IWC MARK XI: Back from service

Hi Everyone,
Some of you might recall I posted on this forum about two months ago requesting some advice on whether to restore my IWC XI. At the time the dial condition bothered me as it was not as not as clean as some other examples i'd seen on this forum. Anyway just before Christmas I've received the watch back and thought I'd post an update.
The watch was ultrasonically cleaned and serviced and hopefully you'll all be pleased to know that I left the dial "as is" in order to keep the originality of the watch. See attached photo's.




I'm really happy to have the watch back and it feels a privilege to have this watch as part of my collection.
In order to not wear it all the time, even though I want to, I decided to also purchase the IWC XV which brings together nicely the old and new. The XV I plan to wear daily and keep the Mark XI, as my Sunday special.
A quick thank you to all who provided their knowledge and support on my original post. Wishing you all a happy and healthy 2018.
Sincere Regards
Jamie.

Nice watch. You should just wear it, they are a great tool watch. I've never worried about adding the occasional dings to mine, it's all a part Of The history.

Great result and now the watch is good again for many many years.

And yes, I would wear it as much as possible :o)

Fantastic news, also that you bought the Mark XV! I agree that that's a nice bridge between the 'old' and the 'new'.

Wear them both in good health.

Kind regards,

Bob

Thanks all for comments. Really happy with it. Must admit I've not taken it off since it came back from it's service.

The worn and aged dial has grown on me and I'm glad I listened to wise advice given on this forum.

All the best.

Really great to hear - thank you for the update!

Nice lot Jamie...thanks for not wrecking it

Well done Jamie, for keeping authenticity. Wear it with moderation, though. If we are correct, and your Mark 11 has the transition Radium dial, the paint is deterioration and the small shocks of continuous use may loosen the paint and particles may enter the movement.

Beautiful Mark XI!
Wear it in good health.

Brandon

Thanks Clepsydra
That's good advice, so I'll give the XV some wrist time and keep this for special occasions. As you can see there has been some deterioration on some the numerals and ideally limiting the wear and shocks will hopefully mitigate further flaking and loosening of the paint. I've not seen many Mark 11 with this dial so I hope this enhances the character and the provenance of the watch. It's not the most pristine example granted, but it has history and the wear no doubt tells story in itself. Just a shame watches can't speak :)
Best Regards
Jamie.

Thanks Brandon,

Nice collection you've got going on there.

Thanks, this knowledge on this board made it pretty clear that my original idea of getting the dial replaced was not the smartest decision !!! It's all part of learning experience when your a newbie like me.