What is the NATO watch strap?

navy blue nato fabric watch strap replacment

“NATO” watch straps are now the latest trend sweeping the watch industry. The birth of this strap originated from the British military’s demand for “security”. With the changes of the times, it has transformed into a fashion style for personal timepieces.

During World War II, there were no mobile phones at that time, and there was no way to hang a big clock on the battlefield. Therefore, you had to wear a watch to check the time when performing a mission. In order to ensure that the soldiers’ watches were strong and durable enough, they did not fall off while running. A reliable watch strap needs to be designed. As a result, the earliest integrated strap similar to the NATO watch band appeared. The way it covers the watch head is very special. It is not that two straps are tied to the two lugs respectively, but a whole strap passes from the back of the watch to the two lugs, forming a closed loop. There are more parts on the back of the watch. Buying a ring is considered double insurance. In this way, even if one lug is broken, the watch head cannot be lost and can be hung on the strap through the other lug.

For comparison, (top) ordinary detached strap (bottom) integrated NATO watch strap, Omega’s watches provided to the British army from 1944 to 1945 were like this.

standard leather watch strap vs nato watch strap

Then, the cautious British held a meeting in 1948 and issued a specification called 1951DEF-3GSW for the future direction of British military watches. This specification was as detailed as the strap.
The requirements at that time were basically what the official NATO strap looked like, with only two differences: one was that the width was 16 mm, and the other was that there were only 2 stainless steel metal straps on the strap at that time.
In 1973, the British Ministry of Defense remembered to make some improvements to the specifications of military watches, so the width of the strap was changed to 20 mm, the material was changed to nylon, the two strap loops were changed to three, and the material was also changed. Changed from stainless steel to rhodium plated copper. In addition, the total length of the strap is determined to be 280 mm, and it is also unified in gray.

The characteristic of this type of strap is “safety”, because in addition to being directly and conveniently replaced without tools, the design purpose of this type of strap is to avoid loosening when a spring rod is broken. Watch causes tragedy of losing the entire watch

Only a push-through strap can do this because it will keep the watch hanging from your wrist even if one of the strap bars breaks.
In addition, this watch strap is also very long. It is said that it was used by soldiers to tie it to their sleeves or ankles when using it. It can also be used as a bandage in case of injury.

Nato watch strap in Daydaywatchband

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