Porcelain-Enamel Dial Cleaning

I know this is an old subject, but I wanted to show how well Polident cleans hairlines out of dials. The "before" picture is a little poor as it was from the e-Bay listing of the watch. The second picture is after overnight soaking in Polident with warm water (to start). I haven't cleaned the case yet, so please ignore the grime

After.. I'm sure some people are going to think I replaced the dial, but there is still 1 hairline visable between IIII and V. Same dial

Wow! The dial looks terrific after the cleaning.

Is Polident the safest way to clean dials?

-Steve

I don't know if it is the safest way, but I have never had any problems.
gp

Polident did a fantastic job on your dial. Never tried that myself, but I may. Also, I don't know if it's against the rules to mention any particular product or seller, but I found a seller selling "a dial cleaner that really works", and let me tell you it DOES work!! You'd have to see it to believe it. If anyone is interested, e-mail me and I'll give more info since I don't think I'm supposed to put it on here. I was skeptical and just bought one bottle. The day after it came I bought 3 more, and a week or so later I bought 6 more just so I'd never run out. It's good stuff.

Go ahead and post the product name Robert.We recommend supply houses,dial painters,and other products that have served us well all the time.I know I do it all the time on the green board.One thing I do put in there at the end of my post is a disclaimer stating that I have absolutely no affiliation with the manufacturers of that particular product.I'm just posting the name of the product for a common good.
Thanks for suggesting another alternative,much appreciated
Respectfully,Bob Fullerton

I just tried cleaning an old dial with some efferdent that I had laying around. It did a pretty nice job. Now the dial is "clean and odor free"

OK, Mr. Fullerton, I'll take your word for it, since I REALLY believe in this dial cleaner. Here's a link to it. And no, I have no financial interest in the product or seller, but he has an interest in me because I've bought 10 bottles of the stuff so I'll never run out "FINALLY-a-DIAL-CLEANER-that-WORKS".

Well Robert Lee,this could be a big problem.If you've bought that many bottles of dial cleaner I'm afraid that would make you a shareholder in that particular company.Definitely a conflict of interest.
Thanks for the reply,see you at the regional in October.
Respectfully,Bob Fullerton

Robert

Save your money!! Comet Bathroom Cleaner is available in your local grocery store. It works good, never had a problem. It is a liquid, and I would not be surprised if that is what you are using and do not know it??.....Robert

Robert,
Tell us about the comet bathroom cleaner method. Do you dilute? if so, can you give us a breakdown. Thanks

I also use Comet Bathroom Cleaner spray. Nothing that is abrasive of course. I spray the dial and leave it face down on some cotton balls for a few hours. They always come out nice. For a little agitation placing the dial on top of the frige while cleaning works well.

Bruce and Aaron

The Comet Bathroom cleaner does come in a spray bottle. I pour a small amount on a saucer and lay the dial (porcelan) face down over night. Take dial out of solution next day and rinse with dish washing liquid. Dial will sparkle as new!....Robert

Thank you for showing me how dumb I actually am. I couldn't believe that stuff could really be liquid Comet so I huffed right down to the Food Lion and bought some, and.....it's the same stuff!!!!!!!!!! I feel like a [boy] in a nudist camp with a muzzle on. But the stuff I bought on-line worked, so I guess I'm not totally totaled.

This method also works exceptionally well on jewelry. Especially on items like pocket watch chains.

Aaron, if that's what you used to clean up the Elgin dial on the BWR you just sent me, I can attest to the fact the method does a WONDERFUL clean up job. It looks brand new! High regards! Mark

I can attest to the Comet Bathroom Cleaner working. I put a beat up Rockford dial into the comet and put it on top of the fridge overnight...I looked at it this morning and WOW.. I used an old toothbrush to work the Comet into the cracks then put it back on the fridge for a couple more hours.... Can't even see where the hairlines were without a loop... Best $1.99 I have spent in awhile

I've never tried that. Did you check to see if that particular Comet has bleach. If so, I'd be worried about letting it set overnight. Some dials have very fragile numbers and you could easily cause them to fade.

I won't mention what I use because it could be dangerous. Suffice to say, the dial is only dipped for a few seconds and then immediately rinsed and dried.

Lindell,

Can you link this thread over to the "Watch Repair Questions and Answers" forum. It would be useful in that forum also.

Thanks,
-Steve

Lindell,

Thanks for posting a photo of the product - I knew exactly what I was looking for when I went shopping.

Barb

Hi,
I am sorry to be sour grapes on Polident. I stopped using it several years ago when it damaged and removed artwork on a Vacheron-Constantine old c1910 glass enamel dial. Make sure your dial has a factory clear coat and that the enamel artwork is fired in good.
Thanks, Ray

Ray's precautionary comment is valid for any cleaning method. Some added-on artwork or labeling can come off quite easily. The Howard "Abbott Sure Time" dials are one example where the words are easily removed by almost any method as they were not fired into the dial surface.

Good points. So far out of the 20 dials I have done, I have not had one fade.

Since I opened my trap and touted the use of Comet Bathroom Cleaner, I thought I would put my $1.99 where my mouth is. The dial you see below is off of my 17 Montgomery Ward thin model. As you can see there are several hairlines and a chip. I placed the dial in the comet solution upside down in a bowl. I placed it on top of the fridge, and will lightly brush with an old tooth brush in about 2-3 hours (just rubbing your finger over the top of the hairlines seems to work well also.

I will post another picture when the dial is done. I started the soaking at 0900 pst

Bruce Byrd

THIS IS BEFORE:

Here is the dial that I posted earlier today. As you can see, the hairline between the 2 and the 3 is barely visible. I brushed it once with a soft bristle brush. Once it was finished soaking, I cleaned it with dish soap and dried it with a old t-shirt.

AND THIS IS AFTER:

Wow! I just stumbled upon this thread (and this web site) while doing a Google search on dial cleaning...Interesting!

When you guys say that you place the dial face down in the liquid, do you put anything between the face of the dial and the container?

now we know what to do ,,next time you go to a show be sure and take a good loupe ,, what looks like a perfect dial------may not be as good as you thought..