Orfina Porsche Design Chrono - To refurb or not?
Discussion
Hi all
I've got an Orfina PD chrono that's in need of some tlc. I've been in touch with Orfina in Switzerland who are able to fully service & refurb it using 'official' Orfina parts (apart from a PD crown). It needs a service anyway as it isn't running well. The question is, should I have it refurbished to 'as new' condition, new hands, crystal, new pvd coating etc? I'm in two minds, on the one hand I quite like the patina/history it has as an old watch, but equally I really like the idea of having an effectively 'new' version of a watch that is no longer made.
I buy watches primarily to wear and keep long term, I don't generally sell them on. That said, I do want to protect its value, would a full refurb have a negative effect on value? It isn't a particularly rare watch so it doesn't seem too sacrilegious to tidy it up, what do you think? Pic of mine vs a refurbished example below.
I've got an Orfina PD chrono that's in need of some tlc. I've been in touch with Orfina in Switzerland who are able to fully service & refurb it using 'official' Orfina parts (apart from a PD crown). It needs a service anyway as it isn't running well. The question is, should I have it refurbished to 'as new' condition, new hands, crystal, new pvd coating etc? I'm in two minds, on the one hand I quite like the patina/history it has as an old watch, but equally I really like the idea of having an effectively 'new' version of a watch that is no longer made.
I buy watches primarily to wear and keep long term, I don't generally sell them on. That said, I do want to protect its value, would a full refurb have a negative effect on value? It isn't a particularly rare watch so it doesn't seem too sacrilegious to tidy it up, what do you think? Pic of mine vs a refurbished example below.
Edited by DrMagic on Wednesday 8th November 16:54
The PD01 has importance from a horology point of view, and yours is a lovely example with a nice even patina. I think the watch would be worth less if the vintage DLC patina were removed.
Thankfully the PD01 crystal is nothing unusual (unlike the variety of vintage Rolex domed crystals), so I would just replace the crystal for new.
Thankfully the PD01 crystal is nothing unusual (unlike the variety of vintage Rolex domed crystals), so I would just replace the crystal for new.
I've just had an email from Orfina, I suspect the email's been through Google Translate as it's slightly garbled, but the upshot is that for a full refurb (which I'm veering away from anyway) it would cost between CHF1300-1500 (£990-1150), ouch.
I've now become intrigued by the Breil Manta, so thanks for that!
I've now become intrigued by the Breil Manta, so thanks for that!
DrMagic said:
I've just had an email from Orfina, I suspect the email's been through Google Translate as it's slightly garbled, but the upshot is that for a full refurb (which I'm veering away from anyway) it would cost between CHF1300-1500 (£990-1150), ouch.
I've now become intrigued by the Breil Manta, so thanks for that!
Ouch have the lemania movement is not that complex, I would imagine a good watch maker would charge about £300 to service.I've now become intrigued by the Breil Manta, so thanks for that!
http://webwatchmaker.com/index.php/prices/ Is a top guy
Or variomatic on here is also a good fixer.
Hi OP, to be honest I'd probably leave most well alone bar the crystal, which is cheap and easy to replace and doesn't affect value.
The lume is a character element and unless you need it at night/dark specifically, I would leave that as it is - it's gone a lovely colour and hands/indices are well matched; the only thing here is of course the missing index at 7 o'clock, (which may be where your movement problem comes from) and the grubby 2 o'clock index - if you want this rectified you'll need to get someone good as matching to the other indices can be tricky...
It'd be nice to get a PD black crown to make it a bit more complete - that's the place where you can arguably add small value.
As for servicing the L5100 - some watchmakers don't like doing them but some are quite happy - it shouldn't be beyond the scope of a good watchmaker though. The best one is probably Hess in Germany (3-4 week turnaround usually) who specialises in Lemania 5100 and has stacks of experience, being a former Sinn watchmaker himself. He could most likely source crystal and crown and his prices are very reasonable - about £250-300 [incl. service parts] for a service iirc, which is about the norm. https://www.service-uhrwerk-5100.com/home-english-...
Another guy I use is stowed out at the moment but another alternative may be - http://watchguy.co.uk/service-hamilton-chronograph... Stephan, who - I think - does re-luming/dial restoration as well.
Whoever you go with will be able to advise the pro's and cons of restore or repair options on the lume front anyway.
Finally I wouldn't do anything to the coating - it's got a great patina and looks fantastic; personal choice but you won't get the cost back anyway.
I've about a dozen L5100s and the Orfina PD is sadly missing, it's a great classic watch that is still relatively cheap to buy and works really well. It's one of those watches where the design was spot on straight out of the blocks. Enjoy.
The lume is a character element and unless you need it at night/dark specifically, I would leave that as it is - it's gone a lovely colour and hands/indices are well matched; the only thing here is of course the missing index at 7 o'clock, (which may be where your movement problem comes from) and the grubby 2 o'clock index - if you want this rectified you'll need to get someone good as matching to the other indices can be tricky...
It'd be nice to get a PD black crown to make it a bit more complete - that's the place where you can arguably add small value.
As for servicing the L5100 - some watchmakers don't like doing them but some are quite happy - it shouldn't be beyond the scope of a good watchmaker though. The best one is probably Hess in Germany (3-4 week turnaround usually) who specialises in Lemania 5100 and has stacks of experience, being a former Sinn watchmaker himself. He could most likely source crystal and crown and his prices are very reasonable - about £250-300 [incl. service parts] for a service iirc, which is about the norm. https://www.service-uhrwerk-5100.com/home-english-...
Another guy I use is stowed out at the moment but another alternative may be - http://watchguy.co.uk/service-hamilton-chronograph... Stephan, who - I think - does re-luming/dial restoration as well.
Whoever you go with will be able to advise the pro's and cons of restore or repair options on the lume front anyway.
Finally I wouldn't do anything to the coating - it's got a great patina and looks fantastic; personal choice but you won't get the cost back anyway.
I've about a dozen L5100s and the Orfina PD is sadly missing, it's a great classic watch that is still relatively cheap to buy and works really well. It's one of those watches where the design was spot on straight out of the blocks. Enjoy.
Edited by andy_s on Tuesday 14th November 19:09
Thanks guys for all this info, it really is terrifically helpful. I've definitely come to the conclusion that it seems a bit foolish to totally refurb the watch given its current quite nice condition (i.e not a total wreck/write-off). It seems far more sensible to preserve its history and keep the external 'improvements' to a minimum.
The silver crown has to go, it drives me up the wall, and a new crystal would be good. Strangely, I only recently noticed the marker at 7 o'clock was missing, there's no sign that it was ever there. The marker at 2 'o clock, I actually watched fall off and disappear into the date opening, so maybe there's a chance both markers are still floating around in there somewhere! I'm going to contact Hess and see what they can do.
I do really love the style and size of this watch but my feeling is it's a bit too delicate to wear as a daily. Though rather than totally refurb it, I'm probably better off trying to locate a newer, similar watch (specifically the Sinn 144).
As an aside, I've just had a '70's Tudor Prince serviced and tidied up by Swisstec http://www.swisstec.co.uk. They seem to have done a great job, though it wasn't cheap (the service alone was £450) and the watch was away for approx 7 weeks.
The silver crown has to go, it drives me up the wall, and a new crystal would be good. Strangely, I only recently noticed the marker at 7 o'clock was missing, there's no sign that it was ever there. The marker at 2 'o clock, I actually watched fall off and disappear into the date opening, so maybe there's a chance both markers are still floating around in there somewhere! I'm going to contact Hess and see what they can do.
I do really love the style and size of this watch but my feeling is it's a bit too delicate to wear as a daily. Though rather than totally refurb it, I'm probably better off trying to locate a newer, similar watch (specifically the Sinn 144).
As an aside, I've just had a '70's Tudor Prince serviced and tidied up by Swisstec http://www.swisstec.co.uk. They seem to have done a great job, though it wasn't cheap (the service alone was £450) and the watch was away for approx 7 weeks.
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