What amazed me is that an expert can talk about something, like a wrist strap, for a long time, this was definitely very interesting.

I like your video format of product facts w/history and the feature/mini review of a brand you recommend. Keep up the great work.

Enjoyed your video. Big fan of Toxic! I have several Toxic straps. Lately, however, I have been using Erika's Originals and Phenome Nato straps. Both fantastic straps. Stay Hard!!

How can someone not like this video? Great work, as usual.

Great Video! Very informative, love NATO straps on all my watches from Seiko turtle to Omega Speedy.

Great video. Subscribed. Greetings from Jersey in the Channel Islands!

Andrew, great review and info! Thanks for the shout out to DWC. It is a great place for no b.s. watch chatter that isn't censored, but at the same time very informative. Not two traits that go hand in hand anymore it seems.

Great Video on NATO straps. Most of mine come from my local state of California, Wrist Candy Watch Club. I will have to get some of these to compare 😃

Well done vid (as always). With so many low quality nato straps on the market, it is nice to know where to go for quality straps. Thanks.

@utewatchco1468

5 жыл бұрын

There is a ton unfortunately. Mainly on ebay and amazon.

The strap James Bond is wearing in the film isn’t a NATO strap. It was an American military strap. It was 16mm as you can tell by how thin it looks between his Sub’s 20mm lugs. It was an American brand of nylon strap that is more akin to the Zulu strap going straight through the lugs with no extra fixing like you see on G10 NATOs. The NATO stocking number G10 AKA the NATO strap came into being in 1973.

Hate 'em because the rings or metal retainer bars stick into your wrist when you rest your hands on a desk. Zulu style makes more sense b/c it holds the watch if a springbar breaks and it does it without adding extra bulk a Nato does. Elasicky Erica's are best of all those designs.

I love Toxic nato straps. Terry is awesome. My preference is single pass natos with fabric keeper - green or black. But I just got an amazing new strap from Crown & Buckle that’s like the Tudor. Great history on the NATO strap!

@555Gear

5 жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it! Will have to check out that C&B strap-- I have a Tudor incoming (!!). Cheers, Andrew

@utewatchco1468

5 жыл бұрын

Christian, I have two of the Chevron straps also. I picked them up at Wind Up this year. I am super impressed by them. I am a simple dude so the hardware adjustment confused me. But I love the weave of the nylon. It is great to have options. Let's not let the women have all the fun playing dress-up with their shoes and purses.

I’m not a huge nato fan but I do really love the Bonetto Cinturini 328 rubber nato. And a while back on the grey nato podcast, James gave a way to hack the strap and take away the second section of rubber.

After messing about with a variety of straps and bracelets, I've settled on wearing my SKX007 on a simple black nato with polished hardware. It's casual, secure, comfortable, and looks great. Yeah it makes the watch wear kinda tall, but I've gotten used to it.

Great video Andrew! Always good to get a new nato maker. That shiznit looks similar to the crown & buckle strap (can't recall the name but it's their highest quality version). I love that one. I'll give these guys a try next time though.

@maysdogus

5 жыл бұрын

BTW, anyone that can fit "Hattori Hanzo" into their product description has my heart, lol.

@555Gear

5 жыл бұрын

Hahahaha

@utewatchco1468

5 жыл бұрын

I came out with the Shiznit 2 years ago. The C&B strap came out last Jan-March time frame. They are great straps also.

@utewatchco1468

5 жыл бұрын

@@maysdogus It was tough for sure!

Oooo I might have to pick one of those toxic nato’s !

@555Gear

5 жыл бұрын

Good idea!

1:28 - The drawing at 1:29 with keeper in cloth is not for "NATO/G10" strap, is for the 1945 A.F.0210 strap, informally nicknamed "RAF strap". Is the strap seem in James Bond clock in the 1964 Goldfinger movie, what some "KZread specialists" call "NATO strap" - a strap whose specifications came 9 years after that movie.

I like both ToxicNATOs and BluShark nato straps. High quality, good prices. Creates a new look for your wrist without having to drop a tonne of cash.

+1 on The Grey Nato - great show. You should have Jason on as a guest, seeing as he is local to you. Ask him to bring 3 watches to chat about?

@555Gear

5 жыл бұрын

Great idea! I would enjoy that.

@utewatchco1468

5 жыл бұрын

James and Jason are great. I have been a supported since they have started.

The only gripe I have with the Toxic Natos (and I have several of them in 20 & 22mm) is that the buckle is held on by a spring bar which kinda Deletes the safety factor some, I think sewed in solid buckles would make more sense! But I agree their quality is excellent overall Oops I just read another comment on this as well.....my bad

Really love your videos mate. Have you tried MN straps?

@555Gear

5 жыл бұрын

Haven't but I'm very interested. Have you? Cheers, Andrew

I mostly wear my Alpinist on leather natos. I do have to cut off the shorter end as I prefer the thinner profile of a single pass nato

Good review - would like to see some leather natos

@555Gear

5 жыл бұрын

Tom Faranda sounds good 👍

Great straps, good fabric and cool hardware. My one issue with them is the "pin" is quite low quality and flimsy compared to the rest of the hardware.

2:47 - This "fail safety" was not created with 1973 NATO strap, exist in the 1945 "A.F.0210 strap" - a single piece strap; and in their previous issue of 1938, in the WW2 era "VB Hygienieque" strap , and in the 1908 "Victor" strap, made in leather.

Also, I noticed ToxicNatos offers online watch repair. I wonder if thats any good? I don't have a watch repairman near me, and I have some watches that definitely need a good servicing. Can their service be trusted?

I got a toxic roo, and a black SHIZNIT from a watch I bought. I got also got a khaki SHIZNIT and love them all

@555Gear

5 жыл бұрын

Excellent thanks for reporting

are you happy with your codek spiral?

Have you checked out Haveston straps? I love 'em!

are you the actor that portrays one of Ragnar Loefbrueks son's in the series Vikings? The resemblance is uncanny lol

I'm confused, if you were wearing a one-piece strap and a lug-bar broke, wouldn't the watch still be attached to the other lug-bar? So what's the point of the second, small strap that goes under the wrist?

MOD watches invariably have fixed lug bars, that is why the strap has the long and short parts so that a Bund type backing can be used in conjunction with the NATO Strap.

Great video -your image quality is superb! I like natos and their versatility but i actually find 2 things that annoy me: 1- the double layer under the watch adds extra height and bulk 2- sometimes the extra fabric that is tucked away is also a bit bulky and when it gets undone, is a real annoyance.

@555Gear

5 жыл бұрын

Thanks!

@utewatchco1468

5 жыл бұрын

Personally I agree. I trim all of my own nylon straps to be a one piece design. But we do have a Toxic Royal XL that is one piece and shorter in length.

I do love the quick change of a nato but i prefer a leather strap.

I definitely love my NATO strap. I would like to pick up some leather ones.

@555Gear

5 жыл бұрын

Thanks for tuning in!

What happened to Toxic natos? Hoping they are doing alright, obviously it’s been a crazy year 2020. I read they are rebranding but I can’t find much about Ute Watch Co. their website says temporarily closed-but I never actually saw it open. I emailed Terry in October as well but no response yet. I just found in DWC that Terry had to close up shop. 😢😭

I'm curious as to how this newer 'seatbelt' fabric holds up over time. Really like that it is more supple, a bit nicer looking. Also, I have a strong suspicion what the other company is going to be. A third one, doing something a little different, is Wristcandy. I almost pulled the trigger on one of theirs. Also, also, not for me, but you should cover the difference between NATO and ZULU. In the winter when my wrist shrinks, I can't be bothered to resize a bracelet. So I currently have my daily beater on a five ring ZULU.

@555Gear

5 жыл бұрын

I am curious too! Haveston is next and then I have another brand after that. 👍

Good video. I haven’t been able to find a nato strap that’s long enough for me to wear with my Turtle 🐢 on my 7.1” wrist.

@555Gear

5 жыл бұрын

I have 7.25 wrists, these work great

@utewatchco1468

5 жыл бұрын

Ours are 290mm / 11.4" long. They are definitely long enough for you.

Please make a video on nato straps from AliExpress. They come really cheap but I don’t know the quality

Well, I got question #3 correct. One out of five isn't terrible right? Although I'd argue that the NATO's signature functional advantage is the most important fact. ;). I also have a Seiko Alpinist. Was that the Olive Green color you featured it with? It looked great. I too like leather NATOs. I'll give props to Timex for introducing me to that - a wafer thin one came with my Weekender Chronograph. I replaced it with a beefier leather NATO and just love the retro look. Lastly, unless I missed it, you didn't mention that Toxic is a veteran-owned company, a huge plus in my book! A service Veteran who is also a watch enthusiast is definitely someone I'd love to buy a drink. Cheers!

@555Gear

5 жыл бұрын

That's an excellent comment, hats off to Timex and veterans!

Any companies that make single-pass nato? I have big wrists and don't like how regular nato sit on my wrist.

@555Gear

5 жыл бұрын

Find a design you like and then trim it! I've done that many times. Otherwise look for a ZULU. Cheers, Andrew

@utewatchco1468

5 жыл бұрын

I carry a RAF style strap called the Toxic Royals XL which is one piece. I also carry a few zulus. But like Andrew mentioned you can trim them. If you look at my youtube page I have a video showing how to do it.

I wear most of my watches on leather nato straps. I have them custom made and from exotic leathers.

The material on the Shiznit is nice but it is thick and makes the watch sit much too tall on the wrist. Your turtle is standing quite a bit off your wrist and that will only invite trouble (ie damage) if worn that way on a prolonged basis.

@555Gear

5 жыл бұрын

Yep I can always trim it if it becomes a concern. Cheers, Andrew

Don't own any leather natos but have been tempted. The thing that I think would bother me would be the really thick tail that needs to be tucked.

@555Gear

5 жыл бұрын

Yeo size measurements are important with leather natos.

@utewatchco1468

5 жыл бұрын

Ryan, traditional leather natos have to be thick so they don't stretch as much. But at ToxicNATOs we use kangaroo leather. It has 10 times the tensile strength as a regular leather. So we are able to keep the thickness of the Roo strap at 1.2mm.

0:55 WRONG!!!... the official Name of the NATO strap was, back in the 1960's (and probably earlier) 'Strap, Wrist Watch, Nylon' & 'Strap Wrist Watch, Webbing' (there was also a Cotton Webbing version). Later on by the Year 1973 (and later) it had been renamed 'Strap Wrist Watch', 'Strap (Nylon) Wrist Watch' or 'Strap Wrist Watch (Nylon)' Depending on the document or packaging... We (soldiers) called them simply 'watch straps' the WATCH itself was called a G10 Watch as we got them from the Unit G10 store (see below) 1:08 WRONG!!!... these straps weren't issued from the early 1970's but from the early 1950's. The first standalone 'Standards' Documentation specifically for the straps (Def-Stan 66-15 Part One- Issue 1) WAS published from 1973 onwards, but the straps themselves were issued 20 years earlier (Mainly with the RAF until the mid/late '60s) Examples can be found in Standards documentation from 1966. 1:14 WRONG!!!... you were NOT issued with any watch when you joined the Military (you state MOD...different organisations entirely) UNLESS your Job Spec required it (Pilots, Navigators, Divers etc.) and they weren't all Chronographs apart from Navigators and Some Pilots. These Chronographs were NOT issued on leather straps at all. But either Bonklip Steel Bracelets or the Nylon or Cotton Webbing NATO's 1:21 WRONG!!!... The form your filled in was (in the British Army at least) the AF G1033 (google them) The G1098 were Unit Stores establishments. Each Troop/Platoon, Squadron/Company/Battery had a G10 stores. It's were you got everything from a set of spanners to a Torch, to a watch strap (Straps were usually issued by the CQMS/SQMS or BQMS at Company/Squadron/Battery level) I can not ever remember filling in a 1033 for a strap, you got it from the G10 attached to the watch, if we needed a replacement you just took the damaged one in and got it swapped. I guess the strap was annotated on the 10033 when you signed for the watch but I don't specifically remember it being so. 1:47 WRONG!!!... The very first Nylon straps that we know of were 1950's RAF issued (6B/2617) issued for the IWC & JLC Mk XI Navigators watch, these were 16mm. The standard 1960's Nylon NATO's were in 'Steel Grey' and were 18.5mm. By 1973 they were 18mm +/- 0.5 and 'Admiralty Grey'. By 2001 they were marked in Defence Standards (Def-Stan 66-47 issue two of 2001) as being 20mm but this is not actually the case, a 20mm strap WAS issued alongside the 18mm but with an entirely different NATO Stock Number (NSN). Different coloured NATO's WERE available, only not through official stores issue but bought through the regimental PRI shops (similar to the PX in some respects) were you could purchase regimental clothing, mugs, hip flasks, wall plaques and 'Gucci' civvy made 'military' kit, Boots, Fleeces or load carrying webbing and Rucksacks etc 2:22 CORRECT!!!...with one additional point, the material must be 'free from additives which may act as an irritant to the wrist under humid or extreme conditions' meaning Jungle to Desert to Arctic warfare! In fact the early straps with the melted adjustment prong holes were an awful irritant as the hard melted nylon rubbed on the skin. By the early 1980's the Nylon Material used was different and these hard melted holes were not present. In my military service I was issued with the 1980's and 1990's made straps.

first time watching this channel and when the camera refocuses @2:15 you can clearly see 3-4 watches on the counter in front of a bunch of what looks like classic styled knives and a few new ones so how bout talking about the knives to?

Tried many, will not use any but Phoenix. great material, no stitching, hole spacing is good, nice length (most are too short) hardware is the way it's supposed to be with no pins in the buckle.

@555Gear

5 жыл бұрын

Phoenix is the official supplier, so thanks for weighing in on them!

@utewatchco1468

5 жыл бұрын

Joe I use to be a huge Phoenix buyer years ago. The are very basic and fit a need for sure. Great suggestion.

Why 555? i was a massive fan of the 555 WRC rally team. Then I found out it was a ciggy brand. I started smoking them. They were OK - the marketing worked on me, then I stopped smoking.

👍

I do like the feel of the nato strap, however I always get fed up of the spare bit poking all the way around. If I bend it back to tuck in it looks crap. First world problems eh?

I bet that Turtle and Nato combo is 17-18 mm thick. Too thick of a combo for me.

@utewatchco1468

5 жыл бұрын

Make the strap a one piece. Problem solved.

Is that a spring bar on the clasp because if it is there's no way this is a NATO strap you've just lost one of the five key important points you pointed out earlier Maybe this isn't a spring bar in the clasp but I wouldn't buy one of those straps if it was

Hmmmmm sore point.... Last year my son was 21, I bought him a classic auto watch, a Orient blue faced Mako series one as his birthday present. I said to him "Son, would you like me to leave the stainless strap on (which is the only down side to this great watch) or can I fit a nato strap for you and include a few extras as colour options"...he asked me to fit the black with silver strip nato. I posted this bundle off to him at university and upon receipt he fitted the stainless strap back on (I supplied a spring pin tool along with 5 nato straps in alt colours). Well, a week went by and I called him to see how he was and how was the watch. The relpy dumbfounded me.....he was out on the town and lost the watch when pissed! As a loving farther did I tell him how pissed off I was....yeah a little bit. Did I say tough, you should take care of your gear? Maybe a tad, but I went on to buy him yet another replacement...but I could only get an orange faced watch! So, because of a pin/user failure my initial "I love you so much son" £200 purchase ended in costing me £450 in total! Fekkin kids! Amongst my collection I aslo own a blue faced Mako and a Bulova Champlain...... both fitted with nato straps! One point to think of when buying a nato strap is that the buckle is the weak point....does it have a spring pin or a screw threaded pin? If it's a spring pin then it is no more secure than a standard strap.

Too bad these won't fit my diver. It will take a 1.1 mm nato but not a 1.4 like these. Not that easy to find thin quality NATO strap with nicer hardware.

I don't like nato's with a push pin in the buckle, it defeats one of the main points of a nato. They should be a one piece design.

a nato strap with spring bar in bukcle should not be purchased, it's like using a steel chain with a half-sawn link in the middle.

That Turtle sits horribly tall and awkward on a NATO. I really wouldn't do it.

@555Gear

5 жыл бұрын

Shows worse in photos, IMO. Cheers, Andrew

@Mauitaoist

5 жыл бұрын

Try thinner NATO on your turtle like the wristcandywatchclub

I like Nato straps. I'm just tired of them smelling like sweat and feet. That's the biggest plus to a bracelet. I work outside a lot, so my bracelets tend to collect whatever comes off my body.

@555Gear

5 жыл бұрын

I would just wear them into the shower, that works for me. Cheers, Andrew

@utewatchco1468

5 жыл бұрын

You can wash them by hand with some dish soap, run them threw the dishwasher, or washing machine. Super easy to do. My issue with bracelet's is the gunk that gets built up in them.

@planejet42

5 жыл бұрын

Fair point! I'm considering send a watch to you for service. Not to offend, but how can I be assured that you're offering a reputable service?

@utewatchco1468

5 жыл бұрын

@@planejet42 How can you be assured anyone is giving you good service? Reviews is one. Unfortunately these days most reviews are paid for. I tell you that is not the case with mine. But no one is perfect, not even my company. But I will try my best to ensure you get what you paid for. If you have any questions then send me an email at terry@toxicnatos.com

@planejet42

5 жыл бұрын

Fair enough! Thank you!

Do you pronounce the H in Hour? Now say Horological the same way !

@555Gear

5 жыл бұрын

Same with Hamilton? LOL

@jblackjack

5 жыл бұрын

Comes from French , the h is silent. The root is Greek , Ωρα (time) . Η Ωρα (the time) . Horological has nothing to do with horror, more with Honor.

@555Gear

5 жыл бұрын

J Black just pulling your leg 👍

@jblackjack

5 жыл бұрын

All good brother! I subscribed! Good variety of topics!

@555Gear

5 жыл бұрын

J Black awesome glad to have you here. I actually took two years of Greek in college love your etymology breakdown. Cheers, Andrew

Total crap any straight through strap gives the same safety benefits. All the extra material serves no purpose other than looking ridiculous

@deanwaller8283

4 жыл бұрын

Actually it stops the watch sliding off the strap when you take it off, that's the entire point of it

I am bored with NATO straps.