Posting on behalf of a friend.

I'm going to quote his comments verbatim in italics below :

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I have been investigating a Rolex found in a drawer of my parents house and it's a bit odd/sad/weird.

It's a 1921 ladies Rolex my grandmother bought for herself with money gifted from a great great uncle. Being a housekeeper married to a rural wool & skin buyer it was probably her most valuable possession.

It's not in bad condition (apart from the date and initials scratched heavy handedly on the back, undoubtedly by my grandfather) but not working so I thought it would be good to try and have it repaired to keep in the family.

Talking to a watch dealer he said there's no market for them so beyond scrap metal it has only sentimental value, but it is significant sentimental value as there is little else from my grandmother apart from photos.

So, was directed to the local horologist who is a bloke who clearly loves his job and had a workshop full of very cool tools and microscopes. He had a look at it, inhaled ominously and said "Sorry it's a blahblahblah (Regsburg?) and it isn't economical to fix it, even if I could fix it at 10x the value of the watch those movements are so delicate it could break the next time it was dropped"

I get the feeling this is why century old ladies Rolexs aren't collectable.

I asked "Oh, that's a shame, what about rebuilding it with a modern movement?"

"Oh god no, no no no! That would be vandalism!"

"But it would be a functional watch again"

"No, no, no you can't do that"

"I would much rather a working watch for my daughter than it sit broken in a drawer for another half century"

"Sorry it isn't really done"

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Would really appreciate any thoughts from learned folks on here

I don't know if there are any current movements small enough to fit in the case? I believe he'd even consider a quartz movement in order to get a working timepiece - as long as it was fully reversible.

One aspect to consider - whilst he was based in the UK for quite some time, he has now returned back to Australia.

I'll start by saying that I know nothing about the subject.

What I will say though is that it's a matter of applying some common sense, and considering what the desired end result is. If it is to repair and restore the watch to original condition, then there's a job to do in finding someone willing and able to do the work - and pay for it. What one person can make, another can repair. If it is to have a watch that can be used as a watch:

Personally I don't think that replacing the movement would be particularly difficult for a competent person. There are obviously some small quartz movements out there. Is it "vandalism". Not really in my view, everything is only original once isn't it? If you live in a Victorian house, do you still have all your heating from open fires and use an outside toilet? Is modernising the house vandalism or being practical?

Just keep the parts removed. Surely better that the watch lives on being used and appreciated than left broken in a box? Or, worse, scrapped.

Seems rather odd for a fellow say it isn’t economical to fix it and then say it’s vandalism to swap movements, doesn’t it?! While I understand and appreciate the desire to have a working watch, I wonder to what extend a young lady would want to where such a watch in this day and age? I’m reminded of my great-grandfather’s pocket watch that my dad has. It doesn’t work. My dad wouldn’t carry it around even if it did. Instead, it hangs from a mount on a wooden stand under a glass dome. I could see this watch looking lovely under such a dome, a nice visual reminder of his grandmother to be seen and appreciated every day. That’s my suggestion.

Seems unlikely that, given a bit of perseverance, you can't find a watchmaker willing and able to make repairs. Question is really how important it is to you that it is preserved as a running timepiece. As you stated it will be costly. Aside from that, putting it on display as suggested by @jkbarnes seems a perfectly logical and fitting solution.

Some excellent suggestions so far. My two pence worth?

What price does one put on the sentiment of having a 100+ years old working watch? A cost that would l likely far exceed the value of the watch?

Would your friend's daughter wear it if restored? On an occasional special occasion, perhaps.

'Restored to original; it would break the first time you dropped it' - it most likely would, the movement will be incredibly small and likely not have any shock protection.

Suggestion; hunt out a period box to keep it in or display. Get a modern watch for your friend's daughter to wear 'in memorium' of her great grandmother.

Final point, as always with this type of question that involves gifting to a family member; what would your friend's daughter like to do?

Guy


Sent from my Galaxy S23 Ultra using Tapatalk

Thanks for sharing the story!

I like the feedback from JKBarnes. Put it in a nice display and appreciate it for what it is!

--Bo