Shade's Off!

9/25/2025

Nothing worse than having a beautiful crown that fits perfectly, the contacts are right on, the occlusion is just right, and the shade is off. It just makes the whole experience a letdown.

There are so many variables that are involved in matching a patient’s tooth color that it is hard to distinguish what might have gone wrong. It may just be the lab, or it can be the procedure for taking the shade that went awry. Nevertheless, the problem has to be solved asap.

There are some tricks that might save you from another appointment. If the crown shade is too dark, there's a chance your lab used some superficial stains in the glaze cycle. If so, you can use a rubber wheel with a slow speed handpiece to carefully remove any unwanted color. A more aggressive approach is to take a fine diamond bur in your high speed and lightly follow the contour of the crown face. Afterward you can go back to the rubber wheel before polishing to remove any small grooves the diamond might have left on the surface.

These procedures will work tremendously, every so often. Ask your Lab technician what rubber wheels he would recommend. You might be surprised at the level of quality there is in the advancement of polishing products.

Written and illustrated by Ned LaMarti, CDT