Zenith Defy

[Mainspring]

I recently sent my grand-father's Zenith Defy down to Brendan (webwatchmaker) for a bit of TLC in Torquay.

He has worked his magic, and the watch is now on its way back to me. I found Brendan through this forum, and I have found him to be very knowledgable, and a delight to communicate with.

I will post up more pics when it is back in my possession, but here is one, courtesy of Brendan, taken whilst on test on his bench this morning!



As always, thanks Brendan!

[dachi]

Lovely patina :)

[Mainspring]

Thanks - yes, it's really noticeable in that picture.

[Wolfie]

What a lovley thing to own... your Grandad was a dude!

[Mainspring]

Thanks - he appreciated "nice" things, and this watch was a favourite of his!


Sent from my iPhone using TZ-UK mobile app

[hughtrimble]

I'm a fan of the geometric case and bezel used on some of these Defy models - very nice inheritance.

[Mainspring]

Thanks for the comments.

I have had it in my modest collection for about 20 years, and have always enjoyed looking at, and wearing it.

Thanks again.

[JackW]

Very nice watch, and good to hear that you're taking good care of this heirloom.

Totally gratuitous picture of mine:

[Mainspring]

Thanks Jack, and loving that colour on yours!

- - - Updated - - -

Is your bracelet a GF Ladder?

[hughtrimble]

More pictures of that cracking bracelet if possible? Looks great.

[walkerwek1958]

I`ve restored a couple of these, a very unusual watch and a nightmare to refinish. The problem was working out which surfaces were grained and which were polished....then getting the finish right with no fuzzy edges. Refinishing at right angles is straightforward, but if the angle's are softer it becomes a whole lot harder........and throw in some curves for good measure!

Superb movements, but the date mechanism is a bit over-engineered and can be prone to problems. The date turns over instantaneously (rolex style) and the mechanism's a fiendish design. If the date change goes faulty on one day it'll stop the watch.....I`ve been there and had to figure this out! Fortunately new parts were available and all ended well....apart from the dent in the owner's wallet. Anyone looking to buy one of these should check the date works correctly.

Paul

[JackW]

More pictures of that cracking bracelet if possible? Looks great.

Thanks Jack, and loving that colour on yours!

- - - Updated - - -

Is your bracelet a GF Ladder?

Thanks. Yes, it is a Zenith signed GF ladder. I'm afraid I don't have pictures of the bracelet alone. I did find this one, where you see more of the bracelet:

[Webwatchmaker]

I`ve restored a couple of these, a very unusual watch and a nightmare to refinish. The problem was working out which surfaces were grained and which were polished....then getting the finish right with no fuzzy edges. Refinishing at right angles is straightforward, but if the angle's are softer it becomes a whole lot harder........and throw in some curves for good measure!

Superb movements, but the date mechanism is a bit over-engineered and can be prone to problems. The date turns over instantaneously (rolex style) and the mechanism's a fiendish design. If the date change goes faulty on one day it'll stop the watch.....I`ve been there and had to figure this out! Fortunately new parts were available and all ended well....apart from the dent in the owner's wallet. Anyone looking to buy one of these should check the date works correctly.

Paul

Each angle had to be polished carefully to avoid rounding the edges and there were some deep scratches on the faces.
The calendar does indeed move forward instantaneously with a clunk !
It would certainly stop the watch if it jammed.
At least the disc is metal. Some later, and pricey JleC clunking calendars have plastic discs which wear in no time...well after two or three years anyway.
The movement on this Defy is sweet.
Before Zenith lost their way a little.

Brendan

[Mainspring]

Having received my Defy back from Brendan today, I have to say I am absolutely blown away by the way it has returned from its recuperative holiday in Torquay. The case has been very carefully and sympathetically cleaned up, and the watch now looks better than it ever has since it came to me from my grandfather.

I shall post some (amateur) pictures tomorrow in the daylight.

Having done some more research, I was delighted to discover that it is on the much revered Gay Freres ladder bracelet, which has corresponding date stamps to age the bracelet to the head.

Pictures up tomorrow, and thanks again to Brendan for his first class work, and service.

[Carlton-Browne]

I'm looking forward to an update on this.

[Mainspring]

As promised, some amateur pictures of my Zenith Defy, which has had some TLC from Brendan (webwatchmaker), both internally and externally.

Excellent job, I'm sure you'll agree, and it is running very well now. Brendan also spent some time on the crystal, which looks very clean now.

Having established that it is (to the best of my knowledge!)the original Gay Fréres "ladder" bracelet, as supplied when my grandfather initially purchased the watch, I am now sending that to Brendan for some TLC.

I have also purchased a vintage NSA Novavit bracelet, so that I can keep the GF for best.

Hope you enjoy my first attempts at a full watch post with pictures.












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