As some of you know, I've been trying, for months, to figure out how to remove the crystal from my Seawolf (or Avenger Skyland) for AR coating. I know that some people think the Rep AR coating on these watches is acceptable, but after having my BCE's re-coated, I can't stand to even wear my Seawolf or Skyland. I, personally, think the Rep AR is horrible. Gen AR makes a tremendous difference (at least to my BCE's)!
I finally grew so sick of the Rep AR that I decided that I'd either sell the watch or destroy it trying to remove the crystal. My insanity prevailed (as it often does) and I decided to remove the crystal, even if it meant that I'd end up with garbage.
I was inspired by Breitest24's success at removing his SA crystal (link). Using some of his techniques (not the flame-thrower though) I was finally able to, successfully, remove the crystal from my Seawolf. I tried to document the steps for those of you who may want to attempt this yourselves.
First off, here's a 'before' shot of the Seawolf AR (hopefully, I'll have a nice 'after' picture in a few weeks). It's so bad that I don't know if it could be much worse if there were no AR at all. Note, there are no scratches in the AR...it just sucks.
Following Breitest24's suggestion, I started by prying around the bezel, in much the same way you remove the lid from a paint can (the photo shows me demonstrating on my AS...I forgot to take pictures when I was working on the Seawolf). I stuck the tool (a cheap case opener) between the case and bezel, pried a little bit, rotated the bezel 90 deg, pried a bit more and continued this until...suddenly the bezel just popped off. This part was WAY easier than I could have imagined. If I had known it was going to be this easy, I would have done it a LONG time ago!!
Here's a picture showing the bezel (and click ring) removed:
Next came removing the crystal. I have bad memories of the first time I tried to remove a crystal (It must have been glass). It shattered into 1000 pieces. Ever since then, I've been very timid about removing crystals. I considered using Breitest24's method of heating up the metal to expand it, but I know that there are typically plastic gaskets inside holding the crystal in place. With my luck, I'd melt the darn thing. Since I don't have a source for replacement crystal gaskets, I decided to use brute force.
First I tried my handy-dandy $9.99 crystal press. It has worked for dozens of crystals, so I figured...why not. I picked the correct size dyes and proceeded to press...nothing. I pressed harder...nothing...I finally gave it everything I had and...nothing. At this point, I figured it was time to either succeed or turn a $300 watch into trash.
I am embarrassed to show photos, but I basically got the biggest C-clamp I could find in my garage. I placed the watch inside of the clamp (along with the dyes) and proceeded to 'turn the screw'. I kept turning and turning. It got to the point where I could hardly turn the screw any tighter when finally I heard a very loud POP! My wife came running in the room, thinking I had destroyed another watch (yes, there have been others). I, slowly, removed the clamp and to my pleasant surprise, the crystal was still in one piece. There was, however, residue around the edges of the crystal as if it had been glued into place.
So, there it is. If you decide to do this yourself, I recommend a powerful crystal press and good dyes. It takes a LOT of pressure to remove the crystal. I may need a professional to reinstall it, but that's the easy part.
I'm looking forward to showing 'after' pictures in a few weeks.
Well...off to remove the old AR...yipee!!
I finally grew so sick of the Rep AR that I decided that I'd either sell the watch or destroy it trying to remove the crystal. My insanity prevailed (as it often does) and I decided to remove the crystal, even if it meant that I'd end up with garbage.
I was inspired by Breitest24's success at removing his SA crystal (link). Using some of his techniques (not the flame-thrower though) I was finally able to, successfully, remove the crystal from my Seawolf. I tried to document the steps for those of you who may want to attempt this yourselves.
First off, here's a 'before' shot of the Seawolf AR (hopefully, I'll have a nice 'after' picture in a few weeks). It's so bad that I don't know if it could be much worse if there were no AR at all. Note, there are no scratches in the AR...it just sucks.
Following Breitest24's suggestion, I started by prying around the bezel, in much the same way you remove the lid from a paint can (the photo shows me demonstrating on my AS...I forgot to take pictures when I was working on the Seawolf). I stuck the tool (a cheap case opener) between the case and bezel, pried a little bit, rotated the bezel 90 deg, pried a bit more and continued this until...suddenly the bezel just popped off. This part was WAY easier than I could have imagined. If I had known it was going to be this easy, I would have done it a LONG time ago!!
Here's a picture showing the bezel (and click ring) removed:
Next came removing the crystal. I have bad memories of the first time I tried to remove a crystal (It must have been glass). It shattered into 1000 pieces. Ever since then, I've been very timid about removing crystals. I considered using Breitest24's method of heating up the metal to expand it, but I know that there are typically plastic gaskets inside holding the crystal in place. With my luck, I'd melt the darn thing. Since I don't have a source for replacement crystal gaskets, I decided to use brute force.
First I tried my handy-dandy $9.99 crystal press. It has worked for dozens of crystals, so I figured...why not. I picked the correct size dyes and proceeded to press...nothing. I pressed harder...nothing...I finally gave it everything I had and...nothing. At this point, I figured it was time to either succeed or turn a $300 watch into trash.
I am embarrassed to show photos, but I basically got the biggest C-clamp I could find in my garage. I placed the watch inside of the clamp (along with the dyes) and proceeded to 'turn the screw'. I kept turning and turning. It got to the point where I could hardly turn the screw any tighter when finally I heard a very loud POP! My wife came running in the room, thinking I had destroyed another watch (yes, there have been others). I, slowly, removed the clamp and to my pleasant surprise, the crystal was still in one piece. There was, however, residue around the edges of the crystal as if it had been glued into place.
So, there it is. If you decide to do this yourself, I recommend a powerful crystal press and good dyes. It takes a LOT of pressure to remove the crystal. I may need a professional to reinstall it, but that's the easy part.
I'm looking forward to showing 'after' pictures in a few weeks.
Well...off to remove the old AR...yipee!!
