Poor man's watch thread

[Jazzmenco]

 

[Michigan Planner]

@Jazzmenco - Did that Glycine come on the mesh? I used to think mesh was so hideous then I got one a few years ago and loved the look and the feel.

 

[Jazzmenco]

@Jazzmenco - Did that Glycine come on the mesh? I used to think mesh was so hideous then I got one a few years ago and loved the look and the feel.

Yes that and the green bezel were the reasons I bought it. I had to you tube how to adjust it, super easy, another plus.....

 

[khughes44]

May I trouble you gentlemen for some advice please? I have a couple of “poor man’s” watches, both gifts, that I truly enjoy; a quartz Freddy Constant, and a mechanical Tissot. Both, perhaps due to the leather bands, have a tendency to rotate counter-clockwise on my wrist. Is this something that can be remedied with a custom strap, and if so whom do you recommend.

 

[venessian]

May I trouble you gentlemen for some advice please? I have a couple of “poor man’s” watches, both gifts, that I truly enjoy; a quartz Freddy Constant, and a mechanical Tissot. Both, perhaps due to the leather bands, have a tendency to rotate counter-clockwise on my wrist. Is this something that can be remedied with a custom strap, and if so whom do you recommend.

These watches "rotate counter-clockwise on my wrist" how exactly?

A) The entire watch, including the strap? Try tightening the strap one more hole before you go custom. Or, try a Perlon strap (no holes, push the tang in wherever you want, the nylon weave is self-healing. Perlon are great straps, esp for warm weather.). Eulit is the best perlon brand, worth the extra few dollars.

B) Just the watch head is rotating? In that case, make sure the strap width at the lugs is correct to the watch lug width (i.e. that you don't have an 18mm strap in a 20mm lug).

 

[venessian]

Yes that and the green bezel were the reasons I bought it. I had to you tube how to adjust it, super easy, another plus.....

That green is great, and Glycines are very nice.

I never could get used to mesh bands shredding my wrist/wrist hair, finally just gave up on them. Plus on many watches I was never fond of the smaller scale (relative to a standard linked band or fabric/leather strap) of mesh/milanaise, other than on very minimal, fine-scaled cases and dials. Just my experience/opinion.

 

[khughes44]

These watches "rotate counter-clockwise on my wrist" how exactly?

A) The entire watch, including the strap? Try tightening the strap one more hole before you go custom. Or, try a Perlon strap (no holes, push the tang in wherever you want, the nylon weave is self-healing. Perlon are great straps, esp for warm weather.). Eulit is the best perlon brand, worth the extra few dollars.

B) Just the watch head is rotating? In that case, make sure the strap width at the lugs is correct to the watch lug width (i.e. that you don't have an 18mm strap in a 20mm lug).

The entire watch rotates. I think the ideal fit would be between holes on both straps. I’ll try a strap like you suggest. Thank you.

 

[venessian]

The entire watch rotates. I think the ideal fit would be between holes on both straps. I’ll try a strap like you suggest. Thank you.

Yes, but Perlon is not for everybody. Some just don't like them. I live in Los Angeles, tend to be hot, don't really like NATO straps, and so use Perlon straps a lot, ~9 months/year.

To save you time, Holben's is a great USA source (stock and good pricing) for Eulit Perlon and many other straps. For ethical reasons they do not sell exotic genuine skins such as alligator, crocodile, lizard, etc, but the rest of the selection is excellent. They sell on eBay too, but normally I just order from the webstore.

Holben's Fine Watch Bands

If you do buy a perlon strap, I do not reallty recommend any brand other than Eulit (and certainly not cheapo eBay perlons). On those other brands, in my experience the fabric is of MUCH lower quality; does not self-seal nearly as well being a looser weave; wears out much faster; and the hardware is pretty flimsy too. Just get Eulit, even though the Eulit color selection is unfortunately pretty limited.

Another strap type to look at, with stellar reputation for adjustability and quality, are Erika's MN (Marine Nationale) straps. Also nylon-based, like NATO and Perlon, but using slightly elastic parachute-strap fabric

Holben's also sell ColaReb, which are very nice (leather), highly regarded for price/value/style.


Finally, since the straps you have on now are used anyway, perhaps try to punch a tidy, small hole between two existing holes to achieve a tighter fit. If nothing else, that "strap tip to hole perfect fit measurement" will be very useful if you ever do order a custom strap.

Good luck. The sensation of a "floppy watch" is really unpleasant.

 

[Letric]

Keeping on theme with the "Poor Man's" aspect of this thread... I didn't want to keep going back to a Watch shop and pay (the pretty reasonable) $10 for adjustments. I decided to purchase an inexpensive little kit on Amazon and it's worked out well so far:

The kit included the little hammer, plastic band holder and the 3 metal punches for $6.49. I was able to get a perfect fit on both of my SKX's by removing 3 links each. 2 from the 6 o' clock side and 1 from the 12 o' clock side.

I'm glad to save money, but also increase my watch tool arsenal and be able to do things myself. I enjoy working on small metal gadgets so it's pretty fun.

 

[Genericuser1]

Keeping on theme with the "Poor Man's" aspect of this thread... I didn't want to keep going back to a Watch shop and pay (the pretty reasonable) $10 for adjustments. I decided to purchase an inexpensive little kit on Amazon and it's worked out well so far:

View attachment 1326795

The kit included the little hammer, plastic band holder and the 3 metal punches for $6.49. I was able to get a perfect fit on both of my SKX's by removing 3 links each. 2 from the 6 o' clock side and 1 from the 12 o' clock side.

I'm glad to save money, but also increase my watch tool arsenal and be able to do things myself. I enjoy working on small metal gadgets so it's pretty fun.

I did the same last year and added some other tools along with a case back opener. If you own more than a couple of watches I think it's a good idea and pretty cheap as well.

 

[khughes44]

Yes, but Perlon is not for everybody. Some just don't like them. I live in Los Angeles, tend to be hot, don't really like NATO straps, and so use Perlon straps a lot, ~9 months/year.

To save you time, Holben's is a great USA source (stock and good pricing) for Eulit Perlon and many other straps. For ethical reasons they do not sell exotic genuine skins such as alligator, crocodile, lizard, etc, but the rest of the selection is excellent. They sell on eBay too, but normally I just order from the webstore.

Holben's Fine Watch Bands

If you do buy a perlon strap, I do not reallty recommend any brand other than Eulit (and certainly not cheapo eBay perlons). On those other brands, in my experience the fabric is of MUCH lower quality; does not self-seal nearly as well being a looser weave; wears out much faster; and the hardware is pretty flimsy too. Just get Eulit, even though the Eulit color selection is unfortunately pretty limited.

Another strap type to look at, with stellar reputation for adjustability and quality, are Erika's MN (Marine Nationale) straps. Also nylon-based, like NATO and Perlon, but using slightly elastic parachute-strap fabric

Holben's also sell ColaReb, which are very nice (leather), highly regarded for price/value/style.


Finally, since the straps you have on now are used anyway, perhaps try to punch a tidy, small hole between two existing holes to achieve a tighter fit. If nothing else, that "strap tip to hole perfect fit measurement" will be very useful if you ever do order a custom strap.

Good luck. The sensation of a "floppy watch" is really unpleasant.

What a fabulous response. Thank you for taking the time.

 

[Michigan Planner]

Keeping on theme with the "Poor Man's" aspect of this thread... I didn't want to keep going back to a Watch shop and pay (the pretty reasonable) $10 for adjustments. I decided to purchase an inexpensive little kit on Amazon and it's worked out well so far:

View attachment 1326795

The kit included the little hammer, plastic band holder and the 3 metal punches for $6.49. I was able to get a perfect fit on both of my SKX's by removing 3 links each. 2 from the 6 o' clock side and 1 from the 12 o' clock side.

I'm glad to save money, but also increase my watch tool arsenal and be able to do things myself. I enjoy working on small metal gadgets so it's pretty fun.

I have a similar kit and use it all the time. Mine also has a watch link removal tool which is especially helpful for the Seiko watches with the pin and collar style pins.

Every once in a while I get a watch that has a bracelet that is beyond my capabilities so I inevitably take it to a local jeweler where is usually takes them a grand total of 4 minutes and I hate having to shell out the few bucks for it.

 

[Michigan Planner]

Freshly acquired SRP313 “Dracula”

 

[mosy]

 

[Jazzmenco]

The Camellias are blooming again another year how fast the time goes