What Watch do you wear when you hunt?

[Cooposo]

I know @0002S has made some leather NATO straps, but I'm not sure where the leather came from.

Leather can be shaved down to the desired thickness required.

Good to know. My ignorance on the subject is obvious. This is definitely something I’ll be looking into.

 

[Kevin Peacocke]

The custom buffalo hide strap was made by Jean Russeau, Paris. A bit extravagant, but I wanted to get it right, first time. Any successive ones will be made in Zimbabwe from my buffalo hide, or croc.
It is very comfortable, far more so than the metal bracelet is. I also prefer the look of the leather strap, sets off an Explorer well.

 

[Tra3]

The custom buffalo hide strap was made by Jean Russeau, Paris. A bit extravagant, but I wanted to get it right, first time. Any successive ones will be made in Zimbabwe from my buffalo hide, or croc.
It is very comfortable, far more so than the metal bracelet is. I also prefer the look of the leather strap, sets off an Explorer well.
View attachment 712715

Fantastic watch and strap!
I tried to put a nato strap on my explorer and the distance from pin to case was too narrow. Did you have to use a bent pin to get your strap to fit?

 

[Tra3]

Hey watch people, have any of you had watch straps made from leather from any of your hunts?

I have a strap being made from a croc.
Now I’m curious to see if I can use other leathers.

 

[mdwest]

My low end Casio G-Shock is finally about to give up the ghost…

Im still not the guy that’s inclined to wear one of my Tag or Rolex time pieces to the field…

But I am considering upping my rubber watch game a bit once the G-shock bites the dust (I anticipate thst happening any day now)..

The Garmin Fenix 7 Pro seems to strikr a pretty good balance between rugged reliability, neat tech features, and price…

It’s certainly not cheap for a rubber watch (about $900)… but does some pretty neat stuff that would be helpful for outdoors activities (mapping, green/red built in flashlight, etc).. has all the typical health app features you’d find in a Fitbit or Whoop type device.. most of the features of modern smart watches (emails, text, news feeds, etc).. and seems to be built like a tank…

I’m normally the guy that just buys another $60 G-shock every time the old one dies (maybe once a decade.. sometimes longer)…

But I might change my tune soon… I’m thinking really hard about the Gsrmin option right now…

 

[Kevin Peacocke]

No, just the straight pin as is. The leather does touch though. Remember this is the 40mm which may have a little more clearance.

 

[Cooposo]

My low end Casio G-Shock is finally about to give up the ghost…

Im still not the guy that’s inclined to wear one of my Tag or Rolex time pieces to the field…

But I am considering upping my rubber watch game a bit once the G-shock bites the dust (I anticipate thst happening any day now)..

The Garmin Fenix 7 Pro seems to strikr a pretty good balance between rugged reliability, neat tech features, and price…

It’s certainly not cheap for a rubber watch (about $900)… but does some pretty neat stuff that would be helpful for outdoors activities (mapping, green/red built in flashlight, etc).. has all the typical health app features you’d find in a Fitbit or Whoop type device.. most of the features of modern smart watches (emails, text, news feeds, etc).. and seems to be built like a tank…

I’m normally the guy that just buys another $60 G-shock every time the old one dies (maybe once a decade.. sometimes longer)…

But I might change my tune soon… I’m thinking really hard about the Gsrmin option right now…

Are you considering one that is a solar version, so you can maintain some capability even if the battery is low? Is having to charge it going to bother you compared to the G - Shock you are used to?

The capability of the Garmins is awesome, and it seems that they are quite rugged. I never went for one because of needing to charge it, and generally wanting to be less plugged in than more. Lots of people have their smart watch constantly bothering them with email and texts and notifications.

 

[0002S]

You can make a strap out of any chromed tanned or veg tanned leather. I usually use veg tan cow and dye it to color. Then I treat it to soften it up.

 

[mdwest]

Garmin fēnix 7X Sapphire GPS Smartwatch

The cutting-edge Garmin fenix 7X Sapphire Solar GPS Watch will monitor all of your daily activities. This GPS watch features numerous health and workout features.

www.scheels.com

Great sale at scheels on the Garmin Fenix 7…

My cheapie g-shock is dying… time to replace it

 

[BeeMaa]

Garmin fēnix 7X Sapphire GPS Smartwatch

The cutting-edge Garmin fenix 7X Sapphire Solar GPS Watch will monitor all of your daily activities. This GPS watch features numerous health and workout features.

www.scheels.com

Great sale at scheels on the Garmin Fenix 7…

My cheapie g-shock is dying… time to replace it

I get it. I had G-Shocks for years while in the Navy and doing heavy commercial boiler work after getting out. Like you I'd wear them for 5-7 years before they died and I get a new one. Then my eyesight made it hard to read a digital watch so I made a shift to wearing my Omega PO. What I found out is that the tool watch design is WAAAY more robust than I thought. It was with me my last five or so years in the field with zero problems.

My question for you. Why don't you have your Tag AquaRacer or Rolex Sub serviced for near the same money as the Garmin and enjoy a timepiece with a soul? Or go crazy and get them serviced AND buy the Garmin? Enjoy them ALL!

 

[mdwest]

The sub won’t likely get worn again until I take a dirt nap… it sits in the safe waiting to be willed to my son (hopefully he’s stuck waiting a very long time before he gets his hands on it lol)…

The tag is pretty much my daily wear for scooting around town.. it’s been a bit since its last servicing.. but it’s still keeping time, etc… I’m sure I’ll take it in in a few more years whether it needs it or not just to ensure it’s ready for our intended retirement move to rural USA where access to a good watch shop will be limited…

My bigger problem (watches are a sickness) is the drawer full of “nice” watches in the $500-$1000 range just sitting around doing nothing… another tag, a higher end movado, etc etc… that will likely never get worn again…

For whatever reason I’ve always had an aversion to wearing a “quality” watch in the field… when I was young I went through a half dozen of the old timex OD green $19 watches that they sold in the PX.. then started buying either timex Ironman or Casio g-shocks for the last 30+ years (maybe longer?)… the one exception was when I bought a pretty nice suunto sports watch before going to Iraq in 2004… it was a great watch.. but I don’t have a clue where it is today… I probably wore it a year..

I figure if I’m going to replace my “rubber watch” this time, I might as well enjoy some tech with it… I think the mapping and health/wellness features will probably rarely get used… but it will be a fun toy to play with for a few weeks if nothing else…

Sorta like my DJI Mavic pro drone… great fun for 2 weeks…. And now is just occupying space in my closet lol..