Help with S/EL bracelet replace/repair/refurb (WG11 + bb0424)

folks,

My sister and I have been trying to get my Dads watch back into a good state for months now - its been off to Tag (and back), and into a few local specialists but, largely, no success.

It's a WG1125 (2000 series?) in brushed stainless and with some gold plating. It's the classic S/el bracelet, and is failing in the classic way - links are just loose and easily come apart.

The bracelet is a bb0424-go, and try as I might I can't track down a replacement that doesn't look well used / risky. We're contemplating buying a whole watch and swapping parts over, but it's also a bit of a gamble.

The watch itself is in good condition - it moves and keeps time well and it generally clean.

Any assistance with the bracelet / strap, and how we can get it into a servicable state would be hugely appreciated.

Cheers,
Dave

It's possible to press links back together - in fact, there's a tool specifically made for it:


But it depends on where the loose links are - can you post pictures?

Thanks for the info! One of the jewellers we spoke to had that exact tool. We also have a few spare links from when the watch was new, if that changes things.

Its the two links closest to the clasp that are loose. The ones attached to the clasp are fine - as are all other links.

Here's a pic - its the links to the left - they are firmly sttached to the claps, but easily disassemble from there (left side "lug" has a bar attached to it, right side lugs just fall off. The two gold lugs in the pic, on the left):

Nice watch and history. If you have enough and the correctly colored spare links plus access to the link tool, then you should be good to go. The toughest part is removing the clasp from the two end links as it is attached with tiny (easily breakable) screws. After that you just install good links to achieve desired length, then the end links with clasp.

Either the posts or the other half of your failing links is bad. I don’t think there are replacement posts, so either half or the whole link needs to be swapped out.

With the link tool, you can easily install the new links plus give all other links a squeeze to ensure closure.

This entire operation should take an experienced jeweler (with the correct tools) a few minutes. Good luck.