Milano Straps MS Lab Straps NATO

Environmentalism. Want to start an argument? Then start a seemingly innocent conversation with that word. This is a real shame as it is something that I think every person on the planet is generally behind. However, lately that word has morphed from something that is wholesome and good to something resembling more of a cudgel.  The problem of course is ideologies on both sides of the argument prevent real facts from ever being accurately presented. That is because in general both sides do have some valid points – to a degree. Start a ‘discussion’ on wind power and soon various attributes and negatives will be flung across the table and before you know it you are knee deep in speculation and anecdotes but few all-encompassing facts, because in general all encompassing facts usually do not exist.   Every city, state, country and region have different needs and one size fits all solutions are never the intelligent way to solve a problem.  I will not even touch global warming or climate change or whatever it is called now. Both sides of that argument vehemently despise the other and emotion and politics have long surpassed science as the driving force on that topic.  Why do I mention all this on a watch strap review website? To answer that I need to tell you a story.

I was at a car show on or about the Fourth of July.  Independence Day for us in the USA and one of my favorite holidays. American flags and hot dogs and cold adult beverages abound.  It was a good day.  You could literally inhale the patriotism, or that may have been humidity, but whatever it was, it was thick in the air. People from all walks of life were present and having a generally fantastic time.  I saw a larger gentleman in his late 50’s festooned with all manner of American Flags both on his skin and on his clothing standing next to some very expensively modified cruiser style motorcycles (ok Harleys) that was partaking of one of those aforementioned adult beverages.  He was talking to this young slim guy standing next to his wife and they were showing pictures on their respective phones of what I can only assume was his or her bike. When he was done, I noticed him walking about 20 feet and throwing that bottle into a recycle bin. On his way back he saw a McDonalds cup on the ground and picked it up and walked back and threw it away in the properly emblazoned bin. Why is that important or even relevant?  

People can argue over global models and power grids all day long.  But in all my travels people from Portland to Houston to Florida all fall on the same side on the subject of trash. Nobody wants it laying around. I have never met anybody in all my life that was okay with the vast tons of floating trash in the ocean.  Every man, woman and child wants clean water, and no equations are needed. No expert’s opinions to contradict one other are required.  You pick up one plastic bottle off the ground, that is exactly one plastic bottle less that makes it to the ocean.  Full Stop.  The correlation is one to one.  From die hard old school fossil fuel loving motor heads to the most devote tree hugging Vegan people from every single walk of life and economic echelon can all get behind is the simple truth that trash in the water is a bad thing. We should all try to clean it up. No political agendas or ideologies need be part of the conversation.

Unfortunately, this is where it gets tricky.  Picking up after ourselves is the least we can do.  Cleaning up the beaches and lakes and river banks is also a good thing and I enjoy participating in those activities.  However, the vastness of the ocean is an issue of an exponentially larger magnitude. Cleaning up the plastic from the ocean is not an easy task.  The logistics and manpower required are enormous. The bulk of this is done currently through philanthropic and environmentalist efforts as well as companies looking to invent technologies that they can sell to remove the trash.  These are all very good things and gives me hope for humanity in general.  However, a more sustainable model needs to be found.  One such way of incentivizing the removal of plastic from the ocean is to make the trash removed a marketable commodity. Companies worldwide are innovating and being very forward thinking and slowly a market for this trash is being created.  One such forward thinking company today is Milano Watch Straps. 

They are now selling a range of attractive NATO straps that are made from 100% recycled plastic bottles. While this checks all the environmental feel good boxes with a bold sharpie, it would be meaningless if the product is subpar.  We have all been burned into buying a ‘green’ product only to find out its rubbish compared to a typical equivalent ‘non green’ product (looking at you electric weed whacker). Luckily they are really on to something with this strap. I found it was quite good and even great not despite being made from recycled bottles, but literally BECAUSE it was made from recycled bottles.  My review on this strap was made without giving any concessions or any extra points because it was ‘green’.  It has to stand on its own as a good NATO first and foremost.  I am happy to say it succeeded in that in many ways. Keep reading to find out. First, this is what Milano has to say about its straps:

Milano Straps, which has always been sensitive to the issue of sustainability and the ways in which a luxury product should be produced and distributed, has decided, in its small way, to help increase an economy of “Positive Eco-Luxury “.

Recently launched the MSLabStraps line, a new series of eco-friendly NATO fabric straps made by recycling post-consumer plastic bottles collected in Northern Italy. 

With a plastic bottle recycled, two MSLabStraps straps are made.

Through a mechanical, non-chemical and recycling process 100% Made in Italy certified throughout its fully traceable supply chain, the plastic of the bottles comes shredded and transformed into a high quality and performance recycled polyester yarns for textile uses.

Full Disclosure: Milano Straps sent me two NATO’s to try out and review. This review is not done in payment of them, they asked me to try them and review them at my leisure. This review is following 2 weeks of use. 

DIMENSIONS

I recieved 20mm versions of this strap and mine came in at 20.3mm but varied depending on how hard I wanted to squish my calipers.  Point being that these are true to advertised width. At the time of writing this is available in a 20mm and a 22mm version but no 18mm yet. Each layer of strap comes in at 1.5mm thick. This is neither thick nor thin by NATO standards, but rather right in the middle. This is when I point out that if worn normally you will have 3mm of extra height added to your watch when you use this strap (or any other 1.5mm NATO) and this is my greatest dislike of all standard issue NATOs. This is why my preference is to remove the extra under strap which is essentially useless on modern watches or order a single pass version (which is not yet available).

The length of this strap is refreshingly different. While the vast majority of NATO straps come in at about 11” long, this Milano MSLabstrap comes in at 10”. This seemingly simple change makes a huge difference in wrist aesthetics as with a 10” strap the need to fold and tuck the extra length is nonexistent for all but the smallest wrists.  This is a huge asset to these straps and will surely win a lot of hearts. 

DESIGN

Since this is a standard designed NATO strap with the dual layer configuration we have grown to expect from any NATO strap, the highlight will no doubt be the material used. But before I get to that a very brief rundown on the mechanical assembly of this strap should suffice for completeness. This is a standard dual layer NATO strap. The watch spring bars are fed through the longer upper strap and then fed through the sole keeper on the under layer meant to keep the watch centered on the wrist and not moving about. The strap is then buckled as you would any typical strap and then you are off to your daily adventure. 

The edges of the strap are neatly woven to avoid any fraying and the holes for the buckle seem to be punched and heat sealed for longevity. I experienced zero fraying or distortion over the course of two weeks which included some very rough playing with the sharp teeth of my new puppy. So far so good. 

The orange coloring of the stitching and edges is a brilliant contrast to the grey of the strap. It is a vibrant orange and adds a very fun and sporty flair to the whole package. The stitching is quite simply some of the best and most precise stitching I have ever seen on a NATO strap ever.  They are perfectly centered and straight and evenly spaced.  They are so well done that I felt inspired to write about it, and when was the last time stitches on fabric have ever done that to you?  The sheen of this strap is something I would call a half notch above a full matte.  It is not a shiny strap like say a seatbelt nylon would be. Rather, this is very much more like a fabric strap than any synthetic material. It also feels closer to cotton than nylon to my fingers.  That fabric illusion is maintained until you try to stretch it and then it feels exactly like a typical NATO as it gives not one millimeter regardless of your exertion. 

The whole strap is made from a product called NewLife which is composed of reclaimed plastic bottles from Northern Italy and used in a variety of products.  This material has a growing range of applications and has numerous advantages when compared to making nylon from scratch. It takes a great deal less water and energy to produce since you are starting with plastic to begin with.  It is very UV resistant and water resistant. It helps moisture wicking from the skin and is capable of being made into a satin like yarn with as many as 600 threes. Milano Straps is very proud of this locally sourced material and this is displayed on the lower portion of the strap with a small but very legible sewn in patch that reads Made in Italy, 100% recycled, MSLabstraps. Nothing wrong with taking credit where credit is due.

KEEPER AND BUCKLE

I have written about the beauty of other keeper and buckles used by Milano Straps on their leather and suede offerings. It is obvious no less thought was given to this NATO. The keepers are fixed on this NATO and sewn in with such precision it would look at home on a NASA EVA suit. They are placed so that the extra length is neatly managed without any folding and tucking.  They are perfectly sized to handle two layers of strap and not much more keeping the whole package neatly snug against the wrist. 

The buckle and keepers are generally brushed in nature with all the edges smoothed to be comfortable against your fingers. The buckle has a nice chamfer on the outside edge to give the light something to reflect off of. All metallic hardware is of an appropriate size and sheen to fit right in to the do anything nature of a NATO without looking like it came out of a parts bin from a military surplus store. There is an aesthetic harmony to this strap that just works on all levels. 

HOW DOES IT WEAR

This strap wears like most other NATO’s in function but the material is far softer than your typical nylon offering. The thread used comes off more like cloth and is softer and more organic to the touch than a seatbelt style NATO.  I know I said that before, but it is a point worth mentioning twice since it gives this strap a personality all its own. In the crowded world of NATO straps, you need something that sets you apart. NewLife gives this strap legit wearing comfort not seen on a the typical off the internet NATO. 

Milano saw fit to give this strap a plethora of adjustment holes (11 in total) so I was able to find a good fit on my nearly 7” wrist on hole number 5 with plenty of room in both directions should I need it. At no time did I feel the keepers added too much visual girth to the strap and the buckle was well positioned at the bottom of my wrist. Not having to fold and tuck the strap means the whole package wears close to the wrist and does not look like some alien growth sprouting from your skin. 

The only thing that could have possibly made this strap better was the addition of a single pass version so that the watch could sit closer to the skin.  On my Serica, which is sub 12 millimeter thick watch, this is not such much of an issue, but when you start adding watches that are 15mm and up thick, adding 3mm under that can be overwhelming and ungainly.

WHAT IS IT GOOD FOR

Aside from using up trashed plastic bottles Milano gives these NATO’s some very cool color combos. NATO’s are often called into duty when things get less refined than say, a black tie event. NATO’s are a natural fit for a diver or a field watch. They are perfect on nearly any tool watch and Milano has color choices that range from subdued to flat out vibrant (would you expect anything less from an Italian made strap). 

I chose to put this strap on my Serica WWW watch which is a re-creation of one of the many dirty dozen watches. This field watch accepted both Milano NATO’s with equal aplomb and I had a hard time choosing which to keep it on for the review. I liked these straps so much I considered buying a silver Hamilton khaki field auto 38mm just to pair with it.  I think that if you have ever wanted to try a NATO or have a watch on a NATO right now, these straps are worth your time.  

WHERE CAN I GET IT

To the best of my knowledge the only place to get Milano Strap is directly from them. I put a link to all of their MSLabstraps here:

https://mslabstraps.com/collections/all

They come in a green tube that is also equally nature friendly as it is made from recycled material. It is also pretty snazzy and my kids loved them and use them to store pencils and game dice.

SUMMARY

In so many cases going ‘green’ means you have to sacrifice performance, usability, longevity, etc.  This is a refreshing difference as this time the choice to use reclaimed and recycled plastic gives this NATO some very unique and useful qualities that I think are an improvement in every possible way.  Combined with smart design choices and amazing hardware and this NATO strap elevates itself from the sea of competition and should be worth your time to check out.   This strap may be using some green marketing to get some attention but at the end of the day it does not need it, as this is a darn well made and good looking and feeling strap.  Take all the marketing out, and this strap stands out with a quality unique in the NATO world. However, since this is an eco friendly product you get to have that quality AND buy with a smile on your face as you are supporting the removal of trash. Milano Straps takes it one step further as it will donate one dollar from every strap to the One Tree Planted Association. This is a very good win-win situation if I have ever seen it. Good strap combined with a good cause.