Patek Philippe

Dear all,

I'll be flying to Florida next July to see some family. However, I am rather torn about a simple question: I own three dressed vintage timepieces, a 1951 Gondolo ref.2488J, a 1972 Golden Ellipse ref.3548J and a vintage JLC from the 40's/50's, which I inherited and I am rather tempted to take one of them with me which will be worn only on quiet evenings and which would be stored in a box at my sister's during the day. Do you think it could be risky to do so knowing the local climate (very warm and humid in summer) ? I asked the question to different people (including a local Floridian watchmaker and a watchmaker from the Parisian Bucherer shop, who told me there would normally be no problem if worn with care) and a French forum and got different opinions.











Thanks in advance,

Dan

I wouldn't be worried about humidity. If anything, though, especially in the summer, a leather strap will get funky. If you have something with a metal bracelet, I'd recommend going with metal. 

Of course, I do own some steel bracelet timepieces (a GS SBGX063, a GS SBGH001 and a Parmigiani Fleurier Kalpa Grande). I was thinking of bringing one of the GS with me and something more classy for the evening 😉!

Weather is a big issue in leather strap in long term but not a real problem if you spend a few days there. I have been several times in FL wearing a dress watch and leather strap (vintage like that JLC). It's not very nice if you spend a lot of time outdoor, but not a problem. And that Gondolo is awesome. You'll enjoy it in that special time.  

I am glad to hear that you already tested the local climate with a vintage timepiece and that everything went good !

Cheers,

Dan

I think ,as one of the friends mentioned,it wouldn't be a problem for going out for short times(Although I haven't been in Florida i have been in humid places).By the way all three legends are not easy to get separated but i would choose the Patek Gondolo.Have a nice journey and a holiday.

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At night in parties you can wear the Ellipse in both formal and kinda semi formal occasions.

I was in fact worrying about the consequences of such a humid heat on the quality of the lubricants. Your opinions are also great news because I am currently single and want to transmit those fantastic watches to my American nephews and nieces in a long long future. Aren't Pateks made for that after all 😉?

Cheers,

Dan

Wear the one that's most recently serviced.  The new gaskets and seals will protect the watch from humidity. 

I had the two Patek serviced in 2014 at PP Place Vendôme for quite an important amount. However, the JLC was maintained last year at a local Parisian watchmaker. The PP still keep time superlatively whereas the JLC is less precise, running roughly at -20 sec/day. It was already the case after a first service in 2011 and I don't really care due to the age of the watch, the fact that it hasn't any chronometer tolerance and that I only wear it approximatively one week every two months.

Regards,

Dan

You can't go wrong. It is warm in Florida right now. I was there back in November and it was warm then too! Wear the Patek that has a more worn strap, as the heat may cause some perspiration, better to wear the strap that is going to be replaced sooner. Just a thought.

I think that those watches, if serviced recently, can withstand humidity, especially if designed after the 60's. The best way is too ask an AD to get the info from the manufacture directly.

Live in FL and any of them is fine. You're only wearing them as jewely so no big deal. My daily beater Rolex gets wet, dive with it, wear it when working on the car, etc and its fine. Am sure Patek can easily fix any problems during service if something goes wrong. Am curious why you feel the condition of your timepieces are so bad that they cant handle FL weather when being worn as jewely.