What is the expected cost of light polish on GMTII in 2021?

[amphr1]

I found a thread about this but that was in 2017. I am considering having my clasp and bracelet do a light polish on my GMTII at my local AD. Thanks in advance for the help!

[OG1982]

Speak to your AD, they will all be different as its not Rolex performing this work but the shop themselves.

I would advise caution before letting anyone near my watches, the best way to get your watch polished is to wait for the routine service where the watch will be sent back to a proper Rolex Service Centre. Letting the AD do this is a risk not worth taking in my opinion.

[Philadelphialawyer1]

cape cod cloths and you tube.
very doable on your own.

[padi56]

Originally Posted by amphora001

I found a thread about this but that was in 2017. I am considering having my clasp and bracelet do a light polish on my GMTII at my local AD. Thanks in advance for the help!

The only time any Rolex needs any sort of polishing is at normal routine service only, which now depending on use every 5-10 years .The sure way to ruin any Rolex watch is wanting to polish every time you see a normal wearing everyday scratch.

[Master_Grogu]

Don’t listen to anybody

Don’t do anything yourself

Don’t pay a cent for a polish

Don’t send it to anybody (especially not jewelers or whatever)

The only entity that should ever polish your watch is RSC. Not your AD, not your jewelers, not your friend. RSC.

And then you shouldn’t polish anything. Why would you do it, the scratches will be back.

[Boaters]

Originally Posted by Master_Grogu

Don’t listen to anybody

Don’t do anything yourself

Don’t pay a cent for a polish

Don’t send it to anybody (especially not jewelers or whatever)

The only entity that should ever polish your watch is RSC. Not your AD, not your jewelers, not your friend. RSC.

And then you shouldn’t polish anything. Why would you do it, the scratches will be back.

Words of Wisdom.

[amphr1]

Well i tried to do it, although not with the cloth you folks mentioned, with the clasp in my Omega and it just didn't turn out right. It wasn't a shine that I was going for, it was a brushed look, and it just didn't look right after. I didn't want to ruin my Rolex by doing it myself.

[amphr1]

I feel like it's pretty scratched up...

[TheVTCGuy]

It’s your watch Amphora and you should do whatever makes you comfortable, but if you are asking for opinions I am on the side of don’t do it. Have it polished at the service. Take a look at some of the for sale sections around the internet, you will see a lot of watches that ha e been over polished and they look far worse then any scratch. I understand it’s just the bracelet but even if it is the only over-polished section of the watch, it can still look horrible.

[JerBear]

Originally Posted by amphora001

I feel like it's pretty scratched up...

I hear you, but I see a watch that has been enjoyed as it was intended.

[garyk]

Originally Posted by JerBear

I hear you, but I see a watch that has been enjoyed as it was intended.

This x 100

[amphr1]

My AD said $200-$300. He also said it's not so bad that I don't really need it. Still unsure.

[Master_Grogu]

This has already been poorly polished in the past.

[Seddyspaghetti]

Originally Posted by Master_Grogu

Don’t listen to anybody

Don’t do anything yourself

Don’t pay a cent for a polish

Don’t send it to anybody (especially not jewelers or whatever)

The only entity that should ever polish your watch is RSC. Not your AD, not your jewelers, not your friend. RSC.

And then you shouldn’t polish anything. Why would you do it, the scratches will be back.

Don’t listen to you?

[amphr1]

Originally Posted by Master_Grogu

This has already been poorly polished in the past.

How do you tell? honestly I'm pretty novice when it comes to spotting these things. I look at those fake vs real articles and I can almost never figure out which has the higher quality LOL

[1665fan]

It’s not that bad…..no polish

[Dr. Robert]

To the op, be careful. I’m not on the RSC payroll but they’re the only operation I would let polish my watches.

[amphr1]

Originally Posted by Dr. Robert

To the op, be careful. I’m not on the RSC payroll but they’re the only operation I would let polish my watches.

And I assume you concur that I shouldn't do this myself with some YouTube video as previously suggested?

[chieftd]

I would recommend not trying to remove scratches yourself or using an AD to polish. It really will get scratched up again so quickly you will be chasing the rabbit down the hole every month.

As others have said, recommend you wait until service time and have it polished by the RSC or a certified Rolex trained independent. In the mean time keep it clean by frequent washing, this will limit the bracelet stretching.

Wear it and enjoy it, no need to baby it. The scratches are just part of the experience.

Cheers, Tim

[GMT Aviator]

Generally I would say leave it, but if its only the polished part of the clasp you want to restore then I can’t see what harm it will do.
Just tape off the brushed parts either side of the polished centre, then polish it in that area only with a cape cod.
It won’t ruin anything RSC won’t re-finish come service time and it’ll restore it and make you feel better.
I’ve done various clasps across my collection, both polished and brushed and never had a problem. Just don’t use an industrial sized buffing wheel!

[amphr1]

Originally Posted by GMT Aviator

Generally I would say leave it, but if its only the polished part of the clasp you want to restore then I can’t see what harm it will do.
Just tape off the brushed parts either side of the polished centre, then polish it in that area only with a cape cod.
It won’t ruin anything RSC won’t re-finish come service time and it’ll restore it and make you feel better.
I’ve done various clasps across my collection, both polished and brushed and never had a problem. Just don’t use an industrial sized buffing wheel!

I'm going to try on a small portion of the clasp and then see if I'm confident in the rest of the clasp. Yes I only want to do it on the clasp.

I assume there's only 1 cape cod polish? There's no specific version I need right?

[GMT Aviator]

Originally Posted by amphora001

I'm going to try on a small portion of the clasp and then see if I'm confident in the rest of the clasp. Yes I only want to do it on the clasp.

I assume there's only 1 cape cod polish? There's no specific version I need right?

That’s right.

Post pics. Don’t be afraid. Polish the whole strip on the clasp, just mask off the two brushed strips either side.
This isn’t like you’re polishing the case or anything.
Pics when you’re finished.

[joli160]

Certainly not your AD.

It’s an easy DIY with masking tape and cape cod/ sunshine cloth. By doing it yourself you can avoid that the coronet on the clasp will be grinded off

[amphr1]

I did it! Thanks for the recommendation! It was easier than I expected. I was very careful and took my time. I tried it on a few millimeter section at first to see how it goes and then just expanded to the entire clasp eventually. The middle part was only lightly polished with the sides a bit harder. I tried straight up and down, and also circular motion. I think circular motion worked better. I dunno. I'm just glad I did it. =)

[joli160]

Well done, if you like to use some more elbow grease go with the sunshine cloth for another pass. This will take care of the micro swirls

[Master_Grogu]

Originally Posted by Seddyspaghetti

Don’t listen to you?

Don’t listen to me! Even when I tell you not to listen to me, you shouldn’t listen to that

Originally Posted by amphora001

How do you tell? honestly I'm pretty novice when it comes to spotting these things. I look at those fake vs real articles and I can almost never figure out which has the higher quality LOL

It looks wrong on so many aspects. After handling so many clasps you start to form an image in your mind. And when you see a discrepant clasp, your brain tells you “something is wrong”. Just like art expert feel a forgery but can’t tell why, and then after forensics, turns out their intuition was right.

[SearChart]

RSC charges 340chf to polish a professional model outside of a service.

[alllexandru]

Originally Posted by Master_Grogu

Don’t listen to anybody

Don’t do anything yourself

Don’t pay a cent for a polish

Don’t send it to anybody (especially not jewelers or whatever)

The only entity that should ever polish your watch is RSC. Not your AD, not your jewelers, not your friend. RSC.

And then you shouldn’t polish anything. Why would you do it, the scratches will be back.

Best advice