Watch out! (Or, what’s the deal with changing out watch straps?)

Young man looking up at Sistine Chapel, Rome, 1971

One of the most frustrating things about some watches is how they are near impossible to change out the bracelets or straps. I’ve been wrestling with a couple of watches lately, and it’s kind of turning me off to the watch world. OK, OK, first world problem. But it’s also a time issue. And seeing as watches are timepieces, the amount of time I must take to change out a strap should be a consideration, as much as what kind of movement the watch has, shouldn’t it? Anyway, here I am with two exceptional watches that do not want me to mess with their bracelets and straps.

First one: The Tudor Back Bay 925.

It comes with this dainty little leather strap. Nice enough, yes. But I wanted something a little more rugged, rustic even, but also hand-made. So, I ordered an olive leather one from Rich at Toshi straps.

The strap is excellent and it has a little more heft than the original one that came with the Tudor. The problem, though, was getting the original one off. My God, I’m glad I taped the watch up, seeing as 925 silver is a bit of a scratch magnet. Even then, I wrestled with it mightily until I finally got it off. Putting on Rich’s Oliva strap was a lot easier. My watch guru says it is because folks at Tudor has such exacting standards and little or no wriggle room as they design the watch to have very close tolerances, which is the sign of a well-made watch. I get that. But I sure as hell don’t want to run to the watch shop every time I want to switch out a strap or a bracelet.

Lesser watches of mine don’t seem to have that problem. In fact, some of them have easy-release strap pins. Great invention. Oh wait, maybe the Big Guys don’t want us to do that? Maybe they want to control the process? Maybe…

The other watch: An Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch.

It comes with a stainless-steel bracelet. Nice bracelet. But again, once in a while, I’d like to mix it up. It also has the same lug length as the Tudor (20mm) so I decided to try the olive leather strap on the Moonwatch.

Again, it turned into a tangle and a tussle and perhaps 20 minutes went by before I was about to switch them out. I did, and I didn’t do much, if any, harm to the watch. But I thought to myself, “Gee, this is fun?”

I messaged my watch guru with pix to show him the watch didn’t get the best of me. His response:

“Old school thinking from AP, PP, Rolex, Omega et al… they discourage products not their own. Panerai, Cartier and Seiko all encourage easy changes for fun, style/seasons and such. Don’t get me talking about the Swiss & business… 🙃”

He knows better than I, so while this wasn’t exactly what I was looking for, it wasn’t unexpected. After all, so much of the template big business uses comes from the patriarch’s playbook. Father knows best.

All this to say, as a newbie in the watch game, I can see why I probably won't fall too far down the horological rabbit hole. I’ve already been there with other industries, and quite honestly, I just don’t have the time.

 

The Moonwatch with Rich's Oliva strap. It's a great combo!

 

written by Alfonso Cevola - limited rights reserved