Audemars Piguet - more scratch prone

more scratch prone

The incredibly sharp edges and perfectly flat surfaces make ROs show their scratches a bit more than do other brands that have more rounded shapes/finishes, as far as I can tell. I think the main thing is that the sharp edges on an RO get little dings over time, most of which only show under certain light an at certain angles. Occasionally you'll see someone with a scratch on the flat brushed part of the bezel, but that seems less common. My first and only AP hasn't reached its first servicing yet, but my impression is that if you do the servicing with the AP service center (rather than at an AD or an independent), your watch comes back looking BRAND NEW, unless you've got gashes that are just too deep, but I haven't seen any of those around. If you have a catastrophic accident, a replacement bezel is about $800, replacement case about $1.5k, replacement bracelet about $2k, but I don't hear about people going to that extreme.

I think it's worth the care / cost for one of the greatest designs ever.

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AP RO - Finish & Durability

By: 3LittleBirds : November 13th, 2012-04:05

Hello - I'm a long time reader but this is my first post. I'm considering an AP RO in steel and was hoping people can shed some light on how the brushed steel finish "wears" over time...both the bezel and bracelet. Is it very sensitive to dings, scratches...

The steel AP uses is much the same

By: Ed. W : November 13th, 2012-06:36

as most other manufacturers (316L) and wears in a similar manner. Brushed surfaces are, of course, less likely to show scratches than polished ones. Cheers Ed.

more scratch prone

By: cdnyc : November 13th, 2012-06:58

AP Royal Oaks hold up extremely well.

By: MichaelC : November 13th, 2012-07:21

Contrary to what some folks say, the AP RO holds up just fine to scratching. Of course, a substantial impact to the bezel can be problematic for any watch, and on a Royal Oak, there is the crisp line between the top of the bezel and the beveled sidewall. ...

AP RO - Finish & Durability

By: hartenfels : November 13th, 2012-09:38

Sorry for my bad English, I am not a native speaker. I have two RO (14790St / white and grey dial) and wear them nearly everyday. They got and get scratches as other watches, but the first scratches seem to be more obvious than it is with other watches, w...

Also depends if your wear long sleeve or short sleeve shirts.

By: JerryW : November 13th, 2012-15:28

I wear short sleeve shirts most every day and I am pretty tough on my RO. After a few years of nicks and dings I will send the RO to the AP (spa) service center for a simple refinish. They return your AP in better than new condition. My AP's have been ver...

Thanks to everyone...

By: 3LittleBirds : November 13th, 2012-20:16

For your comments and sharing your experiences. Very helpful! Now the only thing to decide is blue or white/silver dial. :) leaning toward blue (chrono) for the record. All the best, Jon

It's patina!

By: S.D.Quella : November 15th, 2012-23:24

The RO needs the patina from use, IMO. S. ...