What are the Pros and Cons of Using Mineral Glass For Watches?
When buying a wristwatch, there are several important characteristics that you need to pay attention to in order to make the right choice – the type of movement, case material, level of water resistance, functionality, and the glass of the dial. Keep reading to know about the varieties of glasses for watch and what are the peculiarities of the mineral glass.
Main types of the watch glass
There are several types of glass.
Plastic is one of the most affordable types. A significant drawback is the tendency to form scratches and scuffs. The more expensive sports models use a higher quality look that is resistant to scratches and impacts.
Mineral – the most common and available type with average quality indicators.
Hardlex is a technological development of the Japanese company Seiko, a hardened material with higher resistance to scratches and impacts.
Anti-reflective – a mineral or sapphire base with a special coating inside or outside, makes the dial absolutely transparent to light and easy to read from any angle of view.
Sapphire – made of synthetic sapphire, has increased strength and scratch resistance.
Sapflex – a mineral with sapphire spraying.
Mineral glass is an artificially grown quartz mineral and is most often used in watchmaking. Modern technologies and advanced equipment allow to produce it of higher quality, but like any material, it has its advantages and disadvantages.
Advantages and disadvantages of the glass
A significant advantage is an affordable price, which is directly related to a less expensive production and processing technology. This, in turn, significantly reduces the overall cost of the watch. Lenses made of “mineral water” are made in such a way that they can visually enlarge or, on the contrary, remove arrows. If you have vision problems, this property will definitely be useful.
The high level of transparency and light transmittance makes it possible to see the dial well at some distance and not bring your hand directly to your eyes to see the numbers. Compared to sapphire, minerals will retain their transparency and will not cloud much longer if used correctly in non-aggressive environments.
Mineral glass is more resistant to small scratches and abrasions and is much better able to withstand small shocks and drops than sapphire. Even if you scratch your accessory, it can be easily polished in a watch workshop and returned to its former look.
The disadvantage is the tendency to form glare when the watch is exposed to direct sunlight, which makes it difficult to read the dial. But manufacturers have found a solution to this problem – a special anti-reflective film is simply applied on top.
An accessory with a mineral water dial is not afraid of small shocks, but under increased shock loads, its strength may not be enough, and the glass may crack or break. If your accessory will experience heavy loads when worn, it makes sense to buy a watch that uses hardlex, its durability will be much higher.
When operated in an aggressive acidic environment, such material will quickly become cloudy, so the chronometer must be worn carefully and protected from the effects of acids and suspended dust particles.
Mineral glass is still the most popular material used in the production of inexpensive and mid-range models. If used correctly and worn carefully, the accessory will serve you for a long time and will not be inferior in quality even to models with sapphire protection.
The variety of watches with mineral glass is available on the WatchShop website, visit it today to find your desired piece.
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