Dial (face) cleaning?

[chrisdt]

I know this is a difficult subject and many a watch dial has been completely ruined by over zealous attempts at cleaning but I thought I would pass on a method that seems to work for me. 14 or 15 q tips and a tiny amount of neat  'Sensitive Metals Ultrasonic Cleaning Fluid. I did'nt take a before and after photo because I thought it would be a failure but I can assure you that the dial of this Rotary Super Sports was nearly as dark as the pad it sits on. In fact it was almost impossible to read the 'Super Sports' wording. Whatever you do dont flood the dial with the fluid, just damp q tip and work from the centre out. Just thought it might be worth a try especially if you have an ultrasonic cleaner. No liability accepted.

[noirrac1j]

Yes, I believe you even if you had posted no photos at all because I've done the exact same thing using  a different ultrasonic cleaning solution. 

J

Edited September 15, 2017 by noirrac1j

[jguitron]

Awesome share. Looks great!

Thank you.

 

JG

[ricardopalamino]

I AM NOT making a recommendation as I have ruined my fair share of dials ,.....BUT , and that's a big BUT ,.... I have had some luck with Simple Green cleaner and a soft Ladies cosmic brush .  I spray the simple green on and quickly give the dial a few swipes with the brush usually from the center out , then quickly rinse the dial with running warm water and also quickly blow dry it with my watchmakers hand blower .

Use at your Own Risk .....

 

Here's the results of my latest game of Russian Roulette with dial cleaning using the method I described . 

Disclaimer , " I Lucked Out "....

[MyRetroWatches]

I AM NOT making a recommendation as I have ruined my fair share of dials ,.....BUT , and that's a big BUT ,.... I have had some luck with Simple Green cleaner and a soft Ladies cosmic brush .  I spray the simple green on and quickly give the dial a few swipes with the brush usually from the center out , then quickly rinse the dial with running warm water and also quickly blow dry it with my watchmakers hand blower .
Use at your Own Risk .....

 
Here's the results of my latest game of Russian Roulette with dial cleaning using the method I described . 
Disclaimer , " I Lucked Out "....

Impressive


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[bsoderling]

Hi Chrisdt,

This is interesting! 

Personally I have had "some" success with oil-based cleaning methods ex. a drop of 9020 on a cotton swab. My main mishaps have been when trying anything with a fair amount of or based on water. I had one case where even the slightest amount of water would immediately start to dissolve all printing, whereas the oil didn't affect it at all. 

I suppose these ultrasonic cleaning fluids are water based? Do they come with any hint of ammonia (should be apparent to your nose if they do) ?

I will for sure try to get hold of some of this to carefully try out. Can you possibly post a picture with the brand visible and I'll see if I can get hold of that in my part of the world?

[chrisdt]

Manufactured in the UK by Allendale-ultasonics.co.uk

The website gives a MSDS but no smell of ammonia

[joelcarvajal]

Hello everyone. It's been a while.

 

I got this Seiko 6139-6005.

 

As shown in the picture, the sundial has this brown seems like gooey stuff around it. It doesn't seem like rust, more like grease or lacquer like.

 

Anyone has experience removing this?

 

In general, how do you clean dials?

 

Cheers,

Joel C.

 

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[jguitron]

Hello!

I believe that is degraded lacquer from the dial itself. Removing it even carefully will likely leave a clear mark. I’ve learned the hard way. The dial itself is not bad at all and a new crystal will make it look more like desirable patina.

Hands and markers looks very good! [emoji1303]

Please keep us posted.




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[Andyclient]

I personally would leave it as it is especially in view of the fact that original pogues are getting harder to come by as virtually all the spares are no longer available , there are so many that have aftermarket dials hands bezels and crystals .

As mentioned above a new crystal will make the world of difference but sourcing an origina/genuine one of those will be reasonably difficult and quite costly .

I have used a generic crystal in a seiko chrono not a pogue and it just didn't look right , the edges were to rounded 

Edited December 14, 2017 by Andyclient

[joelcarvajal]

Thank you all for the replies. I guess I have to live with it.

Cheers!
Joel C.

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[jdrichard]

Thank you all for the replies. I guess I have to live with it.

Cheers!
Joel C.

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DO NOT clean the dial using dental cleaning pill in a glass of water. I did that with a pocket watch years ago and it cleaned off all the markings as well. I typically use peg wood to remove any debris on the face without scratching it, but you need to be very very careful and try it on the edges first, hopefully covered by the bezel.


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[joelcarvajal]

DO NOT clean the dial using dental cleaning pill in a glass of water. I did that with a pocket watch years ago and it cleaned off all the markings as well. I typically use peg wood to remove any debris on the face without scratching it, but you need to be very very careful and try it on the edges first, hopefully covered by the bezel.


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Thanks for this precaution. You really have to ask the right experts. Some instructions on the web seems to be the right way to go until you ask those with more experience.

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[rappeleur]

Hi, and there is no print colour rubbing off with this liquid? I destroyed quite a few letters when trying to clean a dial (making it completely blank in such cases) with other fluids...

[chrisdt]

I'm sure most of us have a box of scrap watches and or dials to practise with various liquids and methods for improving dials. Some dials react differently to cleaning. Raised batons and silvered surfaces being more hardy than print on dials. Perhaps we could have more contributions from members as to what works best for them or are these dials best left with dirt spots and stains to grow old gracefully (as we all do!!!)

 

[rappeleur]

yeah, some youtube guy used to do this solely with warm (about 60 ° C iirc) water, letting the dials soak a bit, then tapping them off with q-sticks afterwards (no rubbing). results were quite good!

[Redwood]

Probably been asked hear many times before but what are the do’s and dont’s   The reason for asking is I just restored a ladies 1930’s watch with a telephone dial that looks like a rolex dial. I used cotton buds soaked in window cleaner and rolled them over the face ( no rubbing) and i must say it came up like new. Tin hat now on 

[oldhippy]

Just be careful with dials as some are transfers. If you mess with that type, you can end up in all sorts of trouble. If you can find a little test, spot that cannot be seen when the watch and its dial are cased that is where to start. Personally, in my days I would send it to someone who just repaired dials, these days it can be expensive.

[Redwood]

Thanks for the reply, I was very cautious and only used warm water to start but that had little effect, I only payed £15 for her and felt she needed some tlc as she was In a terrible mess with her crystal broken and yellow, now she looks as an old girl once looked.

I have to say this forum has a wealth of info from some very talented people and I hope to learn a great deal.     It all started as a winter thing whilst there was little for me to do with my bees but I can now appreciate how addictive this watch stuff is. 

[manodeoro]

Probably been asked hear many times before but what are the do’s and dont’s   The reason for asking is I just restored a ladies 1930’s watch with a telephone dial that looks like a rolex dial. I used cotton buds soaked in window cleaner and rolled them over the face ( no rubbing) and i must say it came up like new. Tin hat now on 

Would you be kind enough to share some pics ?.. a newly cleaned dial is always nice

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[Redwood]

 Upload failed for some reason ?

[Redwood]

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[Redwood]

Worked with taptalk


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[manodeoro]

Nicely done

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[StuartBaker104]

On 07/05/2018 at 4:54 PM, Redwood said:

Probably been asked hear many times before but what are the do’s and dont’s

This can be a very difficult area, but here is my experience...

Enamel dials found on pocket and very old wristwatches can usually be cleaned with all manner of chemicals and rubbing... just beware that some have over-printing with a retailer’s name which may be fragile, as will any luminous markers, which will also likely be radium paint if they are original.

Later watches mostly have painted dials which are usually covered with a clear lacquer.  Sometimes the printing is on top of the lacquer and sometimes underneath. Sometimes the lacquer can be stripped and replaced without damaging the dial.

And here is the experience of someone who has done a lot more of this than I have... http://watchguy.co.uk/cleaning-and-preserving-original-finish-on-dials/