From a comfort perspective: deployant, or tang buckle?

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M'Bob

·Oct 15, 2023

Haven’t tried the former, curious on your perspectives. Thanks.

 

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redpcar

·Oct 15, 2023

Buckle for me ☕
Assuming you mean deployant with a leather strap. Too thick / cumbersome. Removes the convenience of a leather strap.

 

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YY77

·Oct 15, 2023

Deployant every day of the week and twice on Sundays, strap wil last longer and the risk of dropping the watch while putting it on and taking it off is significantly reduced.

Here's my trilogy on a Zenith butterfly as the strap was originally for an El Primero;

 

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watchem

·Oct 16, 2023

Depends on the watch. For smaller non sports watches tang buckle. Larger more sporty, deployant clasp.

 

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hen

·Oct 16, 2023

Omega style deployant witch tuck the end of the strap inside; YES! So convenient when putting it on or taking it off, plus its super easy to air out under the strap.

Others witch need keepers; No, just as much fiddling as a tang buckle.

 

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Geezer

·Oct 16, 2023

I like relatively thin and small watches, and I've always found that deployants are too bulky and out of proportion with the rest of the watch.

 

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BlackTalon

·Oct 16, 2023·This Space for Rent

Omega deployant is perfect on one of my Speedmasters, and I am not fond of the buckle that is on another one (that came with a strap unique to the watch). The buckle on tropical bands (Nivada reissues) are fairly comfortable.

 

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Donn Chambers

·Oct 16, 2023

While the modern Omega deployant is quite good and fairly comfortable, it still is not as comfortable as a tang buckle for me. I have one, wear it occasionally, but after wearing all day I do have some discomfort in my wrist that is never there with a tang. So I generally migrate back to a tang buckle strap.

 

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blufinz52

·Oct 16, 2023·Hears dead people, not watch rotors.

Much prefer a tang buckle.

 

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Pastorbottle

·Oct 16, 2023

This is highly subjective, it can depend on various factors such as the design of the individual buckle or clasp, the relative size of your wrist in comparison to the buckle or clasp and the shape of your wrist.
I see no clear answer to this question due to the variables.

 

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Evitzee

·Oct 16, 2023

Prefer a deployant in most circumstances, they fit well on my 7.5" wrist. Straps just last longer and the watch is easier to put on/take off (security).

 

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NT931

·Oct 16, 2023

watchem

Depends on the watch. For smaller non sports watches tang buckle. Larger more sporty, deployant clasp.

+1. Vintage, smaller , dressier watches - tang buckle

Deployant only for bigger watches. And only if double-fold (single fold deployants are a pain), and only if I can custom-make a strap for the deployant, as the 'standard' lengths usually make the deployant sit funny on my skinny 6.3" wrist.

Default is almost always a tang buckle for me, unless there's something particularly alluring about the deployant, like my VC Asymmetric 1972 (for which I had to custom-make a strap to make it fit right).

 

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Zman4eva

·Oct 16, 2023

Evitzee

Prefer a deployant in most circumstances, they fit well on my 7.5" wrist. Straps just last longer and the watch is easier to put on/take off (security).

Agree on all these points, which is why I use a deployment for all my watches. I also store my watches in a watch box or watch roll so taking out and putting it back onto the pillow is easier. This thread is better with pics.

 

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MCC

·Oct 16, 2023

As noted by others it often depends on the design of the fastening mechanism. In my experience deployants can sometimes be too long and not sit quite right. That could be as a result of my smaller wrist but others fit perfectly. For me worst fit JLC best fit Zenith.

 

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padders

·Oct 16, 2023·Oooo subtitles!

M'Bob

Haven’t tried the former, curious on your perspectives. Thanks.

Deployant all the way for anything modern. You lose the dig in effect from the tang clasp and there is a massive safety benefit in that you are much less likely to drop the watch. But some clasps are nicer than others. Omega’s is very nice but I can’t get on with the so called butterfly clasp style and the Cartier deployant, while fine on the wrist is a pig to open without bloodshed, so while I agree with most of what is said above there are aspects that I take issue with.

On a vintage watch, esp a dress watch a tang is the only answer though. This leads to the strange mindset where I put my FOIS or Broad Arrow Speedy on a deployant but only wear my ‘60s Ed White on a tang buckle strap, often the design which comes with the FOIS. Which is mad from a value POV but sometimes enjoyment and aesthetics trump safety.

Since we all love pics. This is me right now. This is a 2008 Hour Vision. It came to me with a rotten strap. My dilemma was, do I spend an arm and leg replacing the original deployant strap or do I instead use the near identical looking Omega croc tang version I have put by and would have in effect been free? Well I spent the cash on the deployant replacement and I don’t regret it.

Edited: Dec 13, 2024

 

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Archer

·Oct 16, 2023·Omega Qualified Watchmaker

Pastorbottle

This is highly subjective, it can depend on various factors such as the design of the individual buckle or clasp, the relative size of your wrist in comparison to the buckle or clasp and the shape of your wrist.
I see no clear answer to this question due to the variables.

Agreed. I've had deployant buckles that were very comfortable, and others that were horribly uncomfortable. Worst was a JLC single fold - tried everything I could to make it comfortable, and it just wasn't.

 

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redpcar

·Oct 16, 2023

I store my watches flat in shallow drawers. No pillows for me.

 

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M'Bob

·Oct 16, 2023

Thanks, this photo is helpful. For those of you who find the deployant uncomfortable, is it because of the metal piece on the inside as pictured, or the curvature of the buckle, or some other factor?

 

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Braindrain

·Oct 16, 2023

Single fold deployants often have a very sharp angle to them. Which means, depending where the short piece ends, it could dig into your wrist. Nothing can fix that, other than ordering a custom strap that makes the short piece longer (or shorter) so that the bend doesn't dig.

Double folder (butterfly) deployants are the most comfortable (for me). I use them on vintage and modern. Since Bob (RHD) no longer sells deployants, I found an Ali store which sells the exact same design/construction as RHD. They work very well for me - both in comfort and in the wallet.

 

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NT931

·Oct 17, 2023

Braindrain

Double folder (butterfly) deployants are the most comfortable (for me). I use them on vintage and modern. Since Bob (RHD) no longer sells deployants, I found an Ali store which sells the exact same design/construction as RHD. They work very well for me - both in comfort and in the wallet.

Cool! Would you mind sharing the Ali store link please? Thanks in advance!