Ageing Dials for the sake of it?

[denimhead]

I've recently been investing in a few Vintage Divers watches and when this particular watch arrived it got me thinking about the amount of effort we spend on making our Vintage stuff look old. This Aquastar is actually from 1960, to be fair it does seem to be hardly worn as the dial and hands still look almost new.

Are we over doing things for the sake of it??? I now FXAndy has an opinion on this particular issue

[dropbear2008]

A lot of the smaller watch brands went out of business in the 70s thanks to the Japanese and their quartz watches. Most of the remaining stock was bought up and put into storage. So although your watch might be from the late 60s, it could still be only worn for a few years. I am having a Breitling Bullhead from the early 70s put together from parts out of their bankruptcy stock - and I'll be the first to wear a 40 year old watch !

 

Rolex on the other hand will have mostly seen active duty after sale and the condition would reflect this to a point.

[denimhead]

That's a fair point on the Rolex front Dropbear, I've owned a 1680 in the past which was well used. But i still think that a lot of the modded stuff on here looks like its been attacked with a blow torch!

[sgtguk]

Some of the aged dials make me cringe     Vintage lume is bloody nice however mate, Dutchy and MD's recent projects in particular   

[denimhead]

Some of the aged dials make me cringe     Vintage lume is bloody nice however mate, Dutchy and MD's recent projects in particular   

Your right there S, Mikes doing some lovely stuff at the moment

[automatico]

"But i still think that a lot of the modded stuff on here looks like its been attacked with a blow torch!"

 

+1

 

'Naturally' aging:

Dial...put it on top of a fence post sealed in a fruit jar out in the hot sun for the summer.

Case/bracelet...carry the case/bct around in a jeans pocket with change etc for a few weeks.

...or let your wife/gf wear it for a couple days with the dial/mvt replaced by a picture of your ex.  

[fraggle42]

I agree really.

Some of the 'aged' dials look like the lume has been exposed to monster amounts of radiation for a million years and the rest of the dial looks new, looks daft.

Similarity with the cases, why sand paper the hell out of a bezel and pop the dot out? Just makes it look like you're someone who doesn't respect anything you own.

I know some kids like their cars to look like they're falling to bits and rusting away (ok, they *are* falling to bits & rusting away) but WHY?

I've got no problem with anyone else liking that look, but I always thing what a waste when I see one

Richard

[Nanuq]

You say "attacked with a blow torch" like it's a bad thing!

In all sincerity, the dials on all my vintage gens are pristine, though tropical or with discolored lume. The lume on my 1665 is white as snow, like it's been bleached. My only gen showing dial damage is a glossy gilt Sub from 1958. I'm building a 6538 and that's the dial effect I'm going for.

I think an appropriately aged watch should look like an old car that has seen a lot of sun and has been washed a few hundred times. No more sharp edges, and lots of surface patina.

[fraggle42]

Exactly.

I imagine that doing it properly is an art form all of its own.

Thinking about which parts are exposed to wear, where the grime will collect and discolour things, where the bezel rotates and what it touches as it rotates, making the bracelet just that bit looser as a worn one would be, and how the painted parts would naturally fade when exposed to daylight for decades, remembering that some parts will be far less exposed as they're in the shadow of the rehaut or bezel, etc.

Richard