How will ceramics age over time.

[AkshayArgade]

Sorry if this topic has been covered before. Was curious to know if anyone has seen any change in colour or appearance of the ceramic bezel on the sports models over time.

Ceramics was introduced by Rolex in their sports models in 2005 if I'm correct. It's been 17 years as of today..has anyone noticed any fading of the bezel ?

Please share photos of ceramic bezel fading / patina etc .

Also how do you think the chromalight will age ?

Mine says hi


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[Loevhagen]

Probably something like this:

[AkshayArgade]

[rpstrimple]

It was my understanding that they developed the ceramic process so it wouldn't age...

"Known for being extremely hard, virtually scratchproof and its colour being unaffected by ultraviolet rays..." - Rolex Magazine Isssue 10

[Freaky]

Nice watch looks great

[WatchGuy1966]

I don’t think it will age. If it does, the aging will look like chips or cracks or outright breakage


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[wrxsti]

They don’t!

[Brandband]

Haven't seen any aged ceramic. It's made to stand time and that's good workmanship.

[Stud Screw]

It has aged if Rolex says it has aged. That way, they can charge you thousands to replace the bezel come service time.

[Kevin of Larchmont]

Only time will tell.

[brandrea]

Originally Posted by Kevin of Larchmont

Only time will tell.

^^^

[Innocenti]

It will probably age better than most materials unless it has an impact.
It’s similar technology used for replacement hips

[londonpilgrim]

My oldest ceramic is 10 years old. It looks brand spanking new.

[Bobcat Sig]

Originally Posted by londonpilgrim

My oldest ceramic is 10 years old. It looks brand spanking new.

Indeed. My 2008 GMT Master II bezel looks as fresh as it did the day it left the factory. That's nearly 14 years and not a bit of aging present.

[asiparks]

My 2006 ceramic IWC still looked new when I sold it in 2020.
They've been digging up pots and vases from thousands of years ago, they've aged comparatively well and that was with old tech....

[CHRONOLEX]

From my understanding, Roman emperors were fond of ceramic bezels on their watches because of this durability and Rolexes uncovered by archaeologists in and around the palace grounds have been fairly well preserved.

[Calborn]

Originally Posted by CHRONOLEX

From my understanding, Roman emperors were fond of ceramic bezels on their watches because of this durability and Rolexes uncovered by archaeologists in and around the palace grounds have been fairly well preserved.

[shaunylw]

They should not age at all. Rolex hates patina.


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[Gab27]

Chromalight will probably last decades provided the watch's water resistance is consistently preserved. Intense exposure to UV may cause some slight changes to the color, but most of the strontium aluminate-based products on the market seem to hold up extremely well over time, going back to the very original Luminova (which is pushing 3 decades since release).

With respect to the ceramic, it should theoretically be pretty resistant to change even if exposed to constant and intense UV radiation. However, the red color on the BLRO could age differently over time than other colors, as, IIRC, the red ceramic is made completely differently than black, brown, blue, and green. Also, detecting changes due to age, especially on the non-black models, may also be difficult since we know there is some lot-to-lot variation in the colors (e.g., there are a lot of different shades of red on the ceramic BLROs).

[joli160]

It will look the same in a hundred years i’m pretty sure.
Lots of centuries old ceramic tiles where I live in 17th century old houses which look like the day they were installed

[Subguy48]

They wont

[Ensign]

They won’t age in our lifetime. There’s tons of crude ceramics from ancient Egypt still around. The Sun will burn out long before Rolex ceramics fade.

[Horologista]

Originally Posted by Ensign

They won’t age in our lifetime. There’s tons of crude ceramics from ancient Egypt still around. The Sun will burn out long before Rolex ceramics fade.

That is a very interesting assertion because part of me thinks it might be true.

The sun will burn out in 5 billion years. That is literally eons.
You think a ceramic bezel can last that long? The elements have carved mountains into flat hills in less time. Surely over 5 billion years even the Brownian motion of air molecules even in a relatively protective safe would carve at the ceramic.

What will happen to the earth and ceramic bezels when the sun expands to a red giant with a diameter of the earth's orbit, or goes Nova?
What is the melting point of ceramic anyway?
How about the movement or a gold case?

Would welcome other thoughts.

[Ensign]

Originally Posted by Horologista

That is a very interesting assertion because part of me thinks it might be true.

The sun will burn out in 5 billion years. That is literally eons.
You think a ceramic bezel can last that long? The elements have carved mountains into flat hills in less time. Surely over 5 billion years even the Brownian motion of air molecules even in a relatively protective safe would carve at the ceramic.

What will happen to the earth and ceramic bezels when the sun expands to a red giant with a diameter of the earth's orbit, or goes Nova?
What is the melting point of ceramic anyway?
How about the movement or a gold case?

Would welcome other thoughts.

Professor, please give us an update in five billion years.

[Chester01]

There was a story here a while back where there GMT fell off a golf cart. No patina but the crockery shattered and broke.

[mquarter]

Let's say for the purposes of a human lifetime, the ceramic bezel won't age. Won't that look strange with a case and bracelet that has wear? Considering they'll be 904L steel, which from memory is less scratch resistant (but more corrosion resistant) than 316.

[Polar Bear]

Originally Posted by mquarter

Let's say for the purposes of a human lifetime, the ceramic bezel won't age. Won't that look strange with a case and bracelet that has wear? Considering they'll be 904L steel, which from memory is less scratch resistant (but more corrosion resistant) than 316.

You can polish a case
You cant polish a bezel insert

[Sub24541]

Originally Posted by Polar Bear

You can polish a case
You cant polish a bezel insert

Sure you can, that’s the final step when Rolex make the insert in the first place. You just need diamond paste down to ~0.25 micron, a suitable jig and polishing wheel and some time. Zirconia (most bezels) and alumina (BLRO bezel) are 9 on the Mohs scale and so only diamond will do and theoretically only diamond will scratch it.
Zirconia is stronger than steel but it is brittle so it will fracture catastrophically rather than yield.

https://newsroom-content.rolex.com/-...ic_english.pdf


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[padi56]

Originally Posted by AkshayArgade

Sorry if this topic has been covered before. Was curious to know if anyone has seen any change in colour or appearance of the ceramic bezel on the sports models over time.

Ceramics was introduced by Rolex in their sports models in 2005 if I'm correct. It's been 17 years as of today..has anyone noticed any fading of the bezel ?

Please share photos of ceramic bezel fading / patina etc .

Also how do you think the chromalight will age ?

Mine says hi


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Would doubt if they will age naturally, but if the internet sellers log on that people are willing to pay extra for patina ceramic inserts, then expect many artificially created ones will turn up at crazy prices.

[JSolution]

I have a 2008 gmt 116710 the first ceramic and no change here.