Spring Bar Pliers

[AgoMe]

Having just gently 'wrestled' off my sons Longines Hydroconquest bracelet I've been having a look at
Spring Bar Pliers.

Pricewise they seem to go from £6.00 to £10.00, then £18.00 to £26.00 ... and after that well into three figures (Bergeon).

I'm only going to us them occasionally, so they'd very much be a 'nice-to-have'.

Anyone have any suggestions regards which, if any, make sense to buy?

 

[Ron_W]

Beco tech and Horotech ( ebay ) are both good brands i have used at aprox half the price of Bergeon. The USD 10,- tweezer/pliers from the Middle Kingdom are crap but will work at least 5 - 10 times . I use a single Bergeon tip spring bar tool for Speedmaster bracelets, once you get the "technique" of first pressing in one side - holding the end link with your other hands thumb and finger and gently slide out/up the end link - and then the other side preventing it from launching into the livingroom carpet 😗 , it becomes easy. Some tutorials on YT as well.
Tape the lugs and side of the case for your next try with the cheaper tools, it will save you from a lot of regret 🙁

 

[AgoMe]

Thanks, Ron

I used masking tape to cover front and back and lug tops before starting.

And after a bit of trial and error found that easing the bracelet away (rather than up) worked a treat.

The idea of a tool designed for the job appeals though but since it’s not’s something I’ll be doing on a regular basis spending a lot of money is pointless.

I’ll definitely check out your suggestions.

Thanks

 

[blufinz52]

AgoMe, send me a DM with your address and I'll send you a spring bar tweezers. I bought a Bergeron and don't need/use the one I bought a while back.

 

[dougwhiz]

The last time I went to put my sailcloth strap on my Peter Blake, I had a heck of a time getting the springbars compressed enough to remove the bracelet, using a standard springbar tool. Haven't wanted to spend the money trying the pliers. I remembered reading that Omega has 2 different sized springbars for the 20mm lugs, one for straps and a slightly shorter one for braceletes. I need to get a pair for when the bracelet goes back on. Archer lists the part numbers here:

https://omegaforums.net/threads/spring-bar-hell.63130/page-2

 

[Jakeys]

dougwhiz

The last time I went to put my sailcloth strap on my Peter Blake, I had a heck of a time getting the springbars compressed enough to remove the bracelet, using a standard springbar tool. Haven't wanted to spend the money trying the pliers. I remembered reading that Omega has 2 different sized springbars for the 20mm lugs, one for straps and a slightly shorter one for braceletes. I need to get a pair for when the bracelet goes back on. Archer lists the part numbers here:

https://omegaforums.net/threads/spring-bar-hell.63130/page-2

I made a handy dandy little chart for this not long ago as I didn't want to mix up my spring bars, since they don't have part numbers on them once they come out of the bag. So I measured the barrel of all mine, which seems to be the only measurement that changes between sizes - the pins and diameter are the same on all three of the below part numbers:

068ST2206: For 19 mm bracelets and 18 mm straps. Barrel length is 15.4 mm.
068ST2207: For 20 mm bracelets and 19 mm straps. Barrel length is 16.4 mm.
068ST2208: For 21 mm bracelets and 20 mm straps. Barrel length is 17.4 mm.

The 19-20 mm NATO (Technically 19.5 mm diameter, clever...) includes a pair each of the 07 and 08 above, so intending the same strap for use on 19 mm and 20 mm lugs.

From what I was able to find, the part numbers extend down to 068ST2205 for 18 mm bracelets and up to 068ST2211 for the Ploprof 24 mm. But there must be other part numbers as these are all 1.8 mm diameter and I've seen references to smaller 1.5 mm diameter spring bars. I'm not a watchmaker and I have no access to part numbers other than via Google.