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Fenix 6 Titanium scratches

PrimozC78
over 4 years ago

Hi there, I am a Fenix user since F3 and I owned a F3 for almost 3 years than a F5 X Plus for about a year but it was too big and heavy for my wrist. Last friday I get the Fenix 6 titanium cause I wanted a durable and scratch resistant watch but after 5 days I have got this as seen on the picture. On my F3 after 3 years there was no scratches like this and neither on my F5 x Plust (black bezel)...I was doing a lot of trailrunning, climbing, etc with them. With the new one only a few walks (due to my motorcycle accident an later heavy complications I still cant run). Is this normal for a 900€ watch? I was choosing between the F6 Sapphire and the Titanium one...if I know that I would rather go with a Sapphire one, it is 100€ cheaper. Is this normal ?

  • 0 over 4 years ago in reply to scottj2

    Uff let us know how it will help the scratch kit. Thanks.

  • 0 over 4 years ago in reply to scottj2

    I got three pads (Green, red and black) bought on ebay for my various titanium bracelets through the years.
    They can do wonder. IF you respect the direction of the original satin finish.
    I'm planning to use them on a titanium bracelet: in 20 seconds all scratches are removed.
    If you don't respect the direction of the finish, it will create a "cloud effect" which can look worst.

    On the bezel, you will notice the direction of the satin finish: it is perpendicular to the circle, it comes from the "center" of the glass, meaning it won't be easy to apply the pad respecting the direction of the original finish and the sapphire glass would need certainly to be protected (or the bezel to be removed ?).
    Well. If really the scratch is bothering me I will put my thumb on the glass, near the scratched bezel and scrub the pad gently perpendicular away from the glass (protected by my thumb) and check how it is mitigate the scratch.

    Anyway, I will let those scars tell their own stories: this is a watch made for adventures. 
    It look like a hatch, some part of a ship or a sub. 
    This very industrial look desserves a "life" of scratches and wears. That's what make the Fenix series different from other smart watches: they are tool watches, they are "Tank Watches".



  • +1 over 4 years ago

    To be honest, if you bump or rub your watch against any hard or abrasive surface such as a brick wall, rocks, or plasterboard it will get cosmetic marks on the bezel. Titanium in particular is a soft metal and pretty much every surface your watch will accidentally come into contact with will be harder. That is one advantage of going for a smaller watch with a lower profile - you can keep it out of harm's way easier.

  • 0 over 4 years ago

    Im trying to keep away from the internal textured brick walls at work. I scratched my F5 black on those! years of running XC trail and road races, perfect. work brick wall, scratched lol :)

  • 0 over 4 years ago

    I’m curious to know how DLC coating compares to standard stainless steel in terms of abrasion resistance?

  • 0 over 4 years ago in reply to scotthunter2

    DLC is much harder, but can’t be polished or otherwise „repaired“ once it has scratches. SS can, at least in many cases to a certain degree. 

  • 0 over 4 years ago

    I did a test with the scratch pen and pads made for titanium. It honestly isn't worth it, so don't waste your money. It might work for superficial scratches, but not like the ones I have. 

    I'll most likely use my Fenix 5 when I expect to be hard on the watch and use the 6 titanium for everything else. 

  • 0 over 4 years ago in reply to scotthunter2

    Here’s the exact response I received from Garmin. 

    “The DLC is most scratch resistant. This is because this carbon gray is a metal coating. The DLC is to prevent this from wearing and chipping. Titanium is strong but can still be scratched. But due to the silver coloring with not plating layer, they are not as noticeable. Steel is strong as well, but susceptible to scratching.”

  • 0 over 4 years ago in reply to blueste

    What Garmin are leaving out is that DLC coating, when scratched, removes the DLC layer and shows the metal underneath. The best analogy being imagine curbing a painted car wheel... the metal under the paint shows through. If you grind a normal, unpainted, alloy into a curb, you will see the mark (just like the Titanium); however, I would argue that if you do the same with a black, or dark grey, alloy, the 'bright' stainless that shows under the damage is even worse.

    You can remove marks from a titanium watch and if you're worried, take it to a proficient jeweller, who will be able to do it for you. You will not be able to do the same with DLC.

    Somethng to consider.

  • 0 over 4 years ago in reply to NowOrNeverNow

    This is true. But the Titanium is substantially softer than the steel variants. Also the DLC Fenix 6 is a bit lighter gray than usual. I wonder if scratches will be less obvious from this lighter finish? I guess time will tell!