Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Gold SS: polishing scratches

M

mkstewartesq@co

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jun 30, 2007
196
30
Hello, all:

I am thinking of taking the plunge in buying my first Apple Watch – I am leaning toward a stainless steel model, and really like the gold.

My question goes to: if it gets slight scratches, how does one get rid of those, if at all? I know with the normal stainless steel watch, one can use a Cape Cod polishing cloth or some other metal polish – but my understanding is that the gold is simply a coating on top of the stainless steel, so it seems like polishing out scratches in the gold may well simply end up removing the finish. Anyone have any ideas?

Thanks,
Mike
 
mkstewartesq@co said:
Hello, all:

I am thinking of taking the plunge in buying my first Apple Watch – I am leaning toward a stainless steel model, and really like the gold.

My question goes to: if it gets slight scratches, how does one get rid of those, if at all? I know with the normal stainless steel watch, one can use a Cape Cod polishing cloth or some other metal polish – but my understanding is that the gold is simply a coating on top of the stainless steel, so it seems like polishing out scratches in the gold may well simply end up removing the finish. Anyone have any ideas?

Thanks,
Mike
Click to expand...

I would highly advise against it for the reason you stated.

Now if it’s anything like the Space Black, it won’t scratch easily but I’m fairly sure it’s not since the black is a DLC coating and extremely durable.
 
PVD for the gold is not as durable as DLC for the black, however, it is also dependent on the manufacturer doing the coating. im hoping apple chose a highly reputable company to do the gold finishes, and i hope they tested the durability of the coating. i am also unsure as to how one would deal with scratches on the gold SS... it may be like aluminum in which u just deal with it.

my space grey series 0 had zero scratches on the body, and one minute faint scratch on the lens. i think it depends on the person how careful they are in protecting the watch. if i were clumsy, i'd probably go for the DLC coating.
 
mkstewartesq@co said:
Hello, all:

I am thinking of taking the plunge in buying my first Apple Watch – I am leaning toward a stainless steel model, and really like the gold.

My question goes to: if it gets slight scratches, how does one get rid of those, if at all? I know with the normal stainless steel watch, one can use a Cape Cod polishing cloth or some other metal polish – but my understanding is that the gold is simply a coating on top of the stainless steel, so it seems like polishing out scratches in the gold may well simply end up removing the finish. Anyone have any ideas?

Thanks,
Mike
Click to expand...

You can’t use a polishing cloth on a PVD coating or DLC. It will tarnish the coating or diminish the actual coating. If the DLC on the black stainless or PVD on the gold stainless scratches, it’s permanent. Where as the regular 316 L stainless Apple Watch, if that scratches, that can be removed with a polishing cloth.
 
Last edited:
CreepyAF said:
PVD for the gold is not as durable as DLC for the black, however, it is also dependent on the manufacturer doing the coating. im hoping apple chose a highly reputable company to do the gold finishes, and i hope they tested the durability of the coating. i am also unsure as to how one would deal with scratches on the gold SS... it may be like aluminum in which u just deal with it.

my space grey series 0 had zero scratches on the body, and one minute faint scratch on the lens. i think it depends on the person how careful they are in protecting the watch. if i were clumsy, i'd probably go for the DLC coating.
Click to expand...

The gold coating is only microns thick so there would be no polishing a gold iPhone.
 
mkstewartesq@co said:
Hello, all:

I am thinking of taking the plunge in buying my first Apple Watch – I am leaning toward a stainless steel model, and really like the gold.

My question goes to: if it gets slight scratches, how does one get rid of those, if at all? I know with the normal stainless steel watch, one can use a Cape Cod polishing cloth or some other metal polish – but my understanding is that the gold is simply a coating on top of the stainless steel, so it seems like polishing out scratches in the gold may well simply end up removing the finish. Anyone have any ideas?

Thanks,
Mike
Click to expand...
I think it’s not advisable to polish a gold ss if get scratched. This is the main reason I chose the regular ss as my first ss watch because I have the flexibility to just polish if get scratched.
 
  • Like
Reactions: macdragonfl
Newtons Apple said:
The gold coating is only microns thick so there would be no polishing a gold iPhone.
Click to expand...

Renjo2007 said:
I think it’s not advisable to polish a gold ss if get scratched. This is the main reason I chose the regular ss as my first ss watch because I have the flexibility to just polish if get scratched.
Click to expand...

well with the gold SS u can polish it till you get a new colour which is regular silver SS so it's a win-win. and i think i would like an ombre gold-silver SS tbh.
 
CreepyAF said:
well with the gold SS u can polish it till you get a new colour which is regular silver SS so it's a win-win. and i think i would like an ombre gold-silver SS tbh.
Click to expand...

Any update on what can be done to remove or buff out scratches on Gold SS Watch?
 
MadRed said:
Any update on what can be done to remove or buff out scratches on Gold SS Watch?
Click to expand...

The answer is you cannot. Because there is a PVD coating on the stainless gold watch, and if you use any type of polishing compound/substance, you will cause a separation to remove that coating.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Tapiture
BTW, the comments are true of a gold- or silver-plated anything - you will not be able to polish scratches out. If this is a significant thing for you, the unplated ‘silver’ stainless would be a better choice, as anything that you wear on your hands, rings, watches, bracelets will sooner or later pick up scratches and dings.
 
That’s why I chose the black, because even though I loved the gold hue and the novelty of a new color, ultimately I wanted something with proven durability. I wasn’t sure how durable the PVD coating was... so far the black has shown no signs of wear
 
CreepyAF said:
That’s why I chose the black, because even though I loved the gold hue and the novelty of a new color, ultimately I wanted something with proven durability. I wasn’t sure how durable the PVD coating was... so far the black has shown no signs of wear
Click to expand...

For those who don’t know, the additional durability comes from the DLC (Diamond Like Carbon), much more scratch resistant over the PVD, And is a more stringent of a process to incorporate. Hopefully Apple continues to offer the Black stainless with the DLC offered.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Tapiture
I always get silver because it can be polished, cool to know that the black finish is also very durable. Long story short, if you want durability/ability to polish go with black or silver.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 44267547 and Harytran26985
why are gold stainless aw easy to scratch? i used both iphone x silver and iphone xs max gold and i figured out that xs max was more durable than x.
 
I’ve had my gold S4 since release and no scratches visible to the eye yet. I do take reasonable precautions such as removing the Watch when scrubbing the kitchen or doing yard work, or wearing work gloves that cover the Watch to some degree.

Gold is gold, soft by nature regardless of how it is applied, and I think we must acknowledge that if worn long enough, scratches will happen. I have a 40+ year old Rolex with many battle scars - I love every one of them.

Embrace your inner wabi-sabi!

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wabi-sabi
 
Harytran26985 said:
why are gold stainless aw easy to scratch? i used both iphone x silver and iphone xs max gold and i figured out that xs max was more durable than x.
Click to expand...

The gold stainless has a PVD coating, which stands for Physical Vapor Deposition, and it’s basically a thin layer to help protect the casing from minor scratches and scuffs. It’s not nearly as durable as the diamond like carbon coating (DLC) on the black stainless. The problem with the gold stainless, is you cannot buff-out the scratches, due to the PVD coating.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Harytran26985
Relentless Power said:
The gold stainless has a PVD coating, which stands for Physical Vapor Deposition, and it’s basically a thin layer to help protect the casing from minor scratches and scuffs. It’s not nearly as durable as the diamond like carbon coating (DLC) on the black stainless. The problem with the gold stainless, is you cannot buff-out the scratches, due to the PVD coating.
Click to expand...
Does the Xs Space Gray also use DLC?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back