, watch servicing is one area where you do get what you pay for. I am sure you can find someone who will "service" the watch for less than $100.00, they are around... It takes about 4 hours of bench time to service this movement, thousands of dollars in tooling, and experience and skill. The seconds at 12 version of the 7750 is heavily modified and has 11 more gears than the standard 7750 design, 2 more plates, which all adds to the time and difficulty. The problem is that your comparing the cost of your rep watch, to the cost of servicing. While the price of the rep is 1/10th or less than the genuine model, the movement design is not 1/10th as simple or less complex. You can't compare the price you paid for the watch to the cost to service it, they are not related. The only thing that is related, is that this movement is as complex and is much more difficult to service than the genuine one. If you paid $5000.00 for the watch, the $200 servicing cost would seem like a bargain, and in reality $200 is a bargain...most shops charge 2-3 times this amount to service a chronograph, with the going rate being $450.00 and up, a quick Google search on "watch servicing prices" will confirm that fact. Good luck in your quest getting it serviced. The Zigmeister, No disrespect meant by my original post. I understand about the complexity of the movement and the servicing cost involved. I just read about a few folks that seemed to have gotten the service for much less. You can't blame me for trying to see if there was an alternative because of my logic between a rep and genuine. However, in my follow up post I did state that I'd probably go with you in the future as I also indicated in my follow up PM. You're also right about your servicing price to be a deal in the "real world". The watchmaker I've used in the past to service my chrono's does indeed charge an "arm and a leg" for the full chrono service. I look forward to dealing with you in the future. Rennwerkes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RWG Technical Posted November 17, 2009 Report Share Posted November 17, 2009 No disrespect taken. It is always a hard sell when someone pays such a low price (as compared to the gen) for a watch and compares this cost to the cost of servicing. Most times the commentator has never owned a gen or had to pay and experience the turn times from the authorized service center. Those who have, have a better understanding and appreciation for what goes on in the gen world. I am always leery of any watchmaker "servicing" a movement for what amounts to the same wages as someone flipping burgers would make. Knowing the time, skill, tooling, and experience needed to do the job correctly, I just can't understand why anyone would want to do it for so little money. If you want to make $5 an hour, why do it fixing watches? I can only guess what others have gotten for their much less servicing costs. I do know that what I do is a full and complete teardown to the last screw and spring with every servicing, not unlike what your watchmaker does for the fee's he charges. You do get what you pay for, the low price comes at a cost. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yannou Posted November 17, 2009 Report Share Posted November 17, 2009 No disrespect taken. It is always a hard sell when someone pays such a low price (as compared to the gen) for a watch and compares this cost to the cost of servicing. Most times the commentator has never owned a gen or had to pay and experience the turn times from the authorized service center. Those who have, have a better understanding and appreciation for what goes on in the gen world. I am always leery of any watchmaker "servicing" a movement for what amounts to the same wages as someone flipping burgers would make. Knowing the time, skill, tooling, and experience needed to do the job correctly, I just can't understand why anyone would want to do it for so little money. If you want to make $5 an hour, why do it fixing watches? I can only guess what others have gotten for their much less servicing costs. I do know that what I do is a full and complete teardown to the last screw and spring with every servicing, not unlike what your watchmaker does for the fee's he charges. You do get what you pay for, the low price comes at a cost. Agree totally Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubiquitous Posted November 17, 2009 Report Share Posted November 17, 2009 For what it's worth- You absolutely do get what you pay for. Also included in Zigmeister's price is the knowledge and experience that he has gained over the years from working on movements of all types. That alone is priceless in itself! Zig has done a number of service overhauls for me; everything from basic ETAs and Unitas pocket watch movements to my El Primero 400s in my Daytona. It's hard to find good quality these days and even more difficult to find someone that stands behind their work. Fortunately, we have Zig! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hooky Posted November 17, 2009 Report Share Posted November 17, 2009 As always, you always get what you pay for. Having a 6497-2 or a 2824-2 or 2836-2 serviced will cost me around 55-65 euro. Having a A7750 by my local watch smith (who also services gen Rolex, Breitling, IWC, Omega, etc etc) will cost me 175 euro. that is 260usd. And here in The Netherlands that is still cheap. Going to a jewelry shop, they will charge around 350-450usd for servicing a 7750, let alone a A7750. Servicing A7750 often takes more time than a 7750, because not all quality is up to par. For instance sometimes the construction of the dial to the movement or the hands placement is not an easy and fast done job. And as stated the extra gearing with seconds @ 3/6/12 will be a bit more work as well. And most important, it is best if the watch smith has experience with servicing Asian 7750. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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