Restoring a Retired Welders Rolex GMT 16750 Pepsi

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This watch came into our workshop in a sorry state. Worn everyday by a commercial welder.
The owner was retiring and it is time for the watch to be ready for a new stage of it's life with a mini restoration which maintains the watches originality as much as possible.

[@luked4857]

Nothing more beautiful than a tool watch that was used and worn not just stuffed in a safe. If you got them WEAR THEM!

[@ypaulbrown]

it is called weld spatter, not splatter......I know, I am a weldor and wear my 1016 Explorer all the time, even working on cars, I have owned it since 1973...great video and channel, cheers, from an old weldor in Florida, USA

[@andywillis9701]

i love seeing someone who actually wears and tells a story with a watch rather than hold it to a "grail watch" state

[@lislearnitalianwithsongs]

It’s so satisfying to see a high-end, a luxury watch, let’s say it, being used and used a lot, to actually do what it’s supposed to do: tell the time and continue doing so, well, in all conditions and for a long period! And what a magic to see it come back to its original splendor! A marvelous restoration, bravo! Thanks for the video!

[@jeromefraillon]

You charged £395? That’s a steal compared to what I paid in LA for a service to replace the mainspring on my Sub!

[@charlottejet4338]

Fascinating to watch this. My grandfather was a watch and clock maker. He had a very successful business and was still repairing timepieces until his death in the early 70's. My father trained as a watch and clock maker, but he unfortunately gave it up. My brother and I are addicted to fine timepieces, so I guess it's in the blood.

[@chadlampe4026]

Really enjoyed the detailed explanation of the service. It’s also great to see a well worn Rolex that has lived a hard life and continues to run.

[@dampferschorsch5904]

It's hard to look at, but that's what Rolex is made for. Working in a harsh environment. The end result is impressive. Good work 👍👌

[@harrymc9263]

As a former welder I'll confirm that is well splattered

[@Supercruze]

What a turnaround. Beautiful conservative restoration. A tool watch used for what it was intended for. Great to see this one brought back to usable service again. Thanks for sharing.

[@pacowonderboy]

amazing, really love that u said the price as well for the job. Most watchmakers keep this on "silence" on their video.

[@sc1]

Beautiful bezel. Well worn, and well serviced to bring it back to life.

[@adios2011]

Its beautiful to see a watch being used and having the scars of whole life !!! I wouldn’t fix too much . Maybe the Saphire and the movement and leave the rest

[@ronl7131]

The absolute best kinda’ timepiece…high quality, well-loved, & well-used…good restoration 🍻love the battle scars on case

[@jerrywallop5647]

Brilliant production & very fascinating…….I’m always in awe of the watchmakers craft……well done…👍

[@pasha12343]

Nice repair , I like the sympathetic approach to not over restoring 👍🙂

[@cerberuswatches7287]

Thanks 👍

[@pipodorologio1648]

thanks for sharing, pretty amazing job you did on this....I love the fact you left the "life"in the watch

[@teslaandtech]

Wonderful. Love the character that has developed on this watch

[@Zimbo1212]

Wow! Great restoration will maintaining the watches heritage!

[@fancytyme]

Beautiful restoration. Love seeing older GMTs still in daily use.

[@michaeloakes3667]

Great work! You absolutely transformed that watch into something brand new

[@alanmckinnon6791]

Those older Rolexes were tool watches indeed - tool watches in the same way as SnapOn are tool spanners and StahWille are tool screwdrivers. And the dirt on that one, oh wow. I buy a fair number of used watches and straight away they go in the ultrasonic, but I've not had one like that GMT. So, only 3:50 in, time to watch the rest of the video!

[@paulbush7095]

This is an excellent channel. I especially like the fact that only one manufacturer is the subject of the channel’s content. This makes for a more informative video as the watch maker is so familiar and experienced with the repair techniques and most common causes of failure of the brand’s movement.

[@mattemeny2606]

I find this so therapeutic. You brilliant artisans

[@regularguyreviews3048]

Beautiful watch and amazing job!

[@timbounds7190]

I rather liked it in its original state, scratched and dirty! Far cooler than a Rolex that's hardly ever been out of a safe!

[@matthewmacqueen9497]

Great video and a credit to your profession !

[@tbprofile1295]

Very interesting! Cool to see how he used it so heavily for so many years and it lasted.

[@hamersakm]

Absolutely therapeutic, great work!

[@cerberuswatches7287]

Many thanks!

[@trdpoor]

Incredible work.

[@caliado]

Nice work, its a beautiful watch

[@BerlinBLR]

Very nice work and beautiful watch

[@davidjohnson6965]

Great to see another video, thanks

[@naveenl86]

Such a great meticulous job!

[@Dan-oc4pp]

It would be nice to see a bit more of the polish work that was done. Some side views at the end would be perfect. Great work!

[@petterlindberg9479]

Amazing job!

[@lucaamedeowilber1557]

love the way the red on the bezel has faded

[@ssssecuritysystem273]

Informative and educational video. I've learnt a few things from this, thanks

[@joeskeptical4762]

*A well loved watch, which did its job well.*

[@jons23]

Wow great video, that dial is so special

[@RolexDSSD]

Amazing job

[@mikebruegger8654]

Nicely done

[@anthonydevono8833]

I like to see a watch that has been worn. Top quality video

[@Boxandpaperss]

I am a watch collector/dealer myself, this is so satisfying to watch bro! Cheers from Singapore

[@LoveBandit1000]

Wow....NICE work!

[@lito9859]

Love it man! Bravo

[@andrewjackson8089]

Super job

[@tcob68mousamsingh95]

Brilliant!

[@mangelwicawica]

Nice video! Justo discovered youe channel. Interesting how a Rolex could be aforded by a welder back in the day.

[@markwarren9765]

great video, would have liked to see more of the case restoration

[@cerberuswatches7287]

Thanks, I'll bear that in mind for the future. My colleague does that part of the job whilst I work on the movement so it can be a bit hard to film both. As the channel grows I will buy more cameras to improve the production quality.

[@MisterE495]

That’s a fantastic deal. My yacht master cost me $908 for its service. Great work!

[@sunshine3187]

I found this really satisfying 👍

[@RA-uj3nm]

I don't know too much about watches, but for all that tedious work I was expecting you to charge much more. Unbelievable that you can work with so many tiny parts. 👍👍🍺🍺

[@Jamestreeman]

Wonderful

[@lomate1963]

Nice to see one beaten and used 👍🏻

[@billymania11]

A very nice video. You explained the service requirement quite well. I suppose it's human nature to delay and push off the maintenance intervals. I am surprised at the charge for service. It seems quite low considering the amount of attention lavished on the piece.

[@100yugiohtrader]

You can tell the watch was worn and loved as it should be,

[@loydfogelman7230]

Very nice

[@photoholic11]

Love it. Lets not forget that many Rolex watches were originally "tool" watches ( as the video maker mentioned) and were intended to be worn in any environment. It wasnt until the last 15-20 years when Rolex prices started moving higher and higher that people started to view them as more of a luxury item than a work watch. Todays Rolex watches are incredibly well made, def better than the older versions. Im lucky enough to have several subs and gmts and they get a lot of wrist time., however, i would probably struggle a little if they were getting the beating this one got.

[@johng.6222]

Great job. It may be my imagination but it seems like there are more quality watchmakers or just any watchmakers in England then there is in the United States. It's such a dying art in this throwaway society of ours. I have over 100 watches and I hesitate to buy vintage watches which is what I prefer because it is increasingly difficult to find a good watchmaker or any watchmaker to service and repair watches. It's not a problem with my Rolexes because I can send them to Rolex of New York. Although out of the dozen or so that I've sent they did refuse one entirely. I recently came to own a 1927 Hamilton railroad pocket watch grade 992 that appears to be an excellent condition sets runs and keeps good time but because I only see one service mark on the case back and because the amplitude drops from 280 down to 230 from dial up to pendant up I wanted to have at least a COA done or a repair if necessary. My local jeweler sent it to a watchmaker who basically refused to do the COA. It appeared from the conversations I had that he may not have felt confident in taking on the watch. I wish I could find a competent watchmaker anywhere. I'd love to see the watch done on camera like the GMT was even if it meant sending it to Europe... I gladly pay the cost. Oh well.

[@brianpercival1829]

Very nice work. Just enough restoration but keeping it's patina. Took a long time to wear that patina in and shame would be to replace case and bezel too. Then it looks like all the other Rolex watches at the Pawn Shops. (It's where I do my watch shopping)

[@richardthomas3382]

what would the value be before and after such nice restoration?

[@Timjacks01]

Superb

[@Picsou313]

Nice!

[@cesarbojorquez7418]

Great video. What watch you are wearing?

[@williamcook8463]

What would be an expected cost range for clean and service of a watch that has no need for replacement parts or cosmetic work? Simply, cleaning, oiling and calibration.

[@ToddGodfrey]

Do you use any type of cleaning agent in the tank whilst cleaning the case and bracelet?

[@hardcopydk3001]

Good job mate. And do not care about haters.

[@cerberuswatches7287]

Thanks, I get hundreds of really nice comments but for some strange reason tend to focus on the few negative people. I'm getting much better at that now I'm aware of it though

[@cidlopez]

How does dirt get into a sealed case? I own a 2006 gmt coke. It was serviced in 2014 when I purchased it. Probably due for a service even though it’s keeping great time.

[@gtcam723]

When welding, metal spatter can get all sorts of places. Scarring occurs. Is it possible that isn’t dirt inside but grindings from it eating itself?

[@paulanthonyjohns]

that's a very reasonable price for the great work done here

[@featherstonehobbies]

I have a milgause which will need serviced soon what would the price be for that thanks

[@steviedj6730]

Nice video. Could do with more case refinishing for me. I enjoy that more than the movement. But, just my opinion

[@bbltd.3154]

I'd like to know the cost for this job

[@arthur703]

A masterly piece of work. I would have chosen a new bezel after consulting the owner.

[@brettcrf]

Wow ,I weld and wouldn’t where a watch at all 😮

[@truxton1000]

I would just clean it up, replace the crystal and keep the case as is with welding splatter, as it's part of the history of the watch, but great result regardless!

[@cerberuswatches7287]

I possibly agree. We tend to give advice but leave the final decisions up to the customer. If it were my watch, I think it would depend on how much I enjoyed my career prior to retirement. If I disliked welding and couldn't wait to leave it behind, I'd probably want it gone. If it brought back fond memories I'd keep it.

[@truxton1000]

@@cerberuswatches7287 I agree!

[@Nefville]

I'm quite surprised anyone even mentioned dirt, I watched the video and I don't even remember the dirt. In their defense (not really) there are channels that add "patina" to restorations but I would NOT expect that from this channel in a million years. I don't know what those people are smoking but please don't stop making videos I very much enjoy these and there's always going to be a bunch of idiots out there. Nature of the internet. This watch is nuts, half of me is physically ill from seeing slag on a Rolex and the other is amazed someone did that to it and that it survived.

[@cerberuswatches7287]

Thanks for the kind comments

[@Cinestudi0]

Wait, are there rolex with hollow end links?

[@cerberuswatches7287]

There are yes, the newer ones are a great improvement

[@Cinestudi0]

@@cerberuswatches7287 i didn't knew that, your video teach me something new 👍

[@orbwheelsandwatches]

What screwdrivers do you use?

[@cerberuswatches7287]

AF Swiss, it was the first set I ever had so it is quite old now. I've tried a Bergeon and Horotec set but gone back to these

[@dennismoritz9917]

Weld spatter

[@mpp9964]

Looks great but if it were mine I’d replace the bezel.

[@nevamind68t23]

Great job, onya mate 👍🏾 🖤 Why would you even respond to Boofheads and Trolls? 🤔 👊🏾

[@TopSecretVid]

looks like a lot of DNA under that bezel..

[@TheScubaboy56]

Nice vid, i've subscribed to your channel. Btw, it's weld spatter not splatter ;-)

[@cerberuswatches7287]

Ok thanks!

[@chiefexecutive]

I wear my GMT master 2 everyday. 24/7 I almost never remove it. It’s understandable.

[@kls1912]

Nice work! I would have just Service the movement, clean the watch, change the Crystal but leave the case and bracelet unpolished

[@happysingle6240]

Great video, you are very talented .

[@tabs3959]

This welder must be rich!!! Not a single welder here in the Philippines can possibly own a rolex. Not to discriminate but welders here are considered entry level workers with at the most can make $10 daily salary. One can possibly own a cheap seiko but they will not use it like this welder did to his rolex!!! 😱😱😱

[@6re881]

Is the welder was a millionaire or what ?

[@michaelostassr.2771]

My brothers watch looks like this. Tore up.

[@waynejohnson3214]

Wow. Who would do that to a Rolex?

[@mrj57f]

Wow they must be paying that welder a very good wedge !.

[@wearemany73]

£395 really is a good price for a full refurbishment. (Especially that watch🫣) Maybe the expression: “rough as a welders bench” should be changed…🤔