Why can't they make a domed crystal?

[watchnut]

Looking at my new Sub the other day and realized that one of the things that is bugging me is the flat crystal. I really miss the look of the acrylic on my old GMT. Also, when I see the older DJ's on here they look so much better than my new DJ. What is there about the sapphire glass that it has to be flat? I think it makes the faces look so much smaller. With the technology today they can't make a domed glass crystal? Or are they thinking it sits up too high and would be more prone to chipping, etc?

Domed sapphire crystals can be made. I have no idea why Rolex would not do this, other than they don't have to in order to sell their watches.....

My Sinn 356 has a domed sapphire crystal. Here is a write up on how it's produced. Nothing magic about it really.

http://www.watchbuys.com/adobe/Sapphire_Crystal.pdf

[ohlins]

they can but i guess they just dun wanna do it.....i like it flat

[mikey]

Since most fake Rolex Datejust and most other fake Rolexes have sapphire crystals. Makes it hard to determine Real or fake. This is why I love the vintage Rolex Datejust so much becasue it has a distinctive doomed acrylic look that tells the world you have a Real Rolex even though its old.

[SPACE-DWELLER]

Originally Posted by watchnut

Looking at my new Sub the other day and realized that one of the things that is bugging me is the flat crystal. I really miss the look of the acrylic on my old GMT. Also, when I see the older DJ's on here they look so much better than my new DJ. What is there about the sapphire glass that it has to be flat? I think it makes the faces look so much smaller. With the technology today they can't make a domed glass crystal? Or are they thinking it sits up too high and would be more prone to chipping, etc?

They do it on the "new" Day-Date. "New" in quotes, since it has been around for some years now. I am talking about the 118238, for example, that has polished lugs.

But I have had the very same thoughts as you many times. A domed sapphire crystal would suit the Sub Date (or ANY of the "Sporties", really) well!

[keywest]

I don't know this, but wouldn't domed crystal be more likely to scratch or pit on the highest part of the crystal....does that make sense?

[SPACE-DWELLER]

Originally Posted by keywest

I don't know this, but wouldn't domed crystal be more likely to scratch or pit on the highest part of the crystal....does that make sense?

If so, the cyclop's itself is proned to be scratched.

Anyway: I have been told that domed saphire crystal are STRONGER than flat ones when it comes to PRESSURE directly onto the glass.

[watchnut]

Originally Posted by mikey

Since most fake Rolex Datejust and most other fake Rolexes have sapphire crystals. Makes it hard to determine Real or fake. This is why I love the vintage Rolex Datejust so much becasue it has a distinctive doomed acrylic look that tells the world you have a Real Rolex even though its old.

Agree with you. You can't tell an Invicta from a Seiko from a Rollie from a distance. Rolex could make theirs more identifiable by using a domed crystal. Plus as mentioned on here, it probably is stronger. If they used a thicker, domed crystal on the SD, you could go down another 1000 ft. Something that would come in handy.

[JJ Irani]

Originally Posted by watchnut

Agree with you. You can't tell an Invicta from a Seiko from a Rollie from a distance. Rolex could make theirs more identifiable by using a domed crystal. Plus as mentioned on here, it probably is stronger. If they used a thicker, domed crystal on the SD, you could go down another 1000 ft. Something that would come in handy.

[John685]

I got rid of a Raymond Weil automatic recently, because it had a domed crystal. The watch had a black face with grey numbers and the domed crystal picked up terrible reflections from almost any light source. It was hard to read and I found myself constantly tilting the watch to different angles just to see the time. It was even worse if you wanted to see the date! The dome is more prone to reflections and I assume certain color dials and hands might be harder to see than others.

John

John

[s7horton]

Originally Posted by Spacedweller

Anyway: I have been told that domed saphire crystal are STRONGER than flat ones when it comes to PRESSURE directly onto the glass.

You are correct, a domed crystal would be much stronger.

[SPACE-DWELLER]

Originally Posted by John685

I got rid of a Raymond Weil automatic recently, because it had a domed crystal. The watch had a black face with grey numbers and the domed crystal picked up terrible reflections from almost any light source. It was hard to read and I found myself constantly tilting the watch to different angles just to see the time. It was even worse if you wanted to see the date! The dome is more prone to reflections and I assume certain color dials and hands might be harder to see than others.

John

John

I know what you mean, and I agree

Have you noted how the curved plexi crystal on old - for example! - Subs really blurrs the dial when you look at the watch from an angle? It can be really hard to tell the time just from a slight angle.

A curved SAPPHIRE crystal on a modern Sub Date (the 16610) could of course be anti-glare treated.

That is what Breitling, Omega and Sinn do!

BUT: where were we if Rolex did that?

Weren't we then on that "Breitling Train" I have written about (and that I have as a "quote of myself" after every post of mine)?

I hope you get my point.

Maybe Rolex in fact does NOT want to "go Breitling"

At least not what the crystal is concerned, I must add

[Incurable]

Boy, I couldn't disagree more... Funny (funny weird, not funny haha) how impressions and opinions can vary so much. The reason for a curved crystal in the first place is to eliminate reflection. As an added bonus, it allows for oblique viewing better than flat crystals do. The amount of distortion, I imagine, would depend on the severity of the curvature.

My Sinn 356 is EXTREMELY visible from the most severe angles and is WAY more anti-reflective than my Rolexes. In fact, my Rolex watches can be a bit irksome sometimes they reflect so much. Try and glare someone in the eye (great sport) with a curved crystal... you can't. With the Rolex, it makes for great lunchtime sport to aim the sunshine on someones forehead or chest as he/she shares some serious point. The slight curvature of the Sinn bends the light ever so slightly and brings the hands out so they seem to just 'pop' out at you at all angles. I find it one of the most attractive features about the watch, its legibility under the worst of conditions despite its busy dial. I'm not sure if the 356 is AR coated or not but I do detect a slight purple hue at the edges of the crystal sometimes. If so, it's interior only. This is what I'm trying to say...

[Rubenonfire]

Originally Posted by Incurable

My Sinn 356 is EXTREMELY visable from the most severe angles and is WAY more anti-reflective than my Rolexes. In fact, my Rolex watches can be a bit irksome sometimes they reflect so much. Try and glare someone in the eye (great sport) with a curved crystal... you can't. With the Rolex, it makes for great lunchtime sport to aim the sunshine on someones forehead or chest as he/she shares some serious point. The slight curvature of the Sinn bends the light ever so slightly due to the curve and brings the hands out so they seem to just 'pop' out at you at all angles. I find it one of the most attractive features about the watch, its legibility under the worst of conditions despite its busy dial. I'm not sure if the 356 is AR coated or not but I do detect a slight purple hue at the edges of the crystal sometimes. If so, it's interior only. This is what I'm trying to say...

Wow. That watch is absolutely gorgeous. Few on a strap have ever looked better.

[jac67]

Originally Posted by Spacedweller

They do it on the "new" Day-Date. "New" in quotes, since it has been around for some years now. I am talking about the 118238, for example, that has polished lugs.

I have a P-series 118238 Day-Date with polished lugs, but the crystal appears to be flat.

Could you post a picture, side view please.


John.

[leopardprey]

If you want a domed crystal that is anti-reflective, check out Omega Seamaster GMTs, SMP, and POs.

[TARDIS]

I read a story years ago about a trio who got lost in rugged scrub country here. They were on a bush walk and got lost. The alarm was raised and an air search was in progress as fears were held for their safety.

The navigator in the search plane saw something reflecting in the sunlight down there, then another and another, which led to location and rescue.

It turn out one of the trio had a GMT Master II and when he heard the airplane's engine, he used his watch like a makeshift heliograph*, bouncing the suns rays of the FLAT crystal towards the plane.

* an object like a map held approximately in line with the target. Get the circular sun reflection from the watch onto the map then slide it off in repeated movement towards the target. With skill, it can be possible to send SOS.

As far as I'm concerned, I'm quite happy with Rolex flat crystal on my Sub!

[SPACE-DWELLER]

Originally Posted by jac67

I have a P-series 118238 Day-Date with polished lugs, but the crystal appears to be flat.

Could you post a picture, side view please.


John.

Hi John,

please read the text in THIS link from a "Basel Show Report":

http://www.ukwatches.com/Notes/basel.htm

I quote from the fourth paragraph the following note:

"The new Day Date is probably the most radical update of the watch since its 1956 introduction. However “radical” in the Rolex vocabulary means “gradual” in everyone else’s; and so most of the changes are not immediately visible. The most interesting change is from a flat to a slightly domed crystal, this has always been a personal “bugbear” of mine, as I dislike the flat sapphire crystals" (my emphasis).

Originally Posted by Incurable

Boy, I couldn't disagree more... Funny (funny weird, not funny haha) how impressions and opinions can vary so much. The reason for a curved crystal in the first place is to eliminate reflection. As an added bonus, it allows for oblique viewing better than flat crystals do. The amount of distortion, I imagine, would depend on the severity of the curvature.

My Sinn 356 is EXTREMELY visible from the most severe angles and is WAY more anti-reflective than my Rolexes. In fact, my Rolex watches can be a bit irksome sometimes they reflect so much. Try and glare someone in the eye (great sport) with a curved crystal... you can't. With the Rolex, it makes for great lunchtime sport to aim the sunshine on someones forehead or chest as he/she shares some serious point. The slight curvature of the Sinn bends the light ever so slightly and brings the hands out so they seem to just 'pop' out at you at all angles. I find it one of the most attractive features about the watch, its legibility under the worst of conditions despite its busy dial. I'm not sure if the 356 is AR coated or not but I do detect a slight purple hue at the edges of the crystal sometimes. If so, it's interior only. This is what I'm trying to say...

I agree completely. The domed crystal makes reading the dial much easier than on a flat crystal. Nice 356 you have there. I opted for the copper dial Flieger II.....

[SPACE-DWELLER]

So - as you see in my previous post - Rolex DOES make domed sapphire crystals, but only for the Day-Dates.

Now the question is:

Why does Rolex not make dome sapphire crystal for the other Rolex watches, too??

[SPACE-DWELLER]

Anybody on this??

[leopardprey]

Why change? Rolex sells all the watches they make. They are about profit, not about making useful tools.

Want a domed anti-reflective tool watch? Get an Omega or a Sinn.

Want a luxury tool watch with domed anti-reflective cystal: Get an Berguet Air Command or a Blancpain Fifty Fanthoms.

[SPACE-DWELLER]

Originally Posted by leopardprey

Why change? Rolex sells all the watches they make. They are about profit, not about making useful tools.

Want a domed anti-reflective tool watch? Get an Omega or a Sinn.

Want a luxury tool watch with domed anti-reflective cystal: Get an Berguet Air Command or a Blancpain Fifty Fanthoms.

Yup! Rolex sells all the watches they make, no doubt about that. But why did the Rolex people fit only the Day-Date with a domed sapphire crystal then???

Surely NOT to sell even MORE Day-Dates

So we are talking some "cosmetic change".

But again: Why not change the others?

[leopardprey]

Maybe the only one with enough weight behind him, for Rolex to even consider a pratical change request, is the Pope - who wears a Day Date? LOL

[watchnut]

[QUOTE=leopardprey;235753]Why change? Rolex sells all the watches they make. They are about profit, not about making useful tools. That's it! Lets get some of that anger out of our system!