Seamaster titanium bezel insert won't fit, am I going mad?

Hey everyone, I'm back again with my 2231.50 titanium Seamaster. You lot have been really helpful in the past, so I’m hoping someone’s got the missing piece on this one.

When I bought the watch I removed the original titanium bezel insert and fitted a black aluminium insert instead (pressed in easily, looks great). Now I’ve tried to swap back to the stock titanium insert… and it simply will not go in.

I’ve got a crystal press and I’ve used it for loads of bezel/crystal jobs without drama, but this insert just refuses to snap into the bezel channel. I even tried gently warming the bezel ring with a hair dryer to expand it - no change.

With calipers, it looks like the titanium insert is about 0.1mm larger than the bezel channel. My current theory is titanium’s rigidity (vs aluminium flex) means it won’t “give” and pop in like the aluminium one does.

So… how did Omega fit these at the factory, and what’s the proper way to do it without risking damage?

Things I’ve considered but haven’t tried

Freezer overnight (worried the paint/ink fill might crack)

Lightly sanding the insert OD (also nervous because these inserts aren’t exactly common)


Any tips, tricks would be massively appreciated.


Pic with the black insert below:

I had the same problem with my SMP's. The video below is for a Rolex, but it works for the SMP.

Disregard the removal procedure as Rolex and Omega use a different way to attached the bezel.* But at about the 5 minute mark Menta shows how he installs the insert into the assembly. That's the part to pay attention to. Two points to consider: 1) use a flat nose pliers NOT pliers with serrations; and 2) make sure you use a thick piece of plastic to protect the insert and bezel assembly.



*This advice is not for the OP since you've already removed the bezel assembly. This advice is for anyone who sees this in future. Do NOT use a case knife to remove the Omega bezel assembly. If you actually get it to remove the bezel you will bend and likely ruin the bezel frame. You need to use a pliers like the one below. A case knife works for Rolex and many other watches. It does NOT work for Omega. Nor does it work for a TAG Heuer.

You can also try using a crystal press to snap the insert in. This works sometimes, but I've had cases where it did not work but the Menta method above did work. If you use a crystal press you might need to cut a notch in the die where it goes over the lume pip so you do not damage the pip.

If you do the crystal press method make sure you use a piece of heavy duty plastic over the insert to keep things from getting scratched.

It looks great with the black bezel though.

Honnest to god I've tried and tried with my crystal press, different sized dies etc. Am I just not pressing hard enough? I'm worried about breaking or bending the insert. I've used the same method for snapping in countless aluminium inserts.

Use the Menta method. It's my last resort and it's never failed for me.

I'll try dig out a flat pair and give it a go. Cheers!

Ok, I finally got the f*cking thing in there. You know when you can't fix a problem and you spend all day thinking about it obsessively? For me, that was today. I thought and thought and after trying everything I could think of I finally realised that the insert had been slightly flattened the first time I tried to press it into the bezel ring as i used a dye that was slightly too small and it must have pushed the lip of the bezel down and made it less conical and more flat. There fore the diameter was larger and it was every slightly too large to fit into the bezel ring. I must have made it more and more flat each time I tried to press it in. The solution was to flip the insert over and press it from the inside out with a small dye to bend it back to its original shape. This worked a treat first time and I was able to snap it in perfectly to the bezel ring.

I need to put the lume pip back in but here she is! I'm thrilled. Thanks guys