CNS Straps “Comfytrooper”

This is good to know. I want to get more elastic straps, but Erika’s is pricey 👍

Yeah it’s funny, there is a lot of brands out there with honestly good products (I’ll say Erika’s marine nationale is very well designed, hence why it’s so widely ripped off). but they are usually very expensive. I tend to gravitate towards CNS because they have great product, at great prices.

one piece of advice i always give though. is always opt for the DHL express shipping. its so much faster (their standard shipping can take as long as some aliexpress orders). so it’s worth it for an extra 12$. you might have to pay some duties from the border. but it’s still very worth while

Every time I get tempted enough to try something from CNS, I am supremely disappointed at the horrible quality. I have to keep reminding myself that there's a reason their (old) name begins with "Cheapest." I dunno if it's just my bad luck, or if the folks that are satisfied with their product haven't really experienced a nice strap to compare against.

This strap actually looks tempting, but I've been burned too many times.

Check out The Watch Steward or (when he gets back from paternity leave) Nick Manky Designs.

There are a few lines of their straps I stick to specifically. One is the paratrooper line (the normal ones are robust, and sort of comfortable), the seal straps (they are infinitely adjustable, hold Bette then normal nato straps, and use the very soft and comfortable seat belt materiel), and the leather nato straps. 
 

I’ve heard great things about the cns leather in general. which I can only confirm with the leather natos. but that’s the only kind of theirs I buy with hole adjust. the others are only decent because they don’t use hole adjustment. I find not just cns, but most nato straps tend to fray way to fast at the holes for my liking. 

do note that the cns marine nationale straps are not the same as the paratrooper (And imo very inferior to the paratrooper line). 

then the rest of their stuff I can’t speak towards. but they has just been my experience.

my first purchase from them was not actually a happy one ether. I bough their normal nylon nato’s, and they started fraying in a couple of days. but then after shopping other brands, figured that’s all hole adjust nato’s. 

anyways, sorry for the long story/ explanation type thing. just thought I’d try and explain what are some goods and bad‘s of the brand in my experience.

cheers, and sorry to hear about your troubles with them.  

Sounds like I've just be unlucky in my selections. First purchase was a NATO (back when they had "NATO" in their name) and, like your's it frayed within a couple of weeks.

Second attempt was a rubber band. I should have known better since they were up-front that it was TPU. But I figured for the price it was worth a shot. Nope.

Glad you've found one's that are good.

absolutely. honestly if you are ever up to giving them another shot. stick to those three lines. my two personal favs being the seals, and paratroopers (now the Comfytrooper even more so). 

side note, the Comfytroopers don’t show up right off the bat. have to filter search by A-Z

You’re the best! I’ve got some watch steward straps heading my way. The number of style/material combinations they have is borderline overwhelming, but I made a choice and will report back the results.

I saw these on the site recently, but they made no real explanation of what they were. I guess the name was supposed to explain it all, but I don't feel it did. What the difference is from their normal paratrooper strap is remains a mystery.

Honestly, you are spot on there. I was wondering the same thing so o emailed them. unfortunately never got a response. so I ordered them anyways. glad I did because they are far softer then the normal ones, they are thinner, and actually seem to me more resilient then I was expecting. 
 

as per the difference. whereas the normal paratrooper seems to be a thicker, more rubber esc material. The comfytrooper seems to be made out of much thinner strands. to me it’s like a fleece, or something in that ballpark. very soft, and fluffy. 
 

only thing I can say Is it gets a bit staticky when rubbing against other material that tend to cause static. 

Both great looking product for the price. my only issue is that they are still very bulky as a whole. a few positives about the paratrooper series. is that you can attach it without removing the spring bars. and that if you follow the proper instructions to size (ie you cut it to length, then melt the end with a lighter). it’s just a single piece of material all around. which I understand some people might not like that it adds the extra layer to the bottom of the watch. I find the single layer doesn’t add to much though (especially with the new, thiner, Comfytroope). also now that they have the more comfortable comfytrooper, I feel the material, and price compete with the best of the other budget brands.

in the flip side though. I can see how those two brands of strap can be useful for those who own thiccc boi watches.

but regardless of what someone chooses out of these three brands (your two choices, and my choice). I don’t think people will be too disappointed

they are still very bulky as a whole.

Gonna say that's absolutely not true. Certainly not in the case of The Watch Steward. If you look at the options available, you'll see that there are four styles.

1. "Minimalist" With this style there is no strap beneath the watch and just a single loop of fabric. It's a good style for smart watches as it avoids blocking any sensors (e.g. heart rate) on the case back.
2. "Single Pass" This is a single loop beneath the watch, much like a single pass NATO. Looks to be equivalent to the CNS straps you describe.
3. "Original" Double loops all around but nothing under the watch case. Also fine for smart watches with sensors, and it's more symmetrical than the minimalist since both lugs get a full loop.
4. "G Series" Like the original but with removable hardware so it can be installed on fixed bar watches. (It took me awhile to get the hang up fastening this one, so at first I was disappointed. Eventually it clicked though.)

NMD's design is similar to the "Original" but with a different approach to fastening. There is also a fixed bar option using removable hardware.

This style of watch band is not really appropriate for a dress watch, so you're not likely to find many examples of thin watches using it, but interspersed within the tool and sport watches, you can certainly find many regular watches in The Watch Steward's Instragram feed and Nick Mankey's customer gallery, and they look great.

I think it's fine that the OP likes CNS. To each his own, and CNS prices are definitely low. Based on my personal experience, though, that brand generally sells crappy products, and I suspect that there are better options available.

Here's a TWS single pass on a vintage Camy 7311 skin diver (quite small at 36mm diameter and 10mm thickness). I can't see how it can be considered "very bulky."

 if you follow the proper instructions to size (ie you cut it to length, then melt the end with a lighter)

I mean, I know that CNS is literally "cheap," but come on. I don't even own a lighter. Decent brands, including Erika's Originals, The Watch Steward, and Nick Mankey Designs, ask you for your wrist size and deliver a product that doesn't require a trip to the hardware store before you can use it.

No disrespect meant, but lighters have to be the easiest thing to get. I don’t know what country you reside. but you can get them at walmart, other general stores, dollar stores, gas stations, and plenty of other places. it’s really not that hard to cut it to size and char the edge. even better yet is it can fit pretty much any wrist size. really the only limiting factor is having enough material after passing it through the lugs to go around the wrist. 

Listen, I really don’t want to argue with you. you do you. all I’m trying to do is advocate for a brand which I feel is better then some give it credit. And I can respect that. i just don’t particularly appreciate being talked to like I have no idea what I’m talking about.. ether way, I’m happy you have a brand you like. and I’m sorry if I have offended you in any way. 

cheers friend 🤘🙂

I'm sorry for being so harsh. We do have different opinions on what to recommend, but variety is the spice of life as they say. Enjoy your watches on whatever straps you prefer.

To be honest, it's not so much the difficulty of acquiring a lighter as it is the fear that I might accidentally burn my house down trying to use it. :)

Fair enough. nothing wrong with that. maybe it’s just because I’m well used to lighters. but they fear is mostly null for me. but fire is definitely dangerous. So I cant blame you for being concerned 

I agree completely, and same here. sorry i got defensive there. and thanks for being a good sport about the whole thing. it’s one thing I appreciate about this community. people generally don’t go out of their way to completely throw shade at others.