What is a Lock Crown

A lock crown also known as a screw-down crown is the ability of replica watches to improve water-resistance by sealing the crown to the case. The inner gaskets and threads of the winding crown are supposed to perfectly fasten the crown into place. This way it will act like a seal for the watch case.

The perfect example for illustrating the importance and functionality of a screw down crown are the famous twin lock and triple lock crowns designed by Rolex for its watches. These two innovative systems are the result of many years of extensive development work that had the goal of achieving the most extreme water resistance performances. Understanding how these work isn’t complicated. It all revolves around the number or rubber seals and the type of arrangement inside the screw down crown.

Most Rolex watches are equipped with a twin lock crown, but only the Submariner, Sea-Dweller, full size YachtMaster and Daytona are privileged with the revolutionary triple lock crown.

As I was saying earlier, the type of arrangement and number of seals inside the winding crown determine the water resistance of a watch. For instance, timepieces that come with two seals are called twin lock crowns and can withstand depths of 100 meters while those that have three rubber seals are triple lock crown watches and can dive up to 100 meters.

Indeed, the original Rolex Submariner, SeaDweller, full size YachtMaster and Daytonas have a triple lock crown that allows them to be protected from water even in depth of 300 meters, but a replica watch can certainly not resist to such kind of water exposure and pressure. A replica watch isn’t made for water diving or swimming and this means that you should avoid soaking your watch. Still, if you have a Rolex replica you need to know what its markings mean, especially the ones on top of the winding crown. The winding crown has a special type of embossing over it which suggests the type of lock capability the watch has. For example, if it is a crown with three dots then it should be a triple lock crown watch. A twin lock crown watch needs to have a logo featuring a small Rolex crown with a dash, one dot or two dots.

Even though a screw down crown is a great feature for an original watch, for a replica it only serves as a nice aesthetic addition. A replica cannot serve the needs of a professional diver and isn’t recommended for swimming either, but it still needs to look as authentic as possible. This is why it should have the correct lock crown logo embossed right on top of the screw down crown. Knowing your lock crown systems correctly can help you make the difference between an accurate replica and a poorly made one.

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