Air pressure vs. submersed waterproof testing

[dob1]

I went to two different watchmakers today to find out if my Smurf is still water proof. The first one ran the test in an air pressure tester and found that the watch was not watertight. The second shop used a Bergeon 5555/98 water tester, submerged my watch in water, and showed me on the counter that my watch was water tight. No bubbles were visible when he pressed the test button after having increased the pressure for some minutes.

When I had a short conversation with the watch technician from the 2nd shop, he told me that the pressure testers which just use air pressure are not the best to measure water tightness of a Submariner since they only measure the bending (or lack thereof) of the crystal. Was that information accurate?

Since I don't plan diving with my Smurf and only want to make sure that i can wear it washing my hands, it's not super essential but my ears were perking up when I heard that the air pressure test is not as reliable than submersing the watch in water.

Any thoughts from the professionals?

[shofzr]

Air test just looks for the crystal to be pushed in by the pressure. A solid watch like a Submariner won’t compress under the pressure supplied by an air tester, so it reads fail.

Water test is the only way to be sure


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[Andad]

But neither method will test a Submariner to its rated depth.

Unless you can pump an air tester up to 450 psi.

[dob1]

Thanks guys, that's good to know! Having tested the watch with the Bergeon 5555/98 showed me that it is at least water tight to the extend that I need for now. Not planning to take the Smurf for a proper dive any time soon :D

Looks like one needs some serious machinery testing the dive watches properly. When it comes to even heavier duty models like the Sea Dweller and Deep Sea, I assume that only Rolex themselves can test them? Just buying the machinery to test such models would probably be crazy expensive for a smaller watch repair shop and maybe 0.1% of customers would ever need it.

[shofzr]

Originally Posted by directioneng

But neither method will test a Submariner to its rated depth.

Unless you can pump an air tester up to 450 psi.

Mine will.. and then some .




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[SearChart]

Originally Posted by shofzr

Mine will.. and then some .




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Rolex fathometre crew! Whoop whoop

[SearChart]

Had this at my first internship place, Fathometre II, Deep-sea tester. Capable of 390 bar

[Andad]

I was referring to the testers in the OP's first thread Bas.

What do you pressure text your DSSD's with?

[SearChart]

Originally Posted by directioneng

I was referring to the testers in the OP's first thread Bas.

What do you pressure text your DSSD's with?

The air testers are usually good for 100m.

The DSSD rarely comes in, we send them to Amsterdam, they'll go into the machine pictured above, that exact machine

[Andad]

Originally Posted by SearChart

The air testers are usually good for 100m.

The DSSD rarely comes in, we send them to Amsterdam, they'll go into the machine pictured above, that exact machine

Isn't the Fathometre II, Deep-sea tester used for checking the water resistance without the movement at first?

Are the DSSD's tested to 390 Bar + an extra safety margin because Rolex rates their Triplock to 500 Bar.

[SearChart]

Originally Posted by directioneng

Isn't the Fathometre II, Deep-sea tester used for checking the water resistance without the movement at first?

Are the DSSD's tested to 390 Bar + an extra safety margin because Rolex rates their Triplock to 500 Bar.

Yes without the movement.
The after sales testers all test the rated depth, not the extra 25%, that is only done at the factory.

[erhein]

I hope this isn't a stupid question, but if you test with a water tester and the watch isn't watertight, does the case then have to be opened in order to dry out the watch?

[Chris85]

Originally Posted by erhein

I hope this isn't a stupid question, but if you test with a water tester and the watch isn't watertight, does the case then have to be opened in order to dry out the watch?

No- the watch is pressurized in air then dunked in water. If it is not air tight, then the pressurized air that entered the watch will escape once depressuirzed under water. You will see bubbles coming out.

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[erhein]

Originally Posted by Chris85

No- the watch is pressurized in air then dunked in water. If it is not air tight, then the pressurized air that entered the watch will escape once depressuirzed under water. You will see bubbles coming out.

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Got it. Thanks.

[breitlings]

I think this shows the difference between water tight and gas tight.

[ennenkuolemaa]

Lets not forget the main test after the pressure in water.

Check the water condensation with heating the case and after that cooling it down in short time.

[SearChart]

Originally Posted by ennenkuolemaa

Lets not forget the main test after the pressure in water.

Check the water condensation with heating the case and after that cooling it down in short time.

Yep, the condensation circle that usually appears in the middle of the crystal should disappear within a minute according to Rolex.

[Vicc]

I test in both if needed, but usually in a dry tester first. It would be unwise to test a watch with the movement still in it in a wet tester.