Incoming Seiko Personal Grail

[toxicavenger]

Originally Posted by VinnieVegas

the Bonetto Cinturini flat vent strap is very good, too. I have a BC strap on my Orient Mako I and I think it's really sharp.

The BC strap is a really good. I am not a huge fan of the vanilla smell. Also they do not really fit smaller wristed folks. So if your wrist is under say 6 3/4 you can not wear one. The Uncle Seiko straps have a wider range that they fit.

[uncleluck]

Originally Posted by David cote

To be perfectly honest the strap quality that Uncle Seiko provides is vast superior over the Seiko OEM strap Z22, Now if your talking about the OEM strap that came with these watches i.e Seiko GL831 original straps were awesome and quality is extremely good. And Uncle Seiko (Larry) has perfected the GL831 experience and done so extremely well. They even smell yummy.

The original straps that came with them are so old, how can we compare them to a new z22? I do hear this often about how great the old straps were but I’ve a couple here & there’s no way I could gather any gauge of what quality they were like. The ones I have here don’t seem like they would have been any different to a modern z22 when they were new. The only thing they’ve got are decades of breaking in and polishing.

What way are Uncle Seiko vastly superior? Genuine question, are they a lot softer? There was a post on TZ with a user saying he got his Seiko out the watch box and the uncle Seiko rubber strap had snapped in two places just sat on a cushion, there was a reply saying same happened to someone else & he referenced a V1 & V2 strap that he assumed was now better?. I’d be sick losing my 6309 or Tuna (I wore for up to 5 hrs a day for a week in the sea) and I trust a new flat z22. I’d say Seiko’s original stuff is pretty good quality and generally Seiko’s straps last decades. Only gripe I have is they’re stiff when new so mine get the hot water shaping treatment.

I’ve been tempted to try the Uncle Seiko one before but it’s more expensive than a genuine flat vent Z22.

I really loved the feel of the latest Seiko dive straps though, ones that come on the modern solar tuna’s etc, they’re really soft and comfy but I guess they’d break easier. I do find (even in my mind) there’s a perception that soft and rubbery equals more comfort, which it does initially but I will say I prefer the harder older flat z22 in hot weather as the soft rubbers get kind of nasty feeling when sweating in heat. Only way I can describe is if I’d had neither & you gave me a modern soft Seiko strap strap and an older hard one and said which one, I’d say new one no brainier! But having multiple watches with both types I can honestly say if asked after a period of wearing both including in the sea & all weather I’d take the harder one. They take some break in but I feel they’re more sturdy.

One thing to be careful of is a strap that is too soft, if soft enough they grip the spring bars and you can lose the watch head in the wrong situation. A strap like a really soft tropic replica I have on my 62mas & a couple of others I can remove the whole strap (via the spring bar coming out) just grabbing the strap near the bar and pulling it left & right quickly.

[FTX I]

Enjoy

[toxicavenger]

Originally Posted by uncleluck

The original straps that came with them are so old, how can we compare them to a new z22? I do hear this often about how great the old straps were but I’ve a couple here & there’s no way I could gather any gauge of what quality they were like. The ones I have here don’t seem like they would have been any different to a modern z22 when they were new. The only thing they’ve got are decades of breaking in and polishing.

What way are Uncle Seiko vastly superior? Genuine question, are they a lot softer? There was a post on TZ with a user saying he got his Seiko out the watch box and the uncle Seiko rubber strap had snapped in two places just sat on a cushion, there was a reply saying same happened to someone else & he referenced a V1 & V2 strap that he assumed was now better?. I’d be sick losing my 6309 or Tuna (I wore for up to 5 hrs a day for a week in the sea) and I trust a new flat z22. I’d say Seiko’s original stuff is pretty good quality and generally Seiko’s straps last decades. Only gripe I have is they’re stiff when new so mine get the hot water shaping treatment.

I’ve been tempted to try the Uncle Seiko one before but it’s more expensive than a genuine flat vent Z22.

I really loved the feel of the latest Seiko dive straps though, ones that come on the modern solar tuna’s etc, they’re really soft and comfy but I guess they’d break easier. I do find (even in my mind) there’s a perception that soft and rubbery equals more comfort, which it does initially but I will say I prefer the harder older flat z22 in hot weather as the soft rubbers get kind of nasty feeling when sweating in heat. Only way I can describe is if I’d had neither & you gave me a modern soft Seiko strap strap and an older hard one and said which one, I’d say new one no brainier! But having multiple watches with both types I can honestly say if asked after a period of wearing both including in the sea & all weather I’d take the harder one. They take some break in but I feel they’re more sturdy.

One thing to be careful of is a strap that is too soft, if soft enough they grip the spring bars and you can lose the watch head in the wrong situation. A strap like a really soft tropic replica I have on my 62mas & a couple of others I can remove the whole strap (via the spring bar coming out) just grabbing the strap near the bar and pulling it left & right quickly.

The Uncle Seiko GL is superior to the Z22. The currnet Z22's still have more of a plastic feel to them. The Uncle straps are rubber. Two totally different compounds for sure. I have the original V1 Uncle Seiko straps and I wear them all the time. I have not had any cracks or anything come up with them. The Z22's absolutely fail when they crack. That it is why I started using the Darth Tuna rubber straps a long time ago. But now with the Uncle seiko strap being available I stopped having a need for the Darth strap.


The only way a strap makes a spring bar release from a watch is if that strap is not made to fit the spring bar. Stock Seiko fat bars are 2.5mm wide. Most aftermarket straps are not made to fit the stock Seiko fat bars. The best option is to get the correct spring bar for the strap. That is why I carry spring bars in my store that fit Seiko divers but have a smaller middle for aftermarket straps.

[antbkny]

Cool watch

[VinnieVegas]

Originally Posted by antbkny

Cool watch

Thanks, I like it!

[VinnieVegas]

Well I just got my new Uncle Seiko 22mm GL831 strap and swapped it in, replacing my temporary 20mm strap.

Thunderbirds Are Go!

[antbkny]

Looks great

[VinnieVegas]

Originally Posted by antbkny

Looks great

Thanks! I have a love affair with this watch & strap combo!

[dmachine]

Everyone should have one of these!

[VinnieVegas]

Originally Posted by dmachine

Everyone should have one of these!

I dig it! I can't get enough!