what is my crystal made of and polishing case.

[jackteet]

Hi, I am new to this forum so please excuse me should I transgress any rules.

My recent love is vintage watches. I have just picked up from fleabay a mint 1953 Gruen and my latest acquisition is a gold filled Waltham wristwatch circa 1950`s. There is a scratch across the crystal which looks like it will polish out. I am thinking of using some toothpaste or getting Polywatch. My problem is I dont know what the crystal is made of. Given the date of manufacture I assume it is just plastic but I dont know for sure. I need to choose the correct Polywatch. 

The case is dull and has a few spots of tarnish. I want to clean and polish but without using any abrasive material like a Cod cloth.

I have some Duraglit wadding which I have used to polish solid gold rings but dont know whether it will be too coarse for gold filled surface.

I would very mush appreciate advice on these two matters please. TIA jack 

[WatchMaker]

Likely your crystal is acrylic (plastic) rather than glass. You can probably tell just by how it feels but a 'tooth tap' is a good way ... no different than if you were offered a drink and wanted to tell if you were drinking out of a glass or plastic tumbler.

You sound confident you can get this out with a product like polyWatch but new crystals are pretty inexpensive and can transform an otherwise full or badly marked crystal so worth considering if necessary.

For cleaning start with some basic liquid detergent and with a soft cloth / cotton buds give a thorough clean. There are specialised polishing and finishing compounds (e.g. Dialux blue or red for gold) but no reason you couldn't use your Duraglit to give necessary gentle localised polishing, with a cotton bud, and see how you get on. Start with the most hidden tarnish mark and see how it goes.

[jackteet]

Hi WatchMaker, thanks very much for the detailed info. I could probably find a crystal on fleabay but then I need to get it installed.

I think cheaper initially to see if polywatch works. If not I shall take your advise and go for a new crystal. Thanks again for your time and trouble. jack