NATO watch straps ... a spot of advice please.

Haveston are in the UK but market in dollars.

I'd like to know why Haveston, which is apparently in the UK, shows it's prices in dollars. I'd also like to see a bit more about the company in the "Contact" and the "About" sections of the website. Obviously aimed at slightly more stylish, trendy customers and not certainly not cheap ... after all it's a nylon strap with metal fixings. And the length looks to be 270mm ... is that because it's of a different type? There's a long thread on Watchuseek and it got quite involved with various configurations described and a good deal of debate about them changing their styles or whatever.

To be honest it started to go over my head.

Yes, It makes TimeFactor looks great value and the TimeFactor website gives a lot more, easy to understand, information for those who like to know who they're buying from.
 
I'd like to know why Haveston, which is apparently in the UK, shows it's prices in dollars. I'd also like to see a bit more about the company in the "Contact" and the "About" sections of the website. Obviously aimed at slightly more stylish, trendy customers and not certainly not cheap ... after all it's a nylon strap with metal fixings. And the length looks to be 270mm ... is that because it's of a different type? There's a long thread on Watchuseek and it got quite involved with various configurations described and a good deal of debate about them changing their styles or whatever.

To be honest it started to go over my head.

Yes, It makes TimeFactor looks great value and the TimeFactor website gives a lot more, easy to understand, information for those who like to know who they're buying from.

I love an affordable Casio. Currently got a W-59 on a grey and black Bond NATO!
 
Here's one of the cheap Casios with a 22mm two piece strap from AliExpress (£3.53) with the shoulders notched to allow it to fit the Casio.

I've ordered a blue strap (£2.67) to go with the blue face Casio.

P1010262 (Small).JPG
 
I think the real problem is to find either a NATO made according to the MoD specs (welded, correct length, etc) or of good quality. Some of the cheap ones made in Asia are OK, but they are too short 99% of the time. Quality-wise, some NATOs sold by Brit sellers and made in the UK are worthwhile (usually £10 or more). On the other hand I had only good experiences with the Maratac's (US likely made in Asia or in the US, which are sewn).

I miss the NATO I bought a few years ago (circa 2011) from an eBay seller (Micky 'something') affiliated (somehow) to Phoenix (made in the UK then). It had the original Admiralty Grey colour, was welded and extremely comfortable; I lost it unfortunately. Oddly enough, I bought some other Phoenix NATO on eBay, with the logo on the buckle, which were of poor quality in comparison.

img-2017.jpg
 
I think the real problem is to find either a NATO made according to the MoD specs (welded, correct length, etc) or of good quality. Some of the cheap ones made in Asia are OK, but they are too short 99% of the time. Quality-wise, some NATOs sold by Brit sellers and made in the UK are worthwhile (usually £10 or more). On the other hand I had only good experiences with the Maratac's (US likely made in Asia or in the US, which are sewn).

I miss the NATO I bought a few years ago (circa 2011) from an eBay seller (Micky 'something') affiliated (somehow) to Phoenix (made in the UK then). It had the original Admiralty Grey colour, was welded and extremely comfortable; I lost it unfortunately. Oddly enough, I bought some other Phoenix NATO on eBay, with the logo on the buckle, which were of poor quality in comparison.

img-2017.jpg

No doubt this one is a nice watch strap. I was looking for the best fireman watches and some antique watches where I found this forum. Seen many good posts are o this forum. I will be a regular participant from now on.

Kristoffer Holten.
 
It's not worth spending a lot of money on straps. Thanks to the Internet, you can find inexpensive goods on Chinese websites that will not differ much in quality from expensive analogs.
 
I'll tell you a secret, but most goods and equipment are manufactured in China.
Of course, if we are talking about old models of mechanical watches, you need to be more careful, since they were produced in Europe or the USA. I even bought (Moderator Edit - Please avoid even the appearance of advertising. Thanks!) to avoid damaging the mechanism. In addition, you can visit several markets where old goods are sold at a small price directly from the owner.
 
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