Quality control

[rolexsubuk]

Hi all I don’t seem to be the only one you as
had a lot of trouble with quality control with a Rolex watch I exchange four Rolex sub date and all of them seem to have some can of fault, bezel ,dial ,scratches
I now have a full refund and no sub date I have tracked one down at another AD but I don’t want to go though the same problems again. When you buy a Rolex you expect quality but to me it seems lacking in that department when spending £2840 I want 100% perfection are we asking too much.

[ohlins]

perhaps you can let us know more about the problems u faced so that we can look out for it as well...........thanks....

[frostie]

we talked about defects too many times and we can see more and more unsatisfied customers of rolex appear. This can a bit dangerous for a company like rolex where their number one priority is quality

[triton]

just to share an experience that happened about 1 month ago. then i thought it was probably one in a million chance. however, now im not so sure

was with a friend who wanted to get an explorer II. went to the AD and had a look. before making payment, had a close scrutiny on the watch. realised that the marking on digit 6 has abit of 'paint' off the top of the digit 6.

so took another piece. same thing. had a look @ third piece, also same thing. finally the fourth piece was ok. took the last piece.

i would understand if it is a piece in say 1000 or so pieces, one come across such defect. however, there are four pieces with the same defect. quality control is somewhat lacking as far as i can see.

[Mr. K]

I have owned 10 so far, 7 still remain. Only had a problem with one. One out of ten is pretty bad. 10%, but with all the watches out there, I would think the acutal numbers of defects would be less.

[rolexsubuk]

Hi ohlins
If you are going to buy a Rolex its worth getting a jewellers loupe to have a good look at a watch before you hand over any cash things I would now look for are the lettering on the dial and the dial it’s self to if there are any marks. Also check the bezel for any chips on the edge check the case for scratches also make sure the AD you are buying from as good light in the shop there for you can pick faults up a lot easier I would not hand any money over until I was totally happy. I have learnt the hard way I wish I had found this forum before my first purchase you would think when buying such a watch there would be no such problems with quality but believe me there is.

[triton]

Originally Posted by Mr. K

I have owned 10 so far, 7 still remain. Only had a problem with one. One out of ten is pretty bad. 10%, but with all the watches out there, I would think the acutal numbers of defects would be less.

i believe QC is still present. however, statistics is just a number *IMHO* if one say 0.01% defects found, 0.01% is low. however, what is the sampling size. 1 in 100 or 1 in 1000 or 1 in 10000.

acceptance level of defects varies from one person to another.

[leopardprey]

I have owned now 6 Rolex watches. Had to send one back, and another the Sub LV I had, had a problem with the Bezel (kept sliding, instead of clicking - and that was before I tinkered with it and swapped inserts) but I sold the LV for the same price I paid for it.

When you pay $5000 or more for a watch you expect 100% quality. Rolex needs to carefully inspect every watch before shipping out, that is not too much to ask. For the small amount of members on this forum, and the number of defects encountered by Forum members, not keeping stats, but seems pretty high to me. I read seveal other Watch forums, with other brands of watches such as Omega, UN, GP, Panerai, etc.. yet I hardly ever see a post on a factory defective watch. Makes you wonder.

[timelord]

Originally Posted by rolexsubuk

Hi all I don’t seem to be the only one you as
had a lot of trouble with quality control with a Rolex watch I exchange four Rolex sub date and all of them seem to have some can of fault, bezel ,dial ,scratches
I now have a full refund and no sub date I have tracked one down at another AD but I don’t want to go though the same problems again. When you buy a Rolex you expect quality but to me it seems lacking in that department when spending £2840 I want 100% perfection are we asking too much.

I also made a mistake with purchasing a brand new Sub almost 9 months ago in HK. I have had a vintage Sub and an Explorer which I purchased second hand many years ago and never had a problem with them, especially when they returned from RSC. NOT ONE PROBLEM!!!. However, the new stuff does not appeal to me, even the new Explorer which I saw in the AD, as it feels nothing like the old classics. Incidently, when passing through Italy for a European tour, someone showed me their Sub which looked no different from mine and even felt like mine with all the features and the way it ticked etc, but told me his was an Italian Replica. I was shocked with the similarites between the two. It even had the etching in the glass. Give me a Rolex classic any day. .

[ohlins]

Originally Posted by rolexsubuk

Hi ohlins
If you are going to buy a Rolex its worth getting a jewellers loupe to have a good look at a watch before you hand over any cash things I would now look for are the lettering on the dial and the dial it’s self to if there are any marks. Also check the bezel for any chips on the edge check the case for scratches also make sure the AD you are buying from as good light in the shop there for you can pick faults up a lot easier I would not hand any money over until I was totally happy. I have learnt the hard way I wish I had found this forum before my first purchase you would think when buying such a watch there would be no such problems with quality but believe me there is.

haha it's ok....i had my fair share of buying experience with rolex watches but i never use a loupe......i dun find it necessary ....i mean where will this end, cos a loupe might not be sufficient and another person might need an electron microscope...

i do the usual thing to check the watch over......maybe i am lucky and had only one problem so far....which was professionally dealt with by the rsc....they replaced my entire bracelet when i had a problem with one fixed link nearest to the SEL.....

[leopardprey]

So here again, as Ohlin states, yet another case of poor Rolex QC. This is starting to be way to common!

It is always great to hear how the RSC or ADs fix the problem, but they should not have to in the first place. And it is a real inconvience to us. Where is the compansation for time, gas, travel, etc that we have to partake to take the watch to the AD/RSC to get fixed? Plus then we are not able to wear our watch, we spent over $5000 for, for several weeks or months while they fix the issue.

[ohlins]

Originally Posted by leopardprey

I read seveal other Watch forums, with other brands of watches such as Omega, UN, GP, Panerai, etc.. yet I hardly ever see a post on a factory defective watch. Makes you wonder.

haha my experience runs contrary to yours.....

[Tools]

I don't know....

I'm really going to have to think about this one

Scrutinizing a watch that is going to be on my wrist, working in one of the harshest environments of any piece of jewelry I wear, with a 10X loupe to attempt to ensure perfection. OK, I'm not going to say that is absurd. But, then, a week after wearing this thing it will have come into contact with doors, walls, desks - tools of course, and immersed in water and tossed on a night stand several times.

Are we expecting a little too much from a thing produced by people and machines that have to be a bit less than perfect themselves?

[leopardprey]

Small scratches on the bracelet Tools is one thing, but blemishes or scratches on the dial, or poor painting of lettering or luminous material is unacceptable. As well as poor mechanical functioning. If on the watch I returned I woudl have found a scratch on the bracelet, I really wold not have cared as I will put many scratches on it myself, but a scratch I found on the dial visible in the sunlight to the naked eye is completely unacceptable and no way I could ever make that scratch no matter how hard of use I put the watch through, unless the crystal came off.

Maybe that is why Rolex QC has gone down, since they are mass produced and rely more on Machines?

[rolexsubuk]

Couldn’t agree more with you Larry but to have some problems before you put it on your wrist there’s something wrong there. But like you say it’s a tool its there to be worn a bit of wear and tear after time is to be expected but if I go and buy a Casio or a Seiko you don’t have these sort of problems to start with I have a tag f1 and its shit hot for less than £400.

[Tools]

Chad, Mark

I agree with you both.

Any defect that you can see with the naked eye - instant return; we certainly expect, and pay for that.

As for Casios and Seikos, I don't know too many people who have admitted to looking one over with a 10X loupe.

Today, I have some reading glasses on - looking at my EXP II....It looks perfect..
..I pick up my 10X loupe (I admit, I have one right here at my desk) and the only thing I can notice after a few minutes is the S's on "swiss made" at the bottom are flattened while all the other S's are rounded.....Is this a defect?

If I spend another ten minutes will I find the paint is not uniformly thick on the date font? If I do should I be alarmed?

My point, if there is one, is - how far do we take this notion of perfection with this hunk of steel with some gears and paint?

I really don't know.

[timelord]

Originally Posted by leopardprey

Maybe that is why Rolex QC has gone down, since they are mass produced and rely more on Machines?

Maybe the thread posted the other day may have some elements of truth to it.
Rolex Scam? Your Views on this. 07-06-2007, 02:34 PM by pwcrulez

How do we really know if they are now made in China like the majority of other mass produced items?. I have an old camera with a Carl Zeiss lens which is meant to be the Rolls Royce of lenses and is made in Germany. The only new lenses I found so far are all made elsewhere, because cutting down production costs and maximising profits is what keeps most industries alive. Who is there to see?

[triton]

Originally Posted by Tools

Any defect that you can see with the naked eye - instant return; we certainly expect, and pay for that.

agreed. but what happened to 'peel off' paint on the digit 6 was quite alarming considered that 3 out of 4 pieces.

[Tools]

Originally Posted by triton

agreed. but what happened to 'peel off' paint on the digit 6 was quite alarming considered that 3 out of 4 pieces.

I too think this is very alarming.

If you could take a picture of a watch and "photoshop" or somehow point out to us this problem it would become much more clear.

I have trouble visualizing "peeling paint" in 75% of pieces you have had..

[rolexsubuk]

You right Larry I guess we all have our own idiosyncrasies I guess mine’s with a Rolex

[triton]

from the picture, notice the digit 6 with the top missing.

[wandyprawira]

Ahh...maybe it's time for us to put aside the quality and buy it solely because of the RENOWNED brand. I start to notice many products out there which are used to be renowned for their impeccable quality have started to lose the quality since the millenium era. For example, Mercedes had a lot of complaints and criticisms with the last S, E, and C class because they cut the cost of production and opted for cheaper materials for the parts. Nokia starts to produce crap products now. IBM Thinkpad and Thinkcentre are made by Lenovo (China) now and they might not be as good as before. And so on and so on....

Sometimes it crosses on my mind that perhaps it was meant to be like that intentionally so that the useful life of a certain product can be shorter, hence the turnover of the product itself could be higher which means higher profits for the manufacturer to keep survive in this more competitive era. Just a thought...

Perhaps this is the time that we no longer can have a product that lasts a lifetime anymore.

[watchfreak2003]

Originally Posted by Tools

I don't know....

I'm really going to have to think about this one

Scrutinizing a watch that is going to be on my wrist, working in one of the harshest environments of any piece of jewelry I wear, with a 10X loupe to attempt to ensure perfection. OK, I'm not going to say that is absurd. But, then, a week after wearing this thing it will have come into contact with doors, walls, desks - tools of course, and immersed in water and tossed on a night stand several times.

Are we expecting a little too much from a thing produced by people and machines that have to be a bit less than perfect themselves?

Fully agree. What’s the point in use a loupe to discover tiny flaws you even can’t see with the naked eye.
You can ALWAYS find minor flaws if that’s your mission – even on PP, AP etc.

If you find the quality and the quality control on Rolex watches lousy, then find another brand to throw your money after!! I know I would ;)

[rolexsubuk]

if you buy brand new car say when you get it home you notice a fault what would you think sod it quality control is a thing of the past or you buy a TV or food from the supermarket do you not check for quality is ‘nt that’s why Rolex is such a renowned brand because its always been associated with quality may be all these companies should be more quality control. Bentley motor cars are so famous for there quality that’s what you pay for can you image someone buys a Bentley and takes it back to the garage and says to the salesmen I have a fault with my car and the salesmen says well pal if you think the quality is lousy then go and buy a merc instead I think the garage would soon be out of business. If you go out for a meal and you went to a Michelin star restaurant you would expect quality food but at a price that’s what you pay for QUALITY

[JJ Irani]

Originally Posted by triton

from the picture, notice the digit 6 with the top missing.

Not quite sure what you mean, pal. Which digit "6" are you talking about?

[JJ Irani]

Agreed with all that you guys have said.

That is why I always spend FIVE whole minutes scrutinizing the dial very, very carefully in front of the AD before plonking down a single cent on the counter.

I've had a couple of bad experiences myself in the past.

JJ

[SPACE-DWELLER]

Look here, guys, what the booklet "Rolex Submariner" that is provided when you buy a Submariner (and strangely enough is ALSO given when you buy a Sea-Dweller):

Last page:

"(....) The manufacture of a high-quality watch is a notable human achievement as well as a technical triumph.
It is true that today machines do the work that people find tedious; but these machines are strictly supervised by indispensable watchmaking technicians. The assembly of a Rolex chronometer is done by hand; it is the watchmaker who brings it to life. With pride"

The leaftlet is from my first Submariner I bought, and the leaflet is dated 9.1988. That is almost 20 years ago. So that machines make most of the work at Rolex S.A. is nothing new.

And remember: NOTHING in this world is perfect. I have heard stories about poor dial and crystals from even PATEK PHILIPPE, too.

[wandyprawira]

Originally Posted by JJ Irani

Not quite sure what you mean, pal. Which digit "6" are you talking about?

It's the 6 on the bezel, compare the shape of that with 16.

[wandyprawira]

Originally Posted by Spacedweller

And remember: NOTHING in this world is perfect. I have heard stories about poor dial and crystals from even PATEK PHILIPPE, too.

Means it's hard to be such perfectionist, isn't it Bo?

[ohlins]

my fren's associate owns a fp journe that has spent more time at the workshop than on his wrist......

if there is perfection, there is no need for warranty.......