Some brave soul with a scratched watch might want to try the nostrum documented at http://forums.watchuseek.com/f17/how-remove-scratches-mineral-crystal-works-717486.html
Caveats:
Comment: The toughness of Casio sportwatches might have as much to do with their case design as anything. The crystals' edges seem protected by the case in the examples I've looked at, and they're often actually inset (including those in the photos of the article). By comparison, on the Apple watches the crystals extend to the edge of the case, and taper as well towards the edge. Their corners in particular seem to be emerging as a vulnerable point where a knock against something hard can cause the crystal to fracture. This might actually be more of a risk for the sapphire Watch models versus the Sport models, whose crystal material is less brittle than sapphire. Time will tell... wristwatch toughness has many variables.
Anyway, if anyone out there with a scratched watch wants to try the approach at the link, please report back.
Caveats:
- The Casio sportwatches which are the topic of the article have mineral-glass crystals, with a Mohs hardness probably around 6. Meanwhile, as we know from Consumer Reports' testing, the ion-diffused "Ion-X" glass used in the Apple Watch Sport models has a Mohs hardness between 7 and 8. So the trick might not work... or, it might; it's your call whether to try.
- By the same token, it would probably be futile to try this on the sapphire crystal of the Watch models due to their hardness. But again, if you're the owner of a Watch whose sapphire somehow got scratched, it's your call whether to try.
- Note that the effect of this technique on other aspects the watch's health is of course totally unknown. Will it impact the touch sensor? Are there coatings that might be harmed? ...Unknown. Try at your own risk.
- I wouldn't try this on your iPhone or iPad, incidentally, even though the "Gorilla Glass" on recent models is basically the same as the Sport models' Ion-X glass. iPhones & iPads definitely have coatings that would be removed, and Apple makes no claims about those products water resistance.
Comment: The toughness of Casio sportwatches might have as much to do with their case design as anything. The crystals' edges seem protected by the case in the examples I've looked at, and they're often actually inset (including those in the photos of the article). By comparison, on the Apple watches the crystals extend to the edge of the case, and taper as well towards the edge. Their corners in particular seem to be emerging as a vulnerable point where a knock against something hard can cause the crystal to fracture. This might actually be more of a risk for the sapphire Watch models versus the Sport models, whose crystal material is less brittle than sapphire. Time will tell... wristwatch toughness has many variables.
Anyway, if anyone out there with a scratched watch wants to try the approach at the link, please report back.
Last edited: