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Rolex Customization: Or, How Not All Rolexes are Equal

Posted by The Watch Buyers Group

Rolex Customization: Or, How Not All Rolexes are Equal | The Watch Buyers Group
One of the many reasons Rolex owners choose The Watch Buyers Group for the proper repair of their Rolex watch is that, while we only use factory Rolex parts in servicing a watch, we don’t have the same strict rules about working on watches with non-Rolex parts. A Rolex with custom additions is considered a fake watch, in the eyes of Rolex. They won’t service a watch with any custom parts. This presents a major issue for thousands of Rolex owners who have to customized, or personalized, their watch. We feel that taking such a hardline on Rolex repair isn’t realistic. Can you imagine if you purchased a brand new Ford truck, then put different wheels and tires on it, just to have the Ford tell you that it’s no longer a genuine Ford?
That said, this post is actually how not all custom accessories are created equally. The owner of the above watch had a diamond bezel, which is approximately 1 carat of diamonds bead-set into 18k yellow gold, added some years back (not by us). At that time they also had the dial added. It’s almost impossible to tell, but that is actually a mother of pearl surface (again, we didn’t sell them this dial). The customer found out about us through their homeowner’s insurance provider to repair or replace the damaged bezel. Not only were these additions poorly constructed, but the low quality of the materials used actually made the watch look cheaper, not more expensive. In the end, we replaced both the bezel and the dial.
The quality of the materials used is obvious in the photos. The once flat looking dial now plays brilliantly in the light. Take a look at both the quality of the bezel and the quality of the dial in the following closeups…
To be very clear, we only use custom parts for watches at the request of the owner and only for cosmetic purposes. Only new, original Rolex parts are used when we service a movement. Non-original parts, such as mainsprings, gears, wheels, and even aftermarket lubricants, will cost you hundreds of dollars in collateral damage down the line. We simply will not use anything other than 100% genuine Rolex parts internally.