I feel your pain! I had the same problem getting my BB58 bracelet off. Tried some cheap spring bar tweezers from Amazon with no luck. What worked for me was to separate the bracelet by disconnecting the micro adjustment spring bar so I could lay the watch out flat. Then I used two normal spring bar tools to kind of do the work that the tweezers would do. Having a watch vice is definitely a plus as well. Congrats on your purchase btw! Such a classic watch.
Great choices! I've been having some luck on Etsy lately in terms of straps. You can get some fantastic exotic leathers for a fraction of what a name brand would charge and the quality is equal or greater. For NATO straps I like B&R Bands and Crown & Buckle.
I go back and forth with the SMP as well for the same reasons you highlighted. If I were to buy one it would be the 2012-2018 model in the dark navy blue dial. As far as the exclusivity, that doesn't interest me much.
This is my grail watch for sure 🤤
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