Washed off Lum...

[Clay]

I have been seeing these For Sale ads that say that the watch has had the "Luminous Material Washed Off"...
Making the markers a bright white...
What do we think of this???

[GIS8]

Personally not a fan of crusty hands with non-working lume sitting on them. I'd pick this option over not.

[swish77]

I consider that an altered dial. I'd stay away from anything that's been tinkered with, touched up or changed in any way. I'd rather have a clean Rolex service dial than an original dial that's been messed with.

[RLX-lvr]

Originally Posted by Clay

I have been seeing these For Sale ads that say that the watch has had the "Luminous Material Washed Off"...
Making the markers a bright white...
What do we think of this???

It has been washed off because the plots have probably been flaking heavily,
and the watchmaker has removed the problem by removing the plots.

I guess it looks better than crumbling lume plots.

[gerard88t]

Stay away! Dial should not be affected, as it will affect the value, negatively. Gentle blower on it at most, and only if there really is threats of paint flaking off which could get into the movement and all over under crystal.

[TimeToGo]

Originally Posted by RLX-lvr

It has been washed off because the plots have probably been flaking heavily,
and the watchmaker has removed the problem by removing the plots.

I guess it looks better than crumbling lume plots.

X2

It is still an original dial.

[Vincent65]

I wouldn't go near one!

[withthesword]

depends on what you're looking for.

for myself, i totally desire vintage watches, but i also desire the cleanliness of modern ones. i'd (flame retardant suit up!) wash or relume a vintage dial in a heartbeat. for myself, being 90% original is as good as 100% original. your mileage may vary.

[John in MA]

I purchased a 16800 which had the lume plots washed. Got it for a better price.



I planned on reluming it and sourced an original matte tritium dial with the original lume. I installed the replacement matte dial while the washed matte one was out for relume. Proceeded to loose the watch in St. Thomas on vacation, got a replacement 16800 and installed the relumed matte washed dial. Sourced some service hands and now I have a 16800 that glows like a new watch but is matte.



Best of both worlds if you decide to go that route with a washed dial. Otherwise I wouldn't recommend it myself.