Audemars Piguet

The Swiss guy
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Watch service frequeny question

Last week I brought my 2012 Royal Oak Offshore reverse Panda (last series of the rupperclad with black date) for its first big service. It was my first visit at the beautiful AP boutique in Zurich. I had an interesting chat with the watchmaker there. He explained that many many years ago when he was a trainee, watches only had to be serviced every 8 - 10 years. At that time they were allowed to use different types of oils which kept their consistency much better then the oils thy are 'allowed' to use these days because of invironmental awareness. In my caliber they use 12 different types of oils! He recommended to schedule a small service every three years which is mainly focusing on water resistancy (all gaskets, the crown and pushers are getting replaced). Every six years the watch should come in for a full service, were basically everything gets dismantled, checked, cleaned and if required also replaced. When I referred to new Rolex watches which only need a service every 10 years as per Rolex, he replied that these have 'tractor-calibers' which cannot be compared to the luxurios, high end AP calibers....

Surprisingly I may expect my watch back from service in approx six weeks, which I find quite amazing.

Have you already heard about the shorter durability of todays oils or is the watchmaker just trying to generate more income from service? At what frequency do you send in your watches to the spa? Would love to hear you views!
Best regards!