Reply With QuoteWatchworks in Bristol are good
I have a bracelet that id like to have refinished (brushed and polished elements) who is doing this kind of work well these days?
thanks all
Watchworks in Bristol are good
Not so long back I contacted Watchworks to see if the would refinish an Omega bracelet only to be told it’s not type of work they do now.Originally Posted by Vanguard
“ Hi Ian
Thanks for your Email.
I am sorry we cannot undertake this type of work any more as our business has changed.”
Last edited by Mr_Mac; 3rd July 2020 at 16:46.
i heard good things about seth at the watch doctors so will try him
I watched this recently when looking into having the Jubilee on my 1984 Datejust refurbed. About £500 IIRC. I don't know how this compares to other repairers.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hl_qs1RSF4E
F.T.F.A.
There's a big difference between refinishing bracelet and completely rebuilding one. People like Seth and Michael Young in Hong Kong have the ability to dismantle the fixed links on Rolex bracelets and fit new pins, very few people can/will do this so its specialised.
Most repairers can do refinishing but many don`t like doing it because its time-consuming and its dirty work compared to movement servicing.
OP hasn`t stated what the bracelet is from, why keep us all guessing? More information is likely to lead to better replies, I can never understand why people don`t give more information when asking questions.
What do you need doing and what is the current condition??
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Surely it cant really be that dirty tho hey Paul.......to dismantle a watch bracelet!.
personally I didn’t think the particular bracelet was of importance when asking .
it’s not like the people who refinish bracelets only do Rolex or omega I didn’t think the exact bracelet was likely to change the answer I was going to get and said refinish not rebuild .
it’s from a 47040 vc overseas
What you don’t realise is that folks who do this work will take on some jobs but not others, the watch in question makes a big difference. It does change the answer!
You totally misunderstood my answer.
I have one workroom. When doing movement work the bench needs to be spotless, no dust or dirt anywhere. If I start doing refinishing work it ends up as a dusty dirty shithole that takes time to re- clean to a standard where movement work can be undertaken again.
Refinishing IS dirty work, I scrub my hands with detergent and a bloody nailbrush when I’m getting cleaned up, a bit like working on cars. I don’t mind that, I’ve had a career working in chemical labs with stuff that would scare people, but I’ve reached the stage with refinishing work that the juice isn’t worth the squeeze.
People own watches, scratch them to bits, don’t look after them, then expect some miracle refinishing process to make them look new again. Other people like to buy and sell to make a few bob (dealers?), and expect some guy ( like me) to spend hours making the crap they’ve bought look like new so they can sell it and make a nice earner.
I’ve polished enough turds, that’s how I became good at it, but unless someone wants to pay strong money to make it worth my while I’m not interested any longer, life’s too short. I work to one standard and it’s a high standard, but it takes too bloody long to achieve.
I taught myself to do this work, it isn’t rocket science, why don’t more of the ‘enthusiasts’ do the same? And I don’t mean rubbing a scotchbrite or a cape cod over the work, I mean doing it properly!
Been there, done that, I’ll refinish the odd watch or two if I’m servicing/ restoring it. I’m not good with monotonous tedious work, doesn’t suit me, and believe me it’s monotonous and tedious!
It’s a bit like refinishing cars, I’ve done a bit of that in the past, I could achieve excellent results but I bloody hated that too!
OP - It might be worth responding to this post from Paul if you haven’t already.
It’s arriving with him tomorrow !
If Paul did Tony's BLNR bracelet I would have no hesitation sending any bracelet to him. It looked like a first class job.
Dirty work is crawling under a diesel loco on that's fire, then afterwards having to replace your fire kit because it's so filthy it's unusable. Trust me.
I bow to your experience!
One of the dirtiest jobs I recall was applying traditional bitumen-based underseal with a brush to a car I restored in the mid- 80s. I ended up covered in the bloody stuff, my overalls were fit for the bin, the hat I wore got binned, I had to clean myself up using white spirit. But the worst recollection was trying to clean it off my back and arse, I’d been lying in the stuff and it had gone through my overalls. I ended up kneeling in the bath whilst my ex- wife scrubbed me with a nail brush and neat washing up liquid, definitely not my finest hour.
Getting gearbox oil in my hair was another episode that sticks in the mind, couldn't get rid of the smell, and its not a pleasant smell.
On a 1-10 scale of dirty jobs watch refinishing isn’t high, but your hands and nails end up with ingrained black dirt from using wet and dry paper, and the work area ends up a mess. Movement work requires a very clean environment so the two activities don’t sit well together where space is limited. I could do with setting up a separate workshop in my garage for refinishing, but I haven’t got the space........or the inclination thesedays.
Last edited by walkerwek1958; 8th July 2020 at 22:04.
I do a lot of my own refinishing if it’s only light marks, a washing up scouring sponge lights pressed with the brushing and cape cod for the polished parts works wonders
Treat yourself to some scotchpads and a Garryflex block (blue), far more effective.
Luxury
We had no fire kit.
Thanks for the heads up i will try those 👍🏻
When taking fine scratches out of polished surfaces, get a small hard rubber block and some fine wet and dry. If the damage is deeper use a similar hardwood block and coarser wet and dry such as 1500 grit, but try to use the finest grade that’ll remove the marks out without taking forever. Work through the finer grades (3000, 5000, 7000) and use the paper wet with a spot of washing up liquid in the water. Use the rubber block for the finer grades. Use metal polish (solvol autosol is OK) on a soft cloth wrapped around the block, or use a leather- faced buff stick, to get the finish back, finally finishing with cape cod. I do the final step on a buffing wheel.
This process is time- consuming but it works. Removal of metal is kept to a minimum if the wood or rubber blocks are used, this gives a levelling effect which is what you want.
The rubber block I use is cut from a car exhaust support strap that’s approx 6mm thick. I cut a piece approx 15mm long. The hardwood block is simply cut from a length of hardwood strip with similar dimensions.
Seth does not just do bracelet repairs he pretty much does everything, servicing polishing, case welding...
over the years sent a fair watches wouldrecommend him
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I wonder if Rolex follow this process
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I think you’ll find they have elaborate machines that speed things up.I wonder if Rolex follow this process
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Why don’t you try taking my advice and have a go yourself, I’m self- taught, lots of folks could learn if they tried. Just practice on something cheap till you get the hang of it. I had some advice from a few people initially ( thanks Gingerboy) but mist if what I learned was by trying different tricks and thinking about what was actually going on.
The drawback with hand- finishing is the time it takes, but the results can be worthwhile. Being able to refinish marks and damage yourself is a big advantage but I dislike marking/ damaging my watches.
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