To polish or not to polish.
I’ve got a 2008 Daytona 116520 that I’ve worn quite a bit, and as a result, I’ve got quite a few scratches. Unfortunately, at the top of the bezel, there is a larger, deeper scratch that is very noticeable.
If I were to sell my watch, would I be better of selling it unpolished/never polished? Or would I fetch a higher price by having it polished? Would a polish remove a deeper scratch on the bezel?
Thanks in advance!
11 comments
Sort by
WhatsNext
I’ve had a one watch collection for a while now. But recently been nerding out over watches and looking to add. I’m here to learn more about watches.
New York, NY
Member since
Last active: 7 hrs ago
6.00” / 15.24 cm
Polished by Rolex or some dude with a buffing wheel?
If your plan is to sell it? Then don’t polish.
If it’s a keeper then polish it once ever 10 yrs by a professional
Are you going to sell it? If so leave as is. If you send it to Rolex let them service and do it right. You will likely get your money back because most sellers are going to want to know if it has been serviced. If not, it better be factored into the price, especially on a 15 year old watch. A recent service will bump the price more than the polish.
No polish of your going to sell
Your choice. Just avoid over polishing.
Most collectors want original parts on a watch so if you do send it to Rolex state you want to keep the original bezel,they sometimes swap them it they can't remove damage
laser welding is a newly available choice nowadays... the urban gentry did this with his watch. check this out
https://youtu.be/JNRTMIbfFKw
Repeat after me. Never polish a bezel! Aside from the dial the bezel is what makes or breaks the appearance of a watch. One more time. Never polish a bezel!
Here's a meme to drive home the point
It's usually not good to polish a case, it looks weird and soft. A few scratches look better. If the watch is scratched to hell then okay, maybe, preferably with a laser treatment and lapping. The bezel is a replacement item. Send it to Rolex, have it replaced. Here's footage of me when I see a polished bezel.
If I see a polished bezel, a small part of me dies a slow and painful death from a billion papercuts for which I deduct (at least) the price of a full service and the cost of a new bezel.
Edit: if you are talking about the watch in your profile then please do not polish it. You probably can't even tell it's badly scratched unless there is nasty lighting. The lugs look strong, the bezel is worn. Please 🥲 it looks very nice. Get a new bezel if you want to keep it, if not sell it as is.
I wouldn’t touch the bezel, assuming it’s the watch in your profile pic?
I wouldn’t touch the bezel, assuming it’s the watch in your profile pic?
Yes the one in my profile pic.
Thank you all for all of your advice. I’ve looked into what can be done about the bezel, and your comments about having Rolex replace the bezel as part of their service/polishing of the watch makes sense.
Curious…why is it better not to polish if I’m going to sell it? When I search through Chrono24 and see very good vs good vs fair, what would be better: list a watch with scratches as fair or to have the watch serviced/polished by Rolex so that it looks shiny and scratchless? If it’s polished, what would the condition on Chrono24 be? Very good?
Also, would the value of the watch decease once I allow Rolex to replace the bezel?