I'm sure this must have been asked before so apologies, but how do you remove scratches from a crystal glass, I am looking at a new purchase and there are some minor scratches that put me off purchase.
I look forward to your replies.
I think it depends on what the crystal is made from, how deep the scratches are and whether the outside of the crystal has AR coating or not. Sometimes its just easier to get a replacement, particularly with sapphire. Compare that to Seiko hardlex which is actually as soft as butter...I've managed to get what looks like bad scratches out by hand before.
Do you have any more details?
Plexi/ acrylic? Dead easy. Polywatch and some rubbing.
Mineral or sapphire? Not easy at all. Involves much hard work, often easier to get a new crystal, which often is not too expensive (depending on the watch, of course).
Mineral glass - can be polished with diamond polishing compound, it improves the look but its not a perfect solution as it can distort the shape and clarity .
Plastic - use a cape cod, poly watch or brasso
Sapphire - get a new one
Last edited by Sinnlover; 24th February 2021 at 15:33.
Acrylic crystals are easy to refinish, but I’ve had limited success with mineral glass and I usually replace them. Sapphire is even harder to polish, I’ve improved minor scratches using a Dremel soft pad and diamond paste, but its a slow process. Taking the sharp edges off a scratch helps a lot but thats not the same as complete removal.
A Dremel is for those who know what they are doing. Many stories of the crystal over heating and shattering.
Some manufacturers will insist on servicing the Watch if changing a crystal. Ideal solution is to source a spare and pay for an independent to fit it.
I wouldn't buy a watch with a scratched mineral or sapphire crystal, it would do my OCD in and is an issue to sort. Kind of explains why I like acrylic crystals, very easy to look after.
Acrylic - Polywatch or other abrasive compound.
Mineral - swap out as replacements can be had for a few pounds.
Sapphire - as above but will cost quite a few more pounds.
Cheers,
Neil.
Sorry I meant Sapphire crystal when I said crystal, as opposed to glass, plastic etc. .
I assume a replacement glass is going to be astronomical.
Originally Posted by uktotty
I have only had one sapphire crystal with a scratch and I removed that with diamond paste.
Before ................
The scratch is just above and to the left of the lower dial.
After ............
Mitch
That's a great result Mitch, did it yourself?
Yes, used a dremel (carefully) and diamond paste and it worked very well. I have removed scratches from mineral crystals in the past but this was the first and only sapphire crystal I have worked on. The crystal is flat and therefore easier to work on than a domed one.
Mitch
I rendered a small scratch on a Rolex sapphire much less visible with Brasso. The trick is to make sure you don't get it down the side of the crystal, and rub hard. A service at Rolex a couple of years later made it near invisible (you had to hold it to the light and stare to see it).
Bumping this thread.
No "before" pics (and the scratches were so faint that they would have been difficult to picture), but here's the after. I bought this 351 with the understanding that there were some scratches on the sapphire crystal. The crystal has no AR on the outside, so I bought some diamond polishing paste, and it was a really quick job. Started with the 3.5 microns, then a finishing pass with the 1 microns, and the scratches are gone. I'm really pleased. A deeper scratch would have taken much more work, but I'm lucky these ones were faint.
I knew they were there, now I know they're gone.
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