How to wear a wrist watch?

[Sgt Brown]

According to Wikipedia (?) the Speidel Twist-O-Flex came out in 1959.

Tom

 

[shortbow]

Thanks Sarge, I looked at that site, noted that date as well, but am not sure if the Twist o Flex was their first expandable bracelet band? Sure looks as though you've nailed it down. Thanks again.

 

[Unlucky Berman]

Whatever matches the watch and looks good with it comes onto it. Mostly I use vintage or vintage like straps in brown with golden buckles because they look nice and more authentic on the old Hamiltons. I like the old pig-skin or calf-skin straps of that era and they were mainly used if you look onto the old ads and catalog pictures. But I also have some white gold watches and like steel or silver imho the best color for them is a nice black one.

Regarding clothes and what color, well since I have white and yellow golden ones, I just take the watch that fits best But then I really do not care if the strap color matches my shoes or belt. Normally no one seeing my watch is looking onto the shoes or the belt.

For me a more interesting question is: Do you wear it left or right? Just curious, since I wear it on the right wrist and there are not so many doing this.

 

[Richard Warren]

Although there have been times when I matched my watch to my shoes, I don't bother, and from what I can see most other people don't either.

It almost hate to say it, but in a business setting or out in the evening you probably ought to be wearing black shoes.

 

[shortbow]

Got an email back today from Speidel and they say their first, "scissors" xpansion band came out in 1936, the twisto flex, just as Sarge said, '59. I wear it left wrist, crystal down, brown leather most of the time. Still not completely weaned from the pocket watch.

 

[CopperNY]

i tend to match belt/shoe color, but that's just personal preference.

whenever i see "mismatched" bands, i just assume the watch has sentimental value "as is".

i've worn a Benrus (reissue) or CWC G10 on a regimental band (Royal Engineers), in honor of my uncle's service in WWII, with formal attire:

 

[Pompidou]

My watch is solid black and metal - one of those Citizen Ecodrive Nighthawk watches. I wear it with everything. Ideally I'd match all my metals too, but well, my sunglasses are gold, my belt buckle is silver, and my watch is black, so for right now, I just hope nobody cares. For the most part, nobody does, and if somebody does, I'm flattered because clearly, they've been looking me up and down for some time with an eye for particulars, and that means I must be worth looking at. Better to be noticed for anything than just ignored.

 

[de Stokesay]

I recently won a solid gold Hamilton Cameron tank-style watch made in 1937 so have been looking at quite a few 1930's Hamilton catalogues lately. It seems to me that the usual practice was for yellow, pink, or green gold watches to come with a brown band and white gold ones to be sold with a black band. As watches were extremely expensive back in the golden era, I would hazard that most people didn't have a different watch for every occasion, nor did they change the band whenever they changed their clothes. My guess is that most people just wore the watch they had. If that meant a brown band with black shoes and belt, or a black band with brown shoes and belt, so be it. Thoughts?

 

[fluteplayer07]

Where are some good places to buy leather straps? I'm looking for a nice black alligator leather strap for a recently acquired Rolex.

This place caught my eye, especially the H-R hornback crocodile model, and the custom made Genesis II. I'm not sure what quality straps generally run, is this a rip-off?

 

[esteban68]

As a watch collector before a lounger I would say that always a stainless bracelet with a sports watch, brown leather especially grained leathers looks particularly good with gold watches, black straps again look good on gold or silver/stainless watches it is a good idea to try to match the strap to the face/dial too if possible.
Get a proper tool to swap straps, personally I find wearing a slimline watch or an old 30-50's 'tank' watch is the way to go wiuth evening/dinner dance attire though do be careful if you are an energetic dancer as sweat can easily find it's way into older unsealed watches!
I have wrist just under 8" inches so it can be a tight fit if the cuffs on an evening shirt are a bit on the stingy side, Luch or Sekonda De-Luxes are a good bet for evening wqear can be found cheaply , look classic and are very good timekeepers.

 

[Earl Grey Tea Drinker]

I wear a Rolex Submariner homage on a nylon NATO watch band with a leather bund padded part of a leather bund watch band. One of my favorite watches. So tough and basic. The leather bund watch band is suppose to keep the watch off your wrist when the watch gets hot and cold, and when you get wet and sweat.

 

[esteban68]

I wear a Rolex Submariner homage on a nylon NATO watch band with a leather bund padded part of a leather bund watch band. One of my favorite watches. So tough and basic. The leather bund watch band is suppose to keep the watch off your wrist when the watch gets hot and cold, and when you get wet and sweat.

Yes these are a vey good idea on older 'trench' style watches as sweat on a hot day WILL find its way into an unsealed watch quite easily, obviously with a submariner you could wash the dishes or even go high diving with it on(if the seals have been replaced recently of course).

 

[boushi_mania]

I've got a Citizen "Stiletto" Eco-Drive model for dressy occasions (it looks like this one, but with plain stainless steel hardware and a black band). It it is simple and sleek, and keeps great time; in the five years I've had it, I've only ever had to set it when changing time zones. It's about due for a new band, though, and I'm trying to decide between crocodile and shell cordovan.

More casually, I wear a Victorinox Swiss Army "Classic Field" watch (not a true military watch, I know). I think they may have discontinued it recently, but Wenger still make the same model. The original watch band disintegrated, so I replaced it with a black NATO-style strap.

It doesn't bother me that I only have a black band for my "dress" watch, but I have been meaning to get a springbar tool. Replacing the strap on my Swiss Army watch did a number on my fingernails.

 

[SHOWSOMECLASS]

In all due respect a band or bracelet is normally made of metal. A strap is leather or other natural material. Although I would prefer to match my belt, shoes etc. w/ my watch strap many folks have only one or two watches so that is not possible. Also their are many other colors available other than your basic brown or black. Like cordavan for example. This is where I get all my straps. Invest in a deployant if you are going buy a quality strap it will make your strap last much longer and will also prevent the watch from falling off your arm as you take it on and off.

http://www.fredawatchstraps.com/

 

[SHOWSOMECLASS]

I have always thought this was a cool combo. of two colors.

http://www.fredawatchstraps.com/hirschmemento.html

 

[Earl Grey Tea Drinker]

Yes these are a vey good idea on older 'trench' style watches as sweat on a hot day WILL find its way into an unsealed watch quite easily, obviously with a submariner you could wash the dishes or even go high diving with it on(if the seals have been replaced recently of course).

Are you telling me my watch will break down more on a leather bund watch band? Some Rolex Submariner homages last for along while though, but most people don't use a leather bund watch band though. lol. Anyway, this is pretty close to what I have. But, instead of a one piece 10mm leather band. It has a 16mm leather band one piece. I have other size one piece nylon straps too. My original leather bund watch band came with two piece leather watch bands. But, the leather pad part is the most import part on the leather bund watch band though.

 

[Pompidou]

I wear a Citizen Ecodrive Nighthawk - a watch so big, black and featured that it would look appropriate on James Bond's wrist. Always keeps great time. Never have used any of it's aviation features, being technically a pilot's watch, they say, but you never know when a pilot and copilot will be incapacitated and you'll be the only hope. I'd hate to get to that point and not be able to do the pilot math figures. I prefer all metal watch bands, because they don't absorb sweat or disintegrate over time.

 

[Earl Grey Tea Drinker]

I wear a Citizen Ecodrive Nighthawk - a watch so big, black and featured that it would look appropriate on James Bond's wrist. Always keeps great time. Never have used any of it's aviation features, being technically a pilot's watch, they say, but you never know when a pilot and copilot will be incapacitated and you'll be the only hope. I'd hate to get to that point and not be able to do the pilot math figures. I prefer all metal watch bands, because they don't absorb sweat or disintegrate over time.

Nice watch. Has a Breitling watch look for much less money. I have a Citizen Eco-Drive watch. It is a basic military design with Arabic numbers and a 12 o'clock hour marker. I haven't worn it in about six months since I got my Invicta Pro Diver homage to a Rolex Submariner. Seiko outsourced their movements, and Invicta put a Seiko 5 movement inside their Invicta Pro Diver watches in their latest Invicta Pro Diver series. If anybody gets one. Get one with pretty much the same no hand winding and no hacking specs as a Seiko 5 NH25A mechanical automatic movement. People have been complaining that the hand winding and hack version of the NH35A mechanical automatic movement doesn't work as good.

 

[esteban68]

Are you telling me my watch will break down more on a leather bund watch band? Some Rolex Submariner homages last for along while though, but most people don't use a leather bund watch band though. lol. Anyway, this is pretty close to what I have. But, instead of a one piece 10mm leather band. It has a 16mm leather band one piece. I have other size one piece nylon straps too. My original leather bund watch band came with two piece leather watch bands. But, the leather pad part is the most import part on the leather bund watch band though.

No quite the opposite, a leather 'bund' will distance the watch from the wrist and therefore away from sweat.

Years ago I bought a Tag Heur 'homage' off a mate for a tenner, automatic, see thru back, stainless case the lot, I9 had it for at least 5 years and it even kept decent time before I went swimming in it, not sure if the seals failed or I failed to screw the crown down correctly, anyway it was US after that

 

[Edward]

Anybody got one of the Seiko military watches? I'm tempted by one, but want to be sure when I see them listed as "automatic" they really are. Quartz is a deal breaker for me (otherwise I'd have one of those gold plated Hamilton Venturas....).