which lange 1815 would you offer on?

[pk552502]

Hi All, I'm considering putting in an offer on an 1815 36mm in yellow gold. I've been following this model for a while now.

The first watch is from David SW and I think it's been for sale upwards of a year and it's listed for $17,875. it comes with papers dated 1996. It does look in good condition but has probably been lightly polished in the past.

The second watch I'm considering is a private party sale on chrono24 and it's listed for $15k. It's scratched up a bit and may even be unpolished which is why I'm drawn to this one. It looks pretty banged up and raw though.

Both are priced too high in my opinion and I would be offering quite a bit less than list. Any thoughts are welcome.

[pk552502]

David SW pics

[pk552502]

Private Party pics

[vitalsigns]

I don't know about the first one, but Lange will charge you a fortune to restore the second one. Buyer beware.

[justcruisin]

EWC has one on their site for $16,500.

[pk552502]

Originally Posted by justcruisin

EWC has one on their site for $16,500.

I did see the one on EWC. It's noticeably more polished than these other two. I think most of their watches are polished a lot. I'm surprised by how many 36mm 1815s there are for sale right now. About a year ago, there would be less than half the number for sale I reckon. May be a good time to buy.

[pk552502]

Originally Posted by vitalsigns

I don't know about the first one, but Lange will charge you a fortune to restore the second one. Buyer beware.

I'm curious what you mean by restore. If I went for the private party one, I didn't plan to have it polished and would just rock it with the scratches. I assume I could send it to Lange for a service and decline a polish and all would be fine.

[vitalsigns]

Originally Posted by pk552502

I'm curious what you mean by restore. If I went for the private party one, I didn't plan to have it polished and would just rock it with the scratches. I assume I could send it to Lange for a service and decline a polish and all would be fine.

Right, I assumed you'd have it restored so the case isn't so roughed up. If you're comfortable with it as-is, then that's fine of course.

Frankly, I couldn't live with that level of wear and I'd be worried that Lange would give me a massive service quote even if I asked for no restoration/polish just because of the condition of the watch.

That level of wear will also affect resale price quite a bit, IMO.

[le_baron]

I would negotiate down the private party one and strongly consider sending it to ALS for a service and refinishing. Lange refinishes cases with laser welding; they fill in the scratches instead of polishing down the surrounding gold.

[1William]

I would get on the phone with David and see what they will do on the price. David's price maybe more but the watch is in better condition and comes with a one year warranty from a reputable secondary seller. The other watch is from an unknow private party with no known history, no warranty and nor reputation for customer service. If questions still linger contact Lange and see what a service will cost. That should settle it. Good luck and let us know what you decide.

[Russell996]

Originally Posted by vitalsigns

I don't know about the first one, but Lange will charge you a fortune to restore the second one. Buyer beware.

Lange publish a full pricelist on their website. 1815 complete service of the movement is £1100 and a complete service of the case and movement is £1700. It’s fairly pricy but certainly not buyer beware since it is a known cost.

[vitalsigns]

Originally Posted by Russell996

Lange publish a full pricelist on their website. 1815 complete service of the movement is £1100 and a complete service of the case and movement is £1700. It’s fairly pricy but certainly not buyer beware since it is a known cost.

Caution is warranted here, especially with very poor condition pieces. A Lange owner posted his story of a huge service quote from Lange for a watch in apparent good condition that was previously serviced by a third party. Lange wanted to charge ~$10K (IIRC) to service the piece, and without providing any details on what was wrong with the piece to warrant a $10K charge. It does look like it turned out Ok for the owner, but proceed with caution nevertheless.

The prices on the website are standard prices but not an immutable quote.

Here's the beginning and end of the saga:

BEGINNING:

"Yesterday afternoon I was chatting with a fellow PuristS member what Lange he / I could buy next when at the same time I've got a mail vom Lange service center I've been waiting for. Six weeks ago I went to a Lange Boutique and dropped my beloved Lange 1 for a service request. I own this rare piece for about 10 years. The watch runs well, keeps time, no scrateches, perfect hands and dial (in my eyes) - just one of the date disks was not centered for 1/2 millimeter so I thought that a service will be a good idea.

So I got the estimate of service costs and was falling from chair. At first I thought there was a mistake but unfortunately it wasn't. Service and repair 8.300,- Euro (incl. tax) and optional case polish and change dial additional 1.900,- Euro (incl. tax) thats complete 10.200,- Euros... for a service of a "simple" Lange 1. If there is a real reason for this efford I expect that this will be explained but I didn't find anything on the Lange papers. I have no idea why I should change the dial... I asked the staff @ boutique but they can't tell me and confirmed, that this is no mistake.

Don't get me wrong: the watch works fine, great condition no water issue... 10 grand for a simple service??? I'm out. I'm completely scared of service costs of my complicated Lange watches. Sorry guys, I know that a Lange watch is a high end product, mostly handmade but I never ever justifies this amount. Lange is dead - for me! I will sell my Lange watches asap. and I will never again buy a Lange... sorry guys!"

THE OWNER'S FINAL POST:

"I still owe you an answer, with which I would like to end this topic. It seems that service topics are of great interest and this post probably tops the Watchprosite annual charts smile

I have now returned the watch. Initially it came back from Lange as I had handed it in. Then I took it to Wempe, as Wempe is currently still a certified service center of ALS and also receives spare parts. The cost estimate was 1925 euros including case refurbishment. After about 9 weeks I got the watch back. There was another small issue, so it had to go back to Wempe. After another 3 weeks, I now have the watch back and it looks very good. I paid exactly the amount of the estimate: 1925 euros. They also changed the mainspring barrel. The minimal traces of processing can still be seen under a 15x magnifying glass. But you can't see them with the naked eye. That's why it doesn't bother me.

I have learned a lot in that time. I have gotten great feedback from the forum, many PMs. If you exceed the recommended service interval more than twice, ALS does not treat it as a "service" but as a "repair" and the repair price list applies. So if 5 years is recommended and you bring the watch in for service within 10 years, it will be "cheaper".

Is there a happy ending now? I don't know. I've come to the realization that I'm not the kind of customer that ALS imagines. I can no longer do anything with the new sales policy. The emotions I had for this brand have grown cold. I have not yet decided whether I will sell all my watches. I will think about it for a while.

Thank you for your sympathy. Have a wonderful Christmas!"