Adventures in watch strap making

[dirk87]

17 minutes ago, Klara said:

Thank you! I might refer to that when I make my next straps

Please do and feel free to ask any questions, i did quite allot of experimenting and still am. Happy to exchange ideas and experiences.  
 

[Beehive]

4 minutes ago, dirk87 said:

I understand your concerns but I don’t get your reasoning. Again i have no intend on selling anything myself bit this would mean there is not allot you can sell commercially. As a business you should be confident in your product and be covered by insurance anyways for liability. 
In this reasoning I couldn’t imagine any company or business selling saddlery for example, think about the liabilities there.

Anyways i get a few valuable points from this discussion and would like to elaborate on this from a point of improving the things i make.

1. Quick release spring bars:
What does make these inferior? I cant see mechanically any difference in strength, the 2 only risks i see are becoming undone by accidentally pulling the leaver ( friction agains wrist,..) or the strap being weaker because of the cutout. Would appreciate opinions or experiences with this.

2. Longevity of the strap:
I understood failing starts at the closure point which i can understand. Are these straps reinforced completely or just at the folds? I also cant imagine a watch failing when a strap is worn at the closure even if there is a rip between 2 holes. Just trying to understand failure points, would appreciate if there are experiences or pictures to share.

Thank you all

 

If the diameter of the spring bars doesn't match the diameter of the hole in the lug. It'll damage the case. 

 

I have a quick release. I have 3 or 4 of them. Pull out a loupe and look. A spring bar that doesn't fill the lug hole causes the lug hole to elongate. 

I removed all but one quick release and went with the factory spring bars. The one I kept is used on a Seiko clone. Where it properly fits. No way would I use it on my Squale.  

If you're not trying to sell bands. How many watches do you have? 

 

[dirk87]

Ok, makes sense but has nothing at all to do with the spring bars being QR or not. As far as i know spring bars (both QR and normal) come in 1.5 or 1.8 mm, assumed the pin ends were the same diameter. Something for me to check, thanks this helps me

20 minutes ago, Beehive said:

If you're not trying to sell bands. How many watches do you

A few but how is this relevant? I stated from the beginning i am not intending to sell anything, this is just a hobby.

Does everyone here starting with leatherworking make 1 wallet and then call it a day, you surely don’t need more than 1 wallet.
I am just trying to get better at all the skills and think watch straps are a good way to do this.

[Beehive]

2 minutes ago, dirk87 said:

Ok, makes sense but has nothing at all to do with the spring bars being QR or not. As far as i know spring bars (both QR and normal) come in 1.5 or 1.8 mm, assumed the pin ends were the same diameter. Something for me to check, thanks this helps me

A few but how is this relevant? I stated from the beginning i am not intending to sell anything, this is just a hobby.

Does everyone here starting with leatherworking make 1 wallet and then call it a day, you surely don’t need more than 1 wallet.
I am just trying to get better at all the skills and think watch straps are a good way to do this.

 

And I want you to succeed and be the best. Nothing more. Plus, I don't want you losing a watch either. Giving up making straps because of a spring bar.

 

I'm on your side. 

[dirk87]

Genuinely appreciate your feedback, i never really thought about failures or reliability in this way so that improves what i’m making

[dirk87]

The more feedback the better if anyone has experimented please share your thoughts 

 

 

[dirk87]

Some more sharing…

I had some difficulty centring my buckle pin cutouts so i ended up doing it this way.
I cut it before i cut to final size, this way i can align my template perfectly. 

I am using a round punch an then cut the straight edges with a knife. Not 100% satisfied with this method. If you have an alternative way please leave me a comment. I was thinking about this nattools cutter, does anyone have experience with it?https://junlinleather.com/products/nattools-watch-strap-buckle-punch

 

This is how i finish the buckle side.
Completely paint and finish the edge like this then glue in the fixed keeper and touch up the edge paint.

Anyone using a different method? 
I saw in a hermes video they kind of open it up after it was fully glued and insert the keeper but i don't really get it how that works.

[LeatherLegion]

On 2/14/2025 at 9:07 AM, dirk87 said:

I thought it might be useful to share my way of constructing straps for anyone who also wants to start with it. 

 

Not a lot a people share their knowledge anymore for free. Even though , probably i was never gonna make a watch strap , THANK YOU  for sharing ...i might actually make one now.

[dirk87]

Thank you~, very kind.

Please do, its fun
 

[dirk87]

I have a question for people who have experience with bonded leather, in particular salamander salpa.

As i posted before, i use an inner layer to build up thickness(and make a nicer spring bar hole after folding over), lets say im using from 0.4mm-0.8mm depending on the strap thickness i want. 

i am now using salpa for this and quite like the feeling and stiffness of the finished strap.

My question is, does anyone has experience with the longevity of salpa?
I read allot about bonded leather not being ideal for high stretching and bending. But in this application its backed up with velodon so there is basically no stretch but there is allot of bending at the buckle.

Would a layer of shoulder, belly or just split be better here?