Speedmaster bracelet

[ratty]

Hello

I'm sure that the bracelets fitted to Speedmasters about ten years ago used to be joined together with pins and not screws. The new ones are screwed together. Does anyone know when the screw bracelets were introduced?

Further to this.

I'm starting to wonder if there was an actual across the board date of introduction? Some models appear to have the screw bracelet whilst others were still fitted with the older pin type bracelet. My meteorite version has the pins, but the Apollo 11 40th anniversary version of the same vintage has the screw version.

Thanks

[othertbone]

Originally Posted by ratty

Hello

I'm sure that the bracelets fitted to Speedmasters about ten years ago used to be joined together with pins and not screws. The new ones are screwed together. Does anyone know when the screw bracelets were introduced?

Further to this.

I'm starting to wonder if there was an actual across the board date of introduction? Some models appear to have the screw bracelet whilst others were still fitted with the older pin type bracelet. My meteorite version has the pins, but the Apollo 11 40th anniversary version of the same vintage has the screw version.

Thanks

Idk brother, maybe Alexa knows?

[Syed117]

Originally Posted by ratty

Hello

I'm sure that the bracelets fitted to Speedmasters about ten years ago used to be joined together with pins and not screws. The new ones are screwed together. Does anyone know when the screw bracelets were introduced?

Further to this.

I'm starting to wonder if there was an actual across the board date of introduction? Some models appear to have the screw bracelet whilst others were still fitted with the older pin type bracelet. My meteorite version has the pins, but the Apollo 11 40th anniversary version of the same vintage has the screw version.

Thanks

I believe it was 2014 when the current presentation box was introduced.

[AEC]

Just a point of clarification, in case this matters: both bracelets actually use pins, with the older style pins held in place by friction, and the newer pins held in place by threaded caps at in the sides of the links. Those threaded caps are a real pain in the @$$ to handle, by the way. Both bracelets also have removable bearing sleeves that slide into the center link and through which the pin is inserted. The newer bracelet does not use screws that span the width of the bracelet in place of pins, like Rolex does.

Sizing the old bracelet means using a tool to press the friction-fit pin out in order to separate the links, and then making sure the bearing sleeve is inserted properly before pressing the friction-fit pin into place in order to join the links. Pretty simple.

Sizing the new bracelet means soaking it in hot water to soften the loc-tite holding the little threaded caps in place, using a screwdriver of a very specific size and shape to loosen the very tightly secured threaded caps on both sides of the link, and then finally pressing the pin out in order to separate the links. With a little luck, you might remove the threaded cap from one side of the link and see if the pin will fall out without being pressed out from one side. Joining the links requires making sure the bearing sleeve is properly inserted, then sliding the pin into place, then applying new loc-tite to the tiny threaded caps, and then finally screwing them into place on either side of the link (you'll want tweezers for this).

my opinion: the old, friction-fit system was easier.

[MCO1]

Originally Posted by AEC

Just a point of clarification, in case this matters: both bracelets actually use pins, with the older style pins held in place by friction, and the newer pins held in place by threaded caps at in the sides of the links. Those threaded caps are a real pain in the @$$ to handle, by the way. Both bracelets also have removable bearing sleeves that slide into the center link and through which the pin is inserted. The newer bracelet does not use screws that span the width of the bracelet in place of pins, like Rolex does.

Sizing the old bracelet means using a tool to press the friction-fit pin out in order to separate the links, and then making sure the bearing sleeve is inserted properly before pressing the friction-fit pin into place in order to join the links. Pretty simple.

Sizing the new bracelet means soaking it in hot water to soften the loc-tite holding the little threaded caps in place, using a screwdriver of a very specific size and shape to loosen the very tightly secured threaded caps on both sides of the link, and then finally pressing the pin out in order to separate the links. With a little luck, you might remove the threaded cap from one side of the link and see if the pin will fall out without being pressed out from one side. Joining the links requires making sure the bearing sleeve is properly inserted, then sliding the pin into place, then applying new loc-tite to the tiny threaded caps, and then finally screwing them into place on either side of the link (you'll want tweezers for this).

my opinion: the old, friction-fit system was easier.

Hence why I paid my watchmaker $10 bucks to do the job. I will pay someone to do anything more to an Omega bracelet than swap it off a watch.

[ratty]

Originally Posted by AEC

Just a point of clarification, in case this matters: both bracelets actually use pins, with the older style pins held in place by friction, and the newer pins held in place by threaded caps at in the sides of the links. Those threaded caps are a real pain in the @$$ to handle, by the way. Both bracelets also have removable bearing sleeves that slide into the center link and through which the pin is inserted. The newer bracelet does not use screws that span the width of the bracelet in place of pins, like Rolex does.

Sizing the old bracelet means using a tool to press the friction-fit pin out in order to separate the links, and then making sure the bearing sleeve is inserted properly before pressing the friction-fit pin into place in order to join the links. Pretty simple.

Sizing the new bracelet means soaking it in hot water to soften the loc-tite holding the little threaded caps in place, using a screwdriver of a very specific size and shape to loosen the very tightly secured threaded caps on both sides of the link, and then finally pressing the pin out in order to separate the links. With a little luck, you might remove the threaded cap from one side of the link and see if the pin will fall out without being pressed out from one side. Joining the links requires making sure the bearing sleeve is properly inserted, then sliding the pin into place, then applying new loc-tite to the tiny threaded caps, and then finally screwing them into place on either side of the link (you'll want tweezers for this).

my opinion: the old, friction-fit system was easier.

Thanks very much for this answer, I had no idea things were / are so complicated. I had just assumed that it was a long screw.

Thanks again.

[henrylee]

Like the look of the new screw bracelet better but I also had to pay my watchmaker to size my bracelet after striping some of the screws doing it myself.

[Kamen]

Because of this info I just ordered the 1998 bracelet instead. Should receive it soon.