Got the quote for my overhaul

[TBritt]

I have a 2001 GMT Master 2. The overhaul is 750.00 then they say I need some parts. Crystal, crown, tube, case spring bars, bezel insert and a rivet safety lever. Total is 1155 dollars. Thoughts?

What are case spring bars and a rivet safety lever? I have the pepsi bezel, so I will have a new red and blue bezel? Is this what a new bezel insert is?

[Tools]

I would ask who this estimate was from?

Safety lever is likely the flip-lock on the bracelet; but charging for spring-bars, Rolex has never done that to me.

[Fredrik]

Parts like crystal is usually included in the price here, spring bars too. Why would you need a new bezel insert? Post a picture of the old one.

Edit: sorry, I just noticed it's a sapphire crystal watch, plexi crystals are included.

[TBritt]

I'm getting work done at Reeds Jewelers here in Wilmington, NC. That's where I bought the watch. I dont have a good close up pic of the watch prior to taking it in for overhaul. 31 dollars for case spring bars and 51 for bezel insert.

Wilmington is the headquarters for the Reeds Jewelers locations.

[gunhose]

Is a trained certified Rolex watchmaker preforming the work ? If not the price is close to RCS. I suggest have Rolex do the work. Plus if an independent is doing it, at least confirm they have aRolex parts account other wise Don't do it!!!

[TBritt]

Yes they are Rolex certified and use genuine Rolex parts. I asked that right away.

[NKflyer]

I don't think $1155 sounds too high. A new crystal alone is $200-300 a'la carte and this is not normally included in the cost of service. Charging for the spring bars is indeed a little petty but $51 for the bezel insert is dirt cheap, so I guess it evens out! Unless the safety lever is missing altogether, they will probably just replace the rivet which can wear thin.

[Robtayham]

That price sounds about right.

[TBritt]

And I get a 2 year warranty. I believe the same at RSC? They said it would be done same as if I sent it to RSC so I figured why send my watch 1200 miles away when it can be done only 6 miles away? Hopefully they will do a good job. And maybe it wont take as long. Even though I was told 4-6 weeks.

[Tools]

Originally Posted by TBritt

And I get a 2 year warranty. I believe the same at RSC? They said it would be done same as if I sent it to RSC so I figured why send my watch 1200 miles away when it can be done only 6 miles away? Hopefully they will do a good job. And maybe it wont take as long. Even though I was told 4-6 weeks.

The RSC warranty is good world-wide, while the AD warranty is only good at the AD.

I'm sure that they will do a fine job, but I don't believe that any AD should be charging RSC prices. RSC paperwork and perks is excellent provenance in the long run.

[TBritt]

That is good advice. This is a learning experience for me as this is the first time I've had my watch serviced. Many people here with more Rolex knowledge than I will ever have.

If anyone knows, are the prices I'm going to pay in line with other places outside of RSC?

[watchdogitalia]

I have been around the Rolex business of watches and many repairs for over 30 years and I can tell you for 100% certain the price of $750 for an overhaul is correct. I am also a wanna be watchmaker with some level of experience working on these watches for at least 3 decades.

In the last 2 months I have had 3 GMTs serviced by the Rolex service centers in both NYC and Dallas. These watches needed extreme help and many many parts replaced so it was more cost effective to let Rolex do it.

Based on experience if it was my watch I would ABSOLUTELY send it to the Rolex service center before I would ever give it to a Rolex store , and I don't care if their watchmaker uses real parts and is trained by Rolex. And here is why.

1. At the service center you have many eyes on the watch and it is going through many more checks and final inspection and approval by more than just one watchmaker. They are meticulous as hell .

2. The refinishing of the watch is done by a separate department by people who do it all day long and they are in my opinion better at it than a local watchmaker for whom this may not be his strong point and is doing this as a side job to get the watch finished.

3. You are going to have a receipt for the service center which enhances the value of the watch a lot more than a receipt from an AD . You will get the watch back in a felt Rolex sleeve with a padded green Rolex logo painted foam protector box, really a nice touch.

4. When running it thru the service centers as a general rule you get a lot of free parts from them included in the service fee that you may not get from the store. Because a lot of the basic mechanical parts cost them very little , such as reversing wheels etc, they do not nit pick and just replace them at no charge. They will also replace parts with upgraded parts if need be at no charge. This is their policy and unless its major part like a main plate they are going to do it for free.

I know all this because I currently know people who have worked for the Rolex service centers as watchmakers and my current local watchmaker is Rolex trained and certified and recently in the last 2 years attended and finished all of their advanced courses. The watchmakers teaching these courses were all Rolex master watchmakers so naturally the what goes on at the service centers was discussed a length.

The other important thing of note I would advise is to send the watch to the Dallas service center as opposed to NYC. I recently sent 2 GMTS to NYC and was not happy with both the rudeness of the customer service people on the phone , and with the outcome of the service on one of the watches. I paid for a brand new bracelet and they gave me a bracelet that had links removed and put back in with the grooves in the screw heads all butchered and chewed up by someone who didn't know how to use a screwdriver. I had to send it back to them,

I then sent the 3rd watch to Dallas and there was a night and day difference.
They are much nicer to deal with, they finished the watch 1 week faster than NYC and the watch of course came back flawless.
I have collector friends that all swear by Dallas over NYC and I am sold on Dallas. I have also read and heard about a lot of bad feedback on NYC.

If you follow Rolexes detailed instructions you can ship it fedex for about $45 fully insured as opposed to USPS registered mail where it can take 10 days to arrive.
You can print the service form on line right off the Rolex website with all the instructions.

Good luck

[SearChart]

They're charging for tube and springbars? Get your watch back and send it to RSC.

The post above is excellent information!!!!

[watchdogitalia]

Regarding my post yesterday I forgot to mention a few things.
In March I had a sub 16610 that sat in inventory for over 10 years and finally got around to putting it up for sale. I gave it to my watchmaker to check out and discovered it had extensive water damage and it was going to need about 23 parts to be replaced plus a new dial and hands and date disk. Since he no longer has the parts account I went on line to source the 23 parts plus the date disk at the high prices you generally find and it came out to be about $1300 for parts alone.

Decided to send it to the Rolex service center and they did the overhaul for $750 and replaced all 23 parts and the date disk at no charge. The new dial was $510 and hands were about $100 something with trade.

Also it is worth noting that Dallas is where the parts depot is for the entire country which could explain why watches get done faster there.

I have a gmt 16750 that I am thinking to send to Dallas. It has a perfect original dial with matching hands but the hands have a few scratches on them that were damaged by a butcher watchmaker before I bought the watch.
I have always been told that Rolex now only uses super luminova dials and hands as replacements , but my Rolex trained watchmaker who just finished some of the master courses was told by one of the instructors that on older vintage watches they still have inventory of old hands and dials and if requested they will try to do a match for you.

I called Dallas the other day and got one of the typical ladies on the phone with their standard very nice down home southern style politeness who confirmed this. She said they do have some older hands in stock both here and in Switzerland and they would do their best to try and match my existing dial with some new hands.

This is another benefit of sending a watch to the service center because I doubt that a watchmaker at a local AD has the time or access to older parts let alone replace 24 parts at no charge.

Also, we recently had a gmt 1675 done and the overhaul on anything like that with a plastic crystal is considered " classic " by Rolex and they charge for a basic overhaul $1100 , and this is same for like a sub 1680.

Also , again I cannot say enough good things about Dallas. From my experience and from hearing from others they are more laid back and do not seem to be overwhelmed with too many repairs like NYC. Consequently it shows in the level of service on the phone and the quality of the final product when they are done.

[handsfull]

It ALL comes down to the watchmaker performing the work. Ive seen MANY absolute toilet jobs come out of RSC NYC and Dallas (completely laughable). Ive also seen SPECTACULAR work done at locals. It 100% depends upon the individual performing the work. No exceptions.

Interesting tidbit: Dallas RSC has a particular refinisher that mainly ‘corrects’ other watchmakers poor results. That individuals work is on par with the factory robots work, Ive seen it first hand. Remarkable is an understatement. Not saying you want your watch mishandled in the first place but if you do, and complain about it real loudly...you may be able to get the true professional to rework it.

[mmaggi]

Watchdogitalia - Reading your posts brings a smile to my face knowing I sent my recently purchased F-series 16710 to Dallas for a full service, bezel replacement and bracelet overhaul. Can't wait to get it back.

[watchdogitalia]

Originally Posted by handsfull

It ALL comes down to the watchmaker performing the work. Ive seen MANY absolute toilet jobs come out of RSC NYC and Dallas (completely laughable). Ive also seen SPECTACULAR work done at locals. It 100% depends upon the individual performing the work. No exceptions.

Interesting tidbit: Dallas RSC has a particular refinisher that mainly ‘corrects’ other watchmakers poor results. That individuals work is on par with the factory robots work, Ive seen it first hand. Remarkable is an understatement. Not saying you want your watch mishandled in the first place but if you do, and complain about it real loudly...you may be able to get the true professional to rework it.

I am curious , can you share a few of the issues you had with the RSCs in NY and Dallas. Were these issues with refinishing or with the mechanical aspects of the overhaul ?

[TBritt]

I'm going to stick with Reeds Jewelers here in my hometown for this service. They've had my watch for almost 2 weeks now and the quote seems to be in line with what others are paying. Reeds was founded here in Wilmington in 1946 and they have many locations primarily in the Southeast US. They are certified Rolex repair and have an account with Rolex for genuine Rolex parts.

I had a talk with the Manager, he told me they have several watch techs and they all have 19 years or more experience with Rolex service. If they don't know what they are doing by now, they never will. He assured me my GMT is in good hands and I will be satisfied with their service. I'll let you all know when I get it back as to how their service is.

As I've said this is a learning experience for me and I see many here have a lot of knowledge with these watches. I appreciate all the input. I've heard good and bad about the RCS in Dallas. Every service center has a bad day here and there. My post count apparently isn't high enough to paste links, but here is the title to a YouTube vid about a guys experience with the RSC in Dallas. It's a 2 part video. Thanks for all the posts to my thread and I look forward to reading more!

Service of my Rolex Datejust 1600 - Rolex Service Center Dallas - Process & Thoughts

[mmaggi]

TBritt - I'm sure your GMT is in good hands.

Thanks for the youtube on RSC Dallas. The problem with that watch was the lack of parts. In the end it got sorted out but the problem with vintage watches is finding the parts.

I had the same problem with my father's early 1960s Omega Seamaster. I sent it to Omega for service. They sent it back after a month saying that they couldn't service it because they couldn't guarantee bringing the watch back to spec (meaning they didn't have the parts).

[Sirschwag]

Interestingly, Rolex “plaque dealers” now give you the same warranty card as the service center. I’m fortunate enough to have two great watchmakers at my local ADs, one with over 40 years experience! Problem though is older parts are not available for them to order as of late...

[vesnyder]

I have been around the Rolex business of watches and many repairs for over 30 years and I can tell you for 100% certain the price of $750 for an overhaul is correct. I am also a wanna be watchmaker with some level of experience working on these watches for at least 3 decades.

In the last 2 months I have had 3 GMTs serviced by the Rolex service centers in both NYC and Dallas. These watches needed extreme help and many many parts replaced so it was more cost effective to let Rolex do it.

Based on experience if it was my watch I would ABSOLUTELY send it to the Rolex service center before I would ever give it to a Rolex store , and I don't care if their watchmaker uses real parts and is trained by Rolex. And here is why.

1. At the service center you have many eyes on the watch and it is going through many more checks and final inspection and approval by more than just one watchmaker. They are meticulous as hell .

2. The refinishing of the watch is done by a separate department by people who do it all day long and they are in my opinion better at it than a local watchmaker for whom this may not be his strong point and is doing this as a side job to get the watch finished.

3. You are going to have a receipt for the service center which enhances the value of the watch a lot more than a receipt from an AD . You will get the watch back in a felt Rolex sleeve with a padded green Rolex logo painted foam protector box, really a nice touch.

4. When running it thru the service centers as a general rule you get a lot of free parts from them included in the service fee that you may not get from the store. Because a lot of the basic mechanical parts cost them very little , such as reversing wheels etc, they do not nit pick and just replace them at no charge. They will also replace parts with upgraded parts if need be at no charge. This is their policy and unless its major part like a main plate they are going to do it for free.

I know all this because I currently know people who have worked for the Rolex service centers as watchmakers and my current local watchmaker is Rolex trained and certified and recently in the last 2 years attended and finished all of their advanced courses. The watchmakers teaching these courses were all Rolex master watchmakers so naturally the what goes on at the service centers was discussed a length.

The other important thing of note I would advise is to send the watch to the Dallas service center as opposed to NYC. I recently sent 2 GMTS to NYC and was not happy with both the rudeness of the customer service people on the phone , and with the outcome of the service on one of the watches. I paid for a brand new bracelet and they gave me a bracelet that had links removed and put back in with the grooves in the screw heads all butchered and chewed up by someone who didn't know how to use a screwdriver. I had to send it back to them,

I then sent the 3rd watch to Dallas and there was a night and day difference.
They are much nicer to deal with, they finished the watch 1 week faster than NYC and the watch of course came back flawless.
I have collector friends that all swear by Dallas over NYC and I am sold on Dallas. I have also read and heard about a lot of bad feedback on NYC.

If you follow Rolexes detailed instructions you can ship it fedex for about $45 fully insured as opposed to USPS registered mail where it can take 10 days to arrive.
You can print the service form on line right off the Rolex website with all the instructions.

Good luck

I bit contradictory - you say that the RSC provides superior service, then go onto say how the NYC RSC sent you "butchered" bracelet screws? So much for quality control "many eyes on the watch"?

[Acidstain]

a bit off topic, but i wonder. if you had swapped your old insert out, and replaced with an aftermarket insert. would they still have offered $51 for a new insert?

[walds11]

Originally Posted by watchdogitalia

Send it to Rolex service center for sure

Your posts are a wealth of info!

I was debating on dropping my SubC 116610 off at my local Tourneau. They will either send it to their service center in Long Island, NY (Tourneau is an official RSC) or to the NY RSC, your choice. Pricing seems to be the same either way. The only advantage is that I can drop off the watch as opposed to having to ship it myself. I’ll most likely have all communications with the local Tourneau, which acts as the middle man in this situation. That could be pain if I have questions on the estimate, etc.

That being said, I’m now considering sending it to either the Dallas or NY RSC myself. I’m leaning towards the Dallas RSC based on the overwhelmingly positive experiences compared to the NY RSC.

Originally Posted by TBritt

I'm going to stick with Reeds Jewelers here in my hometown for this service. They've had my watch for almost 2 weeks now and the quote seems to be in line with what others are paying. Reeds was founded here in Wilmington in 1946 and they have many locations primarily in the Southeast US. They are certified Rolex repair and have an account with Rolex for genuine Rolex parts.

I had a talk with the Manager, he told me they have several watch techs and they all have 19 years or more experience with Rolex service. If they don't know what they are doing by now, they never will. He assured me my GMT is in good hands and I will be satisfied with their service. I'll let you all know when I get it back as to how their service is.

As I've said this is a learning experience for me and I see many here have a lot of knowledge with these watches. I appreciate all the input. I've heard good and bad about the RCS in Dallas. Every service center has a bad day here and there. My post count apparently isn't high enough to paste links, but here is the title to a YouTube vid about a guys experience with the RSC in Dallas. It's a 2 part video. Thanks for all the posts to my thread and I look forward to reading more!

Service of my Rolex Datejust 1600 - Rolex Service Center Dallas - Process & Thoughts

How did it all work out?

[Doc Savage]

Originally Posted by watchdogitalia

I have been around the Rolex business of watches and many repairs for over 30 years and I can tell you for 100% certain the price of $750 for an overhaul is correct. I am also a wanna be watchmaker with some level of experience working on these watches for at least 3 decades.

In the last 2 months I have had 3 GMTs serviced by the Rolex service centers in both NYC and Dallas. These watches needed extreme help and many many parts replaced so it was more cost effective to let Rolex do it.

Based on experience if it was my watch I would ABSOLUTELY send it to the Rolex service center before I would ever give it to a Rolex store , and I don't care if their watchmaker uses real parts and is trained by Rolex. And here is why.

1. At the service center you have many eyes on the watch and it is going through many more checks and final inspection and approval by more than just one watchmaker. They are meticulous as hell .

2. The refinishing of the watch is done by a separate department by people who do it all day long and they are in my opinion better at it than a local watchmaker for whom this may not be his strong point and is doing this as a side job to get the watch finished.

3. You are going to have a receipt for the service center which enhances the value of the watch a lot more than a receipt from an AD . You will get the watch back in a felt Rolex sleeve with a padded green Rolex logo painted foam protector box, really a nice touch.

4. When running it thru the service centers as a general rule you get a lot of free parts from them included in the service fee that you may not get from the store. Because a lot of the basic mechanical parts cost them very little , such as reversing wheels etc, they do not nit pick and just replace them at no charge. They will also replace parts with upgraded parts if need be at no charge. This is their policy and unless its major part like a main plate they are going to do it for free.

I know all this because I currently know people who have worked for the Rolex service centers as watchmakers and my current local watchmaker is Rolex trained and certified and recently in the last 2 years attended and finished all of their advanced courses. The watchmakers teaching these courses were all Rolex master watchmakers so naturally the what goes on at the service centers was discussed a length.

The other important thing of note I would advise is to send the watch to the Dallas service center as opposed to NYC. I recently sent 2 GMTS to NYC and was not happy with both the rudeness of the customer service people on the phone , and with the outcome of the service on one of the watches. I paid for a brand new bracelet and they gave me a bracelet that had links removed and put back in with the grooves in the screw heads all butchered and chewed up by someone who didn't know how to use a screwdriver. I had to send it back to them,

I then sent the 3rd watch to Dallas and there was a night and day difference.
They are much nicer to deal with, they finished the watch 1 week faster than NYC and the watch of course came back flawless.
I have collector friends that all swear by Dallas over NYC and I am sold on Dallas. I have also read and heard about a lot of bad feedback on NYC.

If you follow Rolexes detailed instructions you can ship it fedex for about $45 fully insured as opposed to USPS registered mail where it can take 10 days to arrive.
You can print the service form on line right off the Rolex website with all the instructions.

Good luck

Great info post. Thanks!

[TBritt]

How did it all work out?

walds11, So sorry for the late reply. I'm very happy with the service I received. The GMT looks and runs great. I just felt more comfortable using my local dealer rather than sending it 1200 miles away to Dallas.

[walds11]

Originally Posted by TBritt

walds11, So sorry for the late reply. I'm very happy with the service I received. The GMT looks and runs great. I just felt more comfortable using my local dealer rather than sending it 1200 miles away to Dallas.

Glad to hear

I held off on sending my SubC 116610 G serial in for service since the RSCs are temporarily closed.

[Cookie88888]

I would always send a Rolex off to the RSC. Yes it’s expensive but the watch comes back like new and has the added benefit of 2 years warranty.


Also, if you ever have a watch with no paperwork it is a good way of getting a bit of added provenance with the watch for potential future resale as you will receive a service card with serial number on.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[*LexLover]

Originally Posted by Cookie88888

I would always send a Rolex off to the RSC. Yes it’s expensive but the watch comes back like new and has the added benefit of 2 years warranty.


Also, if you ever have a watch with no paperwork it is a good way of getting a bit of added provenance with the watch for potential future resale as you will receive a service card with serial number on.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I like this idea as well. The new service card is definitely a positive when it's time to let it go.

[Rolex tom]

Charging for a spring bar; I’ve never come across that one.

[TBritt]

The final tally was 1,253 bucks. They did a great job as it looks and has been performing great. I did get the 2 year warranty. It was worth it to me to let Reeds Jewelers do my service as my watch never left my hometown. I just didn't like the idea of shipping it 1,200 miles thru the mail. That's just me.