First World Problem: Warranty authorized service -> mismatched hands+dial

[Albertone]

Let me summarize my tale of terrible woe and disappointment:

Some 20 months after getting my 1998 GMTii serviced ( $800+), it began to make a noticeable whirring noise when I moved my wrist. I took it to my dealer who confirmed the problem and sent it to Rolex for service under warranty.

So far, so good.

A month into it, I got a call from the dealer who said that Rolex will fix it under warranty and that they would also replace the hands because they were scratched. I was in a meeting when he called, and I was so happy that Rolex would take care of the problem without charging me another $800 that I did not give the new hands much thought. But I remember thinking "How did they get scratched?"

About two months after they sent it in, I get back my beloved GMTii. And–horror of horrors–I see that the new hands are a bright snow-white and don't match my T<25 dial which, after almost 20 years, was beginning to get a lovely "creamy white" patina on the Tritium. The difference is even more stark in semi-dark with the hands glowing bright while the dial is barely visible.

Not only that, but over time the difference in patina (or lack thereof) will only increase ... and it will look like a "Frankenrolex".

BTW, I am planning to keep this watch for life and, hopefully, pass it on to my son. It's not a matter of collector value.

My dream scenario would be that Rolex agrees to put back the original (or NOS) hands–or at least Tritum hands. Based on what I've read in forum I believe that's VERY unlikely.

At this point I am considering 2 options:

1) Send the watch back for a matching service dial. I lose the vintage look and patina, but at least I don't have to look at mismatching hands/dials which.

2) See if I can source an original set of Tritium hands from a third party.

Here are some of my questions:

1) Do you think Rolex will change the dial to match the hands without charging me an arm and a leg?

2) How easy/expensive/safe is it to get some Tritium hands from, say, a place like eBay?

3) Will Rolex continue to service the watch if I've had it modified back to (semi)original outside their "system"?

And, finally:

4) How on earth does Rolex think that it's OK to send out a watch with mismatched hands and dials–with or without permission. They would never send out a new watch like that. It's a bit like sending in the car for a water-pump change and it comes back with new doors that are not a perfect color match with the rest of the body.

Sorry for the long post and for first-world-problem rant (believe me I am fully aware of it) but this watch is really special to me. It was my first dream watch. Bought on a special occasion and meant to last me a lifetime.

I am going to see my AD later today, and suggestions on my best course of action from the wise folks on this forum would be greatly welcomed.

Thank you so much!

Alberto

[Nav01L]

So sorry to read about that my friend. I fully sympathize. This in a somewhat different form is exactly what I feared in a post I shared recently (about a watch with green Superluminova that I feared Rolex would put blue Chromalight on, which Rolex confirmed they would btw). My understanding is they won't ever put Tritium on anything anymore, just as they won't put green lume on models they updated to blue mid-cycle.

My suggestion would be to copy your post into an email and send it to Rolex Customer Service. This way we might learn how they react and they might learn not to butcher their customers' watches in the first place.

[HL65]

Sorry as well and precisely why I have not nor would never let Rolex touch one of my older watches. Now you need to try to source a pair of correct hands as you will never see yours again from RSC.

[Albertone]

Originally Posted by Nav01L

So sorry to read about that my friend. I fully sympathize. This in a somewhat different form is exactly what I feared in a post I shared recently (about a watch with green Superluminova that I feared Rolex would put blue Chromalight on, which Rolex confirmed they would btw). My understanding is they won't ever put Tritium on anything anymore, just as they won't put green lume on models they updated to blue mid-cycle.

My suggestion would be to copy your post into an email and send it to Rolex Customer Service. This way we might learn how they react and they might learn not to butcher their customers' watches in the first place.

Thank you for the reply. I will definitely make sure that my voice is heard. I doubt it will do any good, but ...

The thing that puzzles me the most, however, is how a company that cares so much about authenticity and consistency does not realize that mismatched hands and dials are an aberration. How can anyone think that's ever OK?

I understand that technology moves on and that Tritium is no longer considered an option, but at least make an effort to match color.

Imagine taking in a vintage auto in for service and have it come back with a the analog dials replaced with digital ones.

Alberto

[Albertone]

Originally Posted by HL65

Sorry as well and precisely why I have not nor would never let Rolex touch one of my older watches. Now you need to try to source a pair of correct hands as you will never see yours again from RSC.

Thank you Connor. I wish I had thought about it beforehand (pun intended!!!)

Thing is, I never thought of a 1998 GMTii as vintage (yet). Not to mention that I never thought they'd do something like this without thinking "I wonder if anyone will notice the mismatched hands?"

Where would you source some matching hands? I am debating between that and getting a new service dial. Bye bye patina that took almost 20 years to develop, but at least I won't cringe every time I see the bright hands and faint dial.

Thank you again for your message.

Alberto

[No SUBctitute]

Pictures?

[Albertone]

Originally Posted by No SUBctitute

Pictures?

Here you go.



I hope the picture shows ... if not, here's the URL.

http://s1288.photobucket.com/user/Al...iocyh.jpg.html

Of course, lighting makes a difference, but look at 9AM dial marker vs hand. Pretty noticeable IMO.

Alberto

[SL BRABUS]

Originally Posted by Albertone

Let me summarize my tale of terrible woe and disappointment:

Some 20 months after getting my 1998 GMTii serviced ( $800+), it began to make a noticeable whirring noise when I moved my wrist. I took it to my dealer who confirmed the problem and sent it to Rolex for service under warranty.

So far, so good.

A month into it, I got a call from the dealer who said that Rolex will fix it under warranty and that they would also replace the hands because they were scratched. I was in a meeting when he called, and I was so happy that Rolex would take care of the problem without charging me another $800 that I did not give the new hands much thought. But I remember thinking "How did they get scratched?"

About two months after they sent it in, I get back my beloved GMTii. And–horror of horrors–I see that the new hands are a bright snow-white and don't match my T<25 dial which, after almost 20 years, was beginning to get a lovely "creamy white" patina on the Tritium. The difference is even more stark in semi-dark with the hands glowing bright while the dial is barely visible.

Not only that, but over time the difference in patina (or lack thereof) will only increase ... and it will look like a "Frankenrolex".

BTW, I am planning to keep this watch for life and, hopefully, pass it on to my son. It's not a matter of collector value.

My dream scenario would be that Rolex agrees to put back the original (or NOS) hands–or at least Tritum hands. Based on what I've read in forum I believe that's VERY unlikely.

At this point I am considering 2 options:

1) Send the watch back for a matching service dial. I lose the vintage look and patina, but at least I don't have to look at mismatching hands/dials which.

2) See if I can source an original set of Tritium hands from a third party.

Here are some of my questions:

1) Do you think Rolex will change the dial to match the hands without charging me an arm and a leg?

2) How easy/expensive/safe is it to get some Tritium hands from, say, a place like eBay?

3) Will Rolex continue to service the watch if I've had it modified back to (semi)original outside their "system"?

And, finally:

4) How on earth does Rolex think that it's OK to send out a watch with mismatched hands and dials–with or without permission. They would never send out a new watch like that. It's a bit like sending in the car for a water-pump change and it comes back with new doors that are not a perfect color match with the rest of the body.

Sorry for the long post and for first-world-problem rant (believe me I am fully aware of it) but this watch is really special to me. It was my first dream watch. Bought on a special occasion and meant to last me a lifetime.

I am going to see my AD later today, and suggestions on my best course of action from the wise folks on this forum would be greatly welcomed.

Thank you so much!

Alberto

Sorry, to hear about it.....

I was lucky to be warn about not taking my older Rolex watches to the RSC, thanks to my main man Ken.......

You might give a try & call LA WatchWork if they could try to find you the original set of tritium hands for your GMT.... They specialist on restore vintage Rolex...

Originally Posted by HL65

Sorry as well and precisely why I have not nor would never let Rolex touch one of my older watches. Now you need to try to source a pair of correct hands as you will never see yours again from RSC.

Thanks again my friend for the warning & recommendation....

[Albertone]

Originally Posted by No SUBctitute

Pictures?

I posted them, waiting for moderator approval. I've been enjoying and learning from this forum for a couple of years, but this was my first post ... I wish it were a more positive one :-).

Alberto

[Albertone]

Thank you for the LA WatchWork suggestion.

Does anyone think that, perhaps, the thing to do is to update the dial with a Luminova service dial as well and be done with it? I am more bothered by the mismatch in color than by having lost the patina.

Alberto

[Tony64]

Originally Posted by Albertone

Thank you for the LA WatchWork suggestion.

Does anyone think that, perhaps, the thing to do is to update the dial with a Luminova service dial as well and be done with it? I am more bothered by the mismatch in color than by having lost the patina.

Alberto

I think that's a very reasonable, and probably less costly, option. Especially so since the mismatch to you is of greater concern than the patina. Remember that things patina at different rates and to differing degrees. There's no garrantee that the vintage hands you source will match your dial's patina, though it will certainly be better than what you've got now.

A new dial will match your new hands and most importantly will improve functionality as you'll have greatly enhanced nighttime viewing. Think of it as an "upgrade" if it helps. Eventually your old dial and hands would have been good only for daylight conditions.

[SL BRABUS]

Originally Posted by Albertone

Thank you for the LA WatchWork suggestion.

Does anyone think that, perhaps, the thing to do is to update the dial with a Luminova service dial as well and be done with it? I am more bothered by the mismatch in color than by having lost the patina.

Alberto

Don't do it....

It's best source the original set of tritium hands.......

Watch collectors are truly against update dial........

Do it & you will be sorry in the future.......

Best Regards,
Tony

[Fleetlord]

Originally Posted by Albertone

Thank you for the LA WatchWork suggestion.

Does anyone think that, perhaps, the thing to do is to update the dial with a Luminova service dial as well and be done with it? I am more bothered by the mismatch in color than by having lost the patina.

Alberto

Stop with this dial change.

Tritium hands are sourced like this all the time and can be colored to match.

[JP Chestnut]

Originally Posted by Albertone

Thank you for the reply. I will definitely make sure that my voice is heard. I doubt it will do any good, but ...

The thing that puzzles me the most, however, is how a company that cares so much about authenticity and consistency does not realize that mismatched hands and dials are an aberration. How can anyone think that's ever OK?

I understand that technology moves on and that Tritium is no longer considered an option, but at least make an effort to match color.

Imagine taking in a vintage auto in for service and have it come back with a the analog dials replaced with digital ones.

Alberto

In their eyes, you should swap your shabby old Tritium dial too! Rolex treatment of vintage is one of their worst aspects I think. If you have a 50 year old beat to death JLC and you want it restored and preserved, they can take care of that. Rolex? Just swap everything. Sad.

[JP Chestnut]

Originally Posted by Albertone

Thank you for the LA WatchWork suggestion.

Does anyone think that, perhaps, the thing to do is to update the dial with a Luminova service dial as well and be done with it? I am more bothered by the mismatch in color than by having lost the patina.

Alberto

If you don't care about authenticity, just get your Luminova hands color matched to the dial. Or swap the dial if you never intend to sell - buyers will hammer you for the service dial.

[kauffee]

It seems like someone at RSC made a poor decision to send a watch back with mismatched dial and hands. But people are human and these things happen.

On a broader note, in Rolex's defense I don't see how their corporate policy could be anything other than trying to bring a watch back to as close to factory condition as possible. The percentage of Rolex owners that are "collectors" is exceedingly small. Most Rolex owners are just people who have nice watches that they like to wear. And what determines whether a watch is "vintage" or not? Is 1998 vintage? 1988? Where is the cutoff? The whole vintage craze is relatively recent anyway. Like the OP, most people plan to just wear their watch and pass it down someday. For most of them, having it come back looking like new is exactly the point. It's never going to be on an auction block. So Rolex's policy makes sense. And for those that want to keep the cosmetic condition unchanged, RSC seems pretty good about abiding by their wishes.

I would hope Rolex would replace the dial for you for a nominal charge after you explain how you are unhappy with the mismatch from the previous service. That's probably the route I would take. If you want to keep the dial so the watch looks appropriately aged, then source hands as others have stated.

Regarding outside mods. Rolex will always service a Rolex. They'd replace the aftermarket parts with OEM though. (I don't know if this applies to full watch mods like Bamford, but for something like hands... yeah.)

[Cerachrom12]

Moral of the story is if you have a Tritium dialed watch that you wish to keep original, send it to a good independent cw21 watchmaker. I would imagine the so called scratches on the hands were most likely not visible to the naked eye and they were fine.

[jok]

As others have already stated, I would source some original hands and keep the original dial.

Maybe now is a good time to look at adding a second newer watch to the mix and start a rotation.

[manhattanproj]

rolex doesnt send the hands back? bc it's tritium?

i've read ppl get their crystal back after a service and whatever they replaced.

[No SUBctitute]

Originally Posted by kauffee

It seems like someone at RSC made a poor decision to send a watch back with mismatched dial and hands.

But, the problem is RSC and Rolex don't seem to think they made a poor decision. This is standard practice.

[Doood]

This whole process would frustrate me. I feel for the Op. All they would have had to do was to explain that your hands are scratched and that while they recommend changing them, the trade-off is the mismatch in color. The RSC would hopefully know that and they should have given you the option to keep the scratched hands. I'm sure there are other possible scenarios that could have been offered but my point is how hard is it for the RSC to explain these options during the call?

I am really curious as to how the hands were scratched and even more curious what the noise was. Was the Op the oringinal owner of this watch?

[JohnnyCocktails]

Leave everything as is...
You said you weren't worried about it being a collectors item..
Plus the story is part of the history when passing it on to your son...
Just my thoughts..,....

[Blue_Lume]

Originally Posted by Albertone

Thank you for the LA WatchWork suggestion.

Does anyone think that, perhaps, the thing to do is to update the dial with a Luminova service dial as well and be done with it? I am more bothered by the mismatch in color than by having lost the patina.

Alberto

This... I have a 20 year old explorer 2. No patina but line is shot.

You can tell by my name that I'm biased about having the brightest lume possible but that's only because I'm blind.

New service dial... get it.

[Blue_Lume]

Originally Posted by manhattanproj

rolex doesnt send the hands back? bc it's tritium?

i've read ppl get their crystal back after a service and whatever they replaced.

I have heard you don't get anything back and that's how they keep parts off the grey/black market.

[No SUBctitute]

Originally Posted by Albertone

A month into it, I got a call from the dealer who said that Rolex will fix it under warranty and that they would also replace the hands because they were scratched. I was in a meeting when he called, and I was so happy that Rolex would take care of the problem without charging me another $800 that I did not give the new hands much thought. But I remember thinking "How did they get scratched?"

Will you try to get Rolex to tell you about these "scratched" hands and why it decided to replace them for free. Both of those facts seem odd.

[Albertone]

Originally Posted by JohnnyCocktails

Leave everything as is...
You said you weren't worried about it being a collectors item..
Plus the story is part of the history when passing it on to your son...
Just my thoughts..,....

Hi Johnny,

This is a very reasonable option (especially for this passionate forum :-)) ... and one I've considered.

If my GMTii were a rare piece—a collector's item, like an early Sub, I'd probably be much more inclined to worry about its value. But the reality is that, while a wonderful watch, it's one of 10,000s (if not 100,000s) just like it.

But as long as any real collector value is gone, I'd rather have the new dial than a mismatched set. I lose the patina, but I have the glow-in-the-dark functionality.

Thanks again for your very sensible suggestion.

Alberto

[Albertone]

Originally Posted by No SUBctitute

Will you try to get Rolex to tell you about these "scratched" hands and why it decided to replace them for free. Both of those facts seem odd.

I am not talking to Rolex directly, but through an AD–a good one ... and we've been customers for many years.

I went to my dealer yesterday, explained the situation calmly and with full awareness of the first-worldness of the problem. We acknowledged our mutual fanatical interest in watches and had a good laugh about it. He said he'll talk with them and see what can be done.

I did make a request for my old hands back. But based on what I've read from other posts in the forum, that's as likely as finding a copy of "The Journal of Mathematical Physics" in Paris Hilton's purse.

At this point, I believe that the most likely outcome will be the option of getting a new dial—hopefully at a discount ... given the situation.

I will keep the forum update.

Thanks again for all your advice!

Alberto

[No SUBctitute]

Originally Posted by Albertone

I am not talking to Rolex directly, but through an AD–a good one ... and we've been customers for many years.

I went to my dealer yesterday, explained the situation calmly and with full awareness of the first-worldness of the problem. We acknowledged our mutual fanatical interest in watches and had a good laugh about it. He said he'll talk with them and see what can be done.

I did make a request for my old hands back. But based on what I've read from other posts in the forum, that's as likely as finding a copy of "The Journal of Mathematical Physics" in Paris Hilton's purse.

At this point, I believe that the most likely outcome will be the option of getting a new dial—hopefully at a discount ... given the situation.

I will keep the forum update.

Thanks again for all your advice!

Alberto

I think the whole thing is unacceptable. I'd love for you to write a letter to Rolex and see if you can get an explanation from them on everything.

[Tools]

Originally Posted by Albertone

. . .
At this point, I believe that the most likely outcome will be the option of getting a new dial—hopefully at a discount ... given the situation.

, , ,

Nothing wrong with a new Luminova dial to match the new hands. A functional watch is preferable to many folks rather than trying to hang onto some nostalgia. It's really a personal preference.

Plenty of opinion in these posts. In Rolex view, a functional set of hands makes sense if the originals are damaged. "Mismatched" is a cosmetic condition, not a functional one, and they seldom change out the dial if it is in good condition.

If it was mine I might think about having the hands tinted to match the older dial if it really bothered me.