Fixing the swirls Cape Cod left

[Gary Busey]

First off, try to smother any inclination you may have to take out small scratches. Period
But if you must then do it right
Cape cod is often seen as a miracle cure for hairline scratches and I it is to an extent.
However, if you’re fixing a quasi brand new watch, where apart from the scratch, the mirror finish is still present, cape cod will screw that up. You’ll get a bunch of micro swirls seen at certain angles.
I’m experienced enough to not polish or mess with my watches, but sometimes the demons get me. I used cape cod and made it worse.
Here is how I fixed it.
You will need diamond paste. I tested it on my old Tissot PRS and Seiko. You want to start with the lowest effective grade. No need to start with 20 grit sandpaper for a micro swirl right?
Stick to 1 micron paste or less. I used 0.5 microns actually. And a q tip. It will take a couple of passes. Be firm but not too much pressure. Rotate the q tip so you don’t pass over the surface with the metal abrased tip
The hairlines will come off slowly and the mirror shine will come back. Finish off with a 0.25 micron for good orders sake.

Clean and voila

[jimcameron]

Originally Posted by Gary Busey

if you’re fixing a quasi brand new watch, where apart from the scratch, the mirror finish is still present,

....don't do anything.

[Gary Busey]

Originally Posted by jimcameron

....don't do anything.

That’s the correct answer

[Bizcut1]

Originally Posted by jimcameron

....don't do anything.

^^^ This ^^^

[offrdmania]

Ive never gotten swirls when using cape cod, but I also polish with it until the cape cod cloth is nearly completely black. It always comes out to a mirror finish. Did you make sure to clean the bracelet before using the cape cod? You may have some foreign material that the cape code cloth grabbed and is actually scratching the polished area.

[PanosI]

Originally Posted by offrdmania

Ive never gotten swirls when using cape cod, but I also polish with it until the cape cod cloth is nearly completely black. It always comes out to a mirror finish.

^^^ What he said.

[georgekart]

Originally Posted by PanosI

^^^ What he said.

Agree with both of you. I don't know how people use Cape Cod in a way that leaves swirl marks. Maybe if you don't know anything about polishing it can happen, but if you know at least the basics it shouldn't be hard to retain the perfect mirror finish, while removing scratches.

[Gary Busey]

Originally Posted by offrdmania

Ive never gotten swirls when using cape cod, but I also polish with it until the cape cod cloth is nearly completely black. It always comes out to a mirror finish. Did you make sure to clean the bracelet before using the cape cod? You may have some foreign material that the cape code cloth grabbed and is actually scratching the polished area.

Yes always clean.
It will leave marks. They are hard to see, but def visible on a new watch.

[offrdmania]

Originally Posted by Gary Busey

Yes always clean.
It will leave marks. They are hard to see, but def visible on a new watch.

If they are hard to see then you are looking at them way too close. Put the loupe away.

[padi56]

Fixing the swirls Cape Cod left god give me strength, I sometime wonder why Rolex made one of the toughest watches on this planet.

[Gary Busey]

Originally Posted by padi56

Fixing the swirls Cape Cod left god give me strength, I sometime wonder why Rolex made one of the toughest watches on this planet.

Don’t worry I use it as a tool watch as well. I do deep sea dives with it, jungle combat, I use it as a precise chronometer, and I fix my cars with it on

[Randy63]

Originally Posted by Gary Busey

First off, try to smother any inclination you may have to take out small scratches. Period
But if you must then do it right
Cape cod is often seen as a miracle cure for hairline scratches and I it is to an extent.
However, if you’re fixing a quasi brand new watch, where apart from the scratch, the mirror finish is still present, cape cod will screw that up. You’ll get a bunch of micro swirls seen at certain angles.
I’m experienced enough to not polish or mess with my watches, but sometimes the demons get me. I used cape cod and made it worse.
Here is how I fixed it.
You will need diamond paste. I tested it on my old Tissot PRS and Seiko. You want to start with the lowest effective grade. No need to start with 20 grit sandpaper for a micro swirl right?
Stick to 1 micron paste or less. I used 0.5 microns actually. And a q tip. It will take a couple of passes. Be firm but not too much pressure. Rotate the q tip so you don’t pass over the surface with the metal abrased tip
The hairlines will come off slowly and the mirror shine will come back. Finish off with a 0.25 micron for good orders sake.

Clean and voila

Great post. I know first hand about those demons. I now resist the urge but it's not always easy. Cape Cod micro swirls are a very real thing. If one uses a Cape Cod cloth, no matter how experienced they think they are, micro swirls will be left behind.

I just hope I can stay resolute so as not to need to go out and buy diamond paste in an attempt to get rid of the micro swirls caused by me obsessing over the minor scratches that are inevitable with daily wear.


Randy

[Gary Busey]

Originally Posted by Randy63

Great post. I know first hand about those demons. I now resist the urge but it's not always easy. Cape Cod micro swirls are a very real thing. If one uses a Cape Cod cloth, no matter how experienced they think they are, micro swirls will be left behind.

I just hope I can stay resolute so as not to need to go out and buy diamond paste in an attempt to get rid of the micro swirls caused by me obsessing over the minor scratches that are inevitable with daily wear.


Randy

Would have left it alone if I didn’t already have the past. Bot it years ago to polish sapphire. Works great.

[platinum574]

Cape Cod is shit- NOT for Rolex, maybe good for other things

[R G]

Originally Posted by georgekart

Agree with both of you. I don't know how people use Cape Cod in a way that leaves swirl marks. Maybe if you don't know anything about polishing it can happen, but if you know at least the basics it shouldn't be hard to retain the perfect mirror finish, while removing scratches.

Exactly this.

Originally Posted by platinum574

Cape Cod is shit- NOT for Rolex, maybe good for other things

Not if you know what you’re doing.

[jimcameron]

Originally Posted by platinum574

Cape Cod is shit- NOT for Rolex, maybe good for other things

Cape Cod, has it place, and in it's place it works fine. In the hands of a compulsive obsessive, not so much.

[Mystro]

Here we are again on this forum attacking and bitching about a “how-to” post. Perhaps the forum isn’t getting enough sticker or resale value threads???? The “good old days” had these kinds of how to threads every day on TRF as a tutorial.

[Gary Busey]

Originally Posted by Mystro

Here we are again on this forum attacking and bitching about a “how-to” post. Perhaps the forum isn’t getting enough sticker or resale value threads???? The “good old days” had these kinds of how to threads every day on TRF as a tutorial.

Was just advice and sharing know how.

Thank you Mystro


Maybe we need more “why doesn’t anyone compliment me on my WG Yachmaster, is it because they think it’s steel, should I sell??? Posts

[5nit]

So tired of people bitching at others for wanting to keep a clean watch. Do you sing a Ferrari and just leave it? Not for enthusiasts. My Rolex is my Ferrari and others feel the same. You can get a swirl free mirror polish with cape cod... even under a loupe it will look brand new. It takes time and a steady hand. The same hand I’ve used for other things like repairing car paint, etc.

Here is my cape cod thread and if you need help PM me.

https://www.rolexforums.com/showthread.php?t=683573

[Bigblu10]

Originally Posted by 5nit

So tired of people bitching at others for wanting to keep a clean watch. Do you sing a Ferrari and just leave it? Not for enthusiasts. My Rolex is my Ferrari and others feel the same. You can get a swirl free mirror polish with cape cod... even under a loupe it will look brand new. It takes time and a steady hand. The same hand I’ve used for other things like repairing car paint, etc.

Here is my cape cod thread and if you need help PM me.

https://www.rolexforums.com/showthread.php?t=683573

Keeping a clean watch is perfectly fine. Dawn dish soap, warm water and a soft brush or wash cloth. Save the damn polishing for the CW21 watchmaker who has the "PROPER" equipment to restore a factory mirror finish. Instead of chasing every fine scratch or swirl with a chemically treated cloth.....that will not give you a factory finish. Learn to deal with scratches and swirlies or keep it in it's box.

[5nit]

Originally Posted by Bigblu10

Keeping a clean watch is perfectly fine. Dawn dish soap, warm water and a soft brush or wash cloth. Save the damn polishing for the CW21 watchmaker who has the "PROPER" equipment to restore a factory mirror finish. Instead of chasing every fine scratch or swirl with a chemically treated cloth.....that will not give you a factory finish. Learn to deal with scratches and swirlies or keep in in it's box.

Chasing every scratch is one thing, doing a little work here and there to keep it looking great, just fine. Do you leave your scratched car for the next time it goes into service? You might, many would have it corrected and touched up. Nothing wrong with that at all.

I personally refinished a bad scratch I had on my previous DJ that drove me nuts. I removed it and brought it back to new. So close in fact my AD could not tell one bit under the lights and all the brand new watches.

Again, to each their own.

[Tlon]

I would use polishing paper of diminishing grit, starting with 15 or 9 microns and going down to .3 microns. You can get a lot more control over the initial scuffing and polishing with these compared to the cape cod cloth, which I think I read somewhere has a higher grit and will not be as smooth as 1 or even .3 micron polishing paper.

You can get the kits that go from 30 to 1 micron here:

http://www.watchbandrenew.com/

and you can get .3 micron on Amazon. In fact, you can get all the grits in larger sheets on amazon, if you want to put together your own kit, but I do find the package and directions that http://www.watchbandrenew.com/ puts together to be useful.

A couple of suggestions:

• Follow the directions at http://www.watchbandrenew.com/. They will tell you that you start with a higher grade to scuff the finish and then use diminishing grits to smooth out the polish. Since you are just trying to get rid of CC swirls -- I've been there and know exactly what you're talking about...cc cloth results look good to the naked eye but definitely can show swirls on closer inspection -- you may not need to scuff up the finish at all. The microfibers take a good bit of elbow grease to get a mirror polish, but it's very doable and it looks great even under a loupe (I know, I know, never look at your watch under a loupe...).
  
• Tape off what you don't want polished. Very important. If you have a SD, I'd also tape off the helium valve.
  
• Buy a cheap 316L case or band on eBay to practice on. Since removing a scratch often means making the watch worse before making it better, it helps to practice and to convince yourself that you can make it better.

Good luck!

[Brew]

Now I know how to fix another one of the problems I'm prone to foist upon myself. Thanks, but this one of those, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" kinda things for me.

[Boaters]

I have never used Cape Cod on a rolex but Omega, Oris, Doxa and various others and have had great results.

[othertbone]

I have never polished any of my watches. I just take good care of them and I don't obsess. You really only see the scratches when you take the time to look closely... so I don't.

[bradyb]

The only time Cape Cod cloth can leave micro swirly scratches is if it's a little bit dried out.

[Gary Busey]

Originally Posted by bradyb

The only time Cape Cod cloth can leave micro swirly scratches is if it's a little bit dried out.

Interesting....

[5nit]

Originally Posted by Gary Busey

Interesting....

I agree with this. Use a lot of lube. Even grape seed oil. Need to keep the abrasion down. And you can get a mirror finish. I’ve got pics of mine in this thread.

[Buzzlite]

So put grape seed oil on the lugs or pcl first ? Then cape cod ?

Originally Posted by 5nit

I agree with this. Use a lot of lube. Even grape seed oil. Need to keep the abrasion down. And you can get a mirror finish. I’ve got pics of mine in this thread.

[5nit]

Originally Posted by Buzzlite

So put grape seed oil on the lugs or pcl first ? Then cape cod ?

No no, just use a little bit when your cloth seems to dry out. For better results constantly use new pieces of cap cod once black. When you are finishing up and wanting to get the swirls out use a new piece of cape cod and to softly.