Jaeger-LeCoultre

bruno_brazil
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A vintage Reverso rebirth...

Hi all!

It's been a loooong time since I last posted over here... even tough I always come back to take a look and read the posts...

I wanted to show you a watch that I was lucky enough to buy, and then to get it restored, even tough it seemed an impossible task...

First of all, a quick look at the original watch...

This is the pic the seller sent me :


Not quite appealing, huh ?

But enough to make go for it. I call back the seller, we agree on the price, and since he lives 5 minutes away from me, it's quite easy to meet.

We spend 2 hours talking about the watch... It was his father, who was a cook for a maradjah in the 30', who ordered the watch, brand new !! He came back to france, got married, and eventually gave this watch, 30 years later, to his grandson, for his first communion. The watch was repaired at that time, but not by JlC.

The boy wore the watch for at least 10 years... But one day it finally gave up, and also lost its glass at the same occasion. It went back to a little box, where it stood for 20 years more...

And one day, being in need, he decided to sell the watch. He didn't use the watch, and could not afford a restoration... Selling was definitely the best solution. Of course, knowing the situation, I paid exactely the price he wanted for it, I didn't try to get it any lower.

So, here are the first pics I took of it, once I got home :







Still not quite appealing...

But I knew who could get it restored. 3 professionals (and friends) worked on it, one for the case and movement, one for the dial, and a third one to rebuild the missing parts (center seconds wheel).

It took me about a year to get it finished... but now I'm really proud to be able to wear it, and I always think of those friends who made it possible :









So, I just wanted to share it with you, this little vintage Reverso, from 38-39, and now ready to go for 50 years more...

Bruno
This message has been edited by bruno_brazil on 2009-03-21 02:59:53