Hi All,
I have a Mark XVI which has suffered from tons of scratches and dents and was wondering how much a full factory service can revive it back to its original condition? I have a extended warranty through my AD (Torneau) and they say they can send it back to IWC for a factory polish. Any idea what kind of results I can expect?
Cheers
I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.there are some examples of watches in the archives that, if you search for them, will show you incredible results. Watches that looked totally beat-up came back as almost new.
Polishing depends on many factors, so we can't evaluate any specific situation, especially via electronic written description. Also, I don't know if it's covered under warranty: you may want to double-check.
Good luck.
I have an Ingenieur that I bought from another IWC collector. I had seen pictures that showed it had gotten pretty beaten up (scratched) during his use. He had it serviced and polished, then offered it for sale. I bought it and was very happy when the watch arrived, as it looked virtually brand new.
I hope you get similar results, absent the dust in the photo, which is all my doing.
Thanks for your insights guys, I was actually curious about this myself.
How do you foresee the future of your watch? Is it going to accumulate tons of scratches and dents again? If so, I find it difficult to see the point of making it beautiful, all the more because in the process of it the top layer of the case, however thin, is being removed. In that case, the watch as it is right now is maybe at its best, it may even look tough, adding to its character.
Kind regards,
Paul, wearing steel VC Pilot's watch
How well is your Mark XVI working after getting all these dents ? I wonder how robust is this watch
to hits :-)
Thanks,
Bogdan
the watch still works fine! I will send it in to my AD soon for repairs and perhaps post before and after pictures, thanks!
Just sent it in today. They're not shipping it to the original factory however and are instead shipping it to their own workshop in NY I believe. Also, I asked the person about getting an OEM deployant and she said prices were negotiable so I will post about that too if anyone is interested.
I have been very pleased with IWC's factory service. I slipped on ice while wearing my gold Portofino automatic and the crystal was completely shattered with shards penetrating the movement. A full factory service for the badly-damaged watch took about four months but I could not believe it was the same watch when it was returned to me. New crystal, crown, hands and dial, not to mention the cleaning/replacement of internal components and full case polish. Unfortunately the watch stopped occasionally and failed to wind fully about three months later, but after a second trip back to Schaffausen, it is now running perfectly (more accurate than my new Breitling Montbrillant). Fortunately, Tourneau (my AD) guarantees their service for 18 months.