Question about Richard Mille repair--no, I am not rich.

[mrarchiegoodwin]

I have a question about Richard Mille repair because I am skeptical of the communications I have been receiving from the boutique (in another country). Do they seem reasonable to you all? First, a bit of background. I haven't worn a watch since I was mugged in 2020 and the police told me my Rolex was a magnet for miscreants. Fast forward to October 2024, when I was cleaning out my scarf drawer and discovered my long lost and forgotten RM 005 Felipe Massa--that I bought used for $23k around 22 years ago. [Story: I wore the RM almost everyday until it stopped running 17 years ago, and the Beverly Hills boutique sent it to Geneva for repairs. I got an invoice for over $3k by email, paid it, and received the watch via FedEx in the plastic constainer I had sent to the BV boutique. No paperwork at all--nothing except my watch (and that without informing me RM decided to remove the PVD coating over the titanium case--that changed it from warm gray to gloomy charcoal--ugh). The repair was so expensive (for me) that I didn't dare wear it anymore. That was when I bought a Rolex 5512 (for $4k to wear everyday, and then another, and then another, because that's what happens when you buy a Rolex and join Rolex Forums, and then the mugging happened.] After finding the RM in October, I decided to wear it because I was going overseas for the first time since the pandemic and knew I would want to know the time every 30 seconds. I fell in love with my old RM again--or did I fall in love with wearing a watch again? In Tokyo, I decided to visit RM's Ginza boutique to buy a yellow band (that I knew was available for my watch when it was new and I needed something to counter the ugly dark charcoal case with black band). For some crazy reason (why?) the Ginza boutique decided to do a pressure test and blew off the crystal. The very accommodating staff (Japanese, after all) expressed regret as they showed me the watch with crystal sitting askance and informed me that the watch needed to be repaired. Was I gonna glue the crystal on myself? So, okay, please repair my watch. I left it there and returned to the US. Late November, I got a follow-up email from the boutique that the watch would be thoroughly checked and it might cost $10k to repair. Darn. What could I do? So, again, okay. Today I got an email from the boutique telling me that it is RM's policy to update the balance wheel so that my gold balance wheel will be changed for a silver one. WTF, the movement was working well when I left it there! But do I have a choice? No! So, again, I agreed on the condition that all old parts be returned to me. The boutique's response was immediate: parts cannot be returned due to "manufacturing confidentiality and protection of intellectual property rights". Holy cow. What if a spy buys a new RM, takes it apart, and examines the guts? Knowing Japanese etiquette I could not ask such a question. I could only agree. I trust the Japanese staff but am disappointed by RM's policy (that reminds me of what I heard about Rolex's--that the factory will fix an old watch and not return the old parts). I have no idea what I will end up paying. But does my experience seem normal to people on this forum? Happy new year.