OK, I realise this is no big deal for some of you 'more seasoned' guys around here. A stroll in the park, something you could do in your sleep...but this is my first attempt at removing a bracelet and putting on a strap.

This is my recently acquired Aqua Terra which I love because of its versatility and I wanted a watch that I could wear on bracelet and strap. I was in two minds whether to take it to the OB or attempt the change myself. So this morning I took the bull by the horns, whipped out my tool (Bergeon 6111) and went to work.

Started like this:



A little messy but I wanted to protect those lugs:



Yessss.....took a while, those spring bars can be stubborn little fockers, but we have progress:



And here she is on brown alligator. Just have to fit the deployant clasp now:



Jeez, the deployant took almost as long as the strap change....another bloody spring bar!

But, hey, job done and mission accomplished:



Not a huge job but feeling kinda smug right now.

Cheers folks,

Paul

 

Well done! and congrats in completing an important Skill-Level-One task!

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You're a brave man, and the result looks fantastic! Congrats!

 

He is a really brave man. Some have died changing a strap . Very nice watch Mr Bing. I have the older version taht is way more beautiful but one does what he can

 

Nice job. It looks great on a strap! Out of curiosity what strap is that?

 

French people are always sarcastic didn't you know that? But it rarely nean.

 

I'm definitely not being sarcastic. My first bracelet-to-strap change took 30+ minutes and was not without incident. And I did not have to put on a deployant clasp.

 

I admit these metal bracelet are sometimes a pain in the neck to remove and put back.

 

Does this watch have one of those small "holes" in the lugs for easy strap replacing ? I've seen them on some watches...

 

And now we do the dance of joy!!

 

Thanks. If that's skill level one I should be just about ready for level two when I reach 5000 posts.

Thank you, much appreciated.

I actually got the strap before the watch. I purchased an AT golf (older model with window frame) last year. Nice watch but it didn't 'speak to me' so I sold that to fund this one. It's a OEM strap I got off eBay.

 

Good job! I once started to take the bracelet off of my AT to change it to a strap. After 30 minutes of trying, I decided I would rather have a beer and admire the bracelet (stubborn as it was).

 

I have yet to change a watch strap and your post gives me a further nudge to just take the leap already...

I have a Rolex Explorer II with black dial that I'd love to put on a sporty black strap.

 

Personally I don't worry too much about scratching the lugs, just part of the wear and tear on watches.

One thing to be aware of is that Omega occasionally has different length spring bars for bracelets and straps - my 2254.50 used a 19mm spring bar for the bracelet but I needed to put 20mm spring bars when I had it on a NATO. If you are recycling the springbars from your bracelet make sure they are the right length for use with a strap.

 

I like the watch, the photos, and the new strap. Congrats.

 

Looks like dark brown, my guess would be number 276?