staining on gold bezel

[shaggy]

when i first bought my TT daytona i tried to take some close ups but my camera skills are not up to much
anyway
a mate of mine was looking at the pics yesterday and noticed i have some stains on the bezel in the picture i took when i first brought it home.
i have looked and i have quite a few of these stains around the edge of the bezel
if you look at the picture below you can see them at 240 200 and worst at 180.
i missed these because i thought they were reflections from the pushers
any ideas guys?
is it oil or polishing rouge from the factory?
i have washed this watch everyday with hand soap when i get a shower and its still there.
do i take it back to the AD?
or is there something i can use that may clean it without hurting the gold

now i know its there its bugging me!

[Prince]

Sorry, I don't see any stains. You are probably right that what you are seeing are reflections from the pushers. Only a better set of photos would help with this issue for us.

[snow_rocks]

I see something at the 180, on the edge of the bezel that looks like dark scratches.

If you shoot with autofocus, and macro, and a timer on camera, set camera on area close to desire focal point, then move the watch toward or away from the lens (pushers in focus, so move watch closer to capture the bezel) so that you can capture an area that the auto focus can't detect due to shininess of the surface. Camera has to be on tripod!

We need better pics!

[shaggy]

wil take more later and post

[LinD]

Shaggy, what you are seeing is a minor reaction on the gold caused by the acids in our skin - wiping gently with an ordinary jeweller's cloth (NOT a Cape Cod or anything abrasive) should remove the marks (as you have seen, washing will not). I get this on the end links of my two tone DJ occasionally, it's nothing to worry about.

[shaggy]

Originally Posted by LinD

Shaggy, what you are seeing is a minor reaction on the gold caused by the acids in our skin - wiping gently with an ordinary jeweller's cloth (NOT a Cape Cod or anything abrasive) should remove the marks (as you have seen, washing will not). I get this on the end links of my two tone DJ occasionally, it's nothing to worry about.

thanks for the reply LinD
the problem is that its on the bezel and my skin does not touch that part of the watch at all
also they were there when i bought the watch new from the AD
i will try and get some better pics when i can find my memory card
cheers guys

[LinD]

Shaggy, is the staining on a part of the watch that you handle when you pick it up or put it on, or where you hold it to set it? That was the reason for the slight discolouration on mine - the area where I would grab it between my thumb and forefinger. Go through the motion of putting it on and off your wrist, just to check. You'll find that any gold parts which are in constant contact with your skin won't discolour, due to friction.

[chicagowatchman]

Over time gold will begin to tarnish a bit and get darker....i use Tarn X on my 1992 DD about once a year and it removes any tarnish spots and makes the watch new new new!!!

You dip it or whipe it on with a cotton swab.

www.jelmar.com

[KKB]

I thought that part of what made gold so valuable is that it is very stable and unlike silver or copper will never tarnish?

[chicagowatchman]

Originally Posted by KKB

I thought that part of what made gold so valuable is that it is very stable and unlike silver or copper will never tarnish?

Gold does not tarnish as fast as silver but remember unless it is Pure Gold there are other metals in 18k gold......18k gold gets more of a darker color rather than a true black color like tarnished silver.

[shaggy]

thanks guys
LinD its not any part of where i touch at all and it was on there the day i brought it home from the AD but i hadn't noticed till i re-looked at the picture above

it goes from the 240 marker all the way round to the 120 marker

my wife lent her father my camera so its due back tomorrow so will take pictures then
it looks like rust spots but i know that gold does not rust so was thinking it may be polishing rouge from the factory maybe?

[chicagowatchman]

rouge will wash off with warm water.

As i stated i have had darker areas on my 18k DD and if i take a bit or tarn x and dab with a cotton awab i see the "stain" disappear right before my eyes!

[Flaxmoore]

Originally Posted by KKB

I thought that part of what made gold so valuable is that it is very stable and unlike silver or copper will never tarnish?

Pure gold, like pure platinum, will never tarnish. However, pure gold is exceptionally soft- it has to be alloyed with other metals. White gold is nickel or palladium, rose/pink gold uses copper, green uses silver, and so on.

The gold isn't tarnishing, but the alloying metals are.

[shaggy]

higuys sorry it took so long i had to ask a guy at work to do it for me as my camera skills are poor to say the least

i hope this picture works

[chicagowatchman]

Thats what i had on my 18k DD....it was a "tarnish" where the bracelet met the watch case.... a dab or tarn x made it shiney and bright and disolved the "stain"!

Be carful of the painted numbers on your bezel as i am not sure if it will effect the painted numbers....all i know is it did not effect the gold diamonds or saphire crystal.

[shaggy]

does anyone know what the UK version of tarn x is please guys
or
would a jeweller have something to get this off without damaging anything
cheers

[The GMT Master]

Originally Posted by shaggy

does anyone know what the UK version of tarn x is please guys
or
would a jeweller have something to get this off without damaging anything
cheers

Something like Jewel Clean might do the trick

[chicagowatchman]

Originally Posted by shaggy

does anyone know what the UK version of tarn x is please guys
or
would a jeweller have something to get this off without damaging anything
cheers

Can you not order it on line from the site?

[Rikki]

You said you wash your watch every day in soapy water I'll bet your city water is heavily chlorinated and that's what's causing the copper to leach out of your gold. Chlorine will leach copper and cause staining. I have customers who swim in their pools quite a bit and when they bring them in for service they are almost purple inbetween the links where the water is trapped. Agood rouge clouth should work if not tarn-x will work.In the future dry using distilled water and see waht happens Rikthewatchmaker

[shaggy]

Originally Posted by Rikki

You said you wash your watch every day in soapy water I'll bet your city water is heavily chlorinated and that's what's causing the copper to leach out of your gold. Chlorine will leach copper and cause staining. I have customers who swim in their pools quite a bit and when they bring them in for service they are almost purple inbetween the links where the water is trapped. Agood rouge clouth should work if not tarn-x will work.In the future dry using distilled water and see waht happens Rikthewatchmaker

cheers for the reply
these marks were on when i bought the watch mate
the water in my area is soft and if i go swimming i always rinse the watch well afterwards

[Danwealth]

Shaggy,
nothing to worry my friend! your AD can remove these stains without doing any harm to your bezel. Just send your watch to your AD once a year to have it professionally cleaned. Most AD's will do it free of charge at least for the first few years if the watch was purchased from them.

[shaggy]

just to update anyone whos interested

went to the AD's today and he couldn't remove the staining no matter what he tried
i have also tried a local jeweller who had no luck in removing the stain


he can not send it back till monday so i have the weekend to decide whether i live with it or lose the watch for 2-3 weeks

im leaning on sending it back because if they cant get the stain out i can have a new bezel
also when i send it in for service they will want to charge me for a new bezel if its gotten worse

[deserted]

Will that tarn x work on polised silver on the daytona case sides.

[shaggy]

Originally Posted by deserted

Will that tarn x work on polised silver on the daytona case sides.

i thought the case was stainless steel and not silver?
as for the question mate i have no idea

[chicagowatchman]

Originally Posted by shaggy

just to update anyone whos interested

went to the AD's today and he couldn't remove the staining no matter what he tried
i have also tried a local jeweller who had no luck in removing the stain


he can not send it back till monday so i have the weekend to decide whether i live with it or lose the watch for 2-3 weeks

im leaning on sending it back because if they cant get the stain out i can have a new bezel
also when i send it in for service they will want to charge me for a new bezel if its gotten worse

Did you try the tarn X ???

[Dalton]

okay, the tarnish is coming from the water and soap. Some soaps have sulfur, so that could be the leading contributor. I have seen people destroy the finish on the lugs by trying topolish up the bezel so be wise and use plenty of tape or cover the watch in plastic,leaving the bezel exposed. Also, dont get too creative, the enamel on the bezel will easily come off when it comes into contact with some chemicals, and soaps. In this case I'd say less is more, so dont obssess too much if you can't seem to get it all off.