Watch Strap Review: Fullmosa 22mm Silicone No Gaps Watch Band

Do you have one of those watches where the strap curves right along with the watch case?  When the original watch strap wears out, finding a new one can seem hopeless.  I managed to damage the original strap that came with one of my Invicta diver-style watches.  Somewhere along the way, I tugged on it too hard and it simply broke.  I didn't think I'd ever find a new one that would look as nice.  Fortunately, Fullmosa offered a 22mm Silicone Watch Band with No Gaps on Amazon for an affordable price.

The Fullmosa Watch Strap Neatly Packaged

One thing that I liked about this kit was the spring bar tool.  That made removal of the old watch strap a breeze.  The old Invicta watch strap used two pins on each set of lugs.  However, the Fullmosa only uses one.  

Invicta Watch with 2 spring bar pins per lug

Fortunately, this didn't pose a problem.  Since the Fullmosa replace watch band came with built-in quick release pins, I didn't need to bother with pesky spring bars during installation.

The Fullmosa No Gaps Watch Strap is curved to minimize gaps

As you can see from the photos above and below the Fullmosa Strap does a pretty good job minimizing the gaps between the watch strap and watch case.

If you'd like to get a variation of this watch strap, you can find it here on Amazon:  Fullmosa 22mm Silicone No Gaps Watch Band,

Watch Wearing Wednesday: Good Times with the Diesel Fastback

 It's that time of year, the blooms start to appear, the days begin to lengthen, the temperatures begin to warm, and, naturally, thoughts turn to basketball.  That's right! It's NCAA March Madness!  I took in some of the early First Four action at a local sports bar.  On that wrist, was my old Diesel Fastback watch going for dunks in Spinach dip craziness.

Diesel Fastback Wristwatch:  Ready when the chips are down

If you'd like to read my full review of the Diesel Fastback, check it out here on my blog.  The great thing about this watch is that it is honest and readable.  At this point, the strap has faded a bit and I wonder if I should replace it.  It's pretty comfortable, but I wonder if I should try something a little newer and cleaner looking.

The Diesel Fastback on a Sports Bar Table

Watch Repair Tools: The Spring Bar Tool for Replacing Watch Straps

When it comes time to replace a watch strap or bracelet, it can be a challenge to compress the spring bar that holds the strap in place.  This is one time that having the right tool comes in handy.  There is a tool that is made just for compressing those little springs without damaging the watch strap or the watch.  The tool is available in various forms on Amazon and is called the Spring Bar Tool.

My AVI-8 Hurricane Watch, a Spring Bar Tool, and a Replacement Watch Strap (in packaging)

I was fortunate enough to have a Spring Bar Tool included in my watch tool kit.  But, some replacement watch straps come with a tool in the packaging.  I was pleasantly surprised to find a small one in the packaging for the Fullmosa 22mm Silicone No Gap Watch Band that I recently ordered.

A Fullmosa 22mm No-Gap Watch Strap

All Spring Bar Tools have a flat "blade" tip that slides between the watch case and the watch strap.  The V-shaped gap in the end of the tip allows it to straddle the pin and the handle gives you a little leverage so you can compress the spring bar and remove the watch strap from your watch.  Some Spring Bar tools have interchangeable tips for handling various diameter spring bars and watch sizes.  Sometimes the indentation is too small for a given spring bar.

The Tip of a Spring Bar Tool

The Spring Bar Tool allows me to remove a watch strap easily and without hassle.  I highly recommend getting one or getting a watch repair kit that includes one.  It make the life of a watch collector much easier.

Watch Wearing Wednesday: Men's Grenen Sports Watch with Analog Calendar Features

 When you were a kid, did your grandfather ever give you a wooden token or small coin that was marked as a "Round Tuit?" If you got a "Round Tuit," it was supposed to empower you to go out and do all the things that you were going to do if you ever got around to it.  It was kind of dumb, pre-baby boomer, humor that usually elicited a combination of a suppressed sigh, groan, rolling of the eyes, and a strong attempt to pay attention and give respect to the World War 2 and Great Depression generation.  In our hobby, getting around to changing the batteries on quartz watches can be put off for a long time.  But, when you do change those batteries, it's like Christmas.  The gift is all kinds of watches that you haven't worn for awhile.  This watch (below) is from Skagen and was sold through it's Grenen brand at stores like Kohl's.

Grenen Men's Watch with Analog Calendar Features

I wore this watch a lot for the first couple of years of ownership and then it got packed away for about a decade when the battery died.  Now, it's back and it looks great.  It's like a vintage sports car now.

Watch Review: Invicta Pro Diver Stainless Steel Quartz Watch

This beautiful watch is an Invicta Pro Diver Stainless Steel Quartz Watch (Model 6981) with "Master of the Oceans" inscribed upon the caseback. It's a big bold watch that really stands out on the wrist.

Invicta Pro Diver Stainless Steel Quartz Watch - Model 6981

WATCH FEATURES

This watch has a uni-directional rotating bezel, an extended calendar window, chronograph functions, and three subdials.  The subdials support the chronograph function and provide the 24-hour time, a 60 second stop watch, and a 60 minute stop watch.  The watch is powered by a Japanese VD53 quartz movement and takes a SR-920SW battery. 

All of the watch features worked as advertised. I initially found the date a little challenging to pick up at a glance, but it provided within a gold-toned box at the 4:30 position on the watch dial.  In my opinion, the chronograph features of the watch would be a little more useful if the subdial at 6 o'clock was graduated in 1 second increments so you could time things down to the second.  Similarly from a functional perspective, I like hashmarks on the first 15 minutes of a rotating bezel.  But, these criticism are mere nits.  This Invicta is a fashion watch.  It's designed to draw attention and it does that very well.   

WATCH DIMENSIONS

The Invicta Pro Diver Model 6981 is an undeniably big watch.  It feels solid and hefty.  The case is 48mm in diameter and 16.8mm thick.  The watch weighs in at 190 grams (6.7 ounces).  It definitely feels like you are making a statement when you put this bad boy on your wrist.  It's a flashy watch to wear when you are going out to a restaurant, bar, or club.

 

The Invicta Pro-Diver (Model 6981) is a big watch

WATCH CONSTRUCTION

This Invicta is constructed of stainless steel and feels very solid.  It has a black silicone band and a mineral crystal.  The watch offers 100 meters of water resistance which makes it suitable for swimming, but not SCUBA diving.  In truth, it's a fashion watch that would look perfectly at home at the yacht club.

Invicta Model 6981

OVERALL IMPRESSION

I really like this watch. It's fun to own. I sometimes wear it out to restaurants or for short jaunts around and about town.  Due to its size and weight, it's not a watch I would chose for all day wear. It simply gets a little heavy. This watch is like a flashy car.  It's not always practical, but it is usually a lot of fun.  As a statement timepiece, it's a good addition to a well-rounded watch collection.  If you'd like to get an Invicta Pro Diver (Model 6981) at a good price, look for it here at Amazon.

To see more photos of this watch, check out my Watch Wearing Wednesday feature.

Watch Wearing Wednesday: Invicta Specialty Men's Watch

Here's a cool watch that I picked up from InvictaStores.com.  It's simply called the Invicta Men's Speciality Stainless Steel Watch.  It's available for a similarly great low price here on Amazon.  

Below is just a quick shot taken while chilling in the car.  From this angle, the sun shows brightly, but also highlights some fingerprint smudging on the crystal.  The watch is a nice size at 45mm in diameter.

Invicta Specialty Men's Watch

The watch is from the Invicta Specialty Collection and can be found at nice discounts on Amazon and on Invictawatches.com.

New Watch Models - Bulova Surveyor Classic Watches

If you like classical men's watches with a minimum of muss, fuss, and artifice, there are some real treats coming your way from some respected watch brands.

Bulova Men's Classic Surveyor Watches

Bulova has recently released a new series of watches for their Men's Classic Collection called Surveyor.  These watches demonstrate an understated class and substance at a price point that is luxurious without being ridiculous.  You can find Men's Bulova Surveyor watches here on Amazon.  The watch that really stood out to me is the Bulova Men's Classic Stainless Steel Watch (Model 96C125).

Bulova Men's Classic Watch (Model 96C125).

This basic watch has a beautiful blue dial, a quartz movement a day window at 12 o'clock, a data window at 3 o'clock, and the beloved Bulova Tuning fork logo.  It also has an excellent price for a dress watch of this caliber. You can find the Bulova Model 96C125 here on Amazon. While the blue dial drew me in, other combinations feature an attractive leather band, or a gold-tone accented case and band.  Other models in the collection feature automatic movements, exposed apertures to show the watches movement, a skeleton watch, and a watch with chronograph subdials.

Daylight Savings Time Fun for Horologists, Nightmare for Everyone Else

Have you "sprung forward" yet?  At what is now 3:35 a.m., I'm not sure I have much "spring" left.  I just got robbed of an hour's sleep.  We all did.  My state, Georgia, is one of many that have voted to end the practice of Daylight Savings Time, but according to this report on 11alive.com, Congress has to repeal the uniform time act of 1966 for us to actually make the change. On the bright side, as a watch enthusiast, I have an excuse to mess with all my watches now.  

In the photos below, you'll see three watches for past and future blog posts.

Watches from Invicta, Sperry, and Grenen (Skagen)

I've been sleepily setting times on a my Invicta Pro Diver Model 6981, my Sperry Top-Sider Skipper (reviewed here), and a now vintage Grenen watch from Skagen.  I've had the Grenen since 2012 so it's almost vintage now.  You'll see these watches and more on this blog in the coming weeks.

Wristwatch Review: Timex Expedition Gallatin Watch

The watch for today's review is a simple classic:  the Timex Expedition Gallatin Watch.  It's a nice comfortable watch for everyday wear.  As always, Timex provides an excellent watch value for your money. 

The Timex Expedition Gallatin

WATCH DIMENSIONS

It features a 22mm wide silicone strap and a lightweight 44mm diameter resin case that is 11.5mm thick.

WATCH FEATURES

While it has the style of a dive watch, it's only rated for 50 meters of water resistance and the bezel doesn't rotate. Of course, this is a watch you wear for comfort and style. It does have indiglo lighting when you push the crown and it has a little bit of lume on the hour markers and hands. The crystal is acrylic. It's not really a tactical watch, but it looks great (below) on the dieselpunk boardgame battlefield of Scythe from Stonemaier Games.

The Timex Gallatin looks gallant on a boardgame battlefield.

OVERALL IMPRESSION

As an inexpensive watch without a lot of metal, it's also a great watch for travel. If you lose it or damage it, you won't cry for long.  For a fairly low price, you get a great looking watch that is readable, functional, and reliable. I like it. This is a Timex watch I often choose for my everyday expeditions.

The Timex Expedition Gallatin waits for a flight

 

Watch Wearing Wednesday: Invicta Pro-Diver Stainless Steel Quartz Watch

Sometimes, you just want to wear something substantial and flashy.  On those days, you need look no farther than the Invicta Pro-Diver stainless steel quartz watch. It's a bad dude. The case diameter is 48 millimeters and the case thickness is 16.8 millimeters. That's big!

The Invicta Pro-Diver Stainless Steel Quartz Watch

If you'd like to pick up a watch like this, you'll find them available here on Amazon.

The Invicta Pro-Diver Stainless Steel Quartz Watch Out on the Town

If you'd like to read my full review of this watch, check it out here:

Wristwatch Review:  Invicta Pro Diver Stainless Steel Quartz Watch