Only had the watch a few days but are these normal? Not even sure how I’d have done them since I’ve been very careful but maybe it’s just me. Thoughts?

Does titanium scratch easier than SS?

Titanium will scratch somewhat easier then stainless steel however once it oxidizes it is close to the same hardness. Those don’t seem like normal wear and tear.

I have a grand seiko with a ti case and I have worn it about a month and it doesn’t look anything like that.

Are you pulling a Jeremy Clarkson and wearing a bracelet on the same arm as the watch?

Titanium is similar in hardness to stainless steel, but it will appear to scratch easily, as an oxide layer forms on the surface, that is easy to mar. Time will allow this layer to form again and the scratch will lessen in appearance.

What you appear to have on your watch though, are dents, more than scratches and this can only happen if the watch has come into contact with something hard.

MarkingTime wrote: ↑Wed Mar 05, 2025 8:24 pm Titanium is similar in hardness to stainless steel, but it will appear to scratch easily, as an oxide layer forms on the surface, that is easy to mar. Time will allow this layer to form again and the scratch will lessen in appearance.

What you appear to have on your watch though, are dents, more than scratches and this can only happen if the watch has come into contact with something hard.

My Oris Propilot scratches easily but is also very easy to brush out with something as simple as a kitchen sponge. I agree that is distinct and apart from deeper gouges in the metal.

This isn't a great example photo but one I have handy, the top you can see the kind of scratches I mean.

I have some titanium watches that seem to scratch more easily than others. The oxidation/annealing tends to obscure the scratches over time. The marks on the Elite look like more than just scratches. Also, they are not all that significant to my eye so would not much bother me. How you feel about the marks of course may differ from me.

“ For watches, the most common forms are Grade 2 and Grade 5 titanium. Grade 2 is “commercially pure” titanium and provides light weight and corrosion resistance but isn’t quite as strong as alloys like Grade 5. Grade 5, or Ti 6Al-4V, is titanium alloyed with 6% aluminum and 4% vanadium. The resultant alloy increases strength, as well as heat and corrosion resistance. In pricier watches, expect Grade 5.”
CW use Grade 2 I think.

The Twelve Ti is Grade 2.

Mine has acquired a few minor scratches that seem to fade, and the bracelet has a war wound from when I tripped and measured my length in a Moroccan kasbah. Could have been worse. Dings &c. don’t bother me. All part of life’s rich tapestry.

LambethCW wrote: ↑Sat Mar 08, 2025 6:10 pm “ For watches, the most common forms are Grade 2 and Grade 5 titanium. Grade 2 is “commercially pure” titanium and provides light weight and corrosion resistance but isn’t quite as strong as alloys like Grade 5. Grade 5, or Ti 6Al-4V, is titanium alloyed with 6% aluminum and 4% vanadium. The resultant alloy increases strength, as well as heat and corrosion resistance. In pricier watches, expect Grade 5.”
CW use Grade 2 I think.

As AVO said, most are grade 2 from CW except the Bel Canto. The watch head is grade 5 and the bracelet is grade 2.

I just love this place! I'm on the cusp of going for a GS Spring Drive and thought I'd have a quick search of the forum. Seconds later I'm learning about the different grades of Titanium. Obviously then had to rush of and find what GS use, and probably unsurprisingly it's grade 5. Phew.

Not all titanium is created equal, many now do have a treated surface that is much harder to scratch than 316L stainless. RZE calls theirs a coating, and they give the treatment to their case and bracelet, but not the case back, so you can easily scratch up the case back while the top visible parts of the watch looks pristine. Citizen's super titanium has different grades of exterior treatment depending on the model. It's an added cost for sure, but maybe something CW can consider. After experiencing the RZE coating, I've been reluctant to get any titanium watch without some sort of surface treatment. CW Lumier ( which I loved and considered) also has quite a few reviews where they stated it was easier to scratch up than their 316L counterparts.

RegGuyAl wrote: ↑Sun Mar 09, 2025 8:05 am Not all titanium is created equal, many now do have a treated surface that is much harder to scratch than 316L stainless. RZE calls theirs a coating, and they give the treatment to their case and bracelet, but not the case back, so you can easily scratch up the case back while the top visible parts of the watch looks pristine. Citizen's super titanium has different grades of exterior treatment depending on the model. It's an added cost for sure, but maybe something CW can consider. After experiencing the RZE coating, I've been reluctant to get any titanium watch without some sort of surface treatment. CW Lumier ( which I loved and considered) also has quite a few reviews where they stated it was easier to scratch up than their 316L counterparts.

During the pre-launch preview for the Lumiere Wil Brackfield did mention that CW was looking at coatings but it would not be on the Lumiere at release.

Titanium is generally softer than 316 stainless steel. I'm not sure that I'd want a coating on titanium for fear of it chipping. However, a surface treatment can harden titanium greatly. For reference:

Grade 2 Ti is HV circa 225
Grade 5 Ti is HV circa 350

Ti can be carburized (or nitrided if you like yellow) to an HV above 2000.

316 Stainless comes in at around 200-400 HV depending on heat treatment. It can be carburized / tegimented up to around 1100 HV.

The problem with these hardening processes is that they all involve a lot of heat and precision parts can be subject to permanent dimensional changes when heated to this degree, making it difficult to harden a finished item.

For my part, I tend to be reasonably careful when wearing watches. My 12Ti still looks fresh.

I'd be interested in having a Tungsten Carbide cased watch. I've got a ring made of the stuff. There's not a mark on it after 15+ years of daily wear. I've accidentally thrown it onto a hard ceramic floor, forgot to take it off before using maximum effort on a knurled socket spanner, handheld all sorts of gritty abrasives, nothing touches it. 2600HV for the win!

I've owned many, many titanium watches and I really like it for watches, particularly the lightness when the watch is fitted with a bracelet.

My experience is that the grade 2 titanium watches can scratch more easily than stainless, but the brightness of the scratches fades a little over time to blend in with the rest of the watch. Uncoated/unhardened grade 2 is much more grey than stainless. Polishing grade 2 titanium is somewhat (but not completely) pointless as polished grade 2 dulls easily probably from micro-scratches. Blasted or brushed is the best here.

Grade 5 titanium (for example now used by Omega) is far more scratch resistant than grade 2, seems to be slightly more scratch resistant than stainless and holds a polish just as well as stainless does. My eight year old grade 5 titanium Speedmaster '57 (there is no hardening treatment on this) still has a great finish to it and the colour difference of the grade 5 alloy compared to stainless is virtually non-existent. Same thing with my grade 5 Ti Planet Ocean although it has fewer polished bits than the speedy does. Ditto with my grade 5 Ti Aqua Terra (now sold) which was unmarked.
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Quick follow up: Omega bracelet clasps are generally acknowleged to be "scratch magnets". Most of mine (stainless) have minor marks on them within days or weeks from new. This is the grade 5 titanium clasp from my Planet Ocean - it's far from new, yet I had to get the lighting angle just rigt to show up the scratches here. While visible to the camera, they are next to invisible to the naked eye without a great deal of angling of the clasp to catch the light "just right", but even so 99.9% of the time you'd swear there's nothing there. My stainless steel clasps of the same or similar design show the marks with much less contortionist activity. I would say it's quite scratch resistant.