Best Case Material? I Scratched Them All To Find Out!
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- Опубликовано: 5 июл 2024
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What watch material is best? In this watch scratch test video, I compare the durability of a variety of watch case materials, to see which is the most scratch-resistant. In this tournament-style comparison, I analyse the following watch cases: 316L steel, 304 stainless steel, 904L steel, resin, titanium, bronze, Swatch BioCeramic, Braun ceramic, Luminox Carbonox (according to retailer listings), Marathon Fiber Shell, Traska Signature Hardened Steel, Sinn Tegimented Steel, RZE UltraHex, Citizen Super Titanium, Kore PVD and Zinc Alloy vs Scameti TinSkin 3.0. Other brands featuring are Casio, Wenger, Vostok, and WISE.
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Wenger Urban (316L Steel) ➡ geni.us/wengerurbanclassic
Casio F-91W (Resin) ➡ geni.us/CasioF91W
Casio A168 (Silver Chromed Plastic) ➡ geni.us/CasioA168
Casio MTP-1302 (Chromed Brass) ➡ geni.us/casiomtp1302p
Vostok Amphibia (304 Steel) ➡ geni.us/vostokscuba
Lorus RG875CX9 (Titanium) ➡ geni.us/lorusrg875cx9
Wise Adamascus AD880A (904L Steel) ➡ wisetimepiece.com/collections...
Swatch (Bioceramic) ➡ tidd.ly/3R6nXW5
Braun BN0171NVNVG (Ceramic) ➡ geni.us/braunceramic
Luminox (Carbonox) ➡ Discontinued - www.james-porter.co.uk/lumino...
Marathon GPQ (Fiber Shell) ➡ bit.ly/MarathonGPQ
Traska Freediver (Signature Hardened Steel) ➡ www.traskawatch.com/products/...
Sinn Watches (Tegiment Technology) ➡ tidd.ly/3uMgwM6
RZE Resolute (UltraHex) ➡ www.rzewatches.com/collection...
Citizen BM7360 (Super Titanium) ➡ geni.us/citizenbm7360
Kore Excursion (PVD) ➡ www.koreessentials.com/collec...
Spaghetti Scameti (TinSkin 3.0/Zinc Alloy) ➡ scameti.store/products/icon
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🎬 Chapters
0:00 What's The Best Watch Case Material?
0:27 Untreated Case Materials
1:42 Proprietary Case Materials
3:17 How It Works
3:45 Scratch Test
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Хобби
Which result surprised you the most? For the Citizen fanboys claiming its not Super Titanium, please see 19:26, its shown as Super Titanium on the Citizen website.
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better check which duratect coating this super titanium watch model is having
@@snakepitsam 19:25
@@BensWatchClub I've no doubt you researched that it's indeed super ti. Did you find any further info on why they think it's better? It's odd that they'd choose to put the super ti coating on even steel watches if they don't think it does anything.
@BensWatchClub well there is a plethora of super titanium coating, if you check under the clasp or caseback it says 'base titanium' which means no coating at all. The most high end ones have duratect coating, which I assume is superior.
There are multiple levels of Duratect coating as well. I know of 8 different levels but it might be even more. So the blank statement of being "5 times harder than steel" is definitely incorrect. But the only decent info is on the Japanese Citizen website. The model shown in the test is one of the cheapest Ti-models you can get. I owned the Citizen Autozilla for some time which had a different level of coating and it was an 18mm high monster of a watch that I quite often hit against doorknobs, door frames or walls. Not a single scratch. But it had a list price of 1295 € about 20 years ago when it came out. If they released it today it would probably be 2 or 3 times as expensive.
So it's certainly misleading by Citizen to call all of the different coatings "super titanium". But as long as they don't tell us what it is exactly, it's also not a very valid statement to say, "I'm disappointed by super titanium".
For example - the BN0220-16E is stated as Duratect MRK on the Japanese website, the NB6004 is stated as Duratect MRK/TIC/DLC.
I didn't find any info however on the cheaper models at all.
So this test as entertaining as it was is more or less useless. We don't know what grade of Duratect it was, we have no test procedure to ensure the same pressure is applied in each case, etc.
Also, the cheaper Duratect models are about the same price as normal steel models. So I don't expect any miracles . I mainly buy them for the low weight and anti allergic properties.
I also once owned the NY0054 which was unhardened Ti and scratched rather easily. If you look at used specimen of the NY0054 they mostly are scratched all over.
In the end - Citizen should definitely be clearer about the difference between models in Ti hardening and coating. But many brands are often making misleading statements, like "with solar you never need to change a battery" even though rechargable batteries degrade over time.
Steel is harder than titanium grade 2. Hardness on the Brinell scale:
217 for stainless steel #316
200 for titanium grade #2
334 for titanium grade #5
530 for ceramic (zirconia ZrO2).
Titanium has greater strength relative to its density with steel. So it makes for being suitable for light-weight watch cases and bracelets.
There is something else happening when scratches appear on 'brushed' finishes. The micro groves of a brushed finished watch case present themselves as vertical sheets of the metal. These microscopic sheets can more easily be bent over, like pages in a magazine, compared to gouging of a polished surface. So, brushed surfaces can more easily be scratched for the same material compared to polished. However, the brushed surfaces make the scratch less apparent on the matt finish.
Kudos to the brands who willingly submitted their watches for this test, that's confidence in their products... and kudos to you Ben for auctioning the victims off for charity.
RZE people are awesome, they tend to interact with owners and people on groups and are very open to questions and feedback
@@VGMO17 Cool. If only more watch brands were the same.
Swatch's bioceramic has notable marketing advantage over plastic.
I believe that's exactly what it is. Swatch even says it takes castor plant oil to make it. Purportedly it's "a mix of ceramic and organic material". Judging by the performance here, I'm not sure what the ceramic part is actually doing.
I could be wrong, but there was also an interview with a Swatch person saying they also use (or used, or I could be wrong alltogether) some chamaedorea plant oil. I have a chamaedorea elegans at home, maybe I can start gathering flowers to make bioceramic.
So yeah, I'd say it's mostly plastic made from plant oil. Which isn't bad in itself, at least it's renewable. But calling it bioceramic is perhaps more than a bit misleading, especially considering the VAST performance difference here compared to actual ceramic.
@@AleksiJoensuua bit misleading? they are using the absolute cheapest material available and mislabeling it as premium (while also tagging the watch with a luxury brand name). A fashion watch is better quality.
@@balkloth Eh, what can I say? I guess I'm a gentle soul or something :D
You're probably right. I guess what I mean is they do explain on the website that it's a plant oil based material, and that strictly speaking it does fulfill the requirements of the name *in the sense* that it has a bio component and a ceramic component. Aaand that it could be a smart idea to make plastics from renewable materials. They do claim that it's "strong", but they hide any claims as to how strong exactly. :D
But yes, I agree they should have named and marketed it differently. It's a bit silly, to be honest: Swatch have been a plastic watch company for ages, and happily flying that flag. It's an odd marketing choice to somehow distance themselves from plastic now. Why not market their new material honestly?
@@AleksiJoensuu I agree with the first part of your comment but the second part got me confused... Why is it an odd marketing choice and since when marketing has to be the ultimate vector of truth and honesty? Omega wouldn't collaborate with Swatch if they were using good old plastic, they needed the shiny new material branding. Hence the 'bio-ceramic' tag. On top of that material swap, Swatch marketing campaign around the Moonswatch changed the public perception of their watches' value. Imo it is the watch industry's best short marketing campaign of all time and the numbers speak for themselves, for Swatch AND for Omega (5+ million bioceramic Moonswatch sold and +50% of Speedmaster moonwatch just in the year 2022)
While everyone else is wrapping up the year with their SOTC videos, you’re still hard at work making informative videos like this. Cheers!
shadow of the collususs? SOTC indian travelcompany? i googled and did not understand what your use of SOTC stands for
@@rajgill7576 State of the Collection. All the watch RUclipsrs use this.
A bit on the plated stuff, not all plating is the same.
1. The Casio Chromed brass is not chrome. If it was, it would have done far better. It is likely some tin alloy.
2. The Scametti did so well because Zinc is actually a pretty hard material, and I think the coating is pretty thick, based on the loss of detail on the watch. Congrats, your watch is actually decent in ONE category ;)
3. PVD is a process, not a material, but the common materials used are usually very hard.
4. The "Silver plastic" Casio uses a more unique process requiring some sort of base coat paint to promote the plating process. After the paint (which is conductive), these processes usually use a copper base plating, with a silver plating over it, usually zinc or nickel, however it is very often extremely thin, because thick plating on plastic very often with flake off.
Interesting thing about titanium is that it self heals when it oxides so light scratches should be less visible after a few weeks. Would love to see more stress test videos
exactly my experience!
titanium "wears well" over time, and it takes a bib, bib scratch to be visible for more than a month or so...plus, resistance to any other form of corrosion from sweat, salt water, brake fluid (horrible stuff! makes the Casio plastic turn into a. aft & brittle mess!)
The problem with hard coatings is that they logically tend to be brittle and depend a lot on how hard the materiel underneath is. PVD steel will usually do well against scratching / rubbing, but may chip off when hitting objects, doorknobs etc., as the steel underneath will deform minutely, which the hard coating won't be able to conform to, will crack and separate from it. (Similar to enamel paint on a polythene sheet : bend the polythene and the paint will crack)
Regarding titanium, there's a variety of grades, the most common being grade 2, which is pretty soft, alloys such as grade 5 being noticeably harder. And watch brands rarely tell you exactly what grade they are using. It could be your uncoated titanium was a harder grade than the Citizen Super titanium, and what we're seeing with the latter is actually a softer titanium deforming under pressure and the hard coating chipping off, whereas the RZE Ultrahex likely would be a hard coating on top of a harder grade of titanium, which would explain the difference.
I'm glad to see Sinn isn't just a gimmick and actually held up well. It would be interesting to see the result of an impact test on all of these cases since you've got them already.
Well zey are German
An impact test would greatly reduce the number of watches Ben could auction for charity.
Looks like some of the very light marks might be particles coming off from the picks, rather than from the watch being scratched, as the softer of the two materials are the one that gets disformed, and I am curios if the pick used to make the 316L start scratch, might have been made out of 316L steel as well, with how light the scratches was.
Also when you go over with your finger, what comes off your finger might fill in the micro cracks making the scratches become invisible, kinda like when you polish a car, adding material to the cracks, hides them and makes the surface look even :D
Really cool video Ben, thanks for making this for the community! :D
Hey Anirossa, no problem. Yes, I did check for deposit with my loupe regularly when recording (though had to cut that from the video to save it being an hour long). All cases were wiped with a cloth for macro photographing for our website article (releasing soon) and the scratches/marks were the same as I concluded in my video, so we're all good 👍
the PVD was really impressive. actually changed my mind on it. I would always brush aside a PVD coated option because i would expect the looks to diminish quickly but now i'll actually give them a go
Yeah, I also thought it would have gotten butchered easily!
PVD is not really one material but can be many things, since it means Physical Vapour Deposition (PVD), as such it can have a HUGE range of properties depending on the material being coated, the material deposited, how the PVD is done and critically the surface treatment carried out prior to the deposition. As such you can have good PVD and bad PVD, clearly today's example was a good one! Great job Ben!
Tho, you still may get disappointed. PVD is not the same with every product. I have some experience with PVD coated knife blades. Some of them scratch much easier than others.
The real problem is it shows the base material when scratched, which often has a different color.
Loved this video and the whole idea! Most watch content I see seems to be watch reviews, which are obviously fine, but don't really offer that much to someone who isn't in the market to buy new watches.
This video not only helps people who may be buying their next, first or last watch, but also anyone who wants to know how their own watches' materials hold up, and so perhaps how to take care of them. Great job Ben! ❤
I used to do scratch testing for a living (part of a final QC process).
Hard to tell from the vid but I suspect it's not being done correctly here, which may have skewed the data.
The tip must always be dragged, pointing away from the direction of travel. With a light, even presure. If not, you cause a snow plough effect. Instead of 'scratch testings', you start to dig into and remove material, which is totally diferent, more akin to a hardness test.
I suspect this is why the super titanium apeared disappointing.
While I comend the effort, please try again, draging the sharp tips at all times and with a light, consistant pressure. Avoid the temptation to repeatedly dig in to the same spot, once you see a mark. This removes any thin protective coatings, exposing the softer, base material.👍
Awesome test, been wondering how all these different finishes really hold up, so big thanks for putting all these watches on the chopping block for science!
Had a couple of thoughts while watching. I've heard that Titanium develops a layer of oxidation on the surface, a kind of patina, which contributes to it's matte texture and dull gray color, and also gives it added corrosion resistance and hypoallergenic properties, almost like a layer of protective skin over the surface, and it's actually this layer, not the titanium underneath, that scratches very easily. From an aesthetics perspective, a scratch is a scratch, but from a performance perspective it could be considered just a property of the metal.
I think the RZE Ultrahex beating out Citizen's Super Titanium was the big surprise for me. Both of them are trying to address the same problem, and somehow RZE did it way better than Citizen which is hugely impressive.
As for the chromed brass ones, that was pretty surprising as well. They held up a lot better than I expected. The problem is that even if the plating is scratch resistant, EVENTUALLY it'll start to wear off, especially if you bang it, and once that happens there's nothing you can do to refinish it, unlike steel which you could polish or brush in order to restore the surface. Similar problem with the PVD or any other plated/coated watch.
Ceramic wasn't that surprising, as scratch resistance is what it's known for. The downside is that it's brittle, so a drop can crack or break it. What was surprising is that Braun is doing a budget ceramic case that's actually ceramic, you rarely see that in a watch case from affordable brands.
It's not that impressive at all in fact if this channel had done some research about the different levels of duratect. And maybe compared watches in a similar price range.
I'm not sure if it's been said already, but there are so many different grades of Citizen's 'Super Titanium' but they all receive that name. Citizen sells these variously graded coatings to non-watch industries. Any amount of research will confirm this. I wish this was touched on in the video.
there's a lot more nuance to these scratch tests than expected. JerryRigEverything uses these often, and found out that sharpening them can deposit grit on the picks, so he started using a new set each test. furthermore, its rubbing softer materials onto the harder material, so we might get residue on lower levels because of a brushed finish vs a polish etc.
I am wondering how DLC coatings would have faired in this test. Maybe something to add to the next video if you decide to make a part 2.
True that. We'd need to test the durability of the DLC coatings the Japanese brands rave about.
This is the kind of watch geekery we need more of on RUclips. Great work. Are you gonna do impact and corrosion tests any time soon?
My daily watch is a RZE and I've been pretty surprised at how good the scratch resistance is. I'm not super careful, but you can barely see any wear at all. Really like them!
Excellent Test video !!!
Timex & Vostok still use Chromed Brass in their cheapest metal watches.
Chromed Brass is still MILES better than Zinc Alloy or Chinesium, as it's known among watch collectors as it slowly wears off but doesn't peel or corrode.
Chinesium holds up OK to scratching because it's a thick two layer coating, copper then chrome.
BUT, sweat is its kryptonite, causing massive corrosion with peeling and bubbling of the copper/chrome coating !
I'm not surprised by the performance of ceramic. But good to see RZE nailing it with their UltraHex coatings
"Scratches at level 6 with deep groves at level 7"
What a fantastic video idea, and superb execution. Thanks so running this fascinating test, Ben! 👌
Wow, this video is one of the best watch videos I've seen in ages. I found it because I was watching another video about how scratch prone the Cartier Santos is. Why doesn't Cartier and every other watch manufacturer use scratch resistant materials? As your video clearly demonstrates, there are no excuses in 2024 for making a scratch prone watch.
Absolutely brilliant test, that clears up all the myths. Thank you!
Super titanium is an absolute disappointment. But why does nobody talk about Sinn? They simply provided you with material and have hands down the best metal coating on the market.
It clears up nothing at all in fact 😂.
I was equally surprised with the performance of DLC! I have always stayed away from DLC watches because I incorrectly assumed they would be scratch magnets. I would love to see a follow up comparing the hardnesses of all of the different types of black coatings (electroplating, Cerakote, PVD, DLC) I have always associated DLC as being significantly more scratch resistant, but I have never seen them directly compared. Anyway, this was a great video, Ben, and I am always impressed by how much time and effort you put into these videos, that help your viewers make better informed decisions. Keep up the good work!
DLC is extremely hard, the reason for it to peel off is the base material deforming under the coating... You would not create scratches but it would definitely leave "scratches" when you knock it on some hard surface...
Mechanical engineer here. PVD is different than DLC. Process is similar (vapor deposition) but material are different. PVD is titanium nitrate while DLC is carbon based. At same thickness, DLC is superior to PVD in every aspect.
Absolutely splendid work Ben. Your content is really stand-out stuff! cheers
To be fair, Citizen is technically not lying. Titanium is 5-10 times stronger than steel, regarding breaking/cracking pressure.
And even if the test didn't present titanium in a good light, imo it's still the best material for watches, because it's much lighter than steel.
I'm just disappointed that none of watch companies tried to implement anodized titanium cases/bracelets, which is a fairly simple and cheap procedure, and can make titanium at least one level more resistant to scratches... plus, during the process, titanium can get different color shades, which is god given regarding customization. Imagine that Citizen in a silvery-light blue shaded case.
I have a PVD coated Laco Bielefeld. Used it every day for 2 years(I do the opposite of an office job) and not a single scratch, just some tiny chips when I have banged it against something really hard. At first I think there is a scratch but it's just some residue from the thing I banged the watch against
This was really informative and useful stuff, with several surprising results, so kudos to you for putting this together Ben. Another couple of suggestions that weren't included on your list are tungsten and DLC, I'd be keen to see how they compared to the others.
Came for the video for tungsten, was disappointed.
The hardness is the strongest side of a cheramic material, so makes sense that it made it out, on top.
Side note: When a material becomes harder, it also has a flip side, as it also makes the elasticity model of the material lower, (in general), because you sacrifice the material being able to bend and recover to it's original state, with it being extremely hard to get out of it's original state.
In plain turns, it means it becomes more brittle, and would be more prone to break, but if your arm ever becomes familiar with the amount of force needed to break it, chances are you will be having bigger problems than your watch breaking 🤣
True, although depending on the shape and stresses involved, some ceramics may shatter by simply falling of a coffee table or, if you're particularly unlucky, by the inevitable bump against a door frame / radiator rib / table edge.
@@zwerko True, luckily looks like the one Ben tested at least, was well rounded without any noticeable weak points, but ofc as you say, still can be unlucky
what if you accidentally drop your ceramic watch? we all know the ceramic bezel on some divers are quite fragile
Great video. My mate returned his Omega Swatch saying it was crap & scratched everywhere. I was surprised because they actually gave him a new one but he says its crap & a scratch magnet. It is very interesting to see these differences between a ceramic vs a bio-ceramic.
I'd never even heard of RZE until this video. I'll definitely be checking them out now.
I thought it would perform well, didn't expect it to thrash the likes of Citizen though. There must have been a reason they were up for sending it to test haha, pure confidence
Ive beat my RZE so much and it still looks new
They’re an excellent tool watch brand based in Singapore. They’re watches perform like far more expensive brands and they have a cool, unique design language.
@@BensWatchClub😂 to claim it trashed Citizen when you used the cheapest Citizen Ti model there is but the highest grade of Ti available from RZE very much makes me doubt the validity of the whole test.
You are forgetting to consider surface roughness. Highly polished metal will be less sensitive.
I’ve always loved Rado ceramic and Hard Metal cases for their scratch resistance. My oldest Rado ceramic case and watch strap is 30 years old and still scratch free
The content we didn’t know we needed, amazing! Thanks Ben. Looking forward to a corrosion test next perhaps 💪🏼
Quite a test there Ben. I was interested in the P V D because I've always been put off thinking the coating would be weakly resistant to wear.
I'm gonna be sooo mad if Benno didn't feature SpaScam in this video LOL
This video was fun to watch. Thanks for putting it together. I would like to comment on Citizen's Super Titanium. I have a few Super Titanium watches and wear them as daily beater watches. I noticed that the areas with matte finish scratch a lot easier than those with the shiny finish. The areas with the shiny finish look practically brand new. I think if you repeated this test on a shiny surface of the Citizen watch you would get much different results.
Yes i think texture does matter. If its very smooth the picks can just glide over it but if it is a textured metal like brushed metal it is more grippy and probably scratch slightly easier
This video is great. You need to do a part two and test uncoated grade 5 titanium, submarine steel (Sinn and Damasko), ice hardened steel (Damasko), damest coating (Damasko), ceramos/tungsten carbide (Rado), DLC, Bremont B-EBE2000 hardened steel, and ceratanium. Could also consider Archimede's hardened ICKLER case. If you could ever get your hands on a Rado V10K case, that would be amazing to see--claimed to have 10,000 vickers hardness.
Definitely agree. I've yet to witness any Sinn with Tegimented steel, although I have 2 Damaskos and they are some of the toughest watches I've seen. Their cases are basically indestructible in daily use.
Nice one Ben, I found it very interesting and was very disappointed in the Super Titanium. Maybe Diashield and Duratect could be tested next time? Possibly submarine steel or PVD?
@@watchroll3310no, as showed at the end of the video, the Citizen website confirmed Super Titanium as the case material
@@BensWatchClub"super titanium" is a term used for many different hardenings and coatings of the material. It is of course misleading by Citizen to call them all the same but there are vast differences. The model you tested is one of the cheapest available Ti models. Nobody should expect it to perform the same as a NB6004, NB6021 or any other of the more expensive models.
Cool video though I nearly had to turn off when I saw the WISE watch up for the scratch test as that was difficult reviewing. Would really love one and same goes for RZE and good to see them performing really well.
Congratulations on a very well done video. The DLC coating would also be interesting. Will you make some more videos with other materials and coatings?
Doesn't surprise me with the ceramic being the best. That's always been Rado's thing and their Ceramos is very, very hard to scratch. I would have love to have seen Ceramos here....even just a section as fair enough you wouldn't want to scratch up an expensive watch. Nothing seems to be able to scratch my Rado Diastar. Agree the Citizen super titanium was really disappointing and points to the Spaghetti! Negative points to Swatch for the "Bioceramic" marketing spin for "cheap plastic". lol
great vid.!.. i had been waiting for the luminox scratch test for a long time
The test everybody wondered about but was too scared to try! Full marks for that on Ben 👌
Awesome comparative! Thank you!
Excellent video.
But what about Citizen Attesa ?
and Seiko super hard coating?
Bought a black PVD SKXMOD upgrade case/bracelet for my Casio AE1200 and I'm still very surprised by the level of scratch resistance! Especially as I'm not easy on my watches. Had it two years now and only slight scratching on the clasp and none on the band or case!
Love this content! Thanks again!
The chromed watches did well because you aren't scratching the zinc or brass but chromium, that is an extremely hard metal compared to steel. The zinc one probably did better than the brass one due to there being less give in the metal than brass. Either that or thicker chrome plate
This was a great video I got some 904L hates to take down a peg, they claimed it’s much softer than 316 . I got some “I Told yousoing “ to do 😅
TEST SPRINGBARS. Who makes the strongest ones? So important, so forgotten. I've realized too many of my watches rely on cheap, flimsy springbars to keep them from certain death.
Interesting video, thanks for sharing!👍
Really interesting and fun content! I must say, Ben must have a heart of steel, sorry I mean ceramic, to scratch all these gorgeous watches.
The issue with ceramic is that it’s extremely brittle. Personally I have no issue with steel that gets scratched a little over time. The first few scratches do hurt my feelings, but after that I tend to somewhat embrace them.
I think of it as a unique identifier, what makes it MY watch and distinguishable from others with the exact same watch. Or maybe this is just how I cope with it 😂
This is the best watch related video idea I watched in a long time.
I thought I was watching Project Farm, and that is a compliment.
That's exactly what I thought, too! "We're going to test that!"
THAT GOAT material gets less scratched, really like that case material!! THANKS FOR THIS AWESOME VIDEO BEN!!
I enjoyed this as I did the crystal scratch test.Well done !
While the Scameti is made of a zinc alloy, it looks to be hard chrome plated based on it making it to a 6 on the Mohs hardness scale (as opposed to thinner and softer decorative chrome plating on the Casio), which is why it did surprisingly well. If it is hard chrome, it would probably do pretty well in the corrosion resistance as well.
excellent video, really wanted to see seiko's diashield tested
Great video!
Strangely my Super Titanium Citizen picks up scratches much less than 316L Seiko. Maybe the cause is my Citizen is a JDM model.
Idea for the next review - DLC coating.
The difference is that there are at least 8 different grades of duratect and he tested the cheapest model there is 😂. And then expected it to perform the same as the RZE which costs about 3 times as much 😂.
the new zelos has good scratch resistance and maybe that sinn coating?
Interesting test with some surprising outcomes.Liked the performance of the blue Ceramic Braun and both runner ups. May I put a bid in ?
Well, I didn't expect Citizen to fall short that fast. Thanks for the vid!
Me neither! Cheers!
I did.Ive owned a Mears promaster tough.Nasty scratch on the bezel after a day.Couldnt take my eyes off it as scratches on dull finish titanium glint in the light.Sold it very quickly and only lost a small amount luckily.The only advantage to most titanium is lightness if thats what you like.But for scratch resistance,its junk.
Interesting Ben, did you consider that some of the early scratching on the Citizen may actually be pick material being deposited on the case and it's the microstructure of the coating that makes it hard to wipe away. Guess is doesn't matter if it's still marking the product.
Hi, yeah, in the uncut recording, I checked for that, the number 3 pick was primarily deposit yeah, though at the upper levels, that wasn't apparent and it was simply scratching, rather disappointing!
@@BensWatchClubmaybe do some more research next time about the watches you test and the different grades of duratect and don't claim that a comparison between the cheapest Citizen Ti model you can find and the 3 times as expensive RZE ultrahex "proves" anything. Only goes to show that watching RUclips watch reviews is a gigantic waste of time. I once watched a video by "just one more watch" where he pressure tested watches and obviously didn't even know how to use the pressure testing machine 😂. Unsubscribed...
I wonder how much RZE paid for this "test". Or was it just plain laziness to "forget" to do any research?
That was awesome Ben! but i wonder what about dlc coating? it suppose to be better than simple pvd or have i missed something? 🤔
Mechanical engineer here. At same thickness, DLC (which is made of carbon) is harder than PVD (titanium nitrate based) and is very close to Ceramic. Overall, Ben's results are consistent with material properties. As mentioned in the video, the bad surprise is obviously the Citizen that seems to use an inferior (some would say cough useless cough) coating... Kudos to Ben for this informative test 👍
@@pwmaudio i appreciate your comment, thank you for clarifying something everyone knows.
Great video but you need to fix the amazon link so it loads a different variant by default, as the first one is now unavailable!
Interesting and fun video - thanks! 👍
Thank you for doing this. So much more valuable content than another review of an AliExpress watch.
Glad it was helpful!
My 316L Black Bay 58 is COVERED in scratches in less than two years on my wrist. Sorta don't mind, sorta do. I really want a Tegemented Sinn.
I learned something from a watch video!! Amazing!!
i have a doubt that the super titanium is somehow shaving off material from the picks and they are getting embedded in the titanium grooves
Sinn's Tegiment processing has excellent scratch resistance, but it is not as effective against dents. My 856 has a few dents because it has been used in a harsh environment, but it is certainly durable against scratches.
the titanium, in my experience, might scratch a bit, but its proprties render scratches into more of a "patina'" over time, as the color comes back to the soft grey quite quickly...and, pretty much nothing chemical bothers it, either.
What a banger!!! Great test was really looking forward to this one - another home run for Team Ben! Have a great xmas and new years Ben and inc.!
Happy holidays!
I've badly slipped with a hardened screwdriver tip while working on my tegimented Sinn, and it didn't leave the smallest mark. I'm very impressed by it.
I'd love to see this for impacts or water resistance!
I wonder if there is a difference when testing on brushed vs polished surfaces. I imagine brush surfaces will stretch easier when going against the grain than polished of the same material.
Great video, only thing im a bit suspicious on is the PVD. it almost seems like DLC?
For anyone who has a Citizen BN0220, (the retro square titanium one) the finish is abrasive enough to remove metal from the thing you just bumped into. As a result it looks scratched but it's actually a deposit of something else. Drag a piece of brass across some 1000 grit wet/dry paper and you'll see the same effect. The finish of the case also attracts oils and grease and makes the case look shiny and worn. Give it a wash in dilute detergent and all will be good. Titanium or its alloys are soft and that's about it. Well, unless you can find some Luna Titanium aka Gundarium. Not a Citizen fanboy BTW. 👍
If you ever choose to redo this test you should consider getting two vintage Seikos in there. They used to do dresswatches out of Toolsteel and Tungsten. Both of which should theocratically be closer to ceramic in terms of scratch resistance, whilst also being nearly shatterproof.
Ben bringing us a proper consumer test, i applaud you.
2:10 - That *really* took me off guard, haha!
Not because I never heard of Carbonox, but because I very much have - in fact almost two decades before I even started getting into watches.
To me it always was a specific alloy of metals and nanotechnology for armor, that got first introduced in Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando on the PS2 in 2003!
Very durable stuff - just appeared again as the material for a really sexy armored full body suit in the newest one that very recently released on PC - paying homage to just the one from 20 years ago - that's why I got that term fresh in my mind.
Apparently this watch company introduced their (Edit: apparently much weaker, RIP) Carbonox in 2006, probably not noticing that some writer at Insomniac Games snatched the name for their universe 3 years prior.
What an exceptionally surreal little moment!
hearing the gents scents signature background music at 04:30 🤣
Love seeing the RZE in here. I am a huge fan of their watches. I have 2 of them and a 3rd that was a collab they did with BigIDesign, fairly sure they made the case for that one so technically I have 3. Im fairly hard on my watches and so far all 3 have held up real well.
Outstanding video. And yes, I own a Citizen Super Titanium. Sigh.
How did you not include a Tungsten case? Rado is famous for its Tungsten watches, and I own two different Chinese watches using this material. The huge downside is Tungsten Carbide is almost twice as heavy as 316L stainless steel, so most Tungsten watches need to be small, dress watches.
Tungsten Carbide, despite its metallic appearance, is technically a ceramic material. It has a MOHS hardness rating of 8.9 to 9.1, or about the same as sapphire.
As a fan of RZE I am really glad to see how well their UltraHex performed here, on par with a Sinn. Incredible. Travis runs a quality operation. I’m also a fan of what Wise is doing, and I was really surprised how well the 904L did. I’ve read that 904L is softer than 316L, but this test did not bear that out. Add in the better corrosion resistance, and it makes a good case for the alloy. Anyway, very cool episode, thanks for putting the work into it!
My tegimented and PVD Sinn U50 will be 3 years in April with hundreds of days wear. It looks the same as the day it came out of the box.
Fantastic test! Watch nerds will be referencing this video for years.
Would be interesting how one of the hublot or rado ceramic watch materials would fair :)
Mother in Heaven, Spaghetti Scametti getting as far as it did is absolutely hilarious.
I thought it would have gone first haha
Part of the reason i like titanium is that i know it marks easy in general depending on grade, and its a part of the story, also if you have a bump you are likely not gonna dent it somehow, if you did you probably dropped it or snapped your wrist, also its the metal option if your skin is sensitive to other metals or rubbers depending on use case.
Would've been really interesting to see an Ickler case in hardened steel too.
Hey mate can we do a shock test on each next? Maybe both case, and Chrystal and perhaps do some of the proprietary flame thrower or whatever it is on the more expensive Invicta watches against normal sapphire , hardlex etc.? That would be great especially with scratch testing on the crystals (not including acrylic or any obvious scratch magnets. They could stay in for the shock testing?
Ceramic is very hard and scratch resistant however that hardness also makes it more brittle. It might shatter if you dropped it. Coated steel is a better allrounder
One thing that occurred to me while watching this: the more highly polished surfaces may have an advantage at hardness tests leading up to a full scratch, because the surface has less microscopic ridges. The pick glides over the polished surfaces without leaving much of a mark just below the actual scratch threshold, which may be why the highly polished Scameti does so well before it takes a deep gouge.
Could be. Then again the brushed or blasted surfaces do seem to clean up better with a bit of buffing than the polished ones.
@@AleksiJoensuu Definitely! When a surface is polished, even the slightest imperfection will show up more clearly. Kind of a trade off, then. Some watches have polished, brushed and blasted finishes on the same case...
Would love to see future tests comparing the same material with different finishing techniques.
hello Ben, is it any possible to bid to any of this watches if I live in Spain? I do really like the Citizen one, so I will be pleased if I could bid on it.
what about PVD brass (timex) ? if at the level of PVD steel then this is a very good inexpensive option