F.P. Journe

Any thoughts on what caused the discoloration shown in the below picture on this yellow gold RdM dial around the edges of the silver sub-dial (e.g., oxidation, oil from the movement, etc.)?  Has anyone seen this in other Journes?  Many thanks.

This is a known issue with the early F.P.Journe dials. The problem is oxidation. It is move obvious on the YG dials, as you show here, but also occured on the WG/grey dials which can yellow.

Like many small companies F.P.Journe sourced dials from an external supplier in the first few years of production (1999-2004). And this oxidation is a known problem with some dials from that period. I don't know how many were affected. When F.P.Journe set up Les Cadraniers and moved dial making 'in-house' in 2005 he had more control and they changed the base preparation and galvanization process to prevent this occurring.

There was certainly much more variability with the early dials and you will see different finishes from shiny to smooth to granular and different shades as well.

I have the same Pt/YG Octa RdM (circa 2002) as you and have not had any issues. But it is essential to have these watches serviced at the prescribed interval of 4 to 5 years to keep the seals fresh. Any humidity or water entering the watch may accelerate the oxidation.

You should contact your nearest F.P.Journe Boutique, or the manufacture for immediate advice. I believe this oxidation is difficult to remove, but they can stabilize the dial to stop it worsening. I have so far found F.P.Journe to be extremely helpful and communicative on service issues. Please let us know what the outcome is.

Regards

Andrew

Thanks very much for the extremely helpful response Andrew.  

One is that they swapped the dial out at service. I believe that they would do this on request, although some owners wanted to keep their original dial.

The second is that they were able to repair the dial, which would seem to be the case if you can see remnants of this oxidation under a loupe. I have also heard it said that they could apply a lay of varnish to protect the dial from oxygen, moisture and oxidation.

I would love to see current photos and please let us know if F.P.Journe provide you with details on your specific watch.

Andrew

I'm having trouble with the photo uploaders ("invalid blog" message) but happy to send them to you if you PM me your email address.  I'm certain it was the latter option (cleaning / restoration rather than dial swap) as you can still see just a faint trace of where the oxidation was if you zoom in on one of the photos.  Thanks for your help Andrew.

Regards,
C

Here is ciwasko's watch today.

A piece of F.P.Journe history ...

FYI Montres Journe kindly responded to my email today and confirmed that the service team removed the oxidation from my dial by cleaning it.  Restoration is not possible.  Replacement dials are available though supplies are limited and the color may not necessarily match the original.  So it appears the options for dealing with oxidation on early Journe dials are to (1) have it cleaned (which did an outstanding job in my case) or (2) buy a replacement dial.  I have enquired about whether it is in fact possible to treat the dial with a varnish to protect against further oxidation and will let you know.

I like watches showing their age and imperfections, I know "collectors" value pristine like new pieces but I personally don't, gives them character and uniqueness.

Cheers,
Anthony

Oxidation does look great in some cases (like the RG dial in your photos).  It adds a lot of character to the early Journes.

It depends on the cases,the one you showed is ok ,but the one on top really looks faulty.....