Stupid question - how sturdy are spring bars?

[pevadijk]

Ok, this may sound like a stupid question, but I'm gonna ask anyway.
When I work with my hands, I move my watch upwards, so that it's not in the way when I bend my wrist.

When I was really young I managed to bend the springbars in my Seiko's, when I was working with my hands and my watch was a bit to low on my wrist.
This happened quite often, so I have developed springbar phobia, I guess ;-)

How 'easy' is it to bend Rolex springbars and do you take your watch off, when you need to work on something?

[Gab27]

It's probably going to vary based on the model, but I can speak specifically to the modern Submariner spring bars.

They are, impressively, overbuilt. They are extremely thick compared to the spring bars of many other watches, the springs within them are very strong, and the portion of the spring bar that fits inside the hole on the lug is exceptionally thick compared to that of other spring bars. It's thickness is also closely matched to the diameter of the Oyster bracelet, to further provide support from being bent in a manner that would damage their ability function. It's very clear that quite a bit of time was put into designing these and Rolex was building these from the perspective of 'what happens if the watch gets snagged on something and has to withstand quite a lot of force?'. Here is them next to a Bergeon tool, a Pilot G2 with a .7mm top, and one of the pins used in the bracelet.

All that said, I position the watch on my wrist where I can move my wrist freely in all directions and the watch is tight enough that it does not easily slide down, for both comfort and to slow the speed of band stretch.

[SearChart]

Rolex spring bars are generally pretty sturdy. I rarely see a bend one during a service, even the gold ones are strong.

[pevadijk]

Thanks, then I guess I don’t really have to worry about the springbars……..

[Tools]

Originally Posted by pevadijk

Thanks, then I guess I don’t really have to worry about the springbars……..

If you catch your watch while jumping or climbing down, it will likely leave you hanging there.