Gold Plate or Buy Gold aluminum watch?

[Apple2015]

hello all,

I am in a bit of a dilemma here, I bought the SS Apple watch back when it came out but since then they have released the gold aluminum watch. My question is should I spend the $399 to get my SS plated in shiny gold or should I just get the gold aluminum and not have to worry about peeling? Thanks in advance!

 

[JayLenochiniMac]

I'd highly suggest that you not go with WatchPlate for $399 so you'll have to spend a little bit more to get it properly plated. There's no need to worry about peeling if it's done properly. Otherwise, get the gold aluminum.

 

[Apple2015]

Would you suggest thetimepreserve.com for the gold plating? They seem very reputable. @JayLenochiniMac

 

[JayLenochiniMac]

Would you suggest thetimepreserve.com for the gold plating? They seem very reputable. @JayLenochiniMac

I have no experience with them, but they seem to be a much safer option as they've been asked to repair the shoddy work from WatchPlate.

 

[Apple2015]

thank you for the replies I'll look into this! @JayLenochiniMac

 

[fania123]

If you can't buy the real McCoy then get the aluminum looks nicer in my opinion anyway. Also I'm pretty sure it would void out the warranty by gold plating it anyway.

 

[Apple2015]

If you can't buy the real McCoy then get the aluminum looks nicer in my opinion anyway. Also I'm pretty sure it would void out the warranty by gold plating it anyway.

Yea I'm aware it voids the warrenty I just like the shiny look of either the yellow or rose gold plating.

 

[Jvjlite]

Would you suggest thetimepreserve.com for the gold plating? They seem very reputable. @JayLenochiniMac

I used thetimepreserve.com on 7/6/15. My watch still looks just like the
⌚ Edition (I never claim it is one tho). They are very professional & communication w/them is terrific. I had ⌚ and 2 bands gold plated. They have a two year warranty.

 

[Apple2015]

I used thetimepreserve.com on 7/6/15. My watch still looks just like the
⌚ Edition (I never claim it is one tho). They are very professional & communication w/them is terrific. I had ⌚ and 2 bands gold plated. They have a two year warranty.
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Wow very nice! I'm impressed! Now I just have to decide yellow or Rose gold!

 

[Four oF NINE]

I'd go with either the Apple Watch Edition or the Apple Watch Sport.

 

[maflynn]

I used thetimepreserve.com on 7/6/15. My watch still looks just like the
⌚ Edition (I never claim it is one tho). They are very professional & communication w/them is terrific. I had ⌚ and 2 bands gold plated. They have a two year warranty.

Looks nice, though I wonder how well it will hold up vs. buying a gold watch from apple directly.

I've seen some very negative posts regarding watch plate, but I've not heard of thetimepreserve.com. Personally, I'd be concerned about quality of work after the fact but I have to admit, that those images look really nice.

 

[CobraPA]

Nice that they have a two year warranty. They look really good.

Do they plate aluminum and stainless steel? I don't see any mention of plating the Apple Watch Sport, just curious if that's possible or if they only do Apple Watch (which is what they specify on the order form, but they make no mention of the Sport model at all, so not sure.)

 

[fania123]

They only do steel not the aluminum. What kind of Cobra do you have?

Nice that they have a two year warranty. They look really good.

Do they plate aluminum and stainless steel? I don't see any mention of plating the Apple Watch Sport, just curious if that's possible or if they only do Apple Watch (which is what they specify on the order form, but they make no mention of the Sport model at all, so not sure.)

 

[fania123]

Huge difference in pricing there.

I'd go with either the Apple Watch Edition or the Apple Watch Sport.

 

[maflynn]

Huge difference in pricing there.

Definitely and given the outrageous price point (my opinion) of the Apple Watch Edition, the sport is the better option imo.

 

[fania123]

I have both the gold sport and the stainless steel but would never think of buying the edition watch big waste of cash right there.

Definitely and given the outrageous price point (my opinion) of the Apple Watch Edition, the sport is the better option imo.

 

[CobraPA]

They only do steel not the aluminum. What kind of Cobra do you have?

I thought aluminum might not take plating, but wasn't sure.

Haha, heard that before. Actually a snake reference, not a car reference (but I don't have one of those Cobras either )

 

[Four oF NINE]

Definitely and given the outrageous price point (my opinion) of the Apple Watch Edition, the sport is the better option imo.

I would never gold plate a SS watch. That seems tacky.

 

[maflynn]

I would never gold plate a SS watch. That seems tacky.

I wouldn't either and I'm not a fan of a gold watches but I will say the images attached were nice looking. By far the best I've seen of any gold plating. I figure different strokes for different folks, I'm happy with my space gray sport model, but others may want a little more pizzaz

I thought aluminum might not take plating, but wasn't sure.

Well its already anodized so I would think they'd need to prepare the surface for gold plating. They'd also need to do that with the SS model as well, but I assume the preparation work would differ thanks to the different material (SS vs. Alu)

 

[fania123]

Love the rose gold special edition but can't see forking that kind of dough out for that watch. To me gold plating a SS is like putting S63 badges on a S500, tacky. IMHO

 

[JayLenochiniMac]

I'd go with either the Apple Watch Edition or the Apple Watch Sport.

I would never gold plate a SS watch. That seems tacky.

Some people think artificial gold/rose gold-colored aluminum is tacky. To each their own.

 

[fania123]

Some people think artificial gold/rose gold-colored aluminum is tacky. To each their own.

True, but it's the way it came from the factory it's not trying to be something it's not, just sayin.

 

[JayLenochiniMac]

True, but it's the way it came from the factory it's not trying to be something it's not, just sayin.

Most members here who've plated their watches aren't trying to pass it off as an Edition, but they did it because they dislike wearing silver/chrome jewelry or they simply like the look of gold.

Many guys feel uncomfortable wearing the rose gold aluminum models as they're quite pink. Plating the SS model in real rose gold, which achieves the proper copper color, is a good way to circumvent this problem if they really want rose gold.

I have the link bracelet and I personally think all single-tone gold watches are tacky whether they're solid gold (like Beyoncé's link bracelet) or gold plated. However, I'm aware that not everyone shares my opinion.

 

[Jvjlite]

You would have to decide if the scratches on your ⌚ would bother you very much. Both SS & gold plated accumulate scratches over time. With SS, some have posted easy, quick fixes. With a gold plated ⌚ - not so easy to fix yourself. (With Time Preserve, their warranty does not cover scratches, but they will refinish at a greatly reduced cost.) I'm not certain whether the aluminum ⌚ shows scratches. Before you try a service, look at their history in business. A history of "20 years of services for in restoring fine watches" got my attention over a startup service within the last year. That said, I just learned the hard way that "you get what you pay for". Below are images of 2 modern buckles that have been gold plated - the black one by thetimepreserve.com in July when I had my ⌚ gold plated & the brown one gold plated this past week by a different company (not Watchplate, I knew not to use this service from other posts). I just received the brown one back yesterday. I used a different service to save a few $$ & to see what their quality was. Needless to say, I'm disappointed. As you can see, the brown MB is deeper gold and very splotchy. The black MB is the same color gold as the ⌚ Edition (Cuppertino gold, I believe). Both services claim that the gold plating is 18K. The final decision about whether to purchase the gold Sport model or to purchase the SS & have it gold plated is entirely up to you, just be certain to weigh your options & decide what works for you.

 

[JayLenochiniMac]

You would have to decide if the scratches on your ⌚ would bother you very much. Both SS & gold plated accumulate scratches over time. With SS, some have posted easy, quick fixes. With a gold plated ⌚ - not so easy to fix yourself. (With Time Preserve, their warranty does not cover scratches, but they will refinish at a greatly reduced cost.) I'm not certain whether the aluminum ⌚ shows scratches. Before you try a service, look at their history in business. A history of "20 years of services for in restoring fine watches" got my attention over a startup service within the last year. That said, I just learned the hard way that "you get what you pay for". Below are images of 2 modern buckles that have been gold plated - the black one by thetimepreserve.com in July when I had my ⌚ gold plated & the brown one gold plated this past week by a different company (not Watchplate, I knew not to use this service from other posts). I just received the brown one back yesterday. I used a different service to save a few $$ & to see what their quality was. Needless to say, I'm disappointed. As you can see, the brown MB is deeper gold and very splotchy. The black MB is the same color gold as the ⌚ Edition (Cuppertino gold, I believe). Both services claim that the gold plating is 18K. The final decision about whether to purchase the gold Sport model or to purchase the SS & have it gold plated is entirely up to you, just be certain to weigh your options & decide what works for you.
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The black one done by thetimepreserve looks decent. You should inform us what company did the brown one so forum members will know to avoid it.