Rolex Restoration

A recent and complex job we were asked to undertake in the workshop, involved restoring this 18ct Gold Rolex Day-Date watch bracelet. The bracelet was extremely worn and stretched, we often see this, especially with gold bracelets. Gold watch bracelets are a lot softer than stainless steel equivalents, and will of course wear more severely over time.

Rolex bracelet before restoration, with links
showing severe wear.

Many companies will not be able to take on a job such as this, with Rolex themselves simply offering to replace the bracelet at vast cost. Our Goldsmith is able to restore the 18ct gold bracelet, having completely disassembled the bracelet and then rebuilding, and making new gold pins.

To restore such a worn bracelet took our Goldsmith many hours. Each link needed to be carefully broken down into its individual components, and the pins drilled out. He then needed to rebuild the bracelet – reforming some links and pinning every single link to ensure it is strong for many further years of continued wear and enjoyment.

The image on the left shows the bracelet in component form. The image
To the right shows the bracelet during restoration, with the new gold
pins protruding, ready for finishing.

This is a job which requires extreme focus and commitment, and takes a very long time. Typically, a full bracelet restoration such as this will take 3-4 weeks, in terms of actual time.