01780 481319 or 020 7477 2224
High quality watch repair and servicing done, here on the premises,
by properly trained watch repairers with decades of experience.
Personal, qualified, experienced and secure, award-winning service.
When we service a watch, we do the job absolutely the right way,
taking every piece apart and cleaning them individually
- that way we have faith in our work and stand by our guarantees.
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Just about to strip a chronograph. Chronographs can be some of the most demanding watches with literally hundreds of parts. For a successful service these watches must be completely stripped, rather than the cheap and much abused "dunking" practiced by many low cost repairers. |
We have three excellent watchmakers, each is fully trained. That means a minimum of three years at college being taught how to do the job properly; followed by proper experience at the bench, by the side of someone more experienced, before they even touch a customer's watch.
Our watch workshop is in Stamford where we perform both minor and major surgery and repairs to watches under the care of Hristo Dimov, a Bulgarian master watchmaker. Hristo came to us for one year for experience before starting his own business. He is still here three years later!
Our newest member of staff, David Owen-Buckley, graduated from the Brtish Horological Institute in 1981 in the highly demanding "clock and watch" pathway, having scooped many "pass with merits" along the way. He comes to us with a lifetime of experience servicing and repairing watches for high grade jewellers and is based in our watch workshop here in Stamford.
Simple watch repairs can often be done the same day. A full watch service however, takes a little longer.
An odd adition to our staff was Oliver Hall, who trained here for a couple of years. Oliver was headhunted by Breitling for their service division, having got the job over a number of experienced and better qualified watchmakers.
I don't believe there is a watch repair we can't handle. Only economics dictates what is or is not possible...
unlike many so-called watch repairers where things are sent away to a faceless service centre and not seen again for months.
The following is a (not complete or comprehensive) list of the MECHANICAL watches we work on. Mainly for your search engine rather than to scroll through!
The only watch we are not happy to work on is Rado ceramic watches, which we strongly reccommend go back to the manufacturer. The glass is held in place uniquely and is easily broken.
Admiral, Alpina, Altus, Amida, Angelus, Angular Momentum, Anomino, Arnold & Son, Audemars Piguet, Arogno, Atlantic, Aurore, Aviator, Azimuth, Ball, Baume & Mercier, Baumgartner, Bauer, Becker, Beguelin, Bell & Ross, Benrus, Benzinger, Ernst Benz, Bettlach, Bifora, Bidlingmaier, Blancpain, Blu, Bozeman Watch Co, Martin Braun, Breuget, Breitenbach, Breitling, Brac, Rainer Brand Bucherer, Bulla, Bullova (all types), Buren, Buret, Buser, Buti, Bvlgari (Bulgari), Cartier, Champ, Chase-Durer, Chezard, Chopard, Chronoswiss, Citizen, Civitas, Concord, Frederique Constant, Cortebert, Corgement, Corum, Court-essor, Culmina, Cupillard Cvstos, Cyma, Damas, De Grisogono, Derby, Desa, Doxa, Dunhill, Durowe, Ebel, Eberle, Ebosa, Election, Elgin, Emes, Enicar, Epos, Louis Erard, Eterna, Etoile, Excelsior, Favre Leuba, Felsa, Ferrari, Fleurier, Font, Forster, Fortis, Frey, d. freemont, General, GSW, Girard Perregaux, Glycine, Graham, Grau and Hampel, Gruen, Guba, Hanhart, Harwood, Hebdomas, Helebros, Helios, Heuer (as in Tag Heuer), Imhof, Imperial, International, (IWC), Jaeger, Journe, Judex, Jules Jurgensen, Junghans, Keinzele, Kasper, Kurth, Kurtz, Landeron, Langendorf, Lapanouse, Lavina, Le Coultre, (as in Jaeger le Coultre), Lemania, Leon Levy, Le Phare, Liengme, Lip, Longines, Looping, Lord, Lorsa, Lunesa, Luxor, Mallery, Marlboro, Marvin, Mauthe, Melano, MST, A Michel, Mido, Mimo, Minerva, Moeris, Montilier, Movado, Mt Vernon, Muller, Nation, NFT, Nidor, NPX, O'Maire, Omega, Optima, Orient, Orion, Oris, Osco, Otero, Parrenin, Park, Panerai, Pesseax, Pfaff, Phenix, Phinney, Piaget, Pierce, Precimax, Qualitas, Rayville, Reconvelier, Record, Recta, Rensie, Reymond, Rolex, Roseba, Sonceboz, Sandoz, Savoi, A Schild, Dchild & Co, Seiko, Semca, Sigma, Schuler, Stratford, Stuyvesant, Suza, Switana, SWI, Swiza, Tavannes (Cyma), Terasse, Tissot, Troesch, Transpacific, Tudor, Unitas, Universal, Urofa, Vulcain, Waltham, Westfield, Wittnauer, Zenith, Zentra,
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The mainspring of a modern (after about 1950) automatic watch. The spring has no outside hook but is Y shaped to grip the barrel with friction alone, so the spring cannot be "over wound" and break. |
A horror story or two
We recently took in a lovely gent's Patek Phillipe wristwatch which wouldn't keep time. The previous repairer had lost the upper shockproofing spring for the balance staff. Unable to source one, and perhaps unable to make one, he replaced it with superglue.
Although the watch worked it would not keep time. Had it recieved a stout blow, the shockproofing would not have worked and the balance staff might easily have broken.
The Patek Phillipe owner was happy to pay to have the right spring as opposed to a bit of superglue!
Another customer who came in had purchased - at considerable expense - a nice Panerai wristwatch. After a couple of years it began to lose a little. He took the watch back to the shop he bought it from. It was "away" for nine weeks. When it came back it was losing more than ever -- after a bill of just short of £600.
When I had a look at the watch it was set to run slow. Moving the setting towards "fast", with the watch on the timing machine, we soon had it gaining just a fraction.
(Good mechanical watches should always gain rather than lose - partly because it does no harm to be early rather than late, partly because most have "hacking" which means that by pulling out the crown the watch can be stopped, synchronised, and re-started easily.)
Needless to say, our bill was a little smaller than the "main dealer"!
4 Saint Mary's Hill,
Stamford,
Lincolnshire PE9 2DP
Telephone 01780 481319
Please enquire by filling in the form below.
Did you know there is a television channel devoted to watchmaking?
ThetimeTV.com
