Sticky Digital Crown

I can think of a lot better things to try than running water. How about isopropyl/rubbing alcohol ON A CUE-TIP maybe? Running water over the crown I would think is JUST ASKING for TROUBLE; running water over non-waterproof watches is never recommended. The force of the running water can be just enough to penetrate into the watch case. I DO NOT know if there is some type of seal for the crown that COULD be damaged by trying the above, so perhaps Apple can chime in at some point in the future. This is bound to become an issue. Nobody will ever fall in the dirt or sand with their watch on right?

My $.02

OK, then hopefully they've tested that solution with all types of running water speeds/velocities. I can see someone using their kitchen dish sprayer and flooding the case and they say apple said "running water". My $.02

Apple has chimed in with their official support article telling us to run it under water (linked prior in this thread).

I can't speak for those who haven't worked out and gotten sweat on the watch. Mine was definitely a problem the morning after I went on a 6 mile run and most likely sweated into the watch. It sat overnight and the salt in my sweat crystalized and caused issues. Next day I ran warm water over it while turning the crown-issue gone.

I worked out yesterday, sweat got into the watch, quick rinse afterwards, no issues today with crown being sticky or stuck.

Well, it seems that I should have to wash my watch with running water especially in Digital Crown area, am I right?

I have exactly the same issue as yours. I used running water method yesterday and it stay normal for about 30 hours and this problem happened just now.

But after I went out without watch on my wrist for more than 10 minutes and returned, I found this problem disappeared then.

So I'm quite puzzled that when this problem would rise again.

I have 3 days left to make decision whether I replace it with another one to Apple, but I really don't want to bother.

Could anyone please give me some suggestion? Should I replace it or keep this one and clean it after some fit events?

Thank you!

I had mine for about two weeks and the problem developed, I called and they asked me to take it to the apple store where they abducted my watch and said i should get it back in 5 days.... my anxiety is through the roof and I'm sure I've gained weight from the loss of motivational incentive that the watch provided... i wish i could put emoji in here :-(

I had the SS 42 mm with SB , for almost 4 weeks , the Digital Crown started to get a little less responsive when scrolling up and down in the last week or so,I run twice weekly and wear the Watch at all times in Florida with hot and humid weather . So I kinda of figured that oil from my skin , mixed with sweat might have something to do with this . Followed the instructions on Apple Web site, a bit hesitant to use running water on it, but, it worked . Just wondered if this is a design flaw or just normal due to the nature of the Watch construction. Hmmm😕

Seriously! Should we really accept that for $400+ watch needs to be run under the tap?! And the watch isn't even 'waterproof'!

I too am experiencing. Sometimes after exercise - really really extreme exercise like a 30min cycle ride in the UK! I am barely breaking a sweat, but poor Watch gets tired and has 'sticky crown'

Come on Apple - we need this resolved

I have my suspicion this is a software bug - after all the software can control the firmness of the crown somehow - as per using Scroll functionality

I have never washed mine - after some time - it resolves itself

not really THAT big of a deal... I sweat all over the watch during a workout so a wipe down with water on a rag afterwards is the minimum otherwise the sweat is geta all gross...

It's not "waterproof" but it's rating allows for full submersion up to 3' for some extended period of time-a quick rinse in the sink isn't a problem. I swam in a pool all last weekend with mine on and it's perfectly fine and that was deeper than 3' for most of the time.

im fairly certain it's not a software issue-software could control overall firmness but can't make it seem "sticky". Not to mention water resolves the issue.

It really is a big deal... how many sports watches need washing after a workout

Whilst its called 'sticky' - I would say mine has more resistance - which could be software controlled - and is aka what happens with Scrolling

Anyway - thanks for prompt reply

Look forward to other views

I am intrigued that many of the reports on WWW and this forum seem to stop end May ... was this a first batch issue?

So far I have now had five incidences, and each time I leave (no running under the tap) for 4-6 hours and it fixes itself.

So, maybe its naturally drying out?

What is clear to me is that there is no bit of grit or dirt that needs 'washing out under the tap' - I remain convinced that is nonsense!

Anybody experiencing the naturally phenomenon of 'self fixing sticky crown'?

Im having the same issue since the day I got my Apple Sports Watch. I didnt even do any exercise with it nor took any showers or submersed it in water. It just started getting sticky and I got quite confused.

I washed it with little warm water and it worked fine for a few days and seems like the problem is back.

Seems like a defect, i dont think our sweat has anything to do with this. More like some sort of grinding issue with digital crown and the body of the watch. This is their first product in smart watches and we are their guinea pigs i guess.

Great - Zorkor - thanks for confirming this is nothing to do with exersice/sweat

When did you get your watch - was it one of the early pre-orders?

It generally feels to me like a first batch problem - as I would expect to see 100s of complaints since launch but the generally stop in the early days

Something still tells me this is a wacky software bug

I've had my watch now for a couple of weeks, and I first experienced the "sticky" crown on the second or third day after purchase. Although Apple's "fix" has improved the crown, I have to do it daily. Unfortunately the fix doesn't return the watch to new, and it has never been as smooth as it was straight out of the box. Relatedly, every other rotation, I feel a little "tick", as though there's something in the crown, but regardless of whether or not I feel the tick, it's not a smooth rotation. I also feel like a downward motion is smoother than an upward one, but that's hard to verify with just my subjective impression.

If anyone else has another suggestion for how to return the crown's motion to new, I'd love to hear it. Otherwise, I'm considering returning this in exchange for a new one (though that may not fix the problem).

You're welcome. I am not the exercising type nor I sweat wearing my Apple Watch and this thing has been sticking from day one. Even right now I am finding the crown sticking again after washing it a few days ago which made it a little smoother.

Seems like it needs to be constantly washed with warm water to make the digital crown work smoother. I am dead sure it has nothing to do with sweat.