Omega SMP Bond bracelet - link fell off - replacement?

[sebvad]

So about 2 weeks into my beautiful new SMP from TD - i noticed that one of the 'bits' of the iconic bond link had just fallen off - and of course i can't find it to put it back on.

Is a replacement 'bit' somehow available?  I suppose i could ask TD if he can get the bit - but ordering such a small part from China... i just don't want to bother him with it if there's a more local option available.

 

Thoughts?  Thanks!

 

[Sogeha]

You could fall lucky and find a member with spare links, but more likely your best bet is to ask your TD about a new bracelet. Two weeks, you might get it “good will” I’m not sure. Getting the whole bracelet is much more likely than getting the small piece sent.

PM me details of when and from whom you purchased it please

[capice]

10 hours ago, Sogeha said:

You could fall lucky and find a member with spare links, but more likely your best bet is to ask your TD about a new bracelet. Two weeks, you might get it “good will” I’m not sure. Getting the whole bracelet is much more likely than getting the small piece sent.

PM me details of when and from whom you purchased it please

+1, a new bracelet is mre likely to get then just the linkpart.

[sebvad]

Thanks folks - i've sent TD an email inquiring.  If i don't hear anything back, perhaps i'll check the classifieds to see if someone has a bracelet they've swapped for a nato or something that they no longer want...

[sebvad]

So i'm pursuing a couple of pathways - one of which is i bought a spare link off of ebay to see if i could detach a single 'piece' from the link and plug it into my bracelet.  The spare link has 5 'pieces' that have a single removable pin to attach this link to the next one - and the 5 individual pieces are held together by two additional pins that are not removable - in fact, the only way you can see they are there is to twist an end piece hard enough to shear the pins off - which leaves that particular end piece unusable (as now the shorn off pins are still in the drilled holes of the end piece, but you can't get to them) - which is ok because it leaves me with the other end piece intact. I tried drilling out the shorn off pins to reopen the holes, but i'm not getting very far there. 

 

Here's the rub - those pins that are in that end piece are REALLY in there. I'm assuming they're glued in, as no matter how much tension i pull them with, i simply can not remove them. IF i can get those pins out w/o shearing them off - i'm pretty sure i can replace that individual piece back onto my bracelet where the piece fell off.  Any thoughts on how one might remove those two pins that are very obviously not meant to be removed?

[Sogeha]

Try gentle heat, if glued it might loosen it

[sebvad]

Good idea.  I'm going to let it soak in a solvent for a bit first - let the solvent evaporate so i can keep my eyebrows, then give it a bit of heat to see if it gives..

[sebvad]

A 30hr bath in 90% isopropanol, followed by heating with a torch didn't seem to loosen the pins up. Those guys are really, really in there.  Hmm.