SeaHawk promptly serviced !

Dear Revolutionist,
As you maybe remember I am a huge GP fan, owning 4 watches from this brand.

During this summer I noticed that my SeaHawk GGYC from time to time stopped to work, even if full charged.
I bought it on 2007 so it was a bit early to me to have it serviced, anyway I took it to the local Sowind site (very close to my working place, so I took it personally) for a check and the repair/service.

Even if in the service estimation I signed it was stated that I should have waited 12 weeks, in almost half the time the watch was ready – and with great happiness I went personally to get it back few days ago.
The first thing I noticed when the watch was back in my hands was the work done on the case and buckle: they both seem brand new.
I’ve been provided with a brief report on the reasons for the malfunction; and also they gave me back the worn watch parts that has to be replaced (gaskets, escapement wheel, seconds wheel, barrel ratchet, winding stem, see them in the pix with an euro coin for comparison).



I do not think this is common, and to me is an interesting plus. Another interesting information I got while talking with Sowind responsible is that if daily used the watch should be serviced every 4 years approximately, to avoid have it stopped as happened to me.
This would mean that the service intervals should be shortened (or, seeing it in a different way, I need more watches to wear !!!).
Technically speaking, this underlines both the amount of friction between watch parts and the need for a good oiling.

As some of you may remember this is not my first experience with GP customer service; that’s the reason why I am anyway a bit careful in expressing already a 100% satisfaction, and now the watch is under my personal testing.
But it is my pleasure to underline the high level of service, especially in terms of time delivery, given what we usually hear when speaking of servicing a watch.

I’ll keep you posted,
Best regards,

Slide68

Dear all,
as promised here i am again updating you on my serviced watch....

It is performing well (i am wearing it everyday since i had it back) the crown moves very smoothly and is perfect....Except the fact that i have to use more force to push it back before screwing (to me, another improvement).
The case re-finished is really superb !!

Great work GP !!

Ciao,
slide68

Congrats!!!
I contemplate about a GP watch long time. They are great looking but I am afraid they are not so reliable and accurate as Rolex. Could you, please, note something about that? Thx.
Zdenek

Ciao Zdenek,
i completely agree with you that GP had, has and most likely will have one of the most appealing design in watchmaking.
Their collection spans from timeless classics such as the 1966 collection to the very sporty Seahawk series.

Concerning reliability all that i can say is that i own 4 GP (one vintage, mid '60 - 3 of recent production).
The precision in terms of timekeeping accuracy is well within the COSC specs (for the 3 recent) even if they are not "officially certified".
Robustness (for the more sporty models) is unquestionable.

By other hand my personal experience led me to already service 2 of those 4 watches: one during warranty period, just after purchase, and the resolution of the problem took several months.
The other one was out of warranty and had to follow the regular servicing procedure (even if a bit shortened than foreseen - after 4 years only) and the servicing took few weeks.

I would not say that this is a real issue in terms of reliability of the brand, but i would say instead that is a proof of the manual work implied in such mechanism. Exactly as for artisanal beers (i field i know quite well) differences in production may result in difference in taste or - in case of watches - in mechanical issues. In some way i think it is a risk we all watch nuts are running when purchasing a watch.

What really counts to me is the huge and someway unexpected level of support i received from GP during both my deals with them.
Given what i generally have heard about other brands, this is the true added value GP may provide.

Ciao from Milano,
slide68



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/15/2011 06:32AM by slide1968.

Thank you for the answer. I do not doubt that they at GP do their best. What I admire the most at that watch are their great cases.