B and R Bands Navy Horween Classic Vintage Watch Strap
July 2, 2018
Have you ever been to a restaurant and ordered a meal that had the perfect smell, taste, texture, and seasoning. A meal so special that you planned a day for it, like Taco Tuesday, or Margarita Monday (It should be no shock I eat a lot of Tex Mex) as no matter how many times you order it, the food always delivers that wow factor each and every time. It is the kind of meal that you would tell your friends about and then say “you HAVE to try this!”. I have tried a LOT of watch straps, and while many are good and worth your hard earned money, only a select few are truly ‘special day’ worthy. The strap I am reviewing now has everything a fine watch strap should have and while it is NOT cheap I feel it remains a truly incredible value for the quality that is present. After all, who does not like getting more than they paid for?
Like everything else in life when you find something you like (be it a restaurant, favorite shirt, brand of computer, etc) you tend to stick with it more often than not. Repeat business is the sincerest endorsement that I think exists. Having said that, I am back with yet another B and R strap review. I have reviewed two other straps from B and R (https://strapsense.com/2018/06/22/b-and-r-waterproof-black-watch-strap-blue-stitching/and https://strapsense.com/2018/05/24/b-and-r-bands-brown-horween-classic-vintage-watch-band/) and each time they exceeded my expectations and greatly increased my enjoyment of wearing the watch they were attached. This week, I am going back again to a strap made from leather from the Chicago Tannery Horween. The featured strap is called the Navy Horween Chromexcel Classic Leather Watch Band.
above image is from B and R bands website
DIMENSIONS
The strap I purchased was a 20mm version but it is also available in a 19mm which is a very nice size to include and gives those with a 19mm watch lug width a VERY nice alternative to pick. There are two sizes or lengths available if you will. Small and Medium. I usually stick to medium as its 120mm/80mm lengths are normally spot on for my 6.75” wrist. However, on this watch, the adjustment holes given were placed in a way so I could not get a tight enough fit with the medium. I would recommend anybody with a 6.75” wrist to get the small which is 110mm/70mm and should provide more than enough adjustment. At the lugs the strap is 19.6mm wide and it tapers to an elegant and sophisticated 16mm at the buckle and loose end. This taper hints at this straps dressier nature. As far as thickness, this strap is 2.6 to 2.8mm all the way down its length. This even thickness is keeping with the other aesthetics that put this more in the dress strap category.
DESIGN
Talking about design, we have to get the most important factor out of the way first. This strap is made of one of the finest leathers available in the watch strap market today. I know I have sung the praises of Chromexcel and Shell Cordovan enough recently to make your ears go numb, but the fact remains, it is just that good. It has a pedigree that goes back a hundred years and its reputation is notably deserved. The strap is made of an almost moist pull up leather. When bent to extreme angles, this strap will lighten in color and it will pick up patina with use. It has the ability to move with you and its softness and suppleness are nearly impossible to beat at this price range ($79.99) or others. If you have never tried a genuine Horween leather strap, then you owe it to yourself to give it a go. Okay with the ubiquitous gushing out of the way for the amazing leather, lets take a look at the actual construction. Like other BandR Horween straps, the construction is that of simplicity and lets the material shine through. This is a dual layer strap made that way by taking one layer of leather and wrapping it around the spring bar and sewing it together. The benefits of the leather are found in equal measures on the side you see and the side you feel. I love this design, as it has a more luxurious feel on the wrist and quality you can appreciate with the watch on or while admiring the time piece it is attaches. The sides of the strap are sealed keeping them looking neat and tidy and decidedly ‘finished’ looking. To the touch the strap feels soft and flexible keeps the last shape you bend it. This leather ‘hysteresis effect’ is only found on high quality leathers and it shows the leather has been properly treated and worked and will conform to your wrist from the second you put it on.
The stitching on the strap is white or near white, perhaps ivory in hue if I may speculate. It keeps the two layers held firmly together, but in no way adds any stiffness to the strap. The stitches are evenly spaced and uniformly tight. Like the dual layer construction, the quality of the stitching on both sides of the strap is remarkable. On the back side of the strap is the same deep rich color as on the outside is present. The color is even and penetrating into the leather without any waviness or splotchy effects. The back side also shows proudly the BandR logo embossed into the leather on the buckle side and the loose end has the Horween stamp to let you know you are wearing the best the world has to offer. I really tip my hat to B and R as when you are making a product of this quality, it is perfectly fine to take credit for it. I gives me a good feeling to know I am enjoying the work of a craftsman dedicated to doing things right, in the same way it was done 100 years ago.
KEEPER AND BUCKLE
The B and R Navy Horween Chromexcel Classic Leather strap has a standard two keeper system. One is fixed and the other is floating. They are made of the same material as the rest of the strap and as best as I can tell the edges are sealed nicely in the same manner. No roll marks or stitching is apparent on the keepers which is fine as they do a VERY good job of retaining the loose end of the strap. ThE buckle is non signed and is made of stainless steel. It is brushed and is quite thin. It will add almost zero bulk to the watch when it is buckled and the pin fits nicely in the adjustment holes. The edges of the buckle are smooth and the brushing is done to an acceptable but not noteworthy level.
HOW DOES IT WEAR
If I had to use one work to describe this strap it would be ‘goldilocks’. It seems to have the perfect blend of strength, softness, texture, color depth, quality to make it literally nearly the perfect dress or daily wear strap. From the instant you wrap it around your wrist, the leather yields effortlessly while giving you a feeling of strength and quality that is undeniable. It has zero traces of stiff leg syndrome as the leather wants to become a second skin of sorts. The softness never irritates or rubs you wrong. The ease at which the loose end bends and flexes to feed through the keepers is refreshing and the way it lays completely flat once buckled is remarkable. This strap more than validates its price, it is so good, it could actually boast about it. I have three other B and R Chromexcel straps, and while the leather deserves its fair share of credit for the feel, the design department at B and R exemplify how to highlight such a material. There is nothing inherently different really about the design. There are other straps of dyed leather with contrast white stitching, those two things are not unique, but the way they are executed, however, is. Many of them lack the poise and balance of this strap. Over three weeks of wear, this strap has not shown any wrinkles, or undo wear. The edges are crisp and the leather grows more soft and supple by the day.
WHAT IS IT GOOD FOR
Okay, let us get the obvious out of the way first, as good as this leather is, it is not fit for a diver. So all watches that spend their life around water, you need to look elsewhere. That still leaves, quite a bit of the watch world at your disposal. This strap is available in three colors, black, tan, and navy which should cover a vast landscape of watches. The strap is neither too thin or too thick. It is sublimely comfortable and really excels in adding understated class to the watch it is attached. A word of caution about the navy, if you remember the color blue/green in your Crayola box, (or maybe it was green/blue) this is definitely more that color than a pure dark blue usually associated with the connotation Navy blue. Perhaps it is my strap, but make note the color on the webpage is not perfectly indicative of the color you may receive. I have this strap on an Oris Big Crown as shown the pictures, but I have have it on a Hamilton Khaki and a Sinn 556 I B. I would suggest this very strap to any black, grey, silver or white dialed watch. I would not suggest it for a blue dialed watch as trying to match blue is very difficult and if you get it wrong it looks dreadful.
WHERE CAN I GET IT
The only place I know where to get the Navy Chromexcel Vintage Classic Strap is at B and R bands. Check them out here.
http://www.bandrbands.com/navy-horween-chromexcel-classic-leather-watch-band.aspx
SUMMARY
There is no denying that I adore the products from B and R. The commitment to using the finest materials and combining that with amazing construction are the things watch strap buyers desperately need. This type of quality is hard to find. I have had more expensive and more exquisite bands, but they are twice the price. B and R manages fit nicely between mass market high end (Hirsch) and hand made custom work (Herren Marke or Yi Leather) at a price that while high, is completely reasonable for the amazing quality fit and finish you get.
