Laser welding for restore your Rolex case parts.

[LaboratorioPortaNova]

Hello to all readers of the forum. In this topic I would like to introduce you to some manufacturing techniques, unfortunately, still not widely used.
They concern a modern technique (laser welding) coupled to an older (Lapping Grinder machine). The welding is used to add material in bruises, in the most
deep scratches and in the parts ruined by polishers that usually are not accompanied by appropriate equipment. The excess weld (stainless steel on stainless steel,
18k gold, 18k gold and titanium of titanium) is then removed to bring the case to the original forms. These are some examples of what can be achieved
with these techniques. Greetings to all friends of the forum...
Davide and Alessandro

Before restoring:



After restoring:





Rolex case-back with rust before welding, after welding and after restoring:

[Alcan]

First, welcome aboard!

Second, WOW!!! Beautiful work, what a difference!

[garis]

Wow!!!!!! I'm really, ultimately, stupifiedly, rendered speechless!!!!!

[sandybax]

Wow! Great info! Thanks!

[matt4hand]

Holy cow batman!

That looks awesome!

Great work

[jedly1]

hey nikos, maybe some will start to take notice when its pointed out that all these 'never polished' cases for sale in last year or two over and over... is a load of old tosh...and it isnt just Italy this can be done ..try HK too .....for info even Rolex geneva can grind, laserweld and re lap.....

[greekbum]

Originally Posted by jedly1

hey nikos, maybe some will start to take notice when its pointed out that all these 'never polished' cases for sale in last year or two over and over... is a load of old tosh...and it isnt just Italy this can be done ..try HK too .....for info even Rolex geneva can grind, laserweld and re lap.....

Trained eyes have noticed it already People want RARE..NOS...etc and since it doesnt exist as often as they want its recreated I guess to meet the demand. At the end of the day though they do look very nice and the above work is very good.If I had a bad case and it could be made like new reasonable priced I would do it BUT I would never try and pass it off as NOS never polished.

[Jannal]

[azguy]

The work is incredible and the pictures are super thanks for posting, we'll be expecting more of this in the future

[Beaumont Miller II]

I have been waiting for this thread or for one like it to come up for a while. I think for the individual Rolex owner that has damaged his watch in a fall or accident, laser welding may serve provide a valuable service.

Our hobby and passion has evolved from a "the money is in the dial" attitude where people were less concerned with watch case imperfections to "a great watch starts with a great dial but doesn't end there" attitude where collectors are looking for excellent/mint dials to go in there excellent/mint cases. This observation is supported by the fact that over the last two years many of the threads and posts have focused on lug width, even/uneven crown guards, bevels/chamfers, and unpolished versus never polished cases.

Market forces being what they are, where there is a demand for something, that demand will attempt to be met. If I had a "battle scar" on one of my daily wearers, I might consider this service. If I sold the watch, full disclosure of the repair would be made to the buyer. As a collector, I would not buy a watch from a dealer that looked NOS when many of his watches looked that way. As valued members of this forum have pointed out, there aren't that many all original vintage collectible NOS watches out there. Presently the watches that spark my passion are one's with perfect to near perfect dials with case wear consistent for age, used but not abused in as original condition as possible. I'm hoping this will be the trend in the future as more and more "NOS" watches come to the market. Just my thoughts and happy holidays for all.

[Racer X]

Good post John. This thread scares me.

[dysondiver]

there is one question that springs to mind ,,,,, what does it cost.
the work is great and it solves problems , laser welding is really remarkable , and the grind and polish really sets things off. very nice work indeed.

[Ebruner]

I do this same Laser Welding everyday in the Jewelry side of my business. It is becoming more and more prevalent. Laser and Pulse Arc Tig is the standard for Jewelry repair, and work wonders on Stainless and other base metals. I have filled very deep gouges on vintage pocket watches take cannot be detected afterwords. I do all my welding through a stereo microscope and the precision is unbelievable. We can keep vintage timepieces and jewelry looking great forever.

-Eddie

[marcello pisani]

in any case if you know what to check .... you can still understand if a case has been "laserwelded" or not ...
everything leaves clues ..

[Frogman4me]

Originally Posted by racer x

good post john. This thread scares me.

+1

[SPARTAN2161]

Ironic cause I was just thinking about this today. Great photos!! Thanks!

[thecentennial]

This would have fixed my dinged lug without the need for a case replacement.

Now, who has the time machine?

Amazing stuff, thanks.

[43builder]

very interesting

[cruvon]

Great work for watches that really need a restoration badly. Offcourse like with everything, there is potential for a good technology to be misused, esp if these techniques are used to sell watches as NOS or as mint to the unsuspecting buyer at a huge premium.
Guess safer to buy vintage that looks it's age!

[nch209]

Interesting thread, for sure. I have a 16613 that I just grabbed that would be a perfect canidate for this process as it has a tiny scuff on the side of the case. That said, IF I did this, I would document what welding was performed and why. That said, I am thinking I will keep the watch "as is"----- sometimes battle scars look cool and make the watch "yours".

Nonetheless, amazing work, just scarry when it pertains to the vintage market!

-Nate

[cruvon]

Originally Posted by marcello pisani

in any case if you know what to check .... you can still understand if a case has been "laserwelded" or not ...
everything leaves clues ..

some clues for us please Marcello:)

[Andad]

This work is done most days at the local TAFEin Australia and I have posted some pix in a previous thread showing the equipment they use.
Interesting but not new.
The end result is dependent on the skill of individual.

Welcome to the Forum BTW.

[cruvon]

Originally Posted by directioneng

This work is done most days at the local TAFEin Australia and I have posted some pix in a previous thread showing the equipment they use.
Interesting but not new.
The end result is dependent on the skill of individual.

Welcome to the Forum BTW.

at TAFE? Wow...And they don't even teach that in Engineering class:)

[AG1]

Very nice results. Would be great to know more about the approximate cost of such work. It's good to know that things can be repaired if necessary. Personally, I would only consider this for a case that's quite heavily damaged - other than that I buy vintage because I like vintage and that includes it looking aged.

I could easily see watches being misrepresented so I guess this is another reason to either do very detailed homework or stick to those few reputable dealers who really know what they're doing and who live off their solid reputation. I would not have a problem buying a watch that's had some laserwelding done to it as long as I know what I'm buying...

[arpone]

Chaps, do you know does anybody in UK doing laser welding?
Is it very expensive?

Thanks in advance!

[jedly1]

http://www.watchrestoration.co.uk/

Steve gales been doing it for ages ..

Interestingly Rolex uk have a laser but aren't feeling proficient enought to be offering the service yet.

[avusblue]

Good stuff. Bob Ridley does laser welding too. Here is the "before" and "after" on my 16710 GMT-Master II he restored earlier this year:

Before:



After:





Excellent work from an excellent man. See this thread: 16710 -- My Pepsi's Been Made Fresh Again for more details on the restoration of my watch. There was an extra charge over and above the base service fee for the laser welding repair of that nasty gouge, but it was reasonable.

Cheers,

Dave

[dysondiver]

third time the same question has been asked ,,,, what sort of figures are involved , in say a ding removal , or a bad lug rebuilt ,,,, just a guesstimate please.
good link to steve hales site , interesting read ta.

[mjclark32]

Wow!

[T5AUS]

Originally Posted by directioneng

This work is done most days at the local TAFEin Australia and I have posted some pix in a previous thread showing the equipment they use.
Interesting but not new.
The end result is dependent on the skill of individual.

Welcome to the Forum BTW.

Hi Eddie, this is that thread http://www.rolexforums.com/showthread.php?t=198225