Watch Strap Game

Everyone talks about the thrill of the hunt. Finding that hidden gem in a dusty shop or a market stall nobody else bothered to stop at. That feeling is incredible and I never get tired of it.

But what happens after the hunt is just as magical.

You get it home. You clean it up carefully. A gentle polish on the acrylic crystal if it is vintage. Change the old worn out crown. Replace the O ring. Slowly you start to see what it really is underneath all those years of being forgotten. The dial starts to shine again. The case comes back to life.

And then you look at it and think something is still not quite right.

So you open the strap drawer.

If you have never stood in front of a strap collection trying combinations on a watch you just rescued, you are missing one of the great joys of this hobby. You try one and it is close but not quite. You try another and it is getting warmer. Then you pull one out and put it on and suddenly everything clicks into place.

That watch that nobody wanted. That piece you found for almost nothing. It is now sitting on your wrist looking absolutely incredible because you found its perfect partner.

That is the strap game. And once you start playing it you never stop.

I have more straps than I have watches. For someone with over 200 watches that is really saying something.

Steven John Pile