Titanium AW5 thread

[Mercenary]

Titanium in a watch doesn’t generally present any “upgrades” over the stainless steel. The weight, while lighter, doesn’t equate to an actual improvement and the cost of Ti in this amount is negligible versus the stainless steel. It’s certainly not a stronger material as steel is generally harder than Ti. What we are paying for is mostly the allure of titanium and maybe some added costs on Apple’s end given the process for these presumably does vary from either of the previous materials.

I’m still going to get the silver titanium one.

High grade stainless steel is currently $1.55 per lb

titanium is $26.39 per lb

although at the quantity needed for a watch we’re talking about $0.10 for steel and maybe $1 for titanium for actual materials.

aluminium is more expensive than Ss in raw material costs.

 

[dannyyankou]

Keep in mind we saw all sorts of stories about how easy it is to scratch the SS watch when it first came out in 2015, but I’ve never had issues with that. I think it all depends on how careful you are with it.

 

[Marco123]

This is an interesting read on scratching and titanium rings. https://www.titanium-jewelry.com/do-titanium-rings-scratch-blog.html.

Thanks for this, the comments about the strength of titanium really impressed me and I think a titanium Apple Watch with a lot of scratches will have a very distinct, personal look that owners will either love or hate.
What concerns me is how durable wil the dlc on the SB model be? Will it be as durable as the SBSS because when that scratches and shows the silver underneath, it looks awful.

 

[testcard]

After almost a year, my Watch 4 SBSS is still virtually pristine with no visible scratches.

 

[igrover]

Was this the black Ti?

Yes it was the black model.

 

[Monkswhiskers]

If scratches bother you, SBSS is the only way to go.

 

[richard371]

I just lightly took a key to my black ti and it did scuff it up pretty bad and looked like the ti grey was showing underneath. Turns out it was the metal from the key. It wiped off the watch perfectly. I have a feeling lots of this is just other metal that the dlc matte coating picked up. Only time will tell.

 

[Soba1]

Day three, and so far, so good.

View attachment 862157

I'm not expecting it to hold up as well as the DLC/PVD coated steel models, but it's already holding up better than the silver steel model did.

From what I have read because of the hardness of Ti you cannot buff out the scratches like the regular SS
[automerge]1569178058[/automerge]

Day three, and so far, so good.

View attachment 862157

I'm not expecting it to hold up as well as the DLC/PVD coated steel models, but it's already holding up better than the silver steel model did.

From what I have read because of the hardness of Ti you cannot buff out the scratches like the regular SS
[automerge]1569178060[/automerge]

Day three, and so far, so good.

View attachment 862157

I'm not expecting it to hold up as well as the DLC/PVD coated steel models, but it's already holding up better than the silver steel model did.

Good to hear

 

[imlynxy]

I got spooked reading this thread yesterday so I decided to order a SS space black as a backup plan. Went to my local Apple store last night to pick up the SS and asked to see their Ti watch. They pulled it out of a drawer and sure enough it was already lightly scuffed up. So will be returning the Ti. I too wanted to try something different this time but not interested in the blemishes at that price point. This will be my 4th SS space black watch and I have never had a problem with any of the prior models getting any kind of blemish. The lighter weight of the Ti was nice, though.

Exactly:
I just picked up SBSS instead of SBTi.
1. less expensive,
2. I’ve had SBSS4, dropped them, hit them, not even one scratch.
3. Less expensive Apple Care. I do not need three year since I swap them every year
4. I hate this dark grey sport band. Looks like discolored black for me .

Weight? I see no difference.It is marginal for me.

 

[LostAggie]

I just lightly took a key to my black ti and it did scuff it up pretty bad and looked like the ti grey was showing underneath. Turns out it was the metal from the key. It wiped off the watch perfectly. I have a feeling lots of this is just other metal that the dlc matte coating picked up. Only time will tell.

You are brave to try that but it is definitely appreciate here!

 

[richard371]

If a soft key scratched the dlc I would take it back in a heartbeat. I’m not going to try to scratch it anymore but I’ll keep an eye on things during the return window and swap for the sssb as I know that holds up. I do feel the matte black finish will pick up other material easily when rubbed against it vs the shiny dlc on the sssb.

 

[noobinator]

This is an interesting read on scratching and titanium rings. https://www.titanium-jewelry.com/do-titanium-rings-scratch-blog.html.

does this mean I can restore my watch with a scotch pad?

 

[Macloven]

I used neverdull on my ti road bike and it looked great. If the ti aw5 has a protective coat it may not work. I also used fine scotchbrite pads and it gave a very nice finish. I ordered the black ti so should be interesting to see how that cleans up.

 

[Beachmusic18]

Ha...I wouldn’t try it!! We use scotch pads to knock the shine down and scuff up varnish on toerails before revarnishing! Maybe if you wanted to varnish it after it’d work OK.

 

[d_nguyener]

I've been using this for my link bracelet whenever it starts to accumulate a ton of scuffs/scratches. Checked the website and there's one available for brushed titanium. I'm curious if this will work with the finish on the Apple Watch.

 

[44267547]

I've been using this for my link bracelet whenever it starts to accumulate a ton of scuffs/scratches. Checked the website and there's one available for brushed titanium. I'm curious if this will work with the finish on the Apple Watch.

If you have the silver link bracelet, (which I’m assuming you do), it should have a much better pairing than the aluminum watch. Personally, I think that would actually look really good.

 

[canyonblue737]

This is an interesting read on scratching and titanium rings. https://www.titanium-jewelry.com/do-titanium-rings-scratch-blog.html.

I struggle to see an even patina developing on the body of a watch. Sure on a ring it will get completely covered in scratches that within a few months the scratches all blend together to give it an even patina that looks “brushed” but a watch body isn’t going to take nearly enough hits. Instead I think the far more likely scenario is getting a series of very obvious scratches on an otherwise even brushed surface that stand out badly to the wearer. If you like it that’s fine but it would bother me too much... I *like* the look of the regular Ti Apple Watch but having seen the many images of significant blemishes within hours or just a day or two of use I know it isn’t for me.

 

[itsmemuffins]

Does anyone know how the SB matches the SB link bracelet?

 

[dannyyankou]

Does anyone know how the SB matches the SB link bracelet?

I imagine pretty well, the link bracelet is more brushed look and not so shiny, so I think it’ll look great.

Here’s how the rendering looks on Apple’s design studio page. I think it looks really classy

 

[wileycoyote]

Does anyone know how the SB matches the SB link bracelet?

Not 100% perfect but very very close. The SBTi has a lot more color range than the SB link bracelet. At its darkest it matches perfectly, but the SBTi AW will get a tad lighter than the band in direct sunlight.

Pics are both SBTi. One in indirect lighting and one in direct. Obviously lots of shades in between.

 

[outsidah]

Not sold on the black, but the standard Ti is looking sharp! I'll be keeping tabs to see what develops on the durability of it.

 

[Soba1]

If a soft key scratched the dlc I would take it back in a heartbeat. I’m not going to try to scratch it anymore but I’ll keep an eye on things during the return window and swap for the sssb as I know that holds up. I do feel the matte black finish will pick up other material easily when rubbed against it vs the shiny dlc on the sssb.

Thanks for doing that

 

[richard371]

I can’t get it to scratch.

 

[N54TT]

First day so far. Put it through a typical weekend day of yard work, cleaning out the shed etc.. Didn’t do anything to try and avoid hitting my watch nor did I purposefully hit it. But it did bang and rub against multiple things from lawn mower, swing on kids swing set, edge trimmer, leaf blower and broom stick. Not one scratch so far....still pristine. I gotta say...I REALLY like the finish of the titanium. I don’t expect it to be scratch free and accept that it’ll scratch just as my previous SS Apple watches, polished SS Breitling and SS brushed omega all have scratches. But if it looks to get pretty bad in the first 14 days I might switch back to SS. I’m hoping that’s not the case...and if today is any indication I should be okay. Will see what happens throughout the week at work and maybe a round of golf where I use the watch for gps distances.

 

[dannyyankou]

First day so far. Put it through a typical weekend day of yard work, cleaning out the shed etc.. Didn’t do anything to try and avoid hitting my watch nor did I purposefully hit it. But it did bang and rub against multiple things from lawn mower, swing on kids swing set, edge trimmer, leaf blower and broom stick. Not one scratch so far....still pristine. I gotta say...I REALLY like the finish of the titanium. I don’t expect it to be scratch free and accept that it’ll scratch just as my previous SS Apple watches, polished SS Breitling and SS brushed omega all have scratches. But if it looks to get pretty bad in the first 14 days I might switch back to SS. I’m hoping that’s not the case...and if today is any indication I should be okay. Will see what happens throughout the week at work and maybe a round of golf where I use the watch for gps distances.

Mixed feedback, ugh lol. I think I'll just spend 2 weeks with it and return it if it scratches easily.