tardman91 0 Posted January 19, 2011 Here is what I sent to my dealer: Today I noticed a problem with the movement of my recently received Bell & Ross BR01-92. This morning I noticed the watch had lost close to 15 minutes by the time I had arrived at work. It had been keeping great time before that. I thought maybe it had stopped last night and I forgot to reset it. I set it when I got to work and it kept great time all day. This afternoon I noticed it stopped again. This time I kept an eye on it and the second hand moved around the watch just as it always had, but the minute hand did not move at all in about 10 minutes. Then it just started again. I believe there is something wrong with the movement around the :25 minute mark that causes it to get stuck on occasion since that is about the time that I noticed it lost time this morning. With the Breitling SOSF I have a few concerns about the dial. Just to the left of the 6:00 mark there seems to be a speck of black dust stuck on the dial. There is also a small fuzz stuck on the dial to the left of the 9:00 mark, and it seems that there is a very small thread stuck to the red box of the second hand. The Breitling logo also seems to be lifted a little bit more on the right side, and in certain lighting I can see a tiny shadow cast by it since it is not completely flush with the dial. I assume the issues could be easily fixed by opening up the watch and cleaning it, but that is beyond my know-how. Please advise on what I should do about the watches, especially the B&R since it is not keeping time. I am otherwise very happy with the look and feel of the watches. Am I being too picky and expecting too much from a 21J rep? I think I have valid concerns. Obviously there is something wrong with the B&R movement, and I just feel that the Breitling is poor quality control. I'm not blaming anyone. I know the dealers are really busy, and heck, some of that stuff could have been dislodged during shipping or something, but should I expect a clean, lint/dust free dial? Here are the pictures. Some of the dust can't really be seen, but you can see the black speck that bothers me most, and the slightly rising wing logo. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Del 4,462 Posted January 19, 2011 It does look as if you've been a bit unlucky with the SOSF - mine has none of those issues. Clearly you are unhappy so wait and see what response you get from the dealer and take it from there. I wouldn't say you are being too picky - if you only had one of the three things wrong then maybe I'd say you should live with it but with three cosmetic issues I guess it's reasonable to ask the dealer for comment. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wizawuza 0 Posted January 19, 2011 I'd personally say the logo lifting isn't an issue, as long as it doesn't lead to long-term falling off.. the black dot.. yeah that's actually kinda bad. and can't see the string thing from your pic Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tardman91 0 Posted January 19, 2011 I'd personally say the logo lifting isn't an issue, as long as it doesn't lead to long-term falling off.. the black dot.. yeah that's actually kinda bad. and can't see the string thing from your pic I'm not quite as bothered by the logo as the dot. That really bothers me. And it's nearly impossible to get that string on the picture, but if you're looking at it you notice it as soon as you look at the second hand because of the white dial. I guess mine was just assembled in a dusty room. I bought it because of Del's photos, and his looks FLAWLESS. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AllergyDoc 40 Posted January 20, 2011 I think you are being a bit picky about the SOSF, but not the B&R because it's a movement issue. You can see the tiny dust speck because you took macros of it and now know where it is, so you look at it all the time. Have a friend look at it and see if they say anything. It's be invisible to 99% of the population, IMO. That being said, I would probably feel as you do and end up selling it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
greg_r 81 Posted January 20, 2011 Entirely agree with AD. The B&R definitely needs to be sorted out by the dealer imho. If it was me, I'd probably accept the SOSF. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Del 4,462 Posted January 20, 2011 I think you are being a bit picky about the SOSF, but not the B&R because it's a movement issue. You can see the tiny dust speck because you took macros of it and now know where it is, so you look at it all the time. Have a friend look at it and see if they say anything. It's be invisible to 99% of the population, IMO. That being said, I would probably feel as you do and end up selling it. To be fair though, it's more than just the black spec - there are also hairs/fluff/whatever in the watch face. Like I said before, if it was only one minor issue then I'd live with it but with three cosmetic issues I'd be disappointed and want to at least discuss options with the dealer, or send it to Brightlight for a clean. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
prestigewatchco 2 Posted January 20, 2011 You have bought the wrong version of the SOSF the new version with arrow second hand is light years ahead of the normal 21j in terms of quality and has AR sapphire Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tardman91 0 Posted January 20, 2011 You have bought the wrong version of the SOSF the new version with arrow second hand is light years ahead of the normal 21j in terms of quality and has AR sapphire ...and probably costs a whole lot more than what I paid. Anyhow... heard from my dealer and they suggested winding the B&R about 40 times and seeing how that goes. As for the SOSF they sent me about 20 photos of how to open the watch to get at the dial to clean it so I'm going to give it a shot after work today. II'll be 100% happy with it if I can just get those little fuzzes off the face. How hard is it to get at the face from someone who's done it before? Is there a huge risk of ruining the watch? I'm not an idiot, but I'm not a watch maker either. I have the tools, but nothing to open the case with. I've read that a nice sticky ball of tape works well? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
djprone 0 Posted January 20, 2011 You have bought the wrong version of the SOSF the new version with arrow second hand is light years ahead of the normal 21j in terms of quality and has AR sapphire Mine is the 21j SOSF (same as Del's) and has the 'red box' second hand, but also has a very good AR sapphire. I know everyone says the watches are made in the same factory, but i do believe this must be a completely different factory to other 21j steelfishes because the dial is very different to others i have seen. Also, from what i've seen of the new one, the lume seems to be well off centre in the hour markers - the lume on my watch is inside the rings, not just stuck on top of them. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
histog 0 Posted January 20, 2011 having read the post about Robert's "attitude" I cant resist asking and wait for the the reply from the one who I personally think is a comedy genius Hi Robert, how much is the new SOSF?, does it come in all face colours, is there an Asian movement, if so how do I go about ordering it oh and how much is P+P to UK? Also do you take PayPal Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
greg_r 81 Posted January 20, 2011 Drop Robert a PM to find out what he has available at the moment. He doesn't take paypal. He does, however, accept credit cards etc via Alertpay (which is a paypal alternative but a whole lot better imho - it's how I pay whenever I buy from him). Bank transfer is also an option as you're in the UK. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Del 4,462 Posted January 20, 2011 You have bought the wrong version of the SOSF the new version with arrow second hand is light years ahead of the normal 21j in terms of quality and has AR sapphire Mine is the 21j SOSF (same as Del's) and has the 'red box' second hand, but also has a very good AR sapphire. I know everyone says the watches are made in the same factory, but i do believe this must be a completely different factory to other 21j steelfishes because the dial is very different to others i have seen. Also, from what i've seen of the new one, the lume seems to be well off centre in the hour markers - the lume on my watch is inside the rings, not just stuck on top of them. I must say that I'm delighted with my version too. The sapphire crystal is excellent and almost invisible from certain angles, the case is well made, the bezel rotates and clicks nicely, and it keeps great time into the bargain . Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tardman91 0 Posted January 20, 2011 (edited) You have bought the wrong version of the SOSF the new version with arrow second hand is light years ahead of the normal 21j in terms of quality and has AR sapphire Mine is the 21j SOSF (same as Del's) and has the 'red box' second hand, but also has a very good AR sapphire. I know everyone says the watches are made in the same factory, but i do believe this must be a completely different factory to other 21j steelfishes because the dial is very different to others i have seen. Also, from what i've seen of the new one, the lume seems to be well off centre in the hour markers - the lume on my watch is inside the rings, not just stuck on top of them. I must say that I'm delighted with my version too. The sapphire crystal is excellent and almost invisible from certain angles, the case is well made, the bezel rotates and clicks nicely, and it keeps great time into the bargain . Mine is great too, minus the dust/fuzz. Other than that I am very impressed with the quality and look/feel of the watch. And I wound the B&R and so far it's keeping great time. And it kept good time all last night. When I woke up it was still off the same 10 minutes from last night (I didn't touch it after it stopped because I wanted to see if it would lose more time). Hopefully it was just a fluke thing. Edited January 20, 2011 by tardman91 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Del 4,462 Posted January 20, 2011 Good news on the B&R Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tardman91 0 Posted January 20, 2011 (edited) Just wanted to let everyone know that I was able to fix it myself using the pictures that I was sent. Now it's lint/dust/fuzz free and I can wear it without staring at those specks all the time. And I learned something in the process. I just have one question... When I opened up my watch it was missing the two tabs in the picture: I assume they should be there? As long the watch runs I guess it's not a big deal. Edit: I just checked the pics Del posted of his and the screws are missing there too. Edited January 20, 2011 by tardman91 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Del 4,462 Posted January 20, 2011 Well done - very impressive :P. (Sorry, can't comment on the tabs.) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Del 4,462 Posted January 20, 2011 Just wanted to let everyone know that I was able to fix it myself using the pictures that I was sent. Now it's lint/dust/fuzz free and I can wear it without staring at those specks all the time. And I learned something in the process.I just have one question... When I opened up my watch it was missing the two tabs in the picture: I assume they should be there? As long the watch runs I guess it's not a big deal. Edit: I just checked the pics Del posted of his and the screws are missing there too. I guess the tabs just hold the movement in place so if they are not there then is it only the crown holding it in place? Did the movement "fall out" when you removed the crown? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tardman91 0 Posted January 20, 2011 (edited) Just wanted to let everyone know that I was able to fix it myself using the pictures that I was sent. Now it's lint/dust/fuzz free and I can wear it without staring at those specks all the time. And I learned something in the process.I just have one question... When I opened up my watch it was missing the two tabs in the picture: I assume they should be there? As long the watch runs I guess it's not a big deal. Edit: I just checked the pics Del posted of his and the screws are missing there too. I guess the tabs just hold the movement in place so if they are not there then is it only the crown holding it in place? Did the movement "fall out" when you removed the crown? When I took off the back there were two parts underneath. One is the little metal ring that those tabs appear to be holding in place. Without them (which actually made the job easier) I just had to pry out the little metal ring. With that out I just tilted the watch and the movement and dial all came out as one piece. Then I just blew off the dust and used tweezers to take the string off the second hand and all was good. Maybe one of these days I'll see about making that Breitling symbol lay completely flat. But it doesn't bother me for the time being as it's barely noticeable. Edit: Checked the glossary and now I know what the crown is. Along with the crown there is a metal ring that holds the movemet/dial in place. Edited January 20, 2011 by tardman91 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tardman91 0 Posted January 20, 2011 Spoke too soon about the B&R. It stopped at the EXACT SAME TIME as it did yesterday. Right around 5:25 pm. Bummer. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Del 4,462 Posted January 20, 2011 Thanks for the info . Bummer about the B&R though . I guess that one might have to go back. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tardman91 0 Posted January 21, 2011 (edited) I'm not that familiar with watch movements, but wouldn't the same thing happen at am and pm? It stops every day right about 5:27pm for right around 10 minutes then starts right back up again. Any idea what could be wrong? Is this something common or is it really weird? At least I know the movement is faulty and I'm not crazy. I forgot to add that the second hand still ticks during this time, but the hour and minute hand just stay put. Edited January 21, 2011 by tardman91 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
