Explorer II - 16570 Sapphire damaged

[GeoGio Greece]

And the inevitable had happened.

It was time to rotate, as the 16700 had got some wrist time the last month and the time had come to go and rest next to the 5513 in the safe box.

So, I got the 16570 out of the box, admired the perfect condition for a few moments. Then, the unfortunate moment came. The watch somehow slipped from my hands and fell face down to the hard ceramic tiles.

My heart beats went to the skies, bent down to pick it up and ….yes, the sapphire glass was broken in more pieces that I could count.

With shaking hands, I unscrewed the crown and hacked the movement the fastest I could.

Tears of anger for this unhappy moment flooded my eyes. A perfectly kept to date watch got a damage.

I removed very carefully all the broken pieces from the dial and hands to avoid possible damage. And according to the TRF “no pictures, it ever happened” principle, there we go.

The watch is now with the “doctor”, and will return next week, fully serviced, no polishing, and ready to see some sunshine on its new sapphire.

[watchwatcher]

Sorry to hear of this. Here's hoping for a speedy and successful recovery!

[rockinray]

Man I feel your pain! The same thing happened to my Sub back in 2001.

It all worked out fine. My crystal was much worse than yours. Fell off of the bathroom counter and right on the ceramic tile!

I am wearing that Sub right now.

Best of luck!


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[sea-dweller]

Hope it gets fixed quick!

[crowncollection]

Can happen sorry for you , I am sure your watchmaker will sort it put as good as new


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[polarinda]

Sorry to hear but it'll come back good.

[CoachRolexRyan]

So sorry to hear about your Explorer, it will be like it never happened once you get the crystal replaced.

[cop414]

So so sorry to hear, great job hacking the movement. Should come back just like it was before the drop though. Please keep us posted.

[benlee]

Ouch!... sorry for what happened Hope it gets fixed soon. At least you still got the Rolex GMT Pepsi to wear for now.

[TimeOnMyHands]

Glad my bathroom floor is linoleum...

[hdrazor251]

Sorry it happened, but good on you for hacking the movement right away.

[Al1969]

Sorry to hear. I'm sure it'll be back as good as new. I think that's why I normally take off my watches with my wrist over my bed.

[fliphandywork]

Oh man, sorry about the fall. I've imagined dropped one of my watches,,, the thought is more than I can tolerate.

[apollo11]

That's gut wrenching. Good on ya' having the presence of mind to hack the watch. Enjoy it when it comes back!

[Mystro]

I have read so many times about ceramic tile and watches being dropped on them. So much that I never hold any of my watches above any tile floors in my house. The safest place for your watch is on your wrist. When taking off your watch or handling it, do it over your bed or at least over carpeted floors. The OP story is my exact nightmare with handling a watch above a hard surface.

[vitalsignsrn]

:-( Sorry to hear of your accident. It will be repaired. :-)

[vitalsignsrn]

I forgot to ask… what is referred to as "hacking the movement"? Is that referring to pulling the crown out and stopping the time?

[GeoGio Greece]

Originally Posted by vitalsignsrn

I forgot to ask… what is referred to as "hacking the movement"? Is that referring to pulling the crown out and stopping the time?

Thank You all for your response. Yes, it will return fully fixed, and like new.

Hacking is the ability to stop the movement at exact seconds for accurate adjustment of time.

It did not exist in older models, but it does in the newer ones ( newer compared with my age, as most of the members of TRF were born after this application ).

As the sapphire glass breaks, very small fragments may enter the movement via the date window and end in between the gears. This may cause further damage to the movement, therefore we "stop" the running of the watch, until it is fully disassembled, cleaned in special baths and with ultrasonics.

I will post pics after the return from the service.

[Jason71]

George, I'm so sorry my friend. I'm sure you are gutted.

At least it wasn't your baby (5513), and luckily.......a little cash will have it back to you as good as new.

[GeoGio Greece]

Originally Posted by Jason71

George, I'm so sorry my friend. I'm sure you are gutted.

At least it wasn't your baby (5513), and luckily.......a little cash will have it back to you as good as new.

Jason my friend, Thank You !

The 5513 due to the acrylic, DOES NOT break, it only scratches and then needs polishing with toothpaste.

See the scratches on the crystal of the 5513 from 1 to 3, made on a stone wall, that I just "touched".

This is the difference. Sapphire does not scratch, bur under strong knocks may break, acrylic scratches but does not break. You only need a "waterproof" test after a knock, as to verify that the acrylic is still good.

[Hay Ewe]

Are you able to get a saphire installed that doesn't have a cyclops?

[Jason71]

Originally Posted by GeoGio Greece

Jason my friend, Thank You !

The 5513 due to the acrylic, DOES NOT break, it only scratches and then needs polishing with toothpaste.

See the scratches on the crystal of the 5513 from 1 to 3, made on a stone wall, that I just "touched".

This is the difference. Sapphire does not scratch, bur under strong knocks may break, acrylic scratches but does not break. You only need a "waterproof" test after a knock, as to verify that the acrylic is still good.

Yes, those are the properties that I LOVE about a plexi crystal. I just meant I was glad you didn't damage your 5513 as I know that is a special watch to you. A drop to the floor wouldn't shatter the crystal on your 5513, but it sure could wreak havoc on a lug or two.

[Vincent65]

Sorry to hear, George - sure it will come back good as new, however. Be careful!

[padi56]

Sorry for your mishap with your crystal that's one of the downsides of sapphire crystals and hard tile floors.But after a full service watch will be as good as new just be careful of the tiles floors more watch accidents happen in places like bathrooms and tile floors.

[bridgs]

Glad it will be back with you soon.

[doubleroll]

Ouch sorry to hear! My worst nightmare...my son dropped my Tag on Hardwood and was lucky the only thing happened was the clasp bent a bit. Easy to fix. Let us know how it goes after the repair!


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[Rashid.bk]

I sincerely sympathize with you and can only imagine the feeling when hearing it land.
There was one occasion I was in a hurry putting my DS on with the rubber b and it slipped and luckily I was seated and the floor was wooden so nothing happened. I think the big ole hunk of metal actually left a dent in the floor.
I've seen quite a few Rolexes hit the deck around here which is why I now have a standing unbreakable policy that I always put my watches on over a soft surface like my bed, sofa, towel on a table etc.
Since having a rubber b on my Deepsea it fell once again while trying to put on, but this time it was okay since I was over my bed. Just not used to putting a band on(bracing it against my body) vs the bracelet(just sliding it on) and then the Deespsea's head is a bit heavy...

I recommend to everyone that at any time you handle your watches do so over a safe surface, if not, I think you're gambling.

Good luck with the repairs. Looking on the bright side, it's better in a way that it landed on the crystal and not the edge of a lug, that could've left an ugly dent to the case. Much easier and good as new to just replace the crystal.

[HL65]

Sorry to hear George so hope for a speedy fix! Cheers,

[jctrolex]

Sorry to hear that George at least it's the crystal that got damaged and not the case, it'll be good as new when it comes back. My wife dropped her brand new Datejust last month and left a sizeable dent on the lug. I'm not sure if it can be polished out without altering the shape of the lug, oh well it's just a watch. She dropped it because she just had a minor stroke and she lost some of her fine motor skill, thank God she's ok.

[kilyung]

Ouch, hope it gets repair quickly. This is why I only remove my watch over carpeted areas. By the way, it'd be cool to get AR coating on the crystal... that 16570 dial looks crisp without the glaring crystal in the way.