1675 dial repair?

[katpil]

Hi, newbie here.

Looking for some advice on whether or not I can salvage the original dial from my circa 1972 1675 GMT. When last serviced the dial came out missing significant amounts of finish around the outer edge and chapter ring. I have attached a photo. I really would like to have someone "touch up" the missing paint/finish so I could put this back into my GMT. Currently have a new service luminova dial in it, but miss the look of the original dial.

Question...does anyone know of an artisan that could do touch up rather than a complete do over?

Any info greatly appreciated.
thx.

[1675-David]

Such a shame. Perhaps Micheal Young in Hong Kong could help you with this.
http://www.classicwatchrepair.com/

[1665fan]

That’s terrible, beautiful mark2 dial......did that come from being placed in there too tight against the case? Or did he say? I agree Michael young would be a good place to start

[katpil]

Well.....I'm sure this tale of woe has been told here before, but like a damn fool, I sent the watch to Rolex NYC a few years ago for service. This is what they returned to me, no idea why it came out this way. The watch hadnt been serviced in about 20 years tho. And the killer of it all, I had to pay them several hundred to return this dial to me. ARGH!! Anyway, I have since found a really good outfit here in Boston to service some of my other watches. Thanks for the M Young link, will give him a try, also interested in any other possible contacts.

[newkidonblock4]

https://www.instagram.com/true_patina/

[tekno]

The dial stuck to the case, I wonder if you can prevent this.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

[Tom1675]

Just curious but is it worth restoring? That's a lot of damage and I have no idea what it would cost someone competent to fix it but in the same amount of time you could probably source a good example and maybe get some credit for your luminova dial in the deal. At the end of the restoration, you'll have a restored dial and not an original.

[TimeToGo]

It's a worthwhile project. MY is a good option. The writing is solid and the tritium on the plots are good. Shouldn't cost more than a couple to a few hundred dollars plus shipping both ways overseas.

But you should know, you will most likely have black bleed over onto the 7, 8, 9, and 10 plots. Maybe not all but some that you will be able to see.
These dials command a few thousand dollars to buy on their own.

The problem is folks look at these dial with a microscope and prefer original. If this is your keeper, no issues. No cheaper alternative.

[katpil]

TimeToGo, I tend to agree with that. If I were marketing the watch it would be problematic from a value standpoint. But I've owned it for 20+ years and just want to wear it with a dial that goes with the watch's age. Not interested in selling it. I'm going to drop MY a note.

[Tom1675]

Originally Posted by TimeToGo

It's a worthwhile project. MY is a good option. The writing is solid and the tritium on the plots are good. Shouldn't cost more than a couple to a few hundred dollars plus shipping both ways overseas.

But you should know, you will most likely have black bleed over onto the 7, 8, 9, and 10 plots. Maybe not all but some that you will be able to see.
These dials command a few thousand dollars to buy on their own.

The problem is folks look at these dial with a microscope and prefer original. If this is your keeper, no issues. No cheaper alternative.

Thanks for filling me in. I was unaware of the cost and for some reason thought it would be 3x more than that...

[greekbum]

My can easily fix this imho

[Dan S]

I have seen dials that were restored by MY, and my guess is that this one will look ok to the naked eye if you're not the type of person to dwell on imperfections.

[joli160]

Value wise it makes no sense to restore the dial.

[swish77]

Originally Posted by katpil

Well.....I'm sure this tale of woe has been told here before, but like a damn fool, I sent the watch to Rolex NYC a few years ago for service. This is what they returned to me, no idea why it came out this way. The watch hadnt been serviced in about 20 years tho. And the killer of it all, I had to pay them several hundred to return this dial to me. ARGH!! Anyway, I have since found a really good outfit here in Boston to service some of my other watches. Thanks for the M Young link, will give him a try, also interested in any other possible contacts.

Interesting. I've been using the RSC in NYC since the early '90s and they have never, ever returned original parts, even back when they weren't as strict as they are today.

When you gave them the GMT for service, did you sign paperwork that said a dial swap was mandatory? And you agreed to allow them to replace the dial? And later you requested that they return the original dial? Not challenging, just curious how this went down.

[katpil]

Swish77,
It was in 2014 and I when I spoke to them about the scope of work it was mentioned the dial and hands were going to be replaced and I wouldnt get them back. I gave the customer service rep an ultimatum, either fix it and give me the dial and hands back, or put it all back together and return it to me without the service. They added $300 to the total bill for the former and I got the parts back. I dont plan to go back to them unless absolutely necessary.

[baumare]

Originally Posted by katpil

Swish77,
It was in 2014 and I when I spoke to them about the scope of work it was mentioned the dial and hands were going to be replaced and I wouldnt get them back. I gave the customer service rep an ultimatum, either fix it and give me the dial and hands back, or put it all back together and return it to me without the service. They added $300 to the total bill for the former and I got the parts back. I dont plan to go back to them unless absolutely necessary.

For what I know they used to charge an extra 40% of the price of the new parts if you request your old parts back,
this is for 2019, not sure if they change the policy now

[996marty]

Originally Posted by 1675-David

Such a shame. Perhaps Micheal Young in Hong Kong could help you with this.
http://www.classicwatchrepair.com/

This is definitely what I’d be doing

[lupus66]

Send pics to James Hyman

[katpil]

I ended up sending the dial to MY. He did a really nice job restoring it. Thank you Michael! You need to look pretty close to see its been worked on. I'm pleased with this since its the original dial to my early seventies 1675 GMT, want to get it put back in along with the original hands. Just dont like the look of the luminova dial. Now the issue will be finding someone in the Boston area that'll do that without requiring a full service.

[emersm]

Wow... that looks fantastic!

[Pocosso]

MY is usually very good.
I sent hime some bracelets few years ago and they came back like new.

[Pocosso]

Really a great job!

[zapokee]

Can't tell it's been worked on at all. Outstanding.

[katpil]

MY posted before and after photos on his instagram page. The dial was actually even more degraded before he started restoring it , apparently due to additional loose paint that needed to be removed. It was fortunate that the peeling didnt have big problems around the lume dots. Really happy to get this back into the 1675 as it is the original dial. MY and his folks really are artisans when it comes to this stuff.

[spoilsofwar01]

Originally Posted by katpil

I ended up sending the dial to MY. He did a really nice job restoring it. Thank you Michael! You need to look pretty close to see its been worked on. I'm pleased with this since its the original dial to my early seventies 1675 GMT, want to get it put back in along with the original hands. Just dont like the look of the luminova dial. Now the issue will be finding someone in the Boston area that'll do that without requiring a full service.

Awesome work, was it very expensive to have the work carried out?