In his reply further up, Ming raised an issue that I had completely overlooked: How does the "Red Sea's" rubber-coated case fare when exposed to chemicals? Of course I am aware that any material can be damaged if the chemical is only aggressive enough, Consequently, I did not consider pouring aqua regia or sulphuric acid over the beautiful "Red Sea".
However, in any well-assorted household, chemicals are handled in everyday life, and whenever the wristwatch is not taken off prior to the respective activities, there is a chance of the watch coming into direct contact with the substances in question. Therefore, I made a small series of experiments with common household chemicals.
Since the "Red Sea" is not my property, and in spite of the fact that my "license to test" was not limited in any way by Ulysse Nardin, I did not want to deliberately damage it. Consequently, I pre-checked every chemical on my own Marine Diver's rubber strap first, and only afterwards I applied it to the rubber-clad underside of the "Red Sea". Every chemical was allowed to stay on the rubber for 60 seconds, before it was thoroughly washed off with clear water.
So here are the results of this additional test:
* common drain pipe cleaner: no effect
* liquid all-purpose cleaner: no effect
* descaling agent: no effect
* acetic acid (vinegar essence), 25%: no effect
* hydrochloric acid (HCl), 33%: no effect
* native olive oil, cold-pressed: no effect
In Austria, an oil pressed from pumpkin seed is highly popular. It tastes very nuttily, and is valuable and healthy. However, it causes green spots on every material it comes in contact with, washing is absolutely futile. I assume that the "Red Sea" case would get an interesting tint from that oil, and doubt it could be removed again. Therefore, I decided to skip that "test", also, because this kind of mean oil is barely in use outside of Austria.
Finally, just to answer Ming's above-mentioned question:
* gasoline, unleaded: no effect
* Diesel fuel: no effect
To sum up, the rubber-coated casework of the UN Marine Diver "Red Sea" has proven to be absolutely suited for everyday life's challenges, and even to several more.
Regards,
Marcus