Officine Panerai

Hi,

As there has been lot of talk in the forum on teh PAM 317 Ceramic durablity.

After getting my PAM 317 after a long wait, I recently also got a yellow strap for it and watch looked amzing, but my mistake I dropped my PAM 317 from 3ft on a hard floor and cermiac case and crown protector cracked and chipped, hope that PANERAI will replace it.

So anyone who had doubts on the strenght of CERAMIC, pls handle this cearmic watch very carefully, as it will crack.

fixed picture HTML  - AT

 

 

 

This message has been edited by AnthonyTsai on 2010-09-01 13:58:20

Sorry to hear the news but it looks like the crown protector did the job intended.

 Looks like an easy fix for Panerai. 

You could probably get the part from your ad and replace it yourself. No down time.

Bill

I wish it was as simple, if you look carefully the bezel is also chipped just above where the crown protector is attacehd to teh wtach, so seems due to the shock the crown protector chipped the bezel.

I did not mean to diminish your pain or the damage.

It may be a good test case "case study" for Panerai so I am sure they will be happy to work on a solution to solve the problem.

How about the actual functions of the watch was there a noticeable impact to performance.

Thanks

Bill

no probs ...i have not really checked the performance, i am waiting for my AD to contact PANERAI and know the next step and if it has to go in then better they will check everything and service it.

And thanks for info about the ceramic shock durability.

Hope Panerai can fix it for you quickly.

- Anthony

Hope so as well.....I have 2 panerais PAM 317 and PAM 26 and i very much like the brand.

But now a real test of how PANERAI after sales service is! do they just sell these high end watches or will carry thru with the service/fixing....

FINGERS CROSSED........will keep you all posted.

BUT ONE THING IS ESTABLISHED CERAMIC IS A VERY VERY DELICATE MATERIAL, A SMALL FALL FROM CHAIR TO HARD FLOOR CAN SERIOUSLY DAMAGE THE WATCH....

So the Panerai Service Center should pull through fine.  Just don't expect this repair to be free

Cheers,
Anthony

Your pam took a bounce and i also hope you get a quick repair...
What i do not understand is why you portraying a material that is 5 times harder than Stainless Steel to be
VERY..VERY..DELICATE...? Shit happens..we fix it and move on... imho

It may be 5 times harder but my Rolex S/S daytona which my wife now wears has been banged dropped by my kids many times and still withstand without a chip / crack, as my kids get hold of that easily it has taken bigger falls then the PAM 317 took.

Ceramic may be 5 times harder, and i think that is where the problem, because it is 5 times harder it is more brittle and hence easy to chip or snap....hence to be handled delicately more deliactely then Stain Steel...

But dont get me wrong, i have no regret to having own this watch, I love the watch, the material its made of and knew that it was deliactely when i aquired it, and one of the resaons i got was its uniqueness of cermaic, but fact is fact CERMAIC watches needs to handled more carefully then i did.

Although Ceramic is 5 times harder than steel, it does tend to crack when banged with a strong enough force. The best thing about a ceramic piece is that it is almost scratch proof... so under normal circumstance, it is almost impossible to damage a ceramic watch. I have hit my 317 countless times on door handles, table tops, walls, and almost any other surfaces while swinging my arms.... and it never even left a scratch.... so it definetly a watch that can take normal daily abuse, just be careful when the watch is not on the wrist....

But recently i hit my 317 on a metal surface quite hard, and left a water stain looking blot on my bezel. tries to clean it with alcohol, but it wouldn't come off. I looked it under the microscope, and saw no damage to the ceramic surface, but saw there is white dots of "something" on that blot... I asked around and no one seem to have an answer as to what those white dots under the microscope is... one of my friend suspect it is the microscopic metal particles that i scraped off onto my watch when i hit that surface.... anyone have any idea? You can see the pictures with that blot on my photos in the "DLC movement" posts.

Thanks

And I do sincerely hope you are able to receive a repair at a fair price.It would be nice to be a free repair but I doubt it as the damage is your fault (not on purpose).
I am so glad that the asylum I reside in for watch lunatics has rubber floors and walls ...Best wishes to you VA
P.S. I have read that cork flooring is quite popular and pretty tough....food for thought for us horophiles...

though, i think dropping a watch from three feet to the floor is not something that i would expect to do.

yes, ceramic is *relatively* more brittle than stainless steel, but my view is that its scratch resistance ability compared to steel makes it a much more practical material to use for daily wear. i personally feel that it is much much more likely for a normal user of luxury watches to scratch their watches than to bang them hard onto hard surfaces or drop them from a height of three feet. even if you had dropped the watch and the case does not crack, the movement inside will definitely have been compromised and you would at the minimum need to take the watch in for a tuning to get the accuracy back. i once dropped a chopard from a height of just one foot onto the ceramic floor of my bathroom, and on the very next day it started running a minute/day fast.

i think the bottom line is that watches are not designed to be banged around or dropped onto the floor, but they are designed to suppose to have to withstand scratches from everyday wear. in this regard, ceramic is a more practical material than stainless steel.

and this would be very interesting to see how it plays out...

there is probably a chance that they charge you for the case replacement...

looking forward to update...thanks for posting...

again..so sorry...ouch...

Good to know that the Ceramic is hard but brittle as well.

PAt

They should be able to fix the crown guard and replace the bezel. I think they will also check the movement and regulate it for you. Always the norm when a watch is dropped.

In fact, I was playing with my 317 when I saw those pics.  Hope Panerai can get your watch fixed real soon.

Regards,

Blue

Got  292 and 317, I am very careful where wearing them.

I wish yours a speedy recovery!

Nien

I really hope Richemont can fix it and give it to you speedily!

No message body

Please keep us update.

Cheers

... I hope that Panerai shows some compassion and, after already charing you USD25,600 for the watch, repair this at a price which equals the cost of the materials only, and not add a hefty margin to it.

Anyways, most important is that they fix is, and that they do so properly. Please keep us posted on the after sales service for the Panerai 317 as myself and I trust various other owners are intrigued how they are going to resolve this.

Good luck!

zomg, that is terrible!! i LOVE that 317 (and it looks brilliant on that yellow strap, btw.)  hope you can get it fixed soon. 

Hopefully, OP service centre has the spare crown guard...if not, you may have to wait patiently for it..

Regards,

So sorry that you had to experience something like that

 

Gene

it cracks this easily...Very disturbing..I´d never buy a ceramic watch..3 feet is nothing and the watch is destroyed allready..What use does a crownprotector have when in fact it won´t be able to hold any beating at all....Very poor in my book....Good luck..Guillermo

It´s 5 times harder then steel but if I were to drop a steel panerai from the same height I would hardly have any damage..Makes you wonder if they should continue using this material on so called tool watches...Guillermo 

I think my heart might have skipped a beat when I saw the picture.   Indeed sorry to hear of the incident.   May I be so blunt to ask of the material of your flooring?   Was it marble?

Wishing you best of luck in terms of fixing the piece. 

sorry it happend to your Watch. .i'm SURE Panerai will fix it. .

  but Strange is that i always thought Ceramic is Tough. (it is in a way  but looks Brittle too)..maybe next time try to strap it on over your Bed of some Soft Surface.

 Cheers

 Tony

you were Lucky that the Lugs didn't take the shock .!! otherwise it would've cost you an entire Case replacement Vs the Crown Guard & Bezel.!

 Cheers

 T