Dassari Tribute Vintage Italian Leather strap
February 26, 2018
There are many ways to start a company that builds watch straps. You can select the finest leathers and skins in the world and dye them for months and use ancient tanning methods to create leather so soft and rich it feels like a second skin. Then there are companies who take the hide cut to fit and punch some holes, throw a cheap clasp made in China, throw it on ebay and call it a day. Dassari is neither of these two things. I purchased my Dassari Tribute Vintage Italian Leather Watch Strap from Amazon for 29.99 at the time of writing this article. Other than Genuine Italian Leather on the description, little was included in the description when I bought this. With a little bit of digging on the net, I found out what Dassari has to say about itself:
DASSARI watch bands are proudly produced using traditional Swiss leather crafting expertise and machinery.
They are created from the finest genuine leathers and are hand finished by dedicated and skilled leather workers.
Embodying true quality and style, these bands are the perfect accessory to complement every timepiece.
DIMENSIONS
The Dassari Tribute Vintage Italian Leather strap I have is an 18mm strap. So disclaimer: All dimensions I give are for an 18mm lug to lug width. The length of the straps at the free end / buckle end are 120mm/80mm respectively. The strap start out 18mm wide at the lugs and tapers to 16mm at the free end of the strap. The strap has a uniform thickness along its length, with no padding to speak of. From lug to tip, it is 2.8-3mm thick.
DESIGN
The Dassari Tribute Vintage Italian Leather strap comes in many colors, but this particular model is described as Rust. It is has reddish tones in the brown leather throughout. The Dassari Tribute Vintage Italian Leather strap has goldish-brown stitching that is lighter in color than the brown strap, but not white or ivory. I would struggle to call it contrast stitching as with other straps as it comes across a bit more utilitarian and useful than as a purely aesthetic feature. The threads are noticeably thinker than other straps I have seen and the holes they pass through are not as well finished as in dressier straps. The leather is cleanly finished on all edges and has the sealed edges for increased wear protection. The brown dying process leaves the strap with a raw organic uneven coloring that feels a bit waxy. The dying is easily overcome by light scratches or bending the strap which allows the color to fade several shades lighter and remain that way. This strap is highly subject to scuffs some of which will buff out with the oils form your finger, and others will be permanent. The effect of those scratches will either add a unique patina and character to the watch strap or just make it look older depending on your personal perspective toward such things. The leather on this very non reflective, and I would dare say it could be described as matt finish.
The underside of the strap equally as functional. Nothing overly pretty to see, just some nicely glued black leather with that aforementioned gold stitching coming through. It has Dassari on the buckle side and Genuine Leather on the other. I would describe this as purely functional, with just enough thought put into the shade and texture as to not be called cheap. It lacks for nothing from a utilitarian point of view, but gains no points for luxury or finesse either.
KEEPERS AND BUCKLE
The buckle on the Dassari continues with the function over form theme that this watch embodies. It is a standard steel polished buckle that has held up well over time. It has no discernible marking on it and is typical of many watch straps. The keepers are standard fare, with one being fixed and one being of the floating variety. The ends of the keepers are not sealed like the sides of the watch strap so some wearing and fretting of the leather is evident. Patina? You decide.
HOW DOES IT WEAR
While some watches have better dyed leather and others have more details in the overall package the Dassari Tribute Vintage Italian Leather (they need a shorter name for this) is infinitely wearable. If I had to describe it in one phrase, I would probably say it fits like an old worn out baseball glove. In a few months of wear, this strap will accumulate many a story on its hide. With prodigious amounts of character left behind to help tell the story of the watch it is holding. The strap comes in at a modest price of around 30 bucks and I think it buckles with ease. The 16mm width at the end of the lose end finds the keepers on with ease and stays there. The waxy like feeling of the leather means it will hold on to the keepers as well. Right out of the box the strap falls lightly on the wrist and needs no break in time. On my 6.75” wrist, I have two holes left to use. The strap is not abrasive and all the permeations of color the brown turns due to distress or age is very pleasant.
WHAT IS THIS STRAP GOOD FOR
I bought this strap for my little Seiko 5 field watch. The strap is not pretentious and is up to the task of taking on the world with little fuss. Its rugged nature and almost raw aged leather mean it shrugs off any worldly harm and wears scratches like battle scars. I like this little strap. I would put it on any casual daily wear watch or field watch without hesitation. I think its pleasant unrefined nature is probably not suited to the overly thin or dressy watches, though. The Dassari has been in my collection for a while now. It has impressed me so much I have purchased other Dassari straps, with both good and bad results. For this reviewer though, with this strap, I can recommend it as a value priced strap that will age with you and tell a great story along the way.
WHERE CAN I GET ONE
I bought this strap at Amazon
But you can also buy it along with other Dassari Straps at Strapsco
https://strapsco.com/product/dassari-tribute-vintage-italian-leather-watch-strap/