Scratched ceramic bezel
Discussion
I've managed to scratch the ceramic bezel of my Seamaster 300. I think it was caused my my partner's sapphire/diamond ring, there's not a lot else hard enough to scratch it! Is there any way if polishing it out? Called the local AD who's response was, rather pragmatically, try to put up with it for another year or two and have the bezel replaced during the service. Any other ideas?
I don’t think there’s any way of polishing a ceramic bezel - at least, no way that won’t take ages and won’t leave the polished areas looking different to the unpolished remainder.
A new bezel insert is really the only way to achieve ‘as new’ looks, but a ceramic insert won’t be cheap, so you were given good advice to wait and see.
It’s entirely possible diamond - or anything else harder than ceramic on the Mohs scale - left a scratch, but ceramic bezels really are very durable.
Usually, I find that marks left are not scratches, but actually residue of the material bumped against left behind, deposited on the ceramic. If that’s the case, you may find it fades with a little time as it rubs off naturally. I’ve heard that a soft pencil eraser can also help remove such marks, but be careful not to rub too hard, lest you deposit more rubber on the ceramic.
A new bezel insert is really the only way to achieve ‘as new’ looks, but a ceramic insert won’t be cheap, so you were given good advice to wait and see.
It’s entirely possible diamond - or anything else harder than ceramic on the Mohs scale - left a scratch, but ceramic bezels really are very durable.
Usually, I find that marks left are not scratches, but actually residue of the material bumped against left behind, deposited on the ceramic. If that’s the case, you may find it fades with a little time as it rubs off naturally. I’ve heard that a soft pencil eraser can also help remove such marks, but be careful not to rub too hard, lest you deposit more rubber on the ceramic.
The consensus seems to be to live with it! The watch isn't without other scuffs etc, mostly on the bracelet, so I guess it adds to the patina. With regards to it looking very shiny, the bezel is "LiquidMetal"; quite an interesting material which is mostly made of Zirconium (ceramic) with metal additives - https://www.ablogtowatch.com/looking-at-liquid-met...
I have a garage queen watch that is in perfect condition and never gets worn as a result.
I bought a second hand IWC as a “beater”. I was disappointed that it was too clean when I got it because I didn’t want to be precious about it and enjoy just wearing it. Within 6 hours it had a scratch on it from putting the car seats in my car. The irony being that I forgot to take it off because I would normally be wearing a Casio at that time. This event solidified the daily beater status.
Over 2 years it took everything I threw at it. Never worrying about it. I was liberated from the garage Queen.
After 2 years I bought a planet ocean. I decided to sell the IWC so had it cleaned up. For a couple of hundred dollars they made it look like new. Even the strap was in near perfect condition. I didn’t want to sell it as a result. But, it sold to a guy in Switzerland so it had to go.
Point being, I’m not precious about daily wearers. We can’t be. But, with a few quid they can be brought back to as new looking when we want them to be. I’d take jewelers advice and leave it.
Final note, still have the garage queen. It’s a Tag, so most wouldn’t think it would be a queen. But it has the El Premero movement. That takes 300 people 9 months to make. I look at my kids and think it must be 150 times better than them. It also has the same face as the Sports chrono clock in my car. I can’t sell it.
I bought a second hand IWC as a “beater”. I was disappointed that it was too clean when I got it because I didn’t want to be precious about it and enjoy just wearing it. Within 6 hours it had a scratch on it from putting the car seats in my car. The irony being that I forgot to take it off because I would normally be wearing a Casio at that time. This event solidified the daily beater status.
Over 2 years it took everything I threw at it. Never worrying about it. I was liberated from the garage Queen.
After 2 years I bought a planet ocean. I decided to sell the IWC so had it cleaned up. For a couple of hundred dollars they made it look like new. Even the strap was in near perfect condition. I didn’t want to sell it as a result. But, it sold to a guy in Switzerland so it had to go.
Point being, I’m not precious about daily wearers. We can’t be. But, with a few quid they can be brought back to as new looking when we want them to be. I’d take jewelers advice and leave it.
Final note, still have the garage queen. It’s a Tag, so most wouldn’t think it would be a queen. But it has the El Premero movement. That takes 300 people 9 months to make. I look at my kids and think it must be 150 times better than them. It also has the same face as the Sports chrono clock in my car. I can’t sell it.
Wills2 said:
h0b0 said:
Isn’t that a bit shiny for ceramic?
Ceramic is often very shiny (see Rolex sports bezels for details) but can also be mat in finish as seen in Panerai ceramic models but in the main it's polished and shiny in most applications.I have a matte finished bezel which I like but wouldn’t turn down a polished version.
Hoofy said:
h0b0 said:
I have a garage queen watch that is in perfect condition and never gets worn as a result.
You mean "safe queen". 
Not sure which emotion that would elicit from my wife.
h0b0 said:
Hoofy said:
h0b0 said:
I have a garage queen watch that is in perfect condition and never gets worn as a result.
You mean "safe queen". Not sure which emotion that would elicit from my wife.
It can often happen that a scratch on a ceramic bezel is a deposition of material than a removal of the surface. Very often the marks that look like a scratch actually fade away as the deposited material rubs off. The ceramic finish is very hard, just live with it and see if it fades over the next couple of months.
Hodinkee's take on alu & ceramic bezels mirrors that of the comments above:
Hodinkee said:
Not only does it (aluminium) make for a much less shiny watch, it also better matches the toolish vibe of the overall package and will undoubtedly age with more character than anything made of ceramic (I love a scratched-up bezel). You are of course welcome to disagree, but I really appreciate the subtlety of the color choice, the matte appearance, and the ability to add my own patina over the course of my travels.
https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/tudor-black-bay-gmt-reviewthebraketester said:
It wouldn't bother me personally.... A few scratches is what makes my watch mine and yours yours.... so unless you intend to sell it soon I wouldn't worry about it.
A watch without a mark is a watch without a story......
Enjoy it.
Oh, I'm not planning on selling it. It was a gift for a significant birthday and my first "proper" watch. I guess the collection on nicks and scratches tell the story of the watch's life and, by extension, mine. A watch without a mark is a watch without a story......
Enjoy it.
Whilst I try to reasonably avoid them, scratches are inevitable, less noticeable to others and not worth getting too worked-up about on a ‘tool’ watch (a different matter perhaps on a finely-finished dress watch). At the same time, there’s a load of self-comforting balls talked about scratches. 99% are of the mundane, everyday sort - e.g. sustained from a shopping trolley, or hitting a tap whilst washing your hands after a slash - rather than being a life-affirming remembrance of that time you climbed Everest or took down a plane hi-jacker with your bare hands.
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