A suitable strap plays an important role in any watch. A wide variety of watch straps can expand the watches combinations, for the watches appearance, the watch strap usually brings more visual impact than the watch dial, thus a large number of watch strap combinations will expand your watch collections even though you only have one watch head design. Most watches manufacturers require minimum order quantity 500 pcs for watch but the MOQ for straps is normally 100, so it is often more cost effective to add more straps variations but not assortment of watches.
There are many different watch straps with different materials, as you know the straps will make the watches look so different with different colors and materials. Let’s take a look at the most common materials used for watch straps and quality of them!
Stainless Steel Mesh Strap
Stainless steel mesh strap was originally developed in Milan, Italy. This strap is easily distinguished by their extremely dense and tightly mesh structure, which makes them the smoothest metal straps on the market. It has several different types as well according to the mesh thickness, usually from 0.4 to 1.0 and 0.4 type is the thinnest type. For example, Daniel Wellington is using 0.6 type mesh straps. It is one of the most popular watch straps since their antique look and stable for sweat corrosion.
Besides, as stainless steel material, the watch factory can plate different colors, such as rose gold, black, khaki and so on, this way it can have the same color as the watch case or you can mix the colors with the case to make different variants.
Leather Watch Straps
Leather is most used materials for watch straps, usually there are three different types of leather material:
Faux leather- which is not leather from any animals but made by man from a plastic base, which means it wears off pretty quickly. Positive thing is that faux leather is animal friendly materials, furthermore the price is commonly lower than other two leather materials.
Genuine leather- is much more durable than faux leather and is a good choice as the quality is high and the touch is comfortable. Genuine leather normally means the leather from animals like cow, crocodile, deer, snake, etc. If you are not a watch newbie you must see Genuine Leather on the inside of the straps.
Full-grain leather- It is the highest quality leather material, most durable and the strongest. It has the same look as genuine leather and it is hard to tell the difference between these two materials but full-grain leather lasts much longer. In fashion, a leather watch strap always complements both casual and formal style, which means it goes with everything. Straps come in different colors and designs, it feels free on the skin and doesn’t cause any sweat. It is a perfect material to use in wristwatch straps as it has all properties necessary.
NATO Strap
NATO straps were designed by the British Ministry of Defence in 1973. Originally the NATO design consisted of a single piece of nylon with a pin buckle, and keepers to thread excess nylon through one attached to the wrist. A second piece of nylon is commonly attached to the strap as well to ensure the watch is secure once on the wrist. NATO straps are typically one-piece watch straps, most other straps are composed of two separate pieces and can only be applied by removing both of the spring bars that attach to the watch, and they are lightweight, quick drying, durable and very simple to use.
Also, NATO watch bands are easy to clean and when wet, they dry quickly. If you want to go swimming with a nylon banding strap watch, you can be sure that water won’t make any harm to straps. These straps are extremely tough and can survive almost anything. There are various colors and designs available, so you can suite it for whatever you want to wear.
Stainless Steel Bracelet Straps
Stainless steel is the most popular material used in watches. Not only is it durable, but it is also less expensive than gold, titanium, silver, and platinum. Stainless steel metal is a common material used for both the watch and strap. Metal as itself is a common material that can outlast swimming and diving. Although stainless steel straps are durable, it is difficult to change the look of them. And because the metal is already heavy by itself, it can be quite uncomfortable to wear on a daily basis. Despite that fact, stainless steel watches and straps are still in fashion and don’t seem to wear out. Although metal like stainless steel represents toughness, stainless steel straps can be designed differently, which means that you can choose and suite the best looking for you.
Vegan Watch Strap
Called also as cruelty-free leather it’s another type of leather that differs from others by being eco-friendly as there are no nasty toxins or chemicals in vegan leather. Nowadays it’s easy for people to support veganism as there are many vegan-friendly alternatives for most products. This leather is a great option for those who want quality at the same time avoiding animal products in their lives. Comparing vegan leather to the previous ones, there isn’t that much difference to real leather. It is as sustainable and durable but it surely more friendly for the environment.
Perlon Strap
Perlon straps were also popularized in the 60’s. Perlon straps are easily recognized by their tightly woven basket weave pattern. Instead of being a stamped pattern, however, it is an actual weave composed of thick nylon-esque threads. This characteristic gives Perlon straps a magnificent three-dimensional texture while simultaneously providing extreme amounts of breathability.
One of the most unique features of the Perlon strap is its infinite resizability – there are no predetermined holes, so the buckle’s prong simply slides through an opening in the weave.
This makes the strap a perfect choice for peculiar wrist sizes, since any circumference can be reached exactly. Perlon is also very abrasion resistant, so it rarely frays from continued use. Finally, Perlon dries quickly and does not stretch when wet, so it is an excellent choice for diving when rubber is unavailable or unwanted. Their extreme breathability and durability makes them a summer favorite, and their cheap price makes them easy to choose.
Silicone Rubber Watch Strap
As a material silicone has good high and low-temperature resistance. Silicone straps not only feel comfortable on the skin but they also are in diverse colors for you to choose. The good thing about the silicone rubber watch band is that it is non-toxic and eco-friendly. Material is elastic, it is almost impossible to deform the product made of silicone. But undeniably, the silicone rubber watch band has a very low tensile strength, so it would be better if you don’t test it by stretching it. Overall, it is a soft and smooth material for watch straps to wear, it’s fashionable and won’t wear out so easily. Silicone rubber watch bands are very good to wear in winter because of the material that makes a warm feeling. In summer it’s easy to sweat with a wristwatch-like this, and because of that surface of silicone band can be easily damaged and once silicone bands are damaged, it is not so easy to recover them. You can take care of watch straps by ventilating them and keeping them dry.
Hope you have an idea which straps you prefer from this article, as a watch manufacturer you are suggested to make the decision based on your budget, design and audience. Please contact us if you are going to start your business and we will assist you to develop the watch designs with suitable straps.