Nuno Mendes
Gold Member
What we have here is a rare treasure of a timepiece. A fully overhauled 1963 solid 18kt rose gold Jaeger Lecoultre K478 manual wind. When I say overhauled, I am not simply implying that a qualified watchmaker serviced it and replaced any parts with generic ones of the same fit due to the fact that authentic JLC parts for this timepiece are no longer available. When I say overhauled, I am in fact implying that the overhaul was done by a former Richmont Group, thus Jaeger Lecoultre trained watchmaker who had in his possession, and still does, all original JLC parts . The overhaul was $1500. This does not include the cost of the watch which I have seen the latest similar version sell for over $3500 US online (unserviced). I would easily value this watch at $4500 cdn. The watch was originally brought to the Jaeger Lecoultre boutique at Yorkdale who forwarded it to Switzerland for an overhaul appraisal. The conclusion was that even Jaeger Lecoultre themselves no longer had original parts for the watch and would have to fabricate new ones and the overhaul cost would be in excess of $3000. To their point, the overhaul was worth carrying out as the value of the watch after overhaul would easily justify it.
Long story short, this watch remains a fully restored model with all authentic parts and perhaps the cleanest and pristine model I have ever laid eyes upon and worked on by one of the finest watchmakers I have ever known and believe me I’ve come across many. Its K478 C manual wound movement is revered as one of the finest JLC has ever produced. My watchmaker upon returning it to me after 5 weeks of work confided in me “This watch is a work of art. I love it more than you”. The watch comes on a brand new chocolate brown genuine alligator strap and retains its original 18kt rose gold plate JLC tang buckle. The only alteration to this watch was that the rose gold sweeping hand has been replaced with a stunning contrasted blued steel hand. It looks magnificent against the rose gold index markers.
I love this watch and am not really looking to sell, but I put it out here because I have always desired to re-obtain a Panerai, a brand of watch which I used to own but was forced to sell when financial times were a bit more constrained. I would be looking for a straight trade and even now I remain hesitant to follow through. Along with the trade, would be the reference to my all world watchmaker for all future maintenance needs for this beautiful timepiece. This marvelous timepiece on my first wind test revealed a power reserve of 53 hrs. I was a bit blown away.
Serious inquiries only please.
Specs:
Case: *Width: 35mm (not including winding crown) *******************************************************************************************************Length: 42mm (including lugs) ***************************************************************************************************************************Thickness: 10mm **Total weight with band and buckle: 41g ************************************************************************************Solid 18kt (0.750) rose gold; snap back; two piece, faceted lugs; signed, numbered and hallmarked; acrylic crystal, original signed winding crown.
Dial: Original silver colored dial, rose gold hands and hour indices, signed Jaeger Lecoultre Swiss Made **
Movement: Rare 17 Jewels manual wind genuine Jaeger Lecoultre caliber K478 C ; 12.75’’’, DM=28.8mm, H=4.55mm; center seconds; 18,000 vibrations per hour, signed and numbered; pristine overhauled functionality.
Band: Genuine alligator 17mm/14mm with genuine and original to the watch Jaeger Lecoultre 14mm 18kt gold plated tang buckle.
View attachment 11940
View attachment 11941
View attachment 11942
more pics to comeView attachment 11947
Long story short, this watch remains a fully restored model with all authentic parts and perhaps the cleanest and pristine model I have ever laid eyes upon and worked on by one of the finest watchmakers I have ever known and believe me I’ve come across many. Its K478 C manual wound movement is revered as one of the finest JLC has ever produced. My watchmaker upon returning it to me after 5 weeks of work confided in me “This watch is a work of art. I love it more than you”. The watch comes on a brand new chocolate brown genuine alligator strap and retains its original 18kt rose gold plate JLC tang buckle. The only alteration to this watch was that the rose gold sweeping hand has been replaced with a stunning contrasted blued steel hand. It looks magnificent against the rose gold index markers.
I love this watch and am not really looking to sell, but I put it out here because I have always desired to re-obtain a Panerai, a brand of watch which I used to own but was forced to sell when financial times were a bit more constrained. I would be looking for a straight trade and even now I remain hesitant to follow through. Along with the trade, would be the reference to my all world watchmaker for all future maintenance needs for this beautiful timepiece. This marvelous timepiece on my first wind test revealed a power reserve of 53 hrs. I was a bit blown away.
Serious inquiries only please.
Specs:
Case: *Width: 35mm (not including winding crown) *******************************************************************************************************Length: 42mm (including lugs) ***************************************************************************************************************************Thickness: 10mm **Total weight with band and buckle: 41g ************************************************************************************Solid 18kt (0.750) rose gold; snap back; two piece, faceted lugs; signed, numbered and hallmarked; acrylic crystal, original signed winding crown.
Dial: Original silver colored dial, rose gold hands and hour indices, signed Jaeger Lecoultre Swiss Made **
Movement: Rare 17 Jewels manual wind genuine Jaeger Lecoultre caliber K478 C ; 12.75’’’, DM=28.8mm, H=4.55mm; center seconds; 18,000 vibrations per hour, signed and numbered; pristine overhauled functionality.
Band: Genuine alligator 17mm/14mm with genuine and original to the watch Jaeger Lecoultre 14mm 18kt gold plated tang buckle.
View attachment 11940
View attachment 11941
View attachment 11942
more pics to comeView attachment 11947
Last edited: