Possible issue with my first rolex

[w4rmk]

I am a new member here. I purchased a my first rolex last week. I bought a used 2 tone DateJust with the jubillee band (pic below). I am concerned that my watch is not auto-winding. Friday and Saturday I wore the watch on and off and left it sitting for a good while several times. Late Saturday the watch stopped. I used the crown to wind it. On Sunday I purchased the Sharper Image watch winder. Last night before going to bed I put the watch in the winder and left it overnight. This morning I took it out of the winder and wore it all day. I am a computer programmer and spend most of the day at my computer. I was surprised when the watch stopped today around 6pm. I suspect that the auto-winding is not working. Since I last wound the watch by hand on Saturday, it seems that I get about 2 days between physical windings and then the watch stops. I have owned the watch for about 5 days and it has stopped twice in that period of time. I have worn the watch every day. I did get a 2 year warranty from the local shop that I purchased it from. So I am going to call them tomorrow and describe the problem. What do you think?

[diablojota]

Well, I think you may need to get it serviced. My mom's Rolex had the same problem. It probably just needs the routine maintenance as the oil is probably dried up.

[JJ Irani]

Hi and welcome to TRF.

In spite of wearing the watch and then placing it on the winder, it keeps stopping means you have a problem with the mechanics of the movement. It's probably in dire need of a full service. Take it in to an AD and it will be as good as new.

Good luck and do keep us posted - JJ

[C.J.]

Welcome to TRF I wouldn't worry too much. With older watches the lubricants can partially solidify and retard the auto-winding process. If that is the case it should be a simple solution

[w4rmk]

Since the jeweler that I bought it from gave me a 2 year warranty I think they should service the watch at no charge. They have a watch guy in-house who works on Rolex's.

[JJ Irani]

Originally Posted by w4rmk

Since the jeweler that I bought it from gave me a 2 year warranty I think they should service the watch at no charge. They have a watch guy in-house who works on Rolex's.

Well, there you go...problem solved! Let us know how it works out!!

Cheers - JJ

[w4rmk]

Yeah the only bummer is that means I will have to be without my new baby for a little while

[JJ Irani]

Originally Posted by w4rmk

Yeah the only bummer is that means I will have to be without my new baby for a little while

Might just be a week or so....but at least the watch would then be working the way it should once you get it back. Presently, it's all over the place....NOT the way any watch should be functioning.

Patience, my friend...patience!!

[padi56]

Try giving your watch a full wind about 35-40 crown turns then wear your watch as you would normally do.Has your Sharper Image watch winder different settings timers etc.Rolex movements requires at least 650 -750 bidirectional Turns Per Day on a watch winder.Perhaps during the day while working at the computer,there is not enough motion to wind your watch try this first.Then if no better take it back to be looked at.

[w4rmk]

I have done a full wind twice over the past week and it stops running after about 2 days. The Sharper Image winder is set to wind for 6 minutes per hour. This is the setting they recommend for Rolex's. It does have different settings, one shorter and 2 that are longer. I spoke with the jeweler that I bought the watch from and they were very nice. They assured me that if the watch has a problem they will fix it under their warranty, and told me to bring it in to be checked out. Now I just have to bring myself to part with it...

[Rockrolex]

Welcome to TRF. Glad you found your way over here. You've got a great looking watch. Once your jeweler gets it fixed up, I'm sure you'll love it. That's why it always pays to buy from an AD or other respected dealers.

Good luck and keep us posted on what happens.

[Manatee]

Sounds like either it hasn't been serviced, or an unqualified tinkerer tried to service it and did something(s) wrong. If the person you bought it from has access to Rolex parts, and knows how to work on them, give him a shot at it. If that doesn't fix it, you'll have to try to get him to spring for a real Rolex service.

Best of luck! :-)

Originally Posted by Manatee

Sounds like either it hasn't been serviced, or an unqualified tinkerer tried to service it and did something(s) wrong. If the person you bought it from has access to Rolex parts, and knows how to work on them, give him a shot at it. If that doesn't fix it, you'll have to try to get him to spring for a real Rolex service.

Best of luck! :-)

Take it from an unqualified tinkerer.....it's easy to mess things up if you are not careful (and even if you are careful).

[padi56]

Originally Posted by Avalon

Take it from an unqualified tinkerer.....it's easy to mess things up if you are not careful (and even if you are careful).

Now that Al I totaly agree with you,but its great to learn even though your own mistakes.But when you fix something it gives great satisfaction.Like you, interested what goes on inside the case,sometime more than outside.

[betrezra]

"Welcome to TRF I wouldn't worry too much. With older watches the lubricants can partially solidify and retard the auto-winding process. If that is the case it should be a simple solution"

What he said ---------

Had the same thing happen to my 1968 GMT.......all it needed was a 2 day visit to my watch guru.... (Non-AD). He claimed it needed to be serviced and lubed up. The perpetual winder needed lubed/serviced. Now she runs as she should.

Nice watch ;)

[w4rmk]

Thanks for all the advice. I bought the watch from The Denver Gold Mart here in Denver, CO. They are a store that buys and sells gold jewerly, diamonds, and expensive watches. They also do Rolex service, although they are not an authorized dealer. They gave me a 2 year in-house warranty. Also another little sales gimick they give is a 60 day upgrade option, giving me full trade in credit should I change my mind and want a different Rolex model. Also even after 60 days they will give me full trade in credit, less $200, toward another watch (assuming reasonable condition of course). Kinda neat options for those who might want to try out different Rolex models. It also shows their confidence in their pricing and watches they sell. I am going to drop off the watch to have it checked out later this week. Other than the auto-winding issue the watch works great. The condition of the watch is very good with little wear. Based on the serial number it's from the late 80s. This was the exact model that I was looking for. They had about 10 rolex's to choose from and I was really drooling over a yellow gold presidential but the price was out of my budget range. I see alot of you here go for the sportwatch style, but that is not my taste. I like the classic look of the DateJust. Also this is going to be my daily wear watch and I wouldn't want to wear a watch everyday that cost mega-bucks and have to worry about damaging it. Also because the watch is already used I won't feel so bad if it gets a little scratched, etc. Just like if you buy a new car and it gets dinged you are very upset, but if your older used car gets a ding, no biggie because it matches all the dings it already has. I figure what's the point of owning a Rolex if it just sits in the winder and doesn't get worn every day.

[RobDad]

Fair enough, but I think you'll find most people on this forum wear their watches every day. I've worn a rollie of some description or another every day for about 10 years, and just don't really worry about it getting beat up. What would worry me is a problem with the movement - personally, I prefer to know that something's been properly serviced and looked after mechanically. I really don't understand why people don't send their watches straight to Rolex for servicing. Clearly the watch was sold to you in poor condition if it is not winding properly. I doubt they even had the back of the case off before they sold it!

Is it keeping reasonable time? - being cynical, I'd just go get my money back, and buy either a new SS DJ, or go somewhere else!

[w4rmk]

Yes it's keeping good time. I agree.. it is disappointing that it was not working properly when I bought it. They told me that all watches get a checkout before they are sold, so either they lied or didn't do a good check. I really like the watch, it's in very good cosmetic condition, and I paid about 50% of the price of a new one. So I think I will give them a chance to service the watch before I consider other options.

[RobDad]

Fair enough - and like others said it should be easy to fix.

Just really annoys me that so many of these guys selling second-hand watches 'which we've fully serviced, sir' have clearly done nothing of the sort. I went to a dealer in London, who swore they'd serviced all their watches. I unscrewed the crown on one and there was a solid ring of crud around the stem - broke it off with my fingernail, showed it to the guy and walked right out - nobody would have missed that amount of filth if they'd even gone to wind it manually or set the time, let alone service it!

Good luck, as you say they guarantee it for 2 years so you should be fine. I personally much prefer that watch to the more modern ones anyway

[w4rmk]

I am looking at buying an extra oyster band for my new watch, can someone tell me what size I should be getting? I see bands that are 13mm, 19mm, 20mm, etc. As you can see from my pictures, this is a mid-80s DateJust. It is not the smaller size model, it is the standard mens size.

Thanks... Richard