What do you think about the new hybrid cotton Bark & Jack NATO straps?
Yesterday Bark & Jack released some new NATO straps that they call Seventy30. They describe them like this:
The Seventy30 weave is 70% man-made fibres giving the strap strength and durability plus 30% natural cotton giving the strap a soft supple feel and a matte look.
I'm curious if anyone has any experience with similar straps from other vendors and whether those are something you'd recommend. I'm mostly into seatbelt type of NATOs, but I'm always curious to try something new.
The problem for me is that I've bought so many NATOs that I don't really like when I try them on, that I'm trying to be a bit more selective upfront and do a bit of research. The hobby is hard and expensive! 😂
P.S. I don't know about you, but for me buying new straps is almost as much fun as buying new watches!
Newly minted watch enthusiast (I got seriously interested in watches in late 2022). I aim to build a small collection (5-6) pieces over the course of the years. I'm mostly into Tudor & Seiko these day...
They look very similar (quality and material) to the Five Eyes from W.O.E., which are soft and comfortable. The hardware is also very nice. I bought two to try out and ended up buying the rest. It’s a shame there are only a handful of colors available.
I've never actually tried bark and jack straps. How have their previous products been received?
Fake NATO's, one of my pet hates -
A NATO *must* have a sewn in buckle or it defeats the whole point of the NATO.
These are just pretty cloth straps...
🤯
They look very similar (quality and material) to the Five Eyes from W.O.E., which are soft and comfortable. The hardware is also very nice. I bought two to try out and ended up buying the rest. It’s a shame there are only a handful of colors available.
Didn't know about WOE. Will check them out!
I've never actually tried bark and jack straps. How have their previous products been received?
I've heard mixed feedback about them - many people say they are great, some say they are selling overpriced straps sourced from China. Go figure! The owner of the company (Adrian Baker) has a popular YouTube channel about watches and he's quite famous in the watch community.
The problem is that 90% of the strap vendors source NATOs from 1-2 suppliers and just rebrand them, so it's kind of hard to tell whether some strap is of high quality before seeing it in person. Of the famous NATO strap vendors I know only about Crown and Buckle and Phenomenato for having truly distinct products (and suppliers). I'm wondering what's the situation with Bark & Jack, but I'm guessing it's more likely they are using some of the generic Chinese suppliers.
Fake NATO's, one of my pet hates -
A NATO *must* have a sewn in buckle or it defeats the whole point of the NATO.
These are just pretty cloth straps...
🤯
You mean the buckle shouldn't be using a spring bar or what?
not fair for me to comment, Im just not a NATO fan at all.....
not fair for me to comment, Im just not a NATO fan at all.....
Well, it's funny how our tastes in watches change over time - 2 years ago I liked neither divers, nor NATOs. 😂 I guess the huge stylistic diversity (both for watches and straps) is a big part of the fun in the hobby.
You mean the buckle shouldn't be using a spring bar or what?
Yes, exactly that. One piece buckle that's sewn in . Mil-spec eliminates all potential points of failure.
I recommend Watchgecko Zuludiver or CWC for the real thing. The CWC elastic NATO's are particularly comfortable and cheap too 👍🏻
Well, it's funny how our tastes in watches change over time - 2 years ago I liked neither divers, nor NATOs. 😂 I guess the huge stylistic diversity (both for watches and straps) is a big part of the fun in the hobby.
👍
You mean the buckle shouldn't be using a spring bar or what?
Could get the real deal.
https://www.cwcwatch.com/collections/cwc-straps-accessories/products/cabot-military-watch-strap
@Inkitatus
Edit: Didn’t see you had already mentioned it. 😆
I haven't tried their new ones but I bought a yellow ribbed nato from them a month ago and was impressed with the quality...
I haven't tried them, but seem interesting. I sometimes think NATO and Zulu straps aren't as breathable as the are said to be. Maybe it's the ones I've tried? However, I'd think this may be breathable.
Don’t like NATO’s that have excess strap that you have to loop back into the keepers, looks sloppy, more so if you cut it.
ZuluDiver Octopod is a good one that eliminates that look. Still excess but it’s “covered” up.
Don’t like NATO’s that have excess strap that you have to loop back into the keepers, looks sloppy, more so if you cut it.
ZuluDiver Octopod is a good one that eliminates that look. Still excess but it’s “covered” up.
I think that MN straps are even better in the this regard (e.g. Erika's Originals). I have quite a few of them and for me they are the perfect straps, combining comfort, versatility and cool looks. There are also some elastic straps without hardware (e.g. from Delugs) that arguably even more comfy, but the look is kind of boring.
I used to hate the excess strap in NATOs as well, but lately I've been finding it kind of cool. I think the hobby has made me less practical with time. 😂
Could get the real deal.
https://www.cwcwatch.com/collections/cwc-straps-accessories/products/cabot-military-watch-strap
@Inkitatus
Edit: Didn’t see you had already mentioned it. 😆
I thought only straps from Phoenix were the real deal. 😉 But those are crazy expensive today for what they are. (seems people consider them collector's items) CWC are great, though, no argument about this.
I'm not super fond of tubular style NATOs in general, that's why occasionally I'm checking out alternative options.
I think that MN straps are even better in the this regard (e.g. Erika's Originals). I have quite a few of them and for me they are the perfect straps, combining comfort, versatility and cool looks. There are also some elastic straps without hardware (e.g. from Delugs) that arguably even more comfy, but the look is kind of boring.
I used to hate the excess strap in NATOs as well, but lately I've been finding it kind of cool. I think the hobby has made me less practical with time. 😂
Yeah those MN straps are cool.
They look very similar (quality and material) to the Five Eyes from W.O.E., which are soft and comfortable. The hardware is also very nice. I bought two to try out and ended up buying the rest. It’s a shame there are only a handful of colors available.
I agree, the W.O.E. straps are very comfortable.
Fake NATO's, one of my pet hates -
A NATO *must* have a sewn in buckle or it defeats the whole point of the NATO.
These are just pretty cloth straps...
🤯
I think it says one-piece buckle on the site, doesn’t it? I might be missing something
Yes, exactly that. One piece buckle that's sewn in . Mil-spec eliminates all potential points of failure.
I recommend Watchgecko Zuludiver or CWC for the real thing. The CWC elastic NATO's are particularly comfortable and cheap too 👍🏻
Damn. I didn't even know about this. Sometimes ignorance is great. Now I've got a box of useless NATOS!
I have many Natos and only two Bark & Jack's and can say none of my other Natos match the fabric of B&J.
Damn. I didn't even know about this. Sometimes ignorance is great. Now I've got a box of useless NATOS!
Still look great, just not "proper"
Don't worry about it, I've got drawers full of ones before I found out too 🙄🤣👍🏻👍🏻
I think it says one-piece buckle on the site, doesn’t it? I might be missing something
Haven't read the bumph, looks very clearly like a spring bar retained buckle from the pics, and his previous ones aren't one piece.
Would like to be wrong, tho.
Fake NATO's, one of my pet hates -
A NATO *must* have a sewn in buckle or it defeats the whole point of the NATO.
These are just pretty cloth straps...
🤯
Well to be fair, Bark and Jack didn't and don't call it a NATO. The OP did.
Bark and Jack legally can't call it that because of some copyright trolls who managed to trademark the words "NATO Strap".