Pvd/titanium Nitride Coating Gold Tone

[crystalcranium]

Going to buy a "golded" Tissot. I know the coating is very tough and much longer lasting than gold electroplating but I have never seen one in person. Any experience?

Edited November 12, 2006 by crystalcranium

[archibald]

Going to buy a "golded" Tissot. I know the coating is very tough and much longer lasting than gold electroplating but I have never seen one in person. Any experience?

I've always heard that the principle advantage was that you can get a durable plated surface on steel which is very difficult to do w/ electroplating.

As far as the looks, about a year ago I was looking for a (unsuccessfully) for a source for gold PVD plating and ran accross an Web article about the process on some industry website, which I can't find now. One of the the things they were touting about PVD aside from it's durability was that it didn't have the "plated look" I have no idea what the "plated look" is-- I've only been tell a well-plated watch from a solid one by weight--but the PVD industry people apparently think there is a difference. Maybe the PVD goes on better, and avoids some usual flaws visible in electroplated watches?

Also about a year ago I posted a link about some chinese company claiming to make gold PVD plated tungsten alloy watches which weighed the same as 18k---looked pretty good to me and I was hoping the technology would bleed over to repmakers, but haven't heard anything since.

Just for durability alone, I'd love to see PVD gold on our reps.

[crystalcranium]

I've always heard that the principle advantage was that you can get a durable plated surface on steel which is very difficult to do w/ electroplating.

As far as the looks, about a year ago I was looking for a (unsuccessfully) for a source for gold PVD plating and ran accross an Web article about the process on some industry website, which I can't find now. One of the the things they were touting about PVD aside from it's durability was that it didn't have the "plated look" I have no idea what the "plated look" is-- I've only been tell a well-plated watch from a solid one by weight--but the PVD industry people apparently think there is a difference. Maybe the PVD goes on better, and avoids some usual flaws visible in electroplated watches?

Also about a year ago I posted a link about some chinese company claiming to make gold PVD plated tungsten alloy watches which weighed the same as 18k---looked pretty good to me and I was hoping the technology would bleed over to repmakers, but haven't heard anything since.

Just for durability alone, I'd love to see PVD gold on our reps.

I guess the "plated look" refers to what I have always thought about cheap to modest quality gold plating and that is that in certain light, the gold electroplate looks fine, particularily bright flourescent light, and in other lower light scenarios, it looks poor even when new. I have used titanium nitride coated tools for years, ie. drill bits and router bits and I have been amazed at the toughness of this coating and it's ability to stand up to abuse. I have a chinese drill bit set ythat is TiNi coated and I have drilled metals without any loss of the coating. I suppose a jewelry quality coating of gold colored TiNi is probably not going to fool a gold expert by eye but I would much rather have a gold colored coating that will last a lifetime rather than a true gold plating that will wear off within a few years. I read somewhere, maybe it was an old thread here, where some high end gold treatments include a combination of TiNi coating topped by a gold electroplate to give a true gold appearance with an undercoating of gold color to mask wear. The Tissot in the picture looks beautiful and it is my understanding that several higher end watch manufacturers like Hamilton and Baume and Mercier have gone to this treatment to give longer life to their "gold" plated watches.

Bottom line here is if PVD Golded watches will look very close to the real thing and be lights out as far as durability, I would much rather spend my money on a durable gold color than on the real thing only several microns thick. artisanplating.com says a 20 micron gold plating will last an average of 10 years with normal use. What does that say about the 5 micron platings on most watches?

[ubiquitous]

I believe Neil has run into some gold PVD'd watches in his travels. Perhaps he can provide some first hand insight on the matter?

[swdivad]

When I was getting my PVD 196 done, the owner showed me around his shop. They do lots of bathroom fixtures in gold PVD and they do look amazing.

It is very tough stuff! I have been in manufacturing for years and have used TiAlN coated carbide tooling on the toughest of metals and have designed wear parts using this coating as a buffer.

The only way to get this coating off is to actually remove the metal from underneath. It is appraoching closely the hardness of diamond, so no worries about scratching your watch with a TiAlN coat.

[crystalcranium]

When I was getting my PVD 196 done, the owner showed me around his shop. They do lots of bathroom fixtures in gold PVD and they do look amazing.

It is very tough stuff! I have been in manufacturing for years and have used TiAlN coated carbide tooling on the toughest of metals and have designed wear parts using this coating as a buffer.

The only way to get this coating off is to actually remove the metal from underneath. It is appraoching closely the hardness of diamond, so no worries about scratching your watch with a TiAlN coat.

So it's safe to assume a PVD golded watch will retain its' gold color for a lifetime of normal use? Am I correct in assuming this gold finish is not only tougher and longer lasting that gold plate, it's as tough as other color PVD coatings that are touted for scratch resistance and longevity?

If so, how long before it replaces yellow gold plate in most applications? Why would anyone want a short lived gold plating when they could have an exceptionally durable finish that is gold in color?