Seiko Restoration

[seikoo]

Hello watch forums.

I've recently decided to attempt a DIY restoration on a cheapo Seiko Speedmaster, which has survived 7ish years of abuse and, most recently, a motorcycle accident. I have just a few questions, if anyone would be kind enough to possibly answer:


1. In the wrist watch world, do generic crystals for low end watches look/function noticeably differently from genuine crystals?


2. I'd like to repaint the engraved tachymeter digits, which have faded; does anyone have any advice as to which kind of paint to use? I plan on overpainting and then just wiping/polishing off the excess.

Thanks in advance.

[ianmedium]

Would love to see some before and after shots of this. As to question one there can be some differences but I tend to find that most of the generic crystals seem to be fine on the lower end stuff though something like the Omega Hesalites are far superior to the lower end stuff and take a shine beautifully.

With all the replacement plastic crystals I have had on my watches all of them have improved with a buff of polywatch to smooth the surface out more.

With the repainting of the tachymeter digits I am not sure. My first thought is the non water based enamel paint used for model kits. I would imagine given time to fully cure that would be pretty tough.