How to Remove Scratches From Your Sapphire Crystal
I had always been told that removing scratches from sapphire watch crystals was impossible…but recently I got a tip on how to do this, so I figured I would see for myself. I recently picked up this PAM 00024 Luminor Submersible with a scratch on the crystal right under the “at” portion of automatic on the face.
What you need to do is pick up 3-4 tubes of diamond paste in increasing abrasive grades. I started with a 5.0 micron for the most abrasive, and went down from there with a 3.5, 1.0 and .5 micron.
I started by taping off the area of the crystal with the scratch so as to prevent the diamond paste from getting underneath the dive bezel.
Then I started with the 5.0 micron, and worked that in to the scratch for about 5-10 minutes.
Then I went down to the 3.5 micron for another 10 minutes.
Then I went down to the 1.0 and the .5 for the final polishing. Initially I used my fingers to rub the diamond paste on the crystal, but found that a paper tower was a bit more effective. After about 30 mintues of work, I wiped off the excess paste, removed the masking tape, and cleaned the watch with water. This is what I was greeted with once the watch was cleaned and dried off.
A flawless crystal! Not bad for $15, 30 minutes, and a little elbow grease!
Wow, great trick! Thanks for sharing.
Do you think this would work on Anti-reflective coated crystals aswell?
Cheers!
It will work…but will also remove your A/R coating!
Thanks a lot for your review very interesting and useful !
Just a question: I saw that there are 2 types of diamond past compound, one oil soluble and the other water soluble. Which is the one did you use ? I suppose the water soluble, in order to clean it up easily, is it right ? Where are such diamond compounds available ?
Thanks.
Engi
This is the water based compound, and was purchased on eBay. Happy hunting!
Hello, im interested in trying to take out a light scratch on the sapphire for my cartier roadster chrono. would you know if this watch carries 2 sided A/R coting or just on the inside? I know that i would only be able to try this if its on the inside alone. Thanks.
Your best bet would be to check with either your Cartier AD, or Cartier directly!