: Greetings Sir/Mdm,
: I have a question.
: I send in a Omega Co-Axial choronograph watch (still under
: warranty)due to power reserve issue. The agent has communicated
: that they will be changing the spring, 1 hand & do general
: servicing.
: This watch is COSC certified, does the repair work void this
: certification & a retest is needed?
: Need your help to enlighten me.
: Thanks & best regards,
: S.Y.Lau
Its not something I would worry about. The movements sent and tested are raw and not cased. The COSC testing is done
on these movements and they are sent back to Omega a stored for future use. The testing only means that the watch will pass
the timing at the time of the test, nothing more. Many many things can happen to a movement after it is tested. Its handled and cased,
polished, bracelet or strap are installed, they are tested for water resistance and the like. That certificate from COSC is not worth the paper
its written on after the testing is done. It simply means that the movement is "capable" of keeping chronometer time. After wearing the
watch and timing it, most do with no problems. If the watch was timed by your watchmaker or Omega, it should be very close and keep
time well. Just because some movements are sent and tested, doesn't mean that other movements won't do the same. I have several
Omega movements that will keep chronometer time with ease but haven't been tested and never will be just simply because Omega
doesn't test all their watches. Its just my opinion, others will vary, that the COSC is a major waste of money that the customer
pays for in the end. Many of the better watch companies don't COSC certify any of their watches. They have their own tests
that work just fine and are often more stringent than the testing COSC does. As a footnote, COSC excludes certain countries from
any testing at all, Seiko is excluded by their rules and therefore have no chronometers, according to COSC. They are excluded simply
because the testing is weighted toward Swiss watches which makes it, in my opinion, somewhat unfair.
jim
