Oil spot? on dial

[L_S_SHOE]

Recently noticed a shiny black spot at the edge of the dial on my 16800, between 12 and 1 o’clock. I had the watch serviced in August 2019. They serviced the movement and changed all parts necessary to maintain water resistance. I can’t say for sure when the spot appeared, but I’m almost certain it wasn’t there before the service. It appears unchanged over several days. I’m going to give the shop that serviced it a call tomorrow, but I’m interested to hear what you guys think it could be. Is it possible for excess oil to work its way to the edge of the movement and bleed over onto the dial? Any tips on how to handle this?

Thanks in advance.






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[77T]

I suppose anything is possible but that is very unlikely that oil would migrate in that way.

The points that are lubricated are the friction points where pivots meet jewels and other places metal meets metal.

But there is a slim chance the watchmaker failed to Epilame the escape wheel teeth before applying oil. This could flick a bit of oil from the teeth.

But getting enough to accumulate and move to the dial side from the back plate is like the “magical loogie” is Seinfeld fame.


https://youtu.be/PA5HRW4DWz0


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[Juhuatai]

Could it be rodico? My 1016 was serviced and ended up with something similar and it ended up being rodico residue. Shoot me a PM about the shop you sent it to.

[L_S_SHOE]

Originally Posted by Juhuatai

Could it be rodico? My 1016 was serviced and ended up with something similar and it ended up being rodico residue. Shoot me a PM about the shop you sent it to.

Could be. I read your post about your Explorer. Did they ever replace the dial for you?


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[Dan S]

If it wasn't there before the service, it's most likely some debris/residue that got on the dial from handling during the service. Maybe you just didn't notice it right away.

[1665fan]

Originally Posted by L_S_SHOE

Could be. I read your post about your Explorer. Did they ever replace the dial for you?


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Nobody is going to find you a matte dial to replace yours lol....oil come out black on the dial not grey like that

[SubKing]

I have had a similar issue on a piece in the past. It's not oil even though it may look like it. It's actually a defect in the dial paint. The UV rays from the sun can cause spots or uneven blotches that have a shine to them. Nothing you can do to correct it. It's just luck of the draw and natural aging.. It does hurt the value because it's an eye sore. One of my past pieces that I no longer own had the same thing happen around the 12 area.. Sorry it happened but as others have stated, there isn't a way for oil to migrate to that area.

I had thought it was oil as well and had my watchmaker remove the dial and he found 0 traces of oil in the affected area's. One day it just appeared. Too bad they can't disappear as easily..

[L_S_SHOE]

Originally Posted by SubKing

I have had a similar issue on a piece in the past. It's not oil even though it may look like it. It's actually a defect in the dial paint. The UV rays from the sun can cause spots or uneven blotches that have a shine to them. Nothing you can do to correct it. It's just luck of the draw and natural aging.. It does hurt the value because it's an eye sore. One of my past pieces that I no longer own had the same thing happen around the 12 area.. Sorry it happened but as others have stated, there isn't a way for oil to migrate to that area.

I had thought it was oil as well and had my watchmaker remove the dial and he found 0 traces of oil in the affected area's. One day it just appeared. Too bad they can't disappear as easily..

Thanks for the reply. That’s actually reassuring. I would be feel better about it being part of the aging process, rather than some problem related to the service. I’m guessing there’s no way to tell for sure unless they open it back up?


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[btinl]

I have a similar appearing spot on the edge of one of my vintage dials which I noticed after service. It increased in size over the course of 6 months. I asked my watchmaker, and he said it was not oil. I'm curious why it would show up after service and continue to increase in size. I still don't have an answer.

[Juhuatai]

The shop did not, they paid me a sum.

[L_S_SHOE]

Originally Posted by btinl

I have a similar appearing spot on the edge of one of my vintage dials which I noticed after service. It increased in size over the course of 6 months. I asked my watchmaker, and he said it was not oil. I'm curious why it would show up after service and continue to increase in size. I still don't have an answer.

Sounds like this is not an isolated case. Do I send it back to find out if it is or is not oil/rodico/something fixable, and run the risk of opening the watch and potentially damaging the dial, or do I just assume it's normal aging and let it be? What do you guys think?

[Verdi]

Originally Posted by L_S_SHOE

Sounds like this is not an isolated case. Do I send it back to find out if it is or is not oil/rodico/something fixable, and run the risk of opening the watch and potentially damaging the dial, or do I just assume it's normal aging and let it be? What do you guys think?

That is not normal ageing!
Something happened during service.

[btinl]

Here is the spot on my dial. It started off much smaller along the edge by the 10 o’clock marker.




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[phillip ridley]

Yes, it is possible for oil to spread IF too much was applied. That area of your dial is near the lower barrel complete bushing, and if too much grease was applied inside the barrel complete, or to the bushings, I have seen it run over.

[Michael M.]

It does appear to be oil residue. I see this fairly often. It's a direct result of over oiling.

[btinl]

Originally Posted by btinl

Here is the spot on my dial. It started off much smaller along the edge by the 10 o’clock marker.




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Update regarding the spot on my dial. My watchmaker opened the case and was able to remove the spot with Rodico.

[L_S_SHOE]

Update:

Sent it back to the watchmaker that did the last service. Fortunately, they were able to remove the spot. They couldn’t say exactly what it was, but they were confident that it wasn’t oil. They did say that they see spots like this one on matte dials from time to time. Sometimes the spot can be removed; sometimes it can’t.




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[Tom1675]

Originally Posted by L_S_SHOE

Update:

Sent it back to the watchmaker that did the last service. Fortunately, they were able to remove the spot. They couldn’t say exactly what it was, but they were confident that it wasn’t oil. They did say that they see spots like this one on matte dials from time to time. Sometimes the spot can be removed; sometimes it can’t.




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Great result, this was definitely something that happened during service.

[swish77]

Wow, so lucky! Looks perfect. Congrats!

Did the watchmaker tell you how he removed the blemish? What technique? So difficult on matte dials.

[1665fan]

Again oil spots will be black or darker than the dial not white....you got lucky on that one

[L_S_SHOE]

Originally Posted by 1665fan

Again oil spots will be black or darker than the dial not white....you got lucky on that one

It was definitely darker than the matte black/grey dial, but I think what you’re seeing there on the original pic is a sheen due to the angle of the light, like an oil slick. In any case, it’s gone so I’m happy.


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[L_S_SHOE]

Originally Posted by swish77

Wow, so lucky! Looks perfect. Congrats!



Did the watchmaker tell you how he removed the blemish? What technique? So difficult on matte dials.

Nah he didn’t. Didn’t get a whole lot of detail from him. I do know that it didn’t take long, maybe a day or two, so they must have had the tools/techniques they needed on hand.


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[Wahlberg]

Would have sucked if that ruined the dial.

Lovely watch btw. More pics?