Reply With QuoteYou must be good friends to loan a watch like that. If he's that good of a friend, he'll help make it right.
This is everyone's worst nightmare. I've had my breitling navitimer for 3 year's and there is not a single mark on it. My friend has a breitling that's been left in for repair and he asked could he borrow mine for the Chrismas month. I had no problem with this. However I handed it to him. As he put it on he dropped it to the ground. It's now tainted. Does breitling sell replacement cases and if they do how much.
Lesson learned. Don't lend any of your watches.
You must be good friends to loan a watch like that. If he's that good of a friend, he'll help make it right.
Tainted?!? These aren't virgin brides we're talking about here. Watches are meant to be worn. As a consequence they will get scratches, dings, marks, etc. Can you really not bring yourself to wear a "tainted" watch?Originally Posted by George
The mark may be able to be polished/brushed out. If the case has a serious ding, you could find a place to do laser welding. A replacement case is going to be quite expensive.
I agree in principle with that, but dropped while putting it on is not a great memory. He's taken care of this baby and is in mourning.
You should post a picture of the damage to the watch so we can evaluate it. But I'm sure an overhaul will take care of the problem without spending too much.
When did we become WUS?
Oh, has the watch taken on the persona of a relative or close friend, and is now dead?
...but what do I know; I don't even like watches!
My thoughts. Mourning, FFS.
Get the ding polished out. If the watch starts to misbehave, tell your friend he needs to stump for a repair/service. He has a Breitling already, he will obviously understand the cost. If he refuses, then it'll cost you £300 - but you'll have got rid of a cheap, shitty friend.
...but what do I know; I don't even like watches!
I think the simple lesson here is don't lend a watch to someone who is incapable of putting it on!
It really depends on what damage has been done, possibly to the movement, as well as the case?
For total peace of mind get it serviced, and your friend would obviously pay for it.
Hah :)
George,
Its a watch in stainless steel that's designed to withstand daily life, if its still working correctly just wear it and forget about it.
Very funny, but probably true for some. George seems particularly upset about it.
So is the watch actually damaged? What was it dropped onto?
I think you have to take a somewhat sanguine approach to watch ownership; I have only 2 or 3 watches that I would be upset to damage in some way, but there is no point in owning them if I don't wear them... and there is a risk to that.
I would replace the Breitling with a Damasko and the friend with someone who has a different hobby to juggling.
What Breitling is your friend having serviced? If it is also a Navitimer, then just do a straight swap. You have his serviced and presumably undamaged Breitling and he has yours which he foolishly dropped. Failing that, live with it! Any dings will be a gentle reminder not to loan your watch out again!
What was your friends reaction to dropping your prized possession?
Hopefully he has offered to right the situation and if it looks serious, then that is a service from breitling.
Exactly.
Is there any cosmetic damage to the case, or any other part of the watch? If so, you could always get a good watchmaker/jewellers to polish out any marks or scratches. However I'd keep an eye on how it's keeping time. If it has always been accurate and now loses/gains considerable amount of time over a day/days, then that could point to something amiss inside and time to book it in for a service!
Maybe I eat too much cheese of an evening but marking the case of a watch is not my worst nightmare.
Having said that, the advice that "these are battle-scars, live with it" would be OK if the guy had damaged his own watch but a borrowed watch should be returned in the same or better condition.
Exactly. The friend damaged the watch, if he is a friend, he'll make it right. One shouldn't have to suffer any kind of 'loss' for displaying generosity. My watches are all 'Wabi'd', but that's my doing, my loss.
Enjoyed the cheese reference too... :)
Key question is damage. If just on to carpet with no visible damage, and if running fine, it's probably ok. Nothing to worry about - these things happen to the best of us.
If damaged, why not ask your friend to help with the cost?
Somewhat unrelated: The old man who owns on of our city's top watch shops dropped my Speedmaster on their carpet-on-concrete floor as I was buying it. It's still my most accurate watch... Amazing how much these things can actually take.
Very much this ^
I'm no Sherlock Holmes but I guess that, as he's asking about replacement cases, it wasn't dropped onto carpet with no visible damage.
Elementary.
Damned too-quick reading...
Send me a detailed picture of the damage and I`ll let you know whether I can refinish it or not.
Normally, I won`t work on Breitlings but I`m a sucker for a sob story.
I can`t imagine, even in my wildest dreams, lending a watch to anyone...........might make an exception with my old Seiko 5 beater but I`d never lend anything with of value.
Paul
argh hate thinking about this hope you get it fixed
JAMP0T1
It will be no good for you now it's been "tainted".
The only proper thing to do is get it on sale corner as a beater,say a few hundred quid and hope someone buys it and can live with a beat up Breitling.
Many years ago a lady friend of mine asked if she could try on my watch. She was a musician in a moderately successful band at the time and being a bit worse for wear (we were in a bar after a gig) she accidentally dropped it 5 ft onto a stone floor, denting the crown and bending the crown tube. She was very apologetic and proclaimed 'at least it wasn't a rolex!'. Indeed it was not, it was a vintage Seamaster given to me on my 21st birthday. The crown had just been replaced by Omega when I'd had it serviced only a few weeks beforehand. Amazingly, afterwards it ran fine, and to this day I have not had the crown repaired though it has been serviced twice since then... The point of this being: I was fairly peaved when it happened, but soon got over it and now I and the watch have a story to tell. When I look at the crown it reminds me of that evening and a friend I sadly no longer keep in touch with (though not because she busted up my watch!). Be annoyed, then get over it and enjoy your friendship. I expect he feels suitably shamed and now he owes you one.
Last edited by Badger Plus; 5th December 2013 at 00:25.
Just ask to handle his watch when he gets it back from repair ...
Same thing with my matte-dial 16800 Submariner. One summer, more years ago then I care to remember, the missus (then girlfriend) flipped it out of a towel, into the air and onto the concrete surface by my parent's pool, and in doing so, severely dented the crown, chipped the edge of the crystal and totally gummed up the movement. Being in my early twenties and between jobs, I was unable to have it serviced, and so it sat in a box for years, until one day my mother found it and had it repaired by a local watchmaker for my birthday. Thank god, he was smart enough to keep it all orginal, as I have since come to cherish that crown and crystal as a reminder of a time when my wife and I were young and carefree. I've had it serviced a couple of times since that initial repair, and while I have had the case brought back to like-new condition, I always make sure that the crown and crystal remain untouched. I have no doubt that when my son inherits the watch from me that he'll be grateful to have that physical reminder of the love that his parents shared.
To the OP, there's no such thing as a "tainted" watch; if it needs to be refinished/repaired, I'm sure your friend will take care of it.
Regards,
Adam
Between craniotes' and Badger Plus' stories, I'm reminded of the idea of Noble Wabi (well, technically Wabi Sabi): nothing lasts, nothing is finished, and nothing is perfect and there is beauty in that.
Well sometimes our worst enemy is ourselves...the person dropping my watches is myself. Quite the careless guy here, so i've banged up, dropped many of my watches..
How bad is the damage? I'm trying to imagine how a case would need replacing after being dropped - I can see the crystal could smash or the crown break, but the whole case??
It was dropped onto a concrete pavement from about 5ft . It was damaged on left side of the case. Not sure yet if the movement has been affected. I wouldn't mind as much if I had dropped it myself but after 3 years with not a mark, 10 seconds in my friends hands and it hits the pavement. For anyone who thinks it's not that bad or I'm a bit mad why don't you give your favorite watch to a friend and let him drop it onto concrete from 5ft. Let me know if you're ok with it and what it feels like.
Last edited by George; 5th December 2013 at 13:35.
So is your mate gonna cover the servicing? I agree I would be upset if someone dropped any of my watches nevermind an expensive one.
Would be good to see a pic and see what all the dramarama is about before I judge if he shouldstill be your friend or not, accidents happen, I got a 8 year old lad that loves my watches....recipe for disaster but hey ho...I am sure it was not intentional when he dropped it...
5 feet onto concrete? I'd send it off for a service and repair ASAP and ask the friend to pay. A bit of a pain and unfortunate, and it's a shame you've been so careful - but lots of things get damaged all the time. You won't be happy with it until Breitling have had a look and fixed it to be honest so that's the only course of action. The only watch that I'd loan to a friend would have g shock on the dial!
Doesn't make me feel like posting on a forum. Maybe if I throw it...It was dropped onto a concrete pavement from about 5ft . It was damaged on left side of the case. Not sure yet if the movement has been affected. I wouldn't mind as much if I had dropped it myself but after 3 years with not a mark, 10 seconds in my friends hands and it hits the pavement. For anyone who thinks it's not that bad or I'm a bit mad why don't you give your favorite watch to a friend and let him drop it onto concrete from 5ft. Let me know if you're ok with it and what it feels like.
Respect the past, live the present, protect the future
No-one is saying it wouldn't be highly irritating, but it's a watch, not a small child, no-one died, and it's fixable. (By your friend, and his credit card.) Also I believe that this was an accident, not the deliberate and premeditated act which you propose here.For anyone who thinks it's not that bad or I'm a bit mad why don't you give your favorite watch to a friend and let him drop it onto concrete from 5ft. Let me know if you're ok with it and what it feels like.
...but what do I know; I don't even like watches!
I've dropped my watches before and it's definitely not a good feeling.For anyone who thinks it's not that bad or I'm a bit mad why don't you give your favorite watch to a friend and let him drop it onto concrete from 5ft. Let me know if you're ok with it and what it feels like.
However, I didn't go crying to the forums about how my watch was now "tainted" and unwearable.
Heard nothing back from the OP, not even a 'thanks for offering'.........I`ll assume he's not interested and I`ll withdraw the offer. I`ve plenty of work on plus a minor health issue to contend with, but I was prepared to try and help given the circumstances. It would've been good manners to acknowledge my offer, even if he's decided it has to go to Breitling to keep him happy.
I`d be upset if one of my watches got dropped and damaged, but there are far worse things that happen.
There are 3 ways forward:
He gets it refinished and has the movement checked for damage (a timing machine will help a lot), rectifying this if necessary.
He replaces the case and possibly gets the movement sorted if there's damage.
He gets the movement checked and accepts the cosmetic damage.
He hasn`t stated whether the damage is confined to the case or whether the bezel has been damaged too. That could alter the scope of the cost to repair.
Rather than focus on the emotive side of things and get into spats with people on here, he'd be better pursuing actions to get it sorted, or at least to find out the best way forward and the cost involved. I`ve offered to help, he hasn`t replied.....I`m out.
Paul
Hi Paul,
Sorry I didn't get back to you in the desired time.
Best Regards
Adam
You've seriously missed out there....Paul's work is first class.
If it dropped onto a concrete floor from 5ft and all you got was a mark on the case - that is very lucky!
I'm more interested in the friendship dilemma...would you ask him to pay for a service? What would he say if he's asked to pay for a service for just a small mark?
I PM'd Adam yesterday after reading his thread and offered to sort it out should he want me to take a look, he responded very quickly and was going to send some pic's over when he gets it back from his friend.
There are a lot of tetchy people on here at the moment in my opinion, its a bit like listening to my two daughters 'talking' to each other, everything has a certain tone to it.
Anyway, I digress
Paul
I admire the subtlety of that reply. I would NOT have been been able to match it.
@walkerwek1958 - you possibly need to remind yourself, that every post about a watch problem on here, is not an opportunity to tout for business. Not every member is obligated to respond to your offers for help. In the interests of balance and fairness to you, you would doubtless do a better job than most of the membership, but you're not a professional unlike other members and non-members and I remember your rather brazen attempts to undercut Duncan Potter's prices.
Perhaps if you do want to offer your services, you could follow Gingerboy's example and PM folk with issues.
From my perspective, getting the hump about a member not replying to your generous offer within 24 hours and the constant "I could fix this but I'm booked out until February" replies are becoming rather wearisome.
Last edited by dkpw; 5th December 2013 at 22:16. Reason: typo
David
Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations
I think thats a bit harsh David. Paul offered the OP some help. The OP posted on the thread the following day without so much as mentioning the offer.
it was a courteous offer and the minimal courtesy of an acknowledgment would have been nice.
OP, a few people have asked what your friend's reaction was and if he offered to pay for it. Can you answer that question?
Feel better after that?
I`ve plenty of work to keep me as busy as I wish to be; I don`t work on watches in order to put bread on the table, I do it because I want to. As for 'not being a professional', I fail to see the relevance of that jibe; I`m happy with the quality of work I produced and I am my own biggest critic. My warranty/returns record stands at zero.......I think that speaks for itself.
I don`t need to tout for work, but I`m always happy to take on certain jobs. Other jobs I avoid, or admit that they are beyond me. As for raking up an ill-considered comment I made (and apologised wholeheartedly for) almost 2 years ago, that's a seriously cheap shot. I have every respect for Duncan and I`ve put a job his way this week; after lengthy communication with the owner of the watch I felt that was the right thing to do.
I have plenty of dealings via PM, that's how I prefer to communicate. in this case I made an offer on the open forum to help this guy.
I did a similar job on a Longines watch a few months back and fitted it in amongst everything else. I was happy to do so and the owner was very pleased. Frankly, I`ve no strong urge to work on Breitlings and I`m not sorry this won`t be coming my way. However, I felt it was ill-mannered of the OP not to reply to my offer of help and that's why I withdrew the offer.
You've obviously got a bone to pick with me; drop me a PM if you want to continue the debate.
Paul
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