How to remove this 'notched' watch strap?

MyRealNameToo

WIAWSNB said:

MyRealNameToo said:

No disrespect to your watch but remember my parents being offered a "diamond ladies watch" in exchange for sitting through a sales pitch. My mother imagined something like: 


But what they got was something very similar to yours... it was a nice watch but the single spec of diamond at 12 o'clock was not what she was hoping for. 

Was going to ask for more pictures but found other photos online; can only assume the ends must come off but it's a guess if they unscrew, pull off etc. If you say they free spin wonder if they are like pill bottles where you need to compress and turn them so they actually unscrew rather than spin 

Ha-ha, I have a cousin who used to tell me of his brother's time-share-selling antics, and that was one of them. Nasty. They'd show their victims to the door before handing over the watch...
This one, however, is genuinely priceless; if I don't fix it, my mum in law will kill me... :-(

In fairness she did get the watch but reality didnt match expectations and she wasnt the only one. It was a 3-4 hour thing and those that left early didnt get the gift. 

Did personally sit through one whilst on holiday but the free gift was only a tote bag but the mrs wanted it. We were very upfront that there was absolute no interest in a timeshare and that we were just there for the bag. They did the abridged version but wouldnt let us have the bag and not have any sales pitch. 

twopenny

What Grumps photo shows is the lugs, those long thin things on the left.
They are usually spring loaded and probably run inside the middle gold thing.

Somehow you need to get between the knob on top and push the top of the strap and find that spring loaded lug pulling that down firm to hard till it can leave the top knob , move away to the side and release it.

Of course once you've got it out you've got to get it back.

I used to change straps in a summer job and got very slick with it. Not sure I could do it now.
Maybe a time to just pay for it 😉

WIAWSNB

twopenny said:

What Grumps photo shows is the lugs, those long thin things on the left.
They are usually spring loaded and probably run inside the middle gold thing.

Somehow you need to get between the knob on top and push the top of the strap and find that spring loaded lug pulling that down firm to hard till it can leave the top knob , move away to the side and release it.

Of course once you've got it out you've got to get it back.

I used to change straps in a summer job and got very slick with it. Not sure I could do it now.
Maybe a time to just pay for it 😉

I think Grumpy's is just screwed? I see no 'lugs'. 

WIAWSNB

I accidentally destroyed the strap when squishing to to reveal more of the pin. 
It surely must be screwed ends? No other explanation? 

There is only one other - the tops of the leather strap ends have an extended flap that goes over and is bonded to the underside. It's possible to fit this undone flap over the pins, and reglue it, but surely that's not the intended way? 
Anyhoo, I'm going to try a bit more force to unscrew. Wish me luck - I can feel my life ebbing away.  

Slinky

I was just about to suggest that maybe the strap is glued.

WIAWSNB

I've tried to unscrew them, but no joy. It's possible that dil superglued the thread if it kept on loosening on her - it's the sort of thing he'd do
Anyhoo, I've found some 'Gucci' style screwed pins, sensibly with screwdriver slots in their ends, and only a few squid on t'Bay. So I can mangle away

MyRealNameToo

Slinky said:

I was just about to suggest that maybe the strap is glued.

All leather watch straps are glued, and normally stitched too, but given they are ultimately consumable and will wear out long before the watch itself it would be highly unorthodox for the strap not to be removable/replaceable 

Slinky

MyRealNameToo said:

Slinky said:

I was just about to suggest that maybe the strap is glued.

All leather watch straps are glued, and normally stitched too, but given they are ultimately consumable and will wear out long before the watch itself it would be highly unorthodox for the strap not to be removable/replaceable 

My point was that the strap could be glued and the spar they are glued around may not be removeable.

MyRealNameToo

Slinky said:

MyRealNameToo said:

Slinky said:

I was just about to suggest that maybe the strap is glued.

All leather watch straps are glued, and normally stitched too, but given they are ultimately consumable and will wear out long before the watch itself it would be highly unorthodox for the strap not to be removable/replaceable 

My point was that the strap could be glued and the spar they are glued around may not be removeable.

I get that but having owned hundreds of watches, I accept I have a problem, I've never come across any where the strap cannot be removed with the only exception being a bangle watch but then you could argue it had a bangle rather than a strap. 

Some have been a pain to remove, some pins may have ceased over time etc but as leather straps rot far quicker than plastic or metal makers arent short sighted enough to make the strap irreplaceable... after all its another service/product you can flog. 

WIAWSNB

Slinky said:

MyRealNameToo said:

Slinky said:

I was just about to suggest that maybe the strap is glued.

All leather watch straps are glued, and normally stitched too, but given they are ultimately consumable and will wear out long before the watch itself it would be highly unorthodox for the strap not to be removable/replaceable 

My point was that the strap could be glued and the spar they are glued around may not be removeable.

That's a possibility, but surely unlikely, given that screw-pins exist. 

And on this one, the ends are gold-plated whereas the shaft is grey metal, and the join is too 'sharp' to be a one-piece moulding, I think. I suspect dil superglued them on, tho' I've checked with mil and she has no recollection. 

Anyhoo, new strap and screw pins on order. Next task - to cut the central notch out of each strap...

Thanks everyone.