So i got my first watch from AMF. Their work building and modding is absolutely amazing so i wanted to try them out on a watch i intend to keep for a long time and use WELL even the chronograph. So i placed an order for a CF 116500, serviced and qc’d and waterproofed. After only a month or so it was done and ready to ship, which was amazing.
so after a while it arrived and i popped it out of the box, but it wasn’t running. This worried me a little but then i got it to run. Long story short it took some starting and stopping before it started running for good and stayed that way.
i think three things happened in the post:
1. A hard knock flattened the friction spring causing the chrono to run choppier than usual
2. the same knock took the setting wheel in the keyless and rotated it perpendicular to its axis, jamming it and adding friction to the watch
3. it either experienced extreme cold in the flight, or the o ring in a pusher was deformed but not enough to fail the waterproof test, but failed during testing of the chrono or during the flight (for those who don’t know, daytonas screw down pushers only prevent actuation, they don’t compress the o ring like the crown does) and somehow condensation formed which caused rust inside.
none of these are their fault at all and I don’t want anyone thinking they are.
What AMF did do is offer to help pay for another service, suggest a really really knowledgeable watchmaker to fix it in my country to avoid customs and taxes, and give me the info necessary to do so. So i got it sent out, cleaned and any rust removed, and it just came back yesterday in tip top shape and is my favorite watch in my entire collection so far. I installed genuine LIGA seconds wheel and chrono runner and clutch, and it runs 100% as smooth as gen. Its really beautiful to watch. It keeps great time too within 5 secs.
the watchmaker was WatchServicesNY by the way, and they are very knowledgable about 4130’s and i will be using them again. HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend . They don’t talk much, but you just send your watch out and it comes back perfect, lol. You can just trust them to do it right. And it was a VERY reasonable price for a complex chronograph like this, to the point where i kind of feel like they got ripped off.
as well, AMF’s price was very reasonable too. I don’t know if i am allowed to discuss prices but they were well on the lower end of a price of a service.
while i do wish there was some way to control how it’s handled during shipping, its just not something you can reasonably change.
my next watch will probably be either a franken weird daytona (diw, carbon, something like that) with gen balance, or a AP royal oak franken, and i will be using AMF again (unless they think I’m annoying for making a deal about getting it fixed) as i see them as very trustworthy.
so after a while it arrived and i popped it out of the box, but it wasn’t running. This worried me a little but then i got it to run. Long story short it took some starting and stopping before it started running for good and stayed that way.
i think three things happened in the post:
1. A hard knock flattened the friction spring causing the chrono to run choppier than usual
2. the same knock took the setting wheel in the keyless and rotated it perpendicular to its axis, jamming it and adding friction to the watch
3. it either experienced extreme cold in the flight, or the o ring in a pusher was deformed but not enough to fail the waterproof test, but failed during testing of the chrono or during the flight (for those who don’t know, daytonas screw down pushers only prevent actuation, they don’t compress the o ring like the crown does) and somehow condensation formed which caused rust inside.
none of these are their fault at all and I don’t want anyone thinking they are.
What AMF did do is offer to help pay for another service, suggest a really really knowledgeable watchmaker to fix it in my country to avoid customs and taxes, and give me the info necessary to do so. So i got it sent out, cleaned and any rust removed, and it just came back yesterday in tip top shape and is my favorite watch in my entire collection so far. I installed genuine LIGA seconds wheel and chrono runner and clutch, and it runs 100% as smooth as gen. Its really beautiful to watch. It keeps great time too within 5 secs.
the watchmaker was WatchServicesNY by the way, and they are very knowledgable about 4130’s and i will be using them again. HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend . They don’t talk much, but you just send your watch out and it comes back perfect, lol. You can just trust them to do it right. And it was a VERY reasonable price for a complex chronograph like this, to the point where i kind of feel like they got ripped off.
as well, AMF’s price was very reasonable too. I don’t know if i am allowed to discuss prices but they were well on the lower end of a price of a service.
while i do wish there was some way to control how it’s handled during shipping, its just not something you can reasonably change.
my next watch will probably be either a franken weird daytona (diw, carbon, something like that) with gen balance, or a AP royal oak franken, and i will be using AMF again (unless they think I’m annoying for making a deal about getting it fixed) as i see them as very trustworthy.
