Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/125 sec, ISO2500 “Instax, NATO, Zulu” Cedar Park, 2017
Continuing with my (so far) inexpensive watch obsession, I put my grey and black NATO band onto an old Casio quartz dive-style watch. I used to really like this style of watch face, but now I don’t like the shiny polished metal looks as much. But, it does match the shiny buckles on the strap, so I think it’s a good complement. If you look at my Seiko and its strap buckles, you can see both have a matte finish so it matches nicely. 😊
I also learned that the strap that has the 5 buckles is not a NATO strap, but a “Zulu” strap. The larger, rounded buckles are the difference here. I think I prefer the Zulu strap.
Anyways, my interest in watches continues, and I have made a little Amazon wishlist in case anyone is feeling incredibly generous! 😍 But seriously, I’m keeping my eye on a Seiko 007 model… One day!
So I’ve been getting back into my interest in watches again, ever since I got my Seiko 5 last week. I absolutely love that watch! It spurred my memory of another watch that I used to own back in high school – a Timex titanium watch. I don’t think I would have ever thrown that watch away, so I can only assume that it got left behind somewhere when I moved. Anyways, I was thinking how it was such a great-looking watch, so I Googled it and found a photo of the same model and… I guess it is not as nice as my memory led me to believe! 😮
It’s not a terrible-looking watch, but I guess what I find attractive in a watch has changed a bit. I prefer a design with clean edges, and the old watch has the indents around the edges which I am not fond of. Here’s a photo of my Seiko 5, which has a thinner bezel and cleaner look:
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/3.6, 1/100 sec, ISO2500 “Pillow Watch” Cedar Park, 2017
Oh well, I guess I don’t need to find the old Timex on Ebay to add to my collection, right? 😝
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5, 1/30 sec, ISO3200 “Spectre Bond Strap” Cedar Park, 2017
こんばんは。Are you well today?
Continuing with my mini-obsession with my new watch, I decided to get a couple new watch straps. I mentioned in a previous post that the band that came with the watch wasn’t highly regarded and that a NATO strap replacement is recommended. Well, I did a little research into the style I wanted, and I ended up going with the “Bond Strap”, which is the same design that James Bond wore. But, he actually wore a couple different styles. In 1964’s Goldfinger, Sean Connery wore a black, green, and red striped design, while in 2015’s Spectre, Daniel Craig wore a black and grey striped design. Naturally, I got both!
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/40 sec, ISO3200 “Goldfinger Bond Strap” Cedar Park, 2017
What is nice about the NATO style straps is that they are very inexpensive. I paid about $10 each. They are both pretty good, but not perfect. The black and grey Spectre strap is a good thickness, softer, and more comfortable, but the buckles are a shiny stainless steel. I prefer the darker matte finish of the stock band. The black, green, and red Goldfinger strap is thinner, harder, and the buckles are a nice matte nickel color. Unfortunately, they are a little too big and prominent, plus I think there are one too many buckles. There’s a way to loop the strap around two of the buckles so that it is more secure, but I don’t think I need that, so I might Dremel off one of them.
I like the NATO straps, though, and I bet if I search hard enough, I will find the combination of smaller matte buckles and softness. But perhaps it’s not about finding the perfect one, but enjoying the variety that comes with owning several different types. 😊 Luckily, NATO straps are easily removed and replaces, so switching it up to suit your mood is not an inconvenience at all.
