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TimeTechTalk.com > Time Tech Talk > Straps and Watch Accessories > When you become too addicted to aftermarket straps... |
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TimeTechTalk.com > Time Tech Talk > Straps and Watch Accessories > When you become too addicted to aftermarket straps... |
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GX9901 3T WIS 
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...you end up making some yourself. At least I did. LOL!  I've been buying straps for my PAM312 like a madman. After reaching 9 new straps in a matter of 2 months, I decided that I'll make an attempt at a baseball glove strap since I've always wanted one but they don't come up for sale very often and when they do they're not always what I wanted. So I read up on strap making on the internet and gathered some tools I needed and an old glove and went to work. I first practiced on an old belt. It was very simple with minimal stitching. I don't even remember where the belt came from but I think it's probably some low grade leather. The finished strap looked OK so I proceeded to work on the old glove. Here's the result:  This strap is probably too soft as both the glove and backing leather are really soft. But it is pretty comfortable to wear, and I was excited to be wearing something I actually made myself. I had actually used the glove as a kid in Taiwan (notice that it's made in Taiwan) 20 some years ago so there's some added sentimental value. After the first strap, I decided that I want to try more stitching around the strap, so I got a couple more tools and some remnant leather from a local leather shop and ended up with this:  To be honest it turned out much better than I thought it would. For whatever reason the stitching was actually straight! I figured for my first try it would be pretty sloppy, but I guess when you got the right tools (in this case stitching hole puncher), it takes care of itself. So now that I gained some confidence, I went to the next project, another baseball glove strap made from a Kirby Puckett model glove I got from ebay. Puckett was my favorite baseball player growing up and I thought it would be cool to wear a strap with his signature on it. For this one I planned to stitch around the various baseball glove letterings. Here's the result:   The stitching didn't look as tidy as the last strap, perhaps because I didn't take enough care punching holes straight, but I'm still pretty happy with the results. This one is stiffer than the first strap I made because I used a stiffer backing leather, but it may have been a little too thick overall. It does seem to wear fine on my wrist though:  Anyway, it's been a lot of fun making these straps. The tools only cost about as much as a good custom strap, so I figure I'm ahead already since I have 3 new straps and a lot of fun making them.  One thing I know is that I'll definitely be making more straps. They are fun little projects and it's pretty rewarding to be wearing a strap made by myself. |
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Paladin 3T WIS 
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Pretty Spiffy!  |
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Janner 3T WIS 
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Well done, those straps look great. |
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bigrustypig 3T WIS 
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I liked the 2nd one you made, GX. I think you can also blacken the edges to make them more...hip. Big Congrats! |
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Graham 3T WIS 
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Some really nice work there! |
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GX9901 3T WIS
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Thanks guys! I know these are far from what the pros can do, but for me it's been very enjoyable and certainly gives me a new appreciation to the work done by good strap makers. |
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ndburley 3T WIS 
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Impressive, They are all good efforts and I would be proud if I had made them. Make some more....what other materials can you have a go at?...soft plastic floor tiles?...I would be turning the house upside down to use anything as an experiment.....maybe I will.  Again brilliant!! If those are your first efforts you will be an expert in a month maybe  |
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KenC Admin 
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BRAVO!  |
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blueradish 3T WIS 
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Very nice. I like really thick straps, I have some that are 6-7mm. A good thick hand made strap really has presence on the wrist IMHO |
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stew77 Admin 
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Very cool baseball straps GX!!!! Bravo!...I think they look great especially for your first attempt!! ...that PAM312 is no slouch either!!  , and would probably look great strapped to bailing twine for that matter...gorgeous piece. |
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