Bespoke rubber straps: does it exist?

stenka

Hello,

Do you know if and where I could get a bespoke rubber strap (natural or FKM) ?

The one I find are all a bit too long for my wrist. As well as the one I got with my Baltic Hermetique (120/70 cm): it's ok but not perfect.

My impression is that they are all made at factories somewhere in Asia with standard sizes and no one is doing several sizing.

I would like to have something more like 110/65 cm, like my leather straps. And if possible, brown color...

Thank you.

PS: no, I don't want to get a large one and then cut it.

#rubberstrap #straps
Reply
Beanna
·

As someone with a 16.5cm wrist who also immediately removes factory rubber straps because they overhang way too much and look sloppy at 190-215mm instead of the 170-175mm I order in bespoke leather straps, I have searched far and wide for "short" length rubber straps and came to the same conclusion as you.

It seems 99% of rubber straps are injection molded in China and no manufacturer bothered making a smaller mold despite the average wrist size being closer to 7". I even contacted Julong, the Chinese manufacturer of most FKM straps you find on retailer websites, and they have no plan to produce a shorter-length strap.

So far, my solutions have been:

  1. Cut-to-size silicone straps paired with an on-the-fly adjustment ratcheting clasp. The straps are $6-$10 on AliExpress and the clasps $18-$22. I wish it was FKM rubber instead of silicone so it wouldn't be such a lint magnet, but I'm not going to spend $150 on a Delugs CTS marked up 20 times for the upgrade to rubber.

  2. Barton Elite Silicone straps at $22. 18 different color options. Their "standard" length ships with two perforated straps, giving you a choice between a 175mm total or 195mm total. The shipping to Europe plus taxes kinda kills the value, unfortunately, but they are the only straps I have found <190mm that finally fit my wrist and don't overhang. For this price, you could get FKM on AliExpress instead of silicone but alas, this is the only "short" strap on the market as far as I know.

If you find any other option, please let me know!

stenka
·
Beanna

As someone with a 16.5cm wrist who also immediately removes factory rubber straps because they overhang way too much and look sloppy at 190-215mm instead of the 170-175mm I order in bespoke leather straps, I have searched far and wide for "short" length rubber straps and came to the same conclusion as you.

It seems 99% of rubber straps are injection molded in China and no manufacturer bothered making a smaller mold despite the average wrist size being closer to 7". I even contacted Julong, the Chinese manufacturer of most FKM straps you find on retailer websites, and they have no plan to produce a shorter-length strap.

So far, my solutions have been:

  1. Cut-to-size silicone straps paired with an on-the-fly adjustment ratcheting clasp. The straps are $6-$10 on AliExpress and the clasps $18-$22. I wish it was FKM rubber instead of silicone so it wouldn't be such a lint magnet, but I'm not going to spend $150 on a Delugs CTS marked up 20 times for the upgrade to rubber.

  2. Barton Elite Silicone straps at $22. 18 different color options. Their "standard" length ships with two perforated straps, giving you a choice between a 175mm total or 195mm total. The shipping to Europe plus taxes kinda kills the value, unfortunately, but they are the only straps I have found <190mm that finally fit my wrist and don't overhang. For this price, you could get FKM on AliExpress instead of silicone but alas, this is the only "short" strap on the market as far as I know.

If you find any other option, please let me know!

Thank you for this great feedback.

I can see we are in the same boat. You went very far in your research!

Note that in the past, I tried the Delugs strap, and as you say, not only it was excessively expensive, but I hated the clasp. I sent it back for partial refund.

I was not aware of the Barton option, so even though it's not perfect, it's good to know. I might try it. Thanks!