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Adventures in accessorizing

Discussion area for watch straps, boxes, winders and other accessories.
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peskydonut
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Adventures in accessorizing

Post by peskydonut »

I got a number of straps this holiday season. Majority of these have now arrived, so I wanted to share some experiences and photos...

Martu Slim Distressed Brown

I don't know why, perhaps it's the holiday season or maybe it's the fuzzy keepers, but these straps make me think of fleece-lined sweatpants, comfy slippers, and sipping a beverage by the fireplace.

My daughter gifted me a Timex Expedition Scout for my birthday, which has since become my home and weekend watch. I bought the brown version of this strap for the Timex. I think it works quite well! The strap is super light and supple, feels like I'm wearing nothing at all...nothing at all...nothing at all...

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Martu Purple Distressed

The purple strap really spoke to me. I intended to pair it with the blue dial Glycine combat, but sadly that didn't pan out. The strap is quite thick (3.5mm), which wouldn't have been a problem if it was longer, but unfortunately at 75mm (top) and 110mm (bottom) it was just too short for my 6.75" wrist. The tail fit only halfway into the oversized keeper and it just looked really wonky. To be clear, this is my own fault. Andrea sells 3 different sizes and I opted for the shortest. This particular strap happened to be 5mm shorter than the other "small" ones.

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Martu Slim Distressed Black

Instead of the purple strap I ended up pairing the Glycine with the black version of the slim distressed strap. I think the grey really accentuates the blue dial and I love the crackled distress pattern. Just like the brown variant, this one is super soft and comfortable without any break in.

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Martu Vintage Brown Leather and Green Canvas

I've been on a bit of a canvas bender lately and got this one specifically for the Khaki Field Mechanical (H69429931). It looked alright, but I think this watch works better on a NATO due to the longer lugs with holes close to the edge. That's just my personal opinion.

For kicks, I decided to try it on the Lunar Pilot. I was really surprised by how awesome it looked!

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Helm C1

I also bought a Helm canvas strap to go with the recently acquired Seiko SRP779. It's an excellently made strap, especially at $25, but man is this thing stiff!! Holy smokes. When I first put it on it felt like my arm was sandwiched between two planks. After spending some time bending and shaping it around my wrist the strap felt better, but there's still work to be done. It's not necessarily uncomfortable, but experience is similar to breaking in new ski/snowboard boots. The strap came with two keepers, one of which I took off since I could barely bend the strap to get it through the first keeper, let alone the second one.

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Still to come...


Haveston M-1918C Tan and Olive

These are currently making their way through customs. Haveston shipped them super fast and they got to the US from the UK in a day. I expect them to arrive sometime next week. I plan to try out both straps with the Khaki Field Mechanical (H69429931) and Khaki Pilot Day/Date Auto (H64605531).
Last edited by peskydonut on Sat Dec 28, 2019 12:55 pm, edited 6 times in total.
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Re: Adventures in accessorizing

Post by tommy_boy »

Nice review!

Andrea's the best.
Just my $0.02 USD as always.
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Re: Adventures in accessorizing

Post by Klaatu3 »

Thanks for the enjoyable read. You're demonstrating one of the secrets of a clever watch hobbyist: "accessorizing" existing watches with new straps helps scratch the itch for variety with less cash outlay than (as many) new watches.

You'll like the Haveston canvas with their nice materials and the single-pass design.
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Re: Adventures in accessorizing

Post by Split-Time »

You are killing it on every combo...especially the Glycine and Bulova! I bought that same Bulova because, well...see avatar, knowing it would be too large for me. I never thought to try it on leather but think I will do that now.

Sorry the purple didn’t work out. Would have been an interesting combo.
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Re: Adventures in accessorizing

Post by peskydonut »

Split-Time wrote: Fri Dec 27, 2019 8:18 pm You are killing it on every combo...especially the Glycine and Bulova! I bought that same Bulova because, well...see avatar, knowing it would be too large for me. I never thought to try it on leather but think I will do that now.

Sorry the purple didn’t work out. Would have been an interesting combo.
Thanks!

I tried the purple one again so I could add some photos. I guess it doesn't look too bad. It would look better if the keeper wasn't so huge. I still think I like the grey strap better.

One perhaps obvious thing that occurred to me is that there is a relationship between the strap thickness and the heft of the watch. For example the Bulova, which is a bulky piece, feels "unsafe" on a light strap. Conversely the 36mm Glycine, which is relatively dainty, feels "off" on a thick strap. Especially one whose keeper is almost the size of the watch head.

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Re: Adventures in accessorizing

Post by Split-Time »

peskydonut wrote: Sat Dec 28, 2019 1:18 pm
Split-Time wrote: Fri Dec 27, 2019 8:18 pm You are killing it on every combo...especially the Glycine and Bulova! I bought that same Bulova because, well...see avatar, knowing it would be too large for me. I never thought to try it on leather but think I will do that now.

Sorry the purple didn’t work out. Would have been an interesting combo.
Thanks!

I tried the purple one again so I could add some photos. I guess it doesn't look too bad. It would look better if the keeper wasn't so huge. I still think I like the grey strap better.

One perhaps obvious thing that occurred to me is that there is a relationship between the strap thickness and the heft of the watch. For example the Bulova, which is a bulky piece, feels "unsafe" on a light strap. Conversely the 36mm Glycine, which is relatively dainty, feels "off" on a thick strap. Especially one whose keeper is almost the size of the watch head.

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The purple is cool but you are absolutely correct about the keeper. I planned to change straps on my Bulova today be have not had time. Interested to see how it looks even if I don’t wear it much.
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Re: Adventures in accessorizing

Post by watchpalooza »

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Re: Adventures in accessorizing

Post by VCheng »

peskydonut wrote: Thu Dec 26, 2019 9:44 pm I got a number of straps this holiday season. Majority of these have now arrived, so I wanted to share some experiences and photos...

Martu Slim Distressed Brown

I don't know why, perhaps it's the holiday season or maybe it's the fuzzy keepers, but these straps make me think of fleece-lined sweatpants, comfy slippers, and sipping a beverage by the fireplace.

My daughter gifted me a Timex Expedition Scout for my birthday, which has since become my home and weekend watch. I bought the brown version of this strap for the Timex. I think it works quite well! The strap is super light and supple, feels like I'm wearing nothing at all...nothing at all...nothing at all...

Image
Image
Image

Martu Purple Distressed

The purple strap really spoke to me. I intended to pair it with the blue dial Glycine combat, but sadly that didn't pan out. The strap is quite thick (3.5mm), which wouldn't have been a problem if it was longer, but unfortunately at 75mm (top) and 110mm (bottom) it was just too short for my 6.75" wrist. The tail fit only halfway into the oversized keeper and it just looked really wonky. To be clear, this is my own fault. Andrea sells 3 different sizes and I opted for the shortest. This particular strap happened to be 5mm shorter than the other "small" ones.

Image

Martu Slim Distressed Black

Instead of the purple strap I ended up pairing the Glycine with the black version of the slim distressed strap. I think the grey really accentuates the blue dial and I love the crackled distress pattern. Just like the brown variant, this one is super soft and comfortable without any break in.

Image
Image
Image

Martu Vintage Brown Leather and Green Canvas

I've been on a bit of a canvas bender lately and got this one specifically for the Khaki Field Mechanical (H69429931). It looked alright, but I think this watch works better on a NATO due to the longer lugs with holes close to the edge. That's just my personal opinion.

For kicks, I decided to try it on the Lunar Pilot. I was really surprised by how awesome it looked!

Image
Image
Image
Image

Helm C1

I also bought a Helm canvas strap to go with the recently acquired Seiko SRP779. It's an excellently made strap, especially at $25, but man is this thing stiff!! Holy smokes. When I first put it on it felt like my arm was sandwiched between two planks. After spending some time bending and shaping it around my wrist the strap felt better, but there's still work to be done. It's not necessarily uncomfortable, but experience is similar to breaking in new ski/snowboard boots. The strap came with two keepers, one of which I took off since I could barely bend the strap to get it through the first keeper, let alone the second one.

Image
Image

Still to come...


Haveston M-1918C Tan and Olive

These are currently making their way through customs. Haveston shipped them super fast and they got to the US from the UK in a day. I expect them to arrive sometime next week. I plan to try out both straps with the Khaki Field Mechanical (H69429931) and Khaki Pilot Day/Date Auto (H64605531).
Among these, the grey one stands out, I like it a lot. Is it very thin? Do you think it can carry a fairly heavy watch with 22mm lug width?
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Re: Adventures in accessorizing

Post by VCheng »

peskydonut wrote: Sat Dec 28, 2019 1:18 pm
Split-Time wrote: Fri Dec 27, 2019 8:18 pm You are killing it on every combo...especially the Glycine and Bulova! I bought that same Bulova because, well...see avatar, knowing it would be too large for me. I never thought to try it on leather but think I will do that now.

Sorry the purple didn’t work out. Would have been an interesting combo.
Thanks!

I tried the purple one again so I could add some photos. I guess it doesn't look too bad. It would look better if the keeper wasn't so huge. I still think I like the grey strap better.

One perhaps obvious thing that occurred to me is that there is a relationship between the strap thickness and the heft of the watch. For example the Bulova, which is a bulky piece, feels "unsafe" on a light strap. Conversely the 36mm Glycine, which is relatively dainty, feels "off" on a thick strap. Especially one whose keeper is almost the size of the watch head.

Image
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One of my straps from her also has a huge keeper. It makes me wearing the strap less honestly. Otherwise, the quality of her strap is very good.
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Re: Adventures in accessorizing

Post by peskydonut »

VCheng wrote: Mon Dec 30, 2019 5:15 am Among these, the grey one stands out, I like it a lot. Is it very thin? Do you think it can carry a fairly heavy watch with 22mm lug width?
I think my phrasing of "unsafe" was misleading, I'm sure the watch won't just go flying off the thinner strap. I first tried the grey strap on the Citizen Promaster. The combination just felt a touch unbalanced, not to the point where I wouldn't wear it, but it just seemed to fit better with a thinner watch.

Here are some photos comparing the grey strap on a 36mm Glycine Combat and a thicker Distressed Black Leather strap on a Citizen Promaster BN0150-28E, which at least dimension wise I found to be a better combination. (I'm still not sure how much I like the Promaster on leather...or at least this particular one.)

Not sure what size a watch you have in mind, but hopefully the info below will help with your decision.

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Re: Adventures in accessorizing

Post by peskydonut »

Bonus shots of the Promaster on the Martu Distressed Black Leather strap. Feedback is welcome...

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Re: Adventures in accessorizing

Post by VCheng »

peskydonut wrote: Mon Dec 30, 2019 3:02 pm
VCheng wrote: Mon Dec 30, 2019 5:15 am Among these, the grey one stands out, I like it a lot. Is it very thin? Do you think it can carry a fairly heavy watch with 22mm lug width?
I think my phrasing of "unsafe" was misleading, I'm sure the watch won't just go flying off the thinner strap. I first tried the grey strap on the Citizen Promaster. The combination just felt a touch unbalanced, not to the point where I wouldn't wear it, but it just seemed to fit better with a thinner watch.

Here are some photos comparing the grey strap on a 36mm Glycine Combat and a thicker Distressed Black Leather strap on a Citizen Promaster BN0150-28E, which at least dimension wise I found to be a better combination. (I'm still not sure how much I like the Promaster on leather...or at least this particular one.)

Not sure what size a watch you have in mind, but hopefully the info below will help with your decision.

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Thanks for your info, it gives me a better idea definitely. In that case, I think the grey strap fits thinner watch far much better. Maybe a pilot, not most of divers.

For the promaster, it isn't too bad for matching with the strap you shown I think. It is acceptable. But NATO or rubber band is still better.
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Re: Adventures in accessorizing

Post by peskydonut »

VCheng wrote: Mon Dec 30, 2019 6:16 pm
Thanks for your info, it gives me a better idea definitely. In that case, I think the grey strap fits thinner watch far much better. Maybe a pilot, not most of divers.

For the promaster, it isn't too bad for matching with the strap you shown I think. It is acceptable. But NATO or rubber band is still better.
Thanks for your feedback. I'll try it on the Haveston NATOs once those come in.
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Re: Adventures in accessorizing

Post by Split-Time »

Hey [mention]peskydonut[/mention] , my life is about to get a lot easier! I don’t know why I waited so long long to purchase a better spring bar tool. My first move was to put a NASA type Velcro strap on the Bulova. It isn’t pic worthy but I may wear it tomorrow...or try it on leather.

Really enjoying seeing what you do!

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Re: Adventures in accessorizing

Post by TheJohnP »

As Andrea is custom making the strap, can you request a thinner keeper?
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