Ok Folks, some may find this thread a bit of a touchy subject but I am going to enquire anyway.... I hope you don't mind. How easy is it to artificially fade the insert on a Speedy bezel? This is how my bezel looks at present....first pic. As you can see the bezel is incorrect for the watch (69 145.022), to my eye it looks like a brand new service bezel. I would like a bezel that is a little more faded, suited to the year of the watch. I know it should be a DoN bezel but in all honesty they are difficult to find and now in excess of £500 for one in fair condition. I have been looking for a non DoN bezel that has a little Patina on it for a while now and I am not having much luck. So, I would like to know if anyone out there has artificially aged their bezel and if so how did they go about it? As for an end result, below is the sort of look I would like.....2nd,3rd and 4th pic. I would also like to add a caveat to this thread by saying I would never artificially age something and then try and pass it off as the real thing, that is not my motivation at all. My Speedy is not going anywhere. Thanks in advance for any thoughts you may have.
Send your watch to me in the tropics and i will leave it on the balcony for a few years. Otherwise pay the money or live with it..
I don't want to pay £500 upwards to be honest. I would hope I could get a nice looking non DoN for less than that but finding one is difficult.
Will wrote something about this on the sp101 blog recently - said it was possible via prolonged UV (I think) exposure.
I've always wanted to experiment on my bezel and get that faded look but afraid that i just might end up destroying it. Please let me know if you have any success in doing it! Goodluck!