The Great "Third Party Band/Strap" Thread

[xDKP]

I'm looking for a great canvas strap. The Apple woven nylon straps are cool and all but not really ringing my bells compared to some of the cool ones I've had through the years for my mechanical watches.

What's the best place for cool canvas straps like this

And what's the best Apple Nylon clone just for good measure? Would love one of both

 

[testcard]

MacRumors ran this story yesterday - might be of interest.
https://www.macrumors.com/2016/11/14/toms-apple-watch-bands/

 

[deany]

Yep, those TOMS are gorgeous but at that price I'll wait till our friends on aliexpress have the replicas probably Jan to Feb '17 for well under a tenner.

 

[xDKP]

MacRumors ran this story yesterday - might be of interest.
https://www.macrumors.com/2016/11/14/toms-apple-watch-bands/

Yep, those TOMS are gorgeous but at that price I'll wait till our friends on aliexpress have the replicas probably Jan to Feb '17 for well under a tenner.

Agree the black and the olive look gorgeous but not available on their UK site yet.

I'm travelling to Oman in the Middle East next week so were looking to pick something up from amazon - fabric is often great in the heat

Any ideas?

 

[deany]

Agree the black and the olive look gorgeous but not available on their UK site yet.

I'm travelling to Oman in the Middle East next week so were looking to pick something up from amazon - fabric is often great in the heat

Any ideas?

Hi
Gosh, thats a difficult one. I guess by fabric you mean cotton and I haven't seen any cotton apple watch straps. They would be best - cool, light weight and breathable for that climate.

The nylon knock offs (amazon pricier than eBay and aliexpress) although fantastic are not breathable: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01DUI9WYS/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_ja5kybC8JEAFC

Hope you have a safe journey.

 

[CarlJ]

I'm looking for a great canvas strap. The Apple woven nylon straps are cool and all but not really ringing my bells compared to some of the cool ones I've had through the years for my mechanical watches.

What's the best place for cool canvas straps like this...

With adaptors like these from Clockwork Synergy that take standard spring bars, you can put that exact Morellato strap or most any other conventional strap on your Apple Watch (I believe you'll want a 24mm strap width to fit the full lug-to-lug width on the adaptors for a 42mm Apple Watch). similar adapters can be found on Amazon, but I can't vouch for the quality of any specific ones. And watch-band-center.com, where that picture came from (on their .de side), is a great place to buy bands (bought numerous bands for my Marathon watch there - sadly, my Apple Watch has almost entirely displaced it). Shipping to the USA from Germany takes a bit, but it looks like you're somewhat closer.

 

[sk1wbw]

Just bought this one from Amazon. Great reviews and only for $25.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01M313MR5/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[CarlJ]

Just bought this one from Amazon. Great reviews and only for $25.

Technically you didn't buy that one - since that picture is "borrowed" from Apple, it isn't showing the actual product you'll receive. And their review score covers their entire collection of bands for the Apple Watch (note the "Color:" heading in each review), not specifically the Nike-styled ones. It looked interesting but I wasn't quite willing to jump on it when I looked around. Would be very interested to see pictures when it arrives.

I'm waiting on one from eBay that took 3 days to get from the seller in China all the way to Los Angeles (just 100 miles away)... and has been sitting in customs in LA for the past 6 days. Sigh.

 

[numberfour]

Very happy with my leather band from Islington Watches. Comfortable and great quality. https://www.islingtonwatches.com

 

[Tekzilla]

Anyone have any recommendations for a good third party Brown Leather band or a good Nylon band? I'm in the US if it helps.

Just got the Series 1 42MM in Gold Gold and I feel a little lost with bands lol.

 

[sean3]

Hi
Gosh, thats a difficult one. I guess by fabric you mean cotton and I haven't seen any cotton apple watch straps. They would be best - cool, light weight and breathable for that climate.

The nylon knock offs (amazon pricier than eBay and aliexpress) although fantastic are not breathable: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01DUI9WYS/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_ja5kybC8JEAFC

Hope you have a safe journey.

Question, not sure if you would know this. I saw you mentioned the Nylon you posted is not breathable, are the Apple ones breathable? I never tried them.

 

[CarlJ]

I saw you mentioned the Nylon you posted is not breathable, are the Apple ones breathable? I never tried them.

The real Apple woven nylon watchbands are very tightly woven - there won't be much air flowing through them (less than you'd get through, say, denim), but more air and moisture will pass through them than through the fluoroelastomer sports bands. The woven nylon bands are quite nice for hot weather. For more traditional watches (vs. smartwatches), some of the best hot weather bands are called "perlon" or "braided nylon" bands. Very breathable. Don't know if anyone has done a decent one of those for the Apple Watch yet.

 

[xDKP]

I jumped on a Apple Nylon clone and must admit it's pretty great! Feels soft and comfortable and quality feels good


I actually also got some silver adapters so I could use my lovely light brown leather band again. Love this combo

 

[deany]

I jumped on a Apple Nylon clone and must admit it's pretty great! Feels soft and comfortable and quality feels good


I actually also got some silver adapters so I could use my lovely light brown leather band again. Love this combo

Same as I have I've got 5 now at £7.99 approx - alipress?

 

[jermy4]

I jumped on a Apple Nylon clone and must admit it's pretty great! Feels soft and comfortable and quality feels good


I actually also got some silver adapters so I could use my lovely light brown leather band again. Love this combo

Where did you get the nylon band? Can you post a link?

 

[deany]

Where did you get the nylon band? Can you post a link?

Sure give me 2 mins
[doublepost=1480537103][/doublepost]

Sure give me 2 mins

Where did you get the nylon band? Can you post a link?

Hi
I have all 5 except the pink one as I'm not that keen on pink I have brown eyes!
I 100% recommend this seller will post links to bands my actual bands
Look what I found on AliExpress
http://www.aliexpress.com/item/32724175206/32724175206.html

Absolutely delighted with my two new nylon knock offs from Aliexpress.
Delivery was 3 1/2 weeks to the UK but when I queried I got perfect English in response, very pleasant and arrived two days after query.
The 1st photo is the "2" on their site
https://m.aliexpress.com/item/32724...e-Watch-Sport-Edition-38mm-42mm-Case-Store-51

I will upload my "1" band tomorrow.

If I had purchased this watch strap in the apple store I'd be over the moon - but compare prices.

Cheers

ps
The lugs are a lovely 'blue' colour, very unusual but nice.
Sports, Space grey 42mm.



Hi
Sure
VERY secure clasp I swear this is the nearly £50 band for £7.00!
Let me know if I can help with more queries.
This is band '1' black one

Cheers

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Wov...tion-38mm-42mm-Case-Store-51/32724175206.html

 

[sk1wbw]

Just ordered yet another Apple Watch band, but this one is one of those NATO nylong doohickies. Looks sweet.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01DURXKD8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[xDKP]

Just ordered yet another Apple Watch band, but this one is one of those NATO nylong doohickies. Looks sweet.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01DURXKD8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

View attachment 675502

That looks awesome - keep us posted when you get it

 

[xDKP]

Where did you get the nylon band? Can you post a link?

Mine is actually from Amazon https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01I67BBMO/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_aYkqybFBC015H

 

[sk1wbw]

Okay, just ordered this funky looking one. Pretty awesome.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01LYTDJ1R/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[fischersd]

Just ordered yet another Apple Watch band, but this one is one of those NATO nylong doohickies. Looks sweet.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01DURXKD8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

View attachment 675502

It's funny, when I click on the link, it loads as: https://www.amazon.ca/s/ref=w_bl_sl...5620011&field-keywords=Clockwork+Synergy,+LLC
- which is an incredibly heinous seller. (selling CWS bands that go for about $15 US for $95 Canadian?!) - sent the info to the folks at CWS. (I always just order directly from their site - they usually have deals going on - especially over holiday weekends).

If you go to the actual link, it takes you to the US store - which almost certainly is them, as the prices are in line with what they offer as well.

Let you guys know what I hear back. (heh - for those Canadians that like to buy their bands)

 

[fischersd]

Update - do NOT order from "Clockwork Synergy, LLC" on Amazon.ca - this is NOT Clockwork Synergy, but a reseller portraying themselves as the company.
I actually got a message back from the CWS founder Jeff Braswell - he's going to be following up with Amazon on this.
(mind you, I'm not sure why anyone would order from these guys on Amazon.ca - paying 5x or more than the prices on the CWS website?)

I'm sure they'll get things straightened out with Amazon, so the only storefronts are actually their company.

 

[sk1wbw]

I didn't like that Clockwork Synergy band at all. WAY too stiff and the stitching was very very itchy and scratchy. I couldn't wear it.

 

[lg251]

I didn't like that Clockwork Synergy band at all. WAY too stiff and the stitching was very very itchy and scratchy. I couldn't wear it.

Same here! Their nato bands aren't the most comfortable, especially when compared to the Apple Nylon bands. However, their other collections (leather, dapper) bands are very comfortable.

They used to sell Nato bands with a layer of leather underneath, but don't see them anymore!

 

[fischersd]

Same here! Their nato bands aren't the most comfortable, especially when compared to the Apple Nylon bands. However, their other collections (leather, dapper) bands are very comfortable.

They used to sell Nato bands with a layer of leather underneath, but don't see them anymore!

They're only a little scratchy "out of the gate" - they become more comfortable with wear. I have a half dozen of the two piece NATO's that I tend to wear more often than any of my other bands.

But, to each their own - choice is good!!