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Help with sticky crown!! [MERGED]

It's fixed mine a couple of times. Make sure the water is warm but not necessarily too hot, keep the crown turning whilst running water over it.. the last time I did it I could feel it suddenly become freer and 15 seconds (as recommended) is actually quite a while for a rinse.

If this doesn't sort it then one of the other posters said that they used flat, unwaxed, dental tape/floss to clean underneath the crown. This might be worth a shot but it's not Apple recommended of course and as the saying goes 'If you break it you get to keep both halves' 🙂
 
The last option is to contact Apple support. They will send you a replacement watch within 7 days of receiving your defective watch face.
 
It is very important that you use warm water not cold, or super hot. Also make sure that you're pushing in the crown a lot while running it under the water, simply rotating it won't do the trick. I struggled with the water rinse, until I started pushing the button in while it bathed. Eventually it'll loosen up, If not take it to an apple store and they'll send it out to depot...
 
I've been using screen cleaner spray. I would spray close to the crown area, not too close because the pressure could be high. Rotate and press the crown constantly, usually two or three sprays would do the job. I found this much more efficient than running under the tap.
 
Just do it in a warm sink of clean water it's much easier. Rotate several times. Press several times and keep repeating this till it feels unrestricted in its movement.
 
There is supposed to be resistance when you roll the crown. That is built in. The crown should not freewheel. You can tell when you are in the settings menu. The resistance is built in to provide feedback to the user.

However, this resistance should feel mechanical. If it feels "sticky" like there is sap in the mechanism, then that is not normal.
 
NovemberWhiskey said:
There is supposed to be resistance when you roll the crown. That is built in. The crown should not freewheel. You can tell when you are in the settings menu. The resistance is built in to provide feedback to the user.

However, this resistance should feel mechanical. If it feels "sticky" like there is sap in the mechanism, then that is not normal.
Click to expand...

I think perhaps you're confused by the haptic feedback given along with the bounce effect at the top/bottom of a list. I don't believe the crown has software variable resistance. The resistance should be consistent at all times other than when it's gummed up with something.
 
prosp said:
I just started having this problem. Got my SS with black sports band early last week, haven't tried the water trick yet, but will to see if it fixes the issue.

My crown is harder to depress or double click, and the scrolling isn't as smooth as it was when I first got it.
Click to expand...

Does your digital crown have the obvious "click" sound when depressed? Like how the contacts button sound. My SS with black sport band feels mushy and doesn't have the "click" sound when depressed, but my brother's sport's digital crown does click loudly when depressed.
 
I also recommend follow apples instructions. I had this problem a week ago; I rotated and pressed the crown under running water for 20 secs and until now everything is back to normal.
 
Not sure but suddenly noticed that when spinning my digital crown, that it's not as smooth as before. There's a slight stickiness to the feel when you spin it initially. I've been taking great care of the watch and haven't spilled anything on it at all. Although I have been been going walking and biking these past few days with it on and sweating very slightly, and have walked to my car while it was lightly raining. Could one of those incidents have caused my digital crown to feel sticky? If so how can I fix this? It's really bothering me.
 
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212rikanmofo said:
Not sure but suddenly noticed that when spinning my digital crown, that it's not as smooth as before. There's a slight stickiness to the feel when you spin it initially. I've been taking great care of the watch and haven't spilled anything on it at all. Although I have been been going walking and biking these past few days with it on and sweating very slightly, and have walked to my car while it was lightly raining. Could one of those incidents have caused my digital crown to feel sticky? If so how can I fix this? It's really bothering me.
Click to expand...

1. turn on faucet
2. run water over the crown
3. dry the crown

Problem should be fixed. I run my watch under the faucet all the time after I work out with it.
 
As above. There is actually a support document on apple.com for this issue. And it's completely normal and will happen to every owner at some point.
 
212rikanmofo, Just in case you're feeling weary about someone telling you to run your expensive gadget under water, take a look at Apple's official support article on the matter (https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204639). They do state to do the following;

  • Turn off your Apple Watch and remove it from the charger.
  • If you have a leather band, remove it from your Apple Watch.
  • Continuously turn and press the Digital Crown as water runs over the small gap between the crown and the housing.
  • Dry your Apple Watch with a non-abrasive, lint-free cleaning cloth.

You'll need to do this every once in a while, especially if you workout/sweat a lot.
 
Just noticing mine today feels a bit stiffer than normal, not as smooth. Might have to try the water thing to see if that fixes it. Also t note the post above mine, I don't workout so it isn't caused from any sweat.
 
gcooldude86 said:
Just noticing mine today feels a bit stiffer than normal, not as smooth. Might have to try the water thing to see if that fixes it. Also t note the post above mine, I don't workout so it isn't caused from any sweat.
Click to expand...
It can be caused by MANY things like carbohydrates. In traditional watches the crown pulls to to set. This breaks any sticky bonds. The :apple:Watch Crown does't and Apple didn't anticipate this problem. Just wash the 'gunk' out of it every day or once a week or whatever and forget trying to analyze it.
 
Julien said:
It can be caused by MANY things like carbohydrates. In traditional watches the crown pulls to to set. This breaks any sticky bonds. The :apple:Watch Crown does't and Apple didn't anticipate this problem. Just wash the 'gunk' out of it every day or once a week or whatever and forget trying to analyze it.
Click to expand...

I'll try running it under some water at home when I'm done work.
 
I do not bother removing my leather loop as water seem to have zero effect on it. I think it is so processed that you could hardly call it leather anymore.
 
I can't believe I found this thread - was just browsing and had a note to call Apple because my SBSS digital crown is very sticky - like there is syrup on it or something - and then I read that it is officially recommended to run it under water...wow..I guess I will give it a try

You should have seen me trying to find out if that support site was fake..because before that, I couldn't imagine purposely running the watch under water.
 
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