Case-back Engraved - Let's Take It Off !!

[Tools]

Periodically we get asked what to do with an engraved case back watch.. Well, there are lot's of answers..

One of those answers, is to take it off yourself.. Here is a simple method..

First we need a candidate. This one should do nicely. I have already lined up the appropriate tools and taken the bracelet off, as well as begun to organize:


This almost 10 year old watch has a name that was nicely done... not too deep or ornate... perfect for the DIYer:



I'm going to use a flat 1/4 inch thick piece of flat plate aluminum...but a granite counter or a piece of glass, or even a polished desk, although it may mar the wood, will work just fine. I have placed a piece of 80 grit aluminum oxide paper, or 120 grit for a finer finish, on the surface plate; this particular type has a sticky back to help hold it in place, but that isn't really necessary.



Place the watch squarely on the paper. You can see here that the lugs should not touch the paper, only the case-back. pressing lightly but firmly, the watch is moved in a back and forth motion with no wiggle or swirl so the grain stays straight, checking every so often to check our progress. 80 grit will take a lot off, so be careful; 120 grit is slower but may leave a more factory finish, or you can use up to 800 grit depending on how you like the finish..


After only a minute, the engraving is completely gone. You could use a finer grit now (or you could have started with 120 grit, etc); to eliminate the grain left. I am going to leave it just like this because I know that after it has been worn for a few days, the movement of the watch back on the wrist will soften the work we just did, and make it almost indistinguishable from a brand new piece... .


Finally, put back together:

[mrbill2mrbill2]

You are one heck of a DIY'er - with a lot of courage. If it did not work as planned you would be OFUDIY'er.

[KarlFr]

Very nice! Thanks for the pictorial.

[Skullring]

Nice work. Thanks for the tip.

[threemonkeys]

Very informative, Larry.

[SPARTAN2161]

What kind of grit can be used for a brushed finish like on the band or top of the lugs? is it the same 80-120? Great tip. I have been looking at bergeon? brushing pads but if simple sand paper works i will definitely try that first. Thanks!

[Tools]

Originally Posted by SPARTAN2161

What kind of grit can be used for a brushed finish like on the band or top of the lugs? is it the same 80-120? Great tip. I have been looking at bergeon? brushing pads but if simple sand paper works i will definitely try that first. Thanks!

80 grit is a little too course to give you a Rolex style finish. I used it to demonstrate the procedure and to take the engraving off as quickly as reasonable..

the bergeon brushing pads are simply known grits on a sponge back. You can get sponge backed sanding pads at your home improvement store.. You need to experiment with a couple of grits to get the finish you like.. I like the 120 grit finish, but 180 is a good look too and a little finer grain....

[Beaumont Miller II]

It would not have occurred to do that, but from now on I will not shy away from watches with engravings on the case back. Thanks.

[hunz]

nice, you're the man larry!

[cruvon]

Thanks for the tutorial Larry!

Out of curiosity, would the engraving on the COMEX caseback in link be a light engraving easily taken off using the method above or is too deep?

http://rolexpassionreport.com/4005/m...and-sothebys/#

[greekbum]

I have seen case backs with very deep engravings fixed easily with a laser welder filling it in and then polishing flat. Engraved case backs are not a hard fix some just cost more than others to do. Larry's fix above works with most and as he showed came out nice.

[Tim Wells]

If it won't be seen as a hijack of this thread I could post some pictures of a tool I made to do this job.

I just removed the engraving on a datejust back that would not lend itself to the method Larry used on the watch in this thread because the back sits too far in and the lugs would get sanded.

I have it on my bench ready for overhaul so I made a holder for the back and turned the engraving off on my lathe then sanded it and re-established the grain with a wheel designed for that purpose, for Rolex watches.

I was sweating bullets trying to take a little off at a time just enough to remove the engraving. Looking at it with doctors surgical loupes makes it look like you're taking off a lot more material than you really are.

I measured it before and after and I took off a mere .004" and it turned out perfect. Although the job is done, I can show how I did it and the little fixture as it may be helpful to someone else someday. It could also be used as a holder for the back and used in the same sandpaper manner as Larry did his caseback. So if it will be ok, I'll post some pics tomorrow.

[oneillba]

Thanks.

[Tim Wells]

I actually misspoke about doing this job the way Larry did because I was going from memory. I went down and put the back on the case and the lugs will clear nicely after all, sorry bout that mistake.

Here are a few shots; the one on the left is the holder I made just for the case back of this particular watch and so I wouldn't forget what it was made for in the future, I hand engraved what it was for on the side. It serves as good lettering practice as well.

The one on the right is just a quick and dirty movement holder but I machined the inside step and rim to a dimension to allow the movement to sit down in it with the dial on yet with enough clearance to allow the sweep second hand to go round without issue. The engraving on it however, was sloppy at best, I was in a hurry to use it so the lettering this time suffered as a result. Not important for its use.

The rest is with the back held in by four drops of super glue that I'll release with acetone when I'm done and simply pop the case back out of the jig through the hole I made for this purpose. The ID is an exact fit with absolutely no slop and being made of aluminum it won't pose a danger of harming the threads.

The scothbrite wheel I obtained from CasKer and it puts a proper grain pattern back on case parts although I need to hit this one a little more then polish around the edge to finish up.

The method that Larry used is more safe in practice if you're not used to doing things like I did. The engraving on this case back covered the entire circular area with a lot of text about retiring from IBM and some sort of club and was cut deeper than the one in Larry's case. His way is a lot easier if you have the time and things are relatively shallow.

By the way, the watch case is a 16030 datejust with a 3035 movement.

[daunwaun]

Larry, Great job!

[carlitos1020]

wow, very helpful !!

[Mickey®]

Never would have guessed!

[Pte6000]

I will be trying this.

[skprd13]

Excellent now I will not shy away from a watch that had an engraving on the backside. I know I can do that no problem and not scared to try it. Thank you Larry!

[MP5]

I like engraved CB watches, yall shy away, they are much cheaper and have a character and story to tell

[anttiwi]

[jmeds75]

Nice to know-thanks!

[Beladran]

First time posting but been reading awhile!
I just purchased a sea dweller for cheap. Only thing wrong with it was heavy engraving on the back. I camped out at the laser welder for about an hour an had everything filled up enough to start stoning down. I high polished it rather than doing the directional grain.. Just my personal taste

[Bravegoose]

Hi,

I just wanted to add that Larry's method for removing engraving from a case-back, also of course works really well for a simple polishing job. I had a 7-year old 14060M Submariner and needed to clean-up and polish the case and bracelet. The watch was on rotation so hadn't been worn much and the movement therefore didn't need a service.

I bought 320 grit dry sandpaper from my local auto store. I stuck it securely to a table-top with Sellotape from my local newsagent.

Then I removed the bracelet; I always use wooden toothpicks which leave no marks and can also be used to push the spring-bars back in. And I make sure to mask all parts of the watch with Sellotape too - this ensures nothing gets accidentally scratched.

So, with the lugs, winding crown and most of the watch-head (except the satin-finish part of the case-back) all wrapped-up with Sellotape like an Egyptian mummy, I placed the case-back flat on the sandpaper and slid it firmly in the same direction (from one end of the sandpaper sheet to the other) three times. It's important to remove (lift) the watch straight upwards when you finish, or you will leave swirls and undesirable scratches.

The result is incredible and is as close to factory-new as I have ever seen from a non-machine polishing job. I don't know what grit level matches the original finish but 320 looks and feels very similar.

Photo of finished work attached.