Ploprof Crystal

[sfa437]

Well you're all aware of my neverending story watching my crystal delaminate. Never got the SOB to separate but I did manage to clear up some of the delamination with a little bit of Wahl Machine Oil.

I also managed to get the thing out of the case without removing the bezel. An old watchmaker once said "If you're forcing it, you're doing it wrong". I said "Eff him" and took a 1" wooden dowel and a claw hammer to the thing and got it out after 3 solid whacks :lol:

Here's what it looks like with the laminate structure obvious:

Here's the measurement of the crystal for those worried about the same thing happening

Seems to be 29.5mm x 5mm My calipers took a shlt so I couldn't get a spot-on measurement

Good news is that it is simply a round crystal and not like the gen construction and should be easy to source!

 

[guanaco]

Those sneaky rep making bastards! lol, hope you find a replacement soon, if it were me I'd already be flying to China with my Shotgun in hand. :lol:

 

[deloreandmc]

.....If you're forcing it, you're doing it wrong". I said "Eff him" and took a 1" wooden dowel and a claw hammer to the thing and got it out after 3 solid whacks :lol:

thats what the slave boy in china used to put it in, turned out perfect for him, IT IS THE PROPER WAY!

 

[avenger007]

Thanks for the update, SFA. Now if only Ofrei or Cousins stocked 5mm thick sapphires. :wacko:

Obviously the factories ran into the same problem, and instead of building them from scratch decided to go the "let's just slap a couple together and call it a day" route.

 

[sfa437]

Yup- looks like I am going to have to go the same route but use a proper adhesive.

Either that or hope & pray Taka does a run for those of us who bought these things :lol:

 

[Fiddo]

If the edge of the crystal was properly sealed would that alleviate the seapage issue? Or was the distortion due to the breakdown of the water based adhesive?

 

[sfa437]

I'd think a good edge treatment would have prevented this from happening in the first place.

The delamination started upon exposure to water and continued throughout the night until about 20% of the crystal was affected. I then decided to try and dissolve the adhesive completely to separate the two halves but as of yet they are stuck together. It does however look like a giant fingerprint which tells me the water is still migrating through the adhesive.

 

[Fiddo]

They may come apart if you boil them (Or maybe even soak it in some hot water.) in water. I would think the heat and moisture would disolve the adhesive.

 

[sfa437]

I might dunk it into some methyl-ethyl ketone to see if I can salvage the sapphire section. That stuff will dissolve anything :lol:

 

[sfa437]

This delamination is happening to at least one other watch so mine isn't an isolated occurrence.

marinamm20 was just walking in the rain and the water is wicking in between the crystals.

 

[trailboss99]

Looks like you have uncovered a biggie here sfa.
No plopplop for trailie untill they fix this issue and the happy feet.


Col.

 

[alvinado]

me too... thanks brother ... lol...

 

[ReplicaMake]

My measurement may help.

 

[alvinado]

thanks lay..

 

[sfa437]

Same measurements I got- seems like it is going to be a cast iron SOB to find..... I'd settle for a new crystal so I could treat the edges myself :lol:

 

[takashi]

Unfortunately/fortunately I sold this watch a couple of days ago. Not knowing about this. Well, I thought initially it was the AR problem which is easily scratched (see my sales post listing). Turns out to be it is a sandwiched crystal.

At 5mm this thing is gonna cost very similar to the PAM crystal that I have just released. Not sure if they will rectify this on subsequent version.

In any case, gen crystal costs about 300 USD which is not bad for such thickness Not so bad if you compare it to IWC or Panerai replacement glass prices.

As for glass separation, you can use heat from hanheld gas torch.

 

[sfa437]

Mine started in the same place, as did one other.

That's 3 so far.....

 

[ricciola73s]

Dear friends you think that all Ploprof have this problem?
I think that are very important to talk with dealer and factory!

 

[takashi]

I think the same batch has this problem. As stated, the cheaper version turn out to be mineral but it's a single piece mineral glass.

 

[takashi]

I am so going to make this glass

Stay tune peeps.