Tiny scratches on DJ 41 crystal

[ObsessedLawStudent]

I was cleaning my watches today, when i noticed the crystal on my DJ 41 (bought from AD in january 2023) had a bunch of TINY scratches on it.

They are not visible during everyday use, but i just noticed them because i inspected the watch under a bright light after cleaning it.

After that, i inspected my other watches, which i have used at least at much, and they had no such scratches.

Is Rolex using a "weaker" sapphire, or is something wrong here?

[Nairn1980]

Originally Posted by ObsessedLawStudent

I was cleaning my watches today, when i noticed the crystal on my DJ 41 (bought from AD in january 2023) had a bunch of TINY scratches on it.

They are not visible during everyday use, but i just noticed them because i inspected the watch under a bright light after cleaning it.

After that, i inspected my other watches, which i have used at least at much, and they had no such scratches.

Is Rolex using a "weaker" sapphire, or is something wrong here?

Are you sure they’re scratches?
I had similar once, and ended up using an alcohol wipe and it actually came off.

[herts9]

It's not weak. Sapphire is sapphire and all have a hardness of 9. I have a 1 or 2mm scratch on my Sub where my wife got it with her wedding ring, but will take care of it at next service in 2026.

If it doesn't bother you, deal with it later. It's superficial. If it does, send it in and they can replace it. Don't try and fix it yourself.

[dg8dg7]

It very well could be the anti reflective coating underneath the crystal that could be stratched if you are seeing that - I think the DJ's had antireflective coating added in 2023 (I might be wrong)? Otherwise it could be the sapphire if you got it with something hard like a diamond ring or bracelet.

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[0nly5iv3Digits]

OP, in my experience (particularly on dark lacquered dial models), such "tiny scratches" are actually reflections off of the white gold hour markers and hands. This is the case on my subs and gmts.