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REPAIR & SERVICE
Jaeger-LeCoultre Futurematic
Gray & Sons Jewelers, located in Miami Beach, Florida is an independent watch service center, repairing Jaeger-LeCoultre Futurematic watches since 1980.
Jaeger-LeCoultre.Reference Futurematic. Men’s vintage.
Jaeger-LeCoultre Repair Services
Dress watch.
Automatic. Caliber 497. Model E501. Circa 1950’s.
The number of jewels 17, 18,000 A/h frequency.
Round case size 35 mm, Lug to lug size 46mm. Case thickness 12mm. Goldplated.
Function crown on the back of the watch. Not water-resistant. Crystal made of plexiglass.
Silver dial with dots and markers.
The seconds sub-dial at 3 o’clock and power reserve sub-dial at 9 o’clock.
Comes with a leather bracelet.
Made in Swisszertland.
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In the 1950s the LeCoultre Futurematic was introduced as “the most accurate self-winding watch in the world”
Description:
Since 1833 Jaeger-LeCoultre has been recognized for the quality of their movements and the simplicity of their designs. No doubt a true horology master even for Swiss standards.
It is a self-winding automatic watch with the special feature that it has no crown to wind it.
How futuristic is that?
Just coming out of World War II, this watch, as with many other manufacturer’s designs, looked into a brighter future for the whole world.
With a smooth silhouette, sharp, large oversized curbed lugs and dauphine hands, a distinctive look, and innovative construction, Jaeger-LeCoultre had a clear intent to create a unique futuristic looking watch.
The hidden crown was no small challenge at the time, LeCoultre developed a centrally suspended rotor for winding the mainspring and thus increasing the power reserve. The balance wheel is also heavier and it winds the watch bidirectionally, which helps increase the power reserve with each movement of the hand. These newly designed parts created an unparallel accurate watch, adding an important special feature to avoid over-winding that was brought to this movement from World War II watches JLC produced.
Manufactured between 1951 and 1959, this watch was the first in the market without a crown for winding the movement. This crown is only meant to set the time.
The movement of the wearer will power the watch since the moment is set on the wrist.
The case back-mounted crown makes this piece so unique and the absence of the side crown gives this awesome timepiece a perfect symmetry and a very special look that feels so well at the wrist.
This symmetry gets a perfect finish with the power reserve sub-dial at 9 o’clock, completing a well balanced and very original dial with sub-seconds at 3 o’clock.
Another interesting particular on this timepiece is that due to some US Market regulations at the time, this watch was imported into the US with the LeCoultre name only at the dial and in the movement/case back.
It was distributer in the US by Vacheron-Constantin-LeCoultre.
Finally, the dials and cases in the same watch differ between the US and European models for this reason as they were manufactured for different markets.
With this watch Jaeger-LeCoultre broke the mold, with distinctive looks and innovative construction, this watch represents the end of an era and a new standard for watchmaking that commands our attention to wristwatches and makes it a very desirable watch for collectors.
It is always a great privilege to work on such a beautiful and sought-after watch.
Gray and Sons received the watch from a collector that wanted to make sure we were going to follow manufacturers’ protocols to keep this watch 100% original and protect its present and future value. The main reason for the watch collector to contact Gray and Sons was reputation, price, and especially the time to service his precious timepiece.
He maintained a long conversation with the service manager to make sure that his wishes and his watch were going to be in good hands and insured all the way from his home to our shop and back.
Our Swiss watchmakers took the job with great passion, as we love these intricate movements and appreciate the watch enthusiasts that wear them. A watch like this is a source of infinite pleasure.
Every movement is different and it creates a different challenge. At Gray & Sons, we make it personal to bring every timepiece back to its original splendor, as we have enjoyed doing it for over forty years.
Our watchmakers are specialists in Swiss simple or complicated movements. They have trained for years getting to know all the parts and how to better correct and prevent malfunctions and regulate the accuracy of timekeeping.
This limited production timepiece from a well recognized Swiss manufacturer is always a great opportunity for our watchmakers to show the quality of their workmanship.
So the process begins, the master watchmaker in charge of this job will disassemble the movement to the barest parts. Then, using a multi-stage process to remove dirt and old dried lubricants will bring this great movement back to its best performance, to work as originally designed.
No shortcuts are used, we, at Gray & Sons, only do this the old fashioned way of the antique watchmakers, time-consuming, maybe, but we will make sure that it will keep time as it is designed to.
The movement is put together again to start working on the regulation, timekeeping accuracy, power reserve, and synchronization of all the parts involved for this magnificent movement to keep time.
Then the watch will be re-cased, and for the final checks, two specialists, separately, will test the power reserve of the movement manually and mechanically
The watch is almost ready to be shipped back and as a final stage, we will have another associate check everything all over again with new eyes and have these final tests done once more before we ship it back to the owner.
A brief story about Gray & Sons Inspired Jewelers and Watch Experts
For over 40 years, the focus of this family-owned and operated business has been selling meticulously restored & like-new condition Certified Preowned Watches and one-of-a-kind estate jewelry pieces .
We are always acquiring new watches and jewelry pieces , so please check our website frequently or sign up for our free monthly catalog , it will give you a good sense of market values and what is trending in our industry and it's free!!
If you have an item that you are interested in selling, we can help sell your piece too! We have sales specialists that are fluent in Spanish, French, Polish, and Russian. We have six in-house Swiss-trained watchmakers to handle all your watch repairs and service issues.
TIP of the day: It is good to know that the more common service calls we get at the shop are due to winding the watch while wearing it, which causes an extreme bending force in the crown, stem, and automatic mechanism forcing and unnecessary repair out of warranty, and second to that, while winding it out of the wrist, dropping the watch to the floor, which in case of hard floors would be a disaster. We always recommend winding the watch on top of a desk or table.
If you have a watch that is not working as it once did, send it to us . You will be amazed at your “as new looking” watch.
Our Miami Beach showroom is located across from the world-renowned Bal Harbour Shops. If you are ever in the area please stop by , we would love to meet you and show you our store.
Hope this brief intro to our company makes you feel reassured that you are dealing with a reputable, long-standing and honest company. Your watch will be in good hands.
#1 Specialist on Jaeger-LeCoultre timepieces
You have a special watch, you care and love it.
Make sure you take it to a watchmaker that will love the job he does for your very special watch.
Visit Gray and Sons Jewelers we are a one-stop source, buy, sell, consign or repair, for all your luxury watch and high-end jewelry needs throughout Florida, especially in Miami, Coral Gables, Miami Beach, Sunny Isles, and Fort Lauderdale.
Gray and Sons Jewelers has an excellent reputation with many customers in New York, Massachusetts, California, Texas, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Chicago.
Don’t hesitate to contact Gray and Sons customer service and have a look at the helpful FAQ on the website www.grayansons.com
OUR EXPERIENCE
OVER 150 YEARS OF COMBINED WATCHMAKING AND JEWELRY/CASE AND BRACELET REPAIR EXPERIENCE!
How to Repair Your Watch with Gray & Sons Jewelers
We offer our watch repair services locally in South Florida (Miami, Miami Beach, Surfside, Bal Harbour, Fort Lauderdale, and West Palm Beach), nationally as well as internationally with our Easy Ship Box Option.
Local Repairs
Come visit our showroom and let us evaluate your watch. Our Swiss-trained watchmakers are among the best in the United States and we just happen to be located on Miami Beach. We will provide you an estimate before beginning any work.
National Repairs
To accommodate customers across the United States who complete repairs with us, we devised the Easy Ship Box as the fastest and most convenient way to send sensitive luxury items. This allows you to receive our state of the art services anywhere in the country, so you never compromise on the care your watch rightfully deserves.
