doingmahresearch

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I posted a photo of my watch straps a while back asking for advice on the creases on my leather straps. I was reassured that these creases were normal. However, I wonder if there are ways to make straps that will minimize this effect? Having thicker uppers, and a thicker finish perhaps? Thanks!

Thanks for your replies! So you think the wear looks reasonable? Phew. Yes, I'm not too careful when I put the strap on, and its a padded strap. What should veg-tanned holes look like? Here's another pic:

I have a leather watch strap, which is supposed to be vegetable-tanned, full-grain leather, with nubuck lining (see attached photo). The strap is in this condition, after about three weeks of use. I showed it to someone more familiar with straps, and he said it isn't supposed to look so worn so soon, and criticized the leather quality. Can anyone verify this? How do I identify good quality leather for watch straps? Put it another way, are there any examples of how "good" leather straps are supposed to look after 3 weeks / a few months /a year? Thanks!

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Slightly confused here. Nubuck can be both vegetable and chrome tanned right? Since the nubuck buffing process is separate from the tanning process? And would vegetable tanned nubuck be durable enough for watch strap linings? Would you need to coat it with something? Thanks!

I have seen a sample with a printed logo on the nubuck, looks pretty good, so hopefully no problems on that end. Really, is nubuck all vegetable tanned?

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I'm choosing a lining material for my watch line. Nubuck does feel better on the skin -- are there any benefits to the veg-tanned full-grain leather (more durable?) And forgive my ignorance here, but nubuck could also be vegetable-tanned right? Thank you!

Yeah, I tried Google Translate, and looked a few Chinese sites, got nothing. It's just supposed to be a sweat and water resistant calf-skin liner I guess.

Hi, I'm working with a factory to make watch straps for my watch (I need a lot). Originally, I wanted to use vegetable tanned full-grain leather for the strap lining (to match the upper), but they recommended instead to use a water/sweat resistant lining, which they said they usually use for their "high-end" straps. In Chinese, this lining is called 真京底. I have no clue it's name in English. So my question is how do vegetable-tanned leathers fare with sweat/water? Should I go with the water/sweat resistant lining or good old veg-tan? Thank you!

I'm choosing types of leathers for watch straps. Are vegetable tanned leathers more likely to stain shirt cuffs, for example, compared to chromium tanned leathers? Oh, and the strap will be dyed black. Thanks!

Thanks for the advice! Hm, so backing Horween Chromexcel or Dublin would be hard since they are both waxy/oily? Also, for the embossed back patterns, can I infer that embossing an asymmetrical pattern (e.g. waves or contours) will not be good as it'll cause the band to stretch in an imbalanced way?

Huh, oily and waxy finishes are not good for watch bands? What types of finishes would be most suitable? Also, if I embossed a pattern into the back of the strap (like people like to stamp their logo on the back, but this' be a pattern that'll cover the entire back of the strap) would it hurt the durability / comfort of the strap? Thanks!!

Those are some beautiful straps! Thanks for sharing. I've been seeing quite a few straps that have just stitching around the buckles, and around the lugs--see example. Are some of those just a single layer of leather? Or are they two pieces glued together? Is using one layer of leather more durable? Is the choice between one or two layers just style?

Oops, I think I was misunderstood--I won't be making the straps myself--since my first order of watches will be several hundred--and that'll be insane--and I have definitely don't have the skills or experience to do it. Sorry for the confusion!! Even though I'm not making it myself, I still want to be completely educated about the process so I can identify a great quality strap / choose a suitable strap style. So picking between two pieces of leather folded vs one piece (is this just preference?); stitching vs gluing (stitching is more sturdy?); types of finishes/tanning (waxy? oil-tanned? veg vs chrome tanned?), etc. Crazy horse? And do people know how many straps a square foot of leather can make? Two?

Hi guys, leather newbie here. I'm developing a watch, and am now thinking about watch bands. I thought designing the case was the hard part, until I started diving into the wonderful world of leather--damn it is confusing. I want to get the best band possible to fit the rest of my watch, so I've been doing quite a lot of reading up. Still in a whirl though, and thought I'll try asking the experts. - I want a full/top-grain leather strap. I see many traditional/classier leather bands are padded, with a bulge in the middle of the band. See this example--which also claims to be vegetable-tanned, full-grain leather. But most custom-made, high quality bands I see are "flat"--made of either one whole piece of leather, or a piece of leather folded into two, and then glued/stitched together, with little padding. Are there any benefits to the latter method? - And are there any differences/pros/cons between using one piece of leather (using the suede side against the skin), versus folding the leather and using two layers? - How much square footage of leather is needed to make one watch strap? - What type of finishing would be best for watch straps? Is going for a lighter treatment better? Are waxed treatments (e.g. Horween Dublin) generally better since it seems more water-proof? I'm going for a black strap. - What's the deal with crazy horse leather? My impression is that it is tougher and needs little maintenance, and has interesting color changes with time. (How does black leather develop patina anyway? Do it just get shinier?) Thanks in advance for any help and advice!