The TROPIC strap

The Tropic Strap

HISTORY

From the research I have found the TROPIC brand strap was first seen in the 60’s. Like so many things, the brand name of who invented it and made it popular has become the go-to descriptor for the product (Like Kleenex for facial tissue).   Watches like the Rolex Submariner and the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms proudly wore it, but so did countless others in some incarnation or other.  At the time most dive watches came with steel bracelets and while durable, they were heavy and often not comfortable. Still, the need to resist salt water and UV light was badly needed.  Keep in mind in the 50’s recreational diving was becoming a real hobby and the watch world was eager to help it along.  TROPIC was there with a soft plastic entry which was available in different sizes and colors and styles that revolutionized the diving strap as we know it today.  It was an instant hit. With the trend for more and more watch makers producing vintage pieces that draw form history, the TROPIC style strap will be around for decades to come.

In the 60’s and 70’s they were produced in Switzerland then later like so many other things were outsourced.  The original TROPIC straps carry a hefty premium of you want one today as they are heavily sought after.  Lucky for the consumer though, TROPIC style straps are being reproduced by other manufacturers with more modern materials like silicone which offers same look in a more advanced material.

DIMENSIONS

Every TROPIC style strap I have ever seen has pretty much the same characteristics. These are universal, but vary in degrees of execution, quality and even material.  But for now, let us just look at a modern interpretation of a TROPIC style strap.  For review today I am using the one that came from the factory on my ORIS Divers 65 (40mm version).  This particular strap is 20mm wide at the lugs and tapers all the way down to 14.5mm at the long free end.  The buckle side of the strap tapers to 15mm by my calipers.  This tapering gives it vintage feel and also greatly increases comfort. The thickness is interesting. At the lugs the Oris TROPIC is 4.5mm thick and tapers down to 3mm along the free end.  The Buckle end does alter from this naturally because the rubber has to hold on to the buckle.  That end goes from 4.5mm to 3mm back to 4.5mm.  The Oris Tropic is longer than most normal leather straps. On a diver the strap needs to be larger enough to go around a wetsuit.  This tropic accommodates that. On the buckle side, the strap length is 85mm, on the free end it is 120mm.

 

DESIGN

All tropic style straps have a few common design traits that are executed in varying degrees of success.  Looking at the watch from the top, you can see a basket weave type of patter in the rubber/silicone. The depth of the basket weave and the resolution of the molded ‘fibers’ will vary greatly from one tropic to another.  Obviously companies that use more advanced material and spent a bit more on the mold and\ molding process will produce a strap with more depth and detail.  Surrounding the basket weave on each side of the strap is a raised ‘sawtooth’ pattern that frames the watch on all sides very well. Along with the weaved central portion, I think these work together to give a very utilitarian and purposeful appearance.  Another distinct feature of the strap is the holes.  Unlike most other strap with holes just for the buckle tang to hold onto, the tropic style strap has a geometric pattern of squares molded into 3 rows along its length of the free end as well as the buckle end.  These are squares are tilted 45 degrees and help center which could serve the purpose of centering the buckle tang (I have to admit that is pure speculation on my part). Those squares are not just for looks though.  If we look at the underside of the strap those squares also reveal themselves in another very unique tropic strap feature.   All tropic style straps I have seen have a recessed diamond pattern on bottom that coincides with the holes on the top of the strap. What does this do? Well keep I mind we are talking about a strap that was designed to live around salt water.  Those holes allows your skin to breath and water to escape.  It reduces the amount of rubber/silicone touching your skin and makes the strap far more comfortable to wear.  In every aspect when I look at a Tropic style strap, I see function dictating form. As an engineer I love to see such a simple well thought out design.

KEEPERS AND BUCKLE

The Oris Tropic Strap I have has but one keeper. It is has the same basket weave pattern as the strap does.  It is of the floating variety.  No other keeper is on this watch which I have found a bit strange, and I wish Oris would have not done that. I have seen other Tropic style straps with 2 keepers as well, so depending on which style you choose, know that design feature is not fixed. If you pick up the Oris Divers 65 though, you have to settle for one lonely keeper.  The buckles in most reviews can only be described as polished steel with some kind of demarcation of sorts about who made it.  However, the Oris buckle is actually something worth attention.  The surfaces appear to have been finished by some very precise machining step.  All the edges are crisp and brushed very nicely. All the curves are equally well executed. Oris is cut in relief on the buckle and the tang has purposeful bend and edges precisely blended.  It is hard to convey the effort in the buckle, but I feel it could be overlooked unless you take the time to really appreciate how much time and money was spent their.

HOW DOES IT WEAR

I have taken my Oris Divers 65 with is factory Tropic style strap on vacation many times. It is my go to vacation watch.  It has spent a week in the Florida sand and salt water, as well as a few highly chlorinated pools.  The silicone wears effortlessly. It is so flexible that conformity is never an issue. I found on this trap the unusually long overall length meant I had a whole lot of strap sticking out of the single keeper (my writs are 6.75″ by the way).  It bothered me so much I had to cut it off a small bit of the end as it was sticking up like an antenna.  Not all Tropic straps exhibit this behavior or have this problem mind you. I think it was due to the fact that Oris intended this to be able to be worn over a wet suit, in which case it would have been the perfect length.  I find the watch to always vanish on my wrist with this strap. It is so light and breaths so well, irritation of any kind is nonexistent.  The multitude of holes combined with the elasticity of the silicone means comfort is always attainable.  With its durability and good looks I totally understand why this strap has been making divers happy for over 50 years now.

WHAT IS THIS STRAP GOOD FOR

Guess it should be no shock that a strap made exclusively for divers is right at home on a dive watch.  I would not call it a one trick pony though, as it could look good on a field watch or two depending on styling, but if it were me I would find an Oris, or a vintage Submariner, or an old Zodiac Sea Wolf and put it on a tropic style strap and hit the beach.