Andrew sent in his father’s Longines Conquest.
The watch has undergone some βupgradesβ. The original movement has been replaced with an ETA 955.414 Quartz movement and the dial has been restored at one point.
Very nice enamel on the case back.The old movement is gone and the case ring has been turned down to accommodate the quartz movement.Removing the hands I fist get a shock as the hands fall apart.But looking more closely I realize that the original hands have been glued on to the quartz hands!The dial feet have been cut off, and glue strips have been stuck on the dial instead.The dial has a big dent where the dial foot once was.Good for Andrew – I had a spare Longines Conquest movement, case ring, dial and hands.The movement is in decent condition but needs a service.Very nice perlage decoration on the 19AS movements.Performance confirms what I already know.I start by removing the auto winder mechanism.Wheel train bridge removed.Plenty of dirt.Almost done.Mainspring is full of solidified grease.After cleaning I grease the mainspringMainspring back into the barrel.Movement coming back together nicely.Second wheel pinion is held down with a tension spring.Base movement back together ticking happily.Setting mechanism going back in place.Looking goodPretty cool the roller that leans up against the rotor has a massive jewel setting.Auto winder mechanism back in place.I clean and apply new varnish and luminous compound to the dial.The movement with dial and hands.And now the happy marriage of a movement that lost its case in a case that lost its movement. You can see I have also put the rotor back in place.To top it all of I have also replaced the crown to an original Longines crown.And what a transformation both aesthetically and mechanically!I could not restrain myself from trying the watch on my wrist.
I can’t help noticing that one of the bottom (6 o’clock side) lugs had been knocked hard against something, thus making the bottom springbar not sit parallel to the top one – perhaps that’s what totalled the original movement. What did the poor watch do to deserve to be treated like this?
Hi Mitka
I rate this as the best watch repair post I’ve read this year! And not just because I’m a fan of old Longines watches but how the quartz implant was removed and replaced with the correct movement!
Justin
First off, I LOVE your site and seeing the incredible repairs and, like this one, miracles. I just wanted to chime in to say that trying on a watch to snap a quick wrist shot for your blog seems perfectly fine. You’re not claiming it’s yours, and I don’t think anyone would’ve thought you were taking it out for a night on the town. Still, it’s appreciated the level of care and that you’d seek the customer’s pre-approval. That’s a good thing and would never hurt. Keep ’em coming. It’s so much fun to live vicariously through you and ‘peek behind the veil’ to see how it’s actually done.
I can’t belive that quartz conversion! Did the watch go in for a service one day and come back ticking like a casio ?
Sort of! It was losing time and a local “specialist” jeweller (who was also a Longines dealer) told him it was beyond repair as parts were no longer available and that a Quartz movement was the only option to keep it going.
It makes you wonder how many perfectly good timepieces end up in drawers or junked because owners don’t know that real specialists like Christian and Mitka are out there……
Something else special restored for use by future generations. I am still trying to work out how you wound the spring back into its housing #fiddly!
Not as fiddly as a clock mainspring;)
Wearing a customers watch is akin to a mechanic taking a customers exotic car “for a spin”. In this case, Mitka just sat in the car, cheeky perhaps, but ultimately harmless as the owner stated. Christian’s reply assures customers and prospects alike that this is not usual behaviour and his business practices uphold high standards of customer courtesy.
I once caught a mechanic “test driving” my car – initially it seemed appropriate until I realized his test drive involved a stop at McDonalds to get his lunch, and even more problematic when the clutch expired a couple of days later…
Another fantastic restoration! I love seeing watches coming back from the dead. I quite liked seeing the wrist shot, but can understand why you might not usually.
For the record, feel free to wear any of the watches I send in π
No doubt I would like to wear your dads Alpina Ferrari!;) http://watchguy.co.uk/service-alpina-calibre-592/
π As would I! Still love that one the most.
+1!! π
I am actually rather impressed with how well the quartz movement was implemented, but the auto is much nicer.
Hi Mitka,
What an amazing transformation! I can’t believe what you’ve been able to achieve and can’t wait to return this to my father. He bought this new in around 1959 and I remember it being on his wrist throughout my childhood and I know he’ll be absolutely delighted. I’m pleased you took an on the wrist shot – I think it shows just how much enthusiasm you have for your work! Thank you so much for your efforts, Andrew
Hi Andrew, I hope your dad will be happy with the work and that the watch will serve him many years to come:) Pleasure to work on the watch.
Very nice restoration job. Incredible the vandalism which can be carried out on watch.
Thanks Scott, I agree in my eyes it is pure vandalism. Still I must give the watchmaker a little credit, as the quartz job was still working after 25years. This job was done in a time where this was probably seen as an upgrade, most people thought the mechanical watch was a think of the past;)
We normally don’t wear customer’s watches unless pre-agreed (e.g. for testing). Nice work, Mitka, but I’ll have a word about wearing customer watches with you tomorrow!
Just to clarify, I only wore this watch for a photo, I removed the watch straight away. I will not actually wear a customer watch unless pre-agreed for testing as Christian mentions. Still this was reckless off me as I did not ask the owner. Christian did not know of my action as he was away today. It will certainly not happen again.
Ah – the enthusiasm of youth. I vaguely remember it π
This is so funny π to see them talking here about these principles and all that! It’s a good thing actually but Christian and Mitka, we all know how respectful and trustworthy you guys are! π
Please don’t get me wrong, but I feel the need to say that Mitka has the right to throw the watch under a tank – I doubt he wouldn’t be able to fix it after – as long as the customer receives the watch with everything in order. Not to mention that he put a mechanical movement where there was none!