1st routine service after 14 years of constant running....The damage results are in

[Mystro]

After buying my new TT Submariner 14 years ago, my watch was sent in for its first service to one of our forums recommended and well respected watch maker for a genuine Rolex routine service. The watch has kept a perfect +4 seconds from new till the day I sent it in. It has either been on a Orbita watch winder or my wrist the entire 14 years. The results are back..............No aditional parts required than what is done on a 4 year service.. There was great interest on the forum every time I said my watch has never been serviced. Many preached doom and gloom if the watch isn't serviced every 4 years. Well Rolex builds one hell of a watch with a tough movement. I have heard of Rolex running for 30 years and still keeping great time. I have always kept a close eye on its accuracy through out the years. I also did mainspring tests to see what it's power reserve was holding. I used these as a barometer on what is going on inside. I told myself I would send the Sub in only when it started changing its accuracy. That never happened so I broke down and sent it in for its very first service anyway. Only because I found a outstanding independent watch maker on this forum that does excellent work and only uses genuine Rolex parts.
I dove/swam with this watch all the time. So there is the long distance results for not servicing your Rolex every 4 years. Do you have any idea how much money I saved??

[S52]

Great news

However not sure I'd take the risk with any of my watches...

They are expensive enough, whats a few hundred dollars for a tune up every few years...

Kind of like running my car for 5 years without an oil change... will it survive that and still be operable? Probably... but why take the risk!

[77T]

Good deal - I think the only thing I would have done in the 14 years is routine pressure tests each few years.

[gwozhog]

Impressive. You definately got your money's worth. Please post a pic. I would love to see a TT Sub that has been worn hard for 14 years. Do you have stretch in the band?

[skyedog]

I only service mine when they need to!

never done it every 4 years.... it's just silly IMHO.

[thomaspp]

Hmmm... Congrats but still not convinced that's the route ill be taking with mine. Best.

[Mystro]

Nope, bracelet and clasp are great/new shape. I am gonna have my Serti dial taken out and go to the original old blue dial while its in the shop. The old blue is memorizing and I wanted a change to a cleaner look for the next 15 years.

Maybe its not the years but how hard the miles are when determining routine service intervals???

I took this pic last year.
I keep my watches in pristine condition. Even dealers can't believe how old my Sub is.

[masterserg]

That looks stunning! I would not want to lose that Serti! It is just gorgeous...

[Mat Allston]

Great story and your watch is near mint after all these years.

[Sublover2166]

I have a 16 year old blue TT Sub that went 10 years before it's first service. No major wear, but according to RSC NY, the lubricants were pretty much used up. No suprise, imagine driving your car or truck EVEN with full synthetic motor oil for 10 years. Unthinkable in my opinion. From now on after that it is every 5 years need it or not. Also, the case and bracelet gets a new finish, so it'll look like a new watch after every service.

[Frankie13]

I had a Breitling Super Ocean I sent in for first service after 10 years and only needed the normal service without any additional parts. I will do the same to my hulk or GMT IIC as long they run without problems.

[Mystro]

I am probably gonna service it every 10 years from now on. This can change if I drop the watch or bang it into something hard that might give me reason to have it looked at. After all the years, I pretty much know how to protect my watch when its on my wrist, its second nature now.

This pic is a good example why I want to go back to the simple older blue dial.
The depth and color is impecable . I have kids now and my lifestyle is more the clean non-diamond look.

[Cesium133]

I cannot believe the excellent condition of your watch! That's amazing. Thanks for sharing the pics and story.

[JohnBoy]

Beautiful watch! And definitely good news for you!

However, I don't think I'd recommend stretching maintenance intervals for everyone based on your good fortune. For all mechanical and electrical parts and assemblies, there is a statistical operating life that can be determined by analyses of past performance and failure, and, likewise, an optimal, and economic, maintenance interval that can be determined to keep them operative. I'll bet that Rolex has been doing some such analyses and improving their designs, materials, and lubricants as they go along - the warranty, maintenance schedule, etc. being modified to match. Also, when things (parts, oil) start to go, the wear rate becomes an exponential function with time (the more wear, the more wear by-product/grit/friction, the faster and faster the wear). Its true that a dead Rolex is not a matter of life or death vs. say, a Dreamliner battery - but we just saw pics of one Rolex that had entirely run out of luck last week.....relatively big $$$!!

[Hairdude1]

Great to hear

[Mystro]

Yea, I would hate for someone on the forum not get their watch serviced and have water damage. I still think 4 years is way too short of a time span for a routine service, especially if your watch is keeping great time. 6-8 years should be easily doable for a routine service.
The fact is a watch can fail the 4th day you own it. It's a mechanical item.
My philosophy is I would rather not have unnessisary servicing simple because every time you crack open that case, human error comes into play. Then there is the mailing issue. More than a few times, watches have came back from Rolex NY or Dallas servicing with dust under the dial, bad regulation or misaligned dials, etc... There has to be a happy ballance between getting your watch serviced because of the "Rolex fear factor" and the "don't fix it if it ain't broke."

[Bangel]

My AD recommended a 5 year service interval when I bought my watch.

I'm pleased with your result and while I think the 5 year period is not set in stone, I'm too conservative to stretch it out for as long as you did!

[Cru Jones]

I don't know if your result is the norm or not, but, good for you!

All that money saved on servicing surely has to be good for the watch budget, no?

[HRV]

Interesting to know, your watch looks great

[Dr. Robert]

If it ain't broke don't fix it.

[xjeeunitx]

Originally Posted by dr. Robert

if it ain't broke don't fix it.

x2

[frequentflyer]

I didn't service mine for 10 years, no problems at all and it was running perfectly. This every 4 years seems to be a myth.

[padi56]

Originally Posted by Mystro

After buying my new TT Submariner 14 years ago, my watch was sent in for its first service to one of our forums recommended and well respected watch maker for a genuine Rolex routine service. The watch has kept a perfect +4 seconds from new till the day I sent it in. It has either been on a Orbita watch winder or my wrist the entire 14 years. The results are back..............No aditional parts required than what is done on a 4 year service.. There was great interest on the forum every time I said my watch has never been serviced. Many preached doom and gloom if the watch isn't serviced every 4 years. Well Rolex builds one hell of a watch with a tough movement. I have heard of Rolex running for 30 years and still keeping great time. I have always kept a close eye on its accuracy through out the years. I also did mainspring tests to see what it's power reserve was holding. I used these as a barometer on what is going on inside. I told myself I would send the Sub in only when it started changing its accuracy. That never happened so I broke down and sent it in for its very first service anyway. Only because I found a outstanding independent watch maker on this forum that does excellent work and only uses genuine Rolex parts.
I dove/swam with this watch all the time. So there is the long distance results for not servicing your Rolex every 4 years. Do you have any idea how much money I saved??

Yes many go on for years with no service but quite a few fail for lack of it,you were one of the lucky ones. Although myself will go longer than the normal 5 year service but not as long as 14 years with constant use.

[jay1988]

I don't know why people are saying every 4 years. I was told 5-7 years.

I'm planning on analysing it closely when it reaches 5 and unless it's losing time it won't be getting a service until 7. However at 7 it's definitely going for a spa trip.

[travisb]

Great to hear. Your Sub is in excellent shape.
The blue dial will make for a nice change. You'll feel like you're getting a new watch.

[Vincent65]

sweet

[Elite Watches]

Good to hear. I also have seen many Rolexes that have been in great condition/keep accurate time that haven't been serviced every four years. Also large dealers aren't concerned if watches don't have service records as they are serviced and polished etc before being re-sold.

[Darlinboy]

I guess your watch is the equivalent of the 98-year old man who smoked three packs a day - while downing his bottle of whiskey.

Glad it worked out fo you. Nonetheless, I'll keep servicing my watches periodically.

[Jeffex]

Great story, thanks for sharing.

[mjclark32]

Good stuff!