El primero woes - advice

[oliverte]

I have an Ebel with the el primero 400 movement.

It has recently had some water emersion, it initially kept working but later stopped. I sent it to the UK Ebel service centre (Mistal) however they are seeking a whole new movement from Ebel.

I'm loathed to buy a new movement, these watches are only worth £2.5k, and although Ebel haven't got back to me with a quote, I am expecting a quote similar to the value of the watch.

Apparently Ebel spares are scarce but this is an el primero so I'm not sure why, apart from rotor, a repairer couldn't source parts from Zenith.

I think my options are:
1. Try and find an independent who could do the job (might require a bit of bodging with non ebel parts)

2. Buy a secondhand ebel movement (I have found one) and get a watch maker to swap

3. Shell out for a new movement

4. Sell for parts and cut losses

Any more ideas?

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[Omegary]

Just a heads up re. an independent and ordering parts. Unfortunately LVMH will only release Zenith/Ebel parts to their accredited watchmakers these days. They've followed the example set by Rolex, Omega, Breitling and others.

Buying a second hand Ebel movement will probably be your best option, however there's no telling the replacement will be better than the one you've got.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

Gary

[Carlton-Browne]

Send it to an independent for a second opinion. There's a good chance that the Ebel service centre default approach is to replace as much as possible because a) it means they don't have to engage a braincell and troubleshoot and b) because they want to treat you as a revenue stream. Have Ebel actually told you what the problem is? In any case it's always good to know you can get a spare movement and you might want to get that anyway if the price is right - they are not likely to become less rare as time goes by.

I don't imagine that Ebel would have re-engineered the movement so, apart from the rotor and the bridge, there probably isn't that much brand specific (though I imagine an indie would benefit from having access to a Zenith parts account).

[higham5]

It maybe worth dropping MartynJC a message on here. He has owned Zeniths and may have some thoughts on independents to talk to

https://forum.tz-uk.com/member.php?2366-MartynJC-(UK)

[ben4watches]

Duncan did a fine job of my Zenith when the mainspring failed.

https://genesiswatchmaking.co.uk/

[oliverte]

Thanks gents! I'll drop Duncan a note, he serviced one of my Zeniths

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[walkerwek1958]

LVMH stopped supplying parts to independent repairers in Sept 2023, they've gone the same way as the rest in setting the bar very high in order to get accreditation and access to parts. prior to this I could get parts for Zenith and TAG easily, sadly those days are gone.

Folks are going to have to accept that the days of cheaper servicing of watches by people like me are drawing to a close, blame the manufacturers for this.

As for the El Primero, it's a tricky one to service but it's not rocket science, I`ve serviced a couple in the past without undue difficulty, but as I can no longer access parts I won't be doing any more.

Water damaged watches are a tricky problem. The manufacturers will insist on replacing a movement, I contend that it isn`t necessary in some case provided the owner accepts that parts of the movement will have tarnishing that won't affect the running of the watch. I`ve sorted out several water-damaged watches, replacing parts that were damaged, to produce a movement that ran correctly but would always show signs of water ingress when inspected carefully. If I could still access Zenith parts I`d be happy to take this on, it'll need a few bits replacing but it's unlikely to need many, but sadly this is no longer a job I can do.

[oliverte]

LVMH stopped supplying parts to independent repairers in Sept 2023, they've gone the same way as the rest in setting the bar very high in order to get accreditation and access to parts. prior to this I could get parts for Zenith and TAG easily, sadly those days are gone.

Folks are going to have to accept that the days of cheaper servicing of watches by people like me are drawing to a close, blame the manufacturers for this.

As for the El Primero, it's a tricky one to service but it's not rocket science, I`ve serviced a couple in the past without undue difficulty, but as I can no longer access parts I won't be doing any more.

Water damaged watches are a tricky problem. The manufacturers will insist on replacing a movement, I contend that it isn`t necessary in some case provided the owner accepts that parts of the movement will have tarnishing that won't affect the running of the watch. I`ve sorted out several water-damaged watches, replacing parts that were damaged, to produce a movement that ran correctly but would always show signs of water ingress when inspected carefully. If I could still access Zenith parts I`d be happy to take this on, it'll need a few bits replacing but it's unlikely to need many, but sadly this is no longer a job I can do.

Such a shame, I would've sent it to you in a heartbeat!

Thanks for the thorough response, gives me hope that the watch can be salvaged

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[Tinker]

Claim off your household insurance.