tribefan 6,768 Posted August 6, 2020 So legend has it this belonged to my great-grandfather on my Mom's side. My Mom got it from my grandfather, and she gave it to me years ago. My great grandfather would walk around with it in his hand all day rubbing the back of it with his thumb. Supposedly, there was engraving on the back that was worn off. It hasn't worked in decades, but it was in decent shape and I could see a twisted hairspring when I opened it up. The hairspring on this was made by Breguet back in the day. Having done a substantial bit of research since joining, I got the gumption to call an old time local watch smith and see if he would repair and service it. Guy is in his 70's works out of his house and has for decades. I talked to him a good 30 minutes without him seeing the watch, great guy to talk to. He said it would likely be around $200 and he would probably need to order parts and it could be a few weeks before they show up on the market, maybe longer. So we dropped the watch off to him. I haven't heard from him since we dropped the watch off, and it was a while ago, I think April / May. I tried calling him once and left a message. Today, he called me back. All done. Ready to pick up. $200 plus tax. Hard to photo but if you catch it in the right reflective light you can see the animal engraving on the back. You could not make that out before he polished the case. Legend says it was a deer. Cool watch, watchmaker did a really nice job. Complete escapement assembly, mainspring, new escapement jewels were all replaced. Strip down serviced, polished and adjusted. Looks great, loud though. It was on a shelf behind me all day and I could hear it ticking away. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RussP 22,120 Posted August 6, 2020 Lovely story. Thanks for sharing. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Intresting 21,661 Posted August 6, 2020 Love the history. It will be passed from generation to generation. Truly timeless. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
V101 25 Posted August 6, 2020 What a beautiful way to honor your great- grandfather’s memory. Money well spent. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BravoDelta 22,421 Posted August 6, 2020 Fantastic history @tribefan...Thanks for sharing, its beautiful! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tribefan 6,768 Posted January 9, 2021 Was talking about this in the SB the other day and took a couple of fresh pics: Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
NCRich 13,744 Posted January 9, 2021 I missed this the first time. Really cool and great story. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
samurai dave 7 Posted January 9, 2021 What a lovely story, and what a beautiful watch. Doing what it should, ticking away and ready to be of use for many years to come. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
