swdivad Posted January 4, 2007 Report Share Posted January 4, 2007 Well, topic says it all... The first watch I've bought with AR on both the inside and outside of the crystal reduces reflections very well... BUT, and this is a big BUTT, the crystal is now so hard to clean... It picks up every miniscule amount of dirt and smudge compared to my single sided AR watches. It is quite difficult to keep it clean. Having to get out the ol' eyeglass cloth, fog it up with my breath, and wipe several times like a pair of glasses, only to find more smudges minutes later. I would also think it would be easier to scratch being much less hard than sapphire For me, I'd be MUCH happier with single sided and live with the few extra reflections. Have any of you other guys found the same behavior with double AR coat? Is there a way to safely remove it to I can keep the crystal nice and shiny?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rolexman Posted January 4, 2007 Report Share Posted January 4, 2007 (edited) Than it's crappy AR... I've no problems with my double sided AR gen Breit Edited January 4, 2007 by Rolexman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swdivad Posted January 4, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 4, 2007 Maybe so... I would have expected better from Sinn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rsv123 Posted January 4, 2007 Report Share Posted January 4, 2007 I seem to remember someone who owned a gen Omega PO removing the external AR using polish as he didn't like the fact it was impossible to keep unmarked so I don't think it's just a problem with Sinns. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HauteHippie Posted January 4, 2007 Report Share Posted January 4, 2007 The AR company I've been dealing with (and need to set up a RWG run through soon) has told me the following... Their durable bluish AR coat does NOT require the special eyeglass cloth to clean. Spit and T-shirt cleaning is fine, and won't scratch the coat. It is more durable than what Lenscrafters provides, however nowhere near the durability of sapphire. I.e. it won't pass the "screwdriver" test. Theirs is a mil spec coating and I don't believe its durability can be surpassed by any coating. In all liklihood it's going to be the same coating used on dual coated gen crystals. FWIW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeC65 Posted January 4, 2007 Report Share Posted January 4, 2007 I am awaiting my Big Bang from Angus (I've been tracking it from China) which has the double AR so I guess I'm going to find out... but I used to have a pair of glasses with AR and they were IMPOSSIBLE to keep clean. Just like SWDivad says, you'd clean them and 2 minutes later they'd be smudged again. I swore I would never get AR again. I hope this isn't the same, but I suspect it will be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OiRogers Posted January 4, 2007 Report Share Posted January 4, 2007 For what its worth... I read a thread on a Gen board (I know... I know... was bad of me) that discussed removing AR from the face... Use an alcohol based substance... Rubbing Alcohol is perfect and a bit of elbow grease and a nice soft non-scratching cloth... Just the suggestion I read... if you murder your watch don't hold me responsible... I have 1 double AR'd watch and it seems to be fine... doesn't get any more dirty any quicker than any other watch I have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest avitt Posted January 4, 2007 Report Share Posted January 4, 2007 I think that anybody who lives an active lifestyle is going to have a problem with rep quality external AR. It seems that double AR is most suitable for dress watches, which are treated gently and hidden beneath shirt sleeves, and least suitable on the sport watches for which it is intended. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dario33 Posted January 4, 2007 Report Share Posted January 4, 2007 I seem to remember someone who owned a gen Omega PO removing the external AR using polish as he didn't like the fact it was impossible to keep unmarked so I don't think it's just a problem with Sinns. This is the example I was going to reference as I recall hearing that as well. The price you pay for double-sided AR I guess... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HauteHippie Posted January 4, 2007 Report Share Posted January 4, 2007 I think that anybody who lives an active lifestyle is going to have a problem with rep quality external AR. Correct. The rep quality AR is not going to be suitably durable. Believe me. I know what the durable coatings cost!! And as far as removal goes, my AR company says that a good quality AR coating needs to be removed with an acid wash. But perhaps that's just the method which doesn't require any elbow greese. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marv1n Posted January 4, 2007 Report Share Posted January 4, 2007 I managed to get spots in the AR on a Gen Breitling I own, and to correct it I removed all the AR with a Cape Cod cloth and some elbow grease. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tvt Posted January 4, 2007 Report Share Posted January 4, 2007 The mere idea of a doublr AR coating on a fake watch scares the hell out of me. I know the IDEA of it is great but cheap AR coating is just a nightmare. It mares, smudges and as has been mentioned is just impossible to keep looking good. Now GOOD AR coating is a dream, it works VERY well and is not that hard to maintain, but I somehow doubt that the "reps" will be using the good stuff. One can hope though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lovepanerai Posted January 4, 2007 Report Share Posted January 4, 2007 Than it's crappy AR... I've no problems with my double sided AR gen Breit My Sinn U2 has a special hardend double sided AR and yes it does smudge - it is also quite hard to remove the smudges. The Breiling AR comes off over time and scratches. Maybe so... I would have expected better from Sinn As far as I know they use a special AR coating process that is better/harder than from any other watch manufacturer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finepics Posted January 6, 2007 Report Share Posted January 6, 2007 The AR coatings done on the inside of a crystal are normally Magnesium Fluoride which is soft and will scratch very easily. Also this type of coat is definitely not suitable for the outside as you have discovered - the tiniest grease mark or fingerprint shows up dramatically. There are coatings suitable for the outside but these are expensive to do (one of the reasons why I have not offered it). As for the BB it is not coated on the outside so you need not worry about that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HauteHippie Posted January 6, 2007 Report Share Posted January 6, 2007 The AR coatings done on the inside of a crystal are normally Magnesium Fluoride which is soft and will scratch very easily. Also this type of coat is definitely not suitable for the outside as you have discovered - the tiniest grease mark or fingerprint shows up dramatically. There are coatings suitable for the outside but these are expensive to do (one of the reasons why I have not offered it). As for the BB it is not coated on the outside so you need not worry about that. Magnesium Fluoride can be very durable. MgF2 itself is neither hard nor soft. The machinery and temperature of the coating process is what determines durability / hardness ultimately. FYI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicken Manny Posted January 6, 2007 Report Share Posted January 6, 2007 I am awaiting my Big Bang from Angus (I've been tracking it from China) which has the double AR so I guess I'm going to find out... but I used to have a pair of glasses with AR and they were IMPOSSIBLE to keep clean. Just like SWDivad says, you'd clean them and 2 minutes later they'd be smudged again. I swore I would never get AR again. I hope this isn't the same, but I suspect it will be. The Big Bang's AR is very light so I doubt you will be bothered by it. It is way, way lighter than a gen Breitling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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