Ooh la la! 'French Style' straps

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nigelb001
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Ooh la la! 'French Style' straps

Post by nigelb001 »

As I said I would post pictures, rather than further hijack the Erica's straps thread, I thought I would start another.

I had been thinking of buying an Erica's MN strap for some time but the cost put me off as a bit much for a speculative punt. So seeing the clones on the Watchgecko site for £18 I decided to splash on two. They were received this morning, quickly as usual with Watchgecko.

Firstly a plain blue 22mm which I felt would go well on my Seiko Padi Turtle Pepsi for the summer instead of the bracelet....

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I really like this. It's easy to fit to the watch, easy to adjust, looks good, and comfortable as the stretch compensates for variations in wrist size through the day. It's been on my wrist for nine hours straight and really I don't know that I've got it on. The 'clasp' is a bit fiddly at first but after a couple of fittings a lot easier. I like the fact that it is single pass under the watch. So success there. :thumbup:

The second was a 20mm Desert Sand white stripe that I fancied giving my Laco Memmingen a new lease of life...…

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When I first fitted this I thought it looked gorgeous and suited the watch. But sticking it on my wrist was a bit of a disappointment. It is not the strap, which is very, very nice. The lugs and springbar on the Laco are set very high leaving a large gap either side so that it doesn't sit well on my wrist. This isn't a problem with the thick leather strap usually fitted so I didn't envisage it when buying. So not so successful. I guess a NATO wouldn't suit this watch either. Like NATO's the MN straps are best suited to downward curved lugs. I'm going to have to find another watch to suit this strap :lol:

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Quality seems good but as I don't have an Erica's for reference I can't really compare.

Feel free to use this thread for any other MN style straps you may come across.
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Re: Ooh la la! 'French Style' straps

Post by Thegreyman »

Thanks Nigel, very helpful. I think both straps are a good match for your watches although I agree the lugs are too high for that strap type on the Laco.
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Re: Ooh la la! 'French Style' straps

Post by Lavaine »

It's a shame about the lugs on the Laco, because it certainly looks the part in the 'promo shot'. It should look good on any black dial mil-pil though.
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Re: Ooh la la! 'French Style' straps

Post by nigelb001 »

EddieTheBeast sent me a link via PM for MN style straps from CheapestNATOStraps and they are really cheap so may be worth a punt for anyone interested...

https://www.cheapestnatostraps.com/coll ... per-straps

Still got my Turtle on the wrist, this must be the longest I've ever worn this watch for so the strap must be doing something right for me.


Couldn't help noticing this one star review on Watchgecko site…..

"Too bad these look like a direct rip off of the Erika's Originals MN straps which are supposed to be protected by international patent. Watch Gecko makes some good straps, but they should be ashamed of themselves, and take these off the market immediately. What is the point of being a creative entrepreneur who "builds a better mousetrap" if people like Watch Gecko just rip them off. Support innovation! Support intellectual property rights! Do not buy these. "

The reviewer may have a point if indeed patented but I can't see this on a 40+ year old military design … or it may be Erica
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Re: Ooh la la! 'French Style' straps

Post by 0uatiOW »

nigelb001 wrote: Fri May 24, 2019 1:38 pm Couldn't help noticing this one star review on Watchgecko site…..

"Too bad these look like a direct rip off of the Erika's Originals MN straps which are supposed to be protected by international patent. Watch Gecko makes some good straps, but they should be ashamed of themselves, and take these off the market immediately. What is the point of being a creative entrepreneur who "builds a better mousetrap" if people like Watch Gecko just rip them off. Support innovation! Support intellectual property rights! Do not buy these. "

The reviewer may have a point if indeed patented but I can't see this on a 40+ year old military design … or it may be Erica
Might be Erika, but her product is fantastic. From what I can see, because I haven’t bought an MN Strap from Watchgecko or Cheapestnato, but I have bought other copies, her straps are better - the fabric, the finish, the choice, custom sizes, choice of thread colour, buckle options. I have yet seen any alternatives which look like they match her quality. Her straps cost more of course. They’re much better in my opinion but only each of us can decide whether the price differential is justified.
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Re: Ooh la la! 'French Style' straps

Post by nbg »

nigelb001 wrote: Fri May 24, 2019 1:38 pm The reviewer may have a point if indeed patented but I can't see this on a 40+ year old military design … or it may be Erica
I don’t think that Erica’s are a 40+ year old design.

What I think Erica did was recreate/reimagine the original MN straps, but in a style that is fundamentally different to the original format.

The website indicates that there is a worldwide patent.

Neil
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Re: Ooh la la! 'French Style' straps

Post by nordwulf »

Thanks for the review! They look great for outdoor activities and probably are pretty comfortable. These are now on sale for only £6 so can't resis for that price.

https://www.watchgecko.com/french-style ... -zuludiver
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Re: Ooh la la! 'French Style' straps

Post by downer »

nordwulf wrote: Fri Nov 15, 2019 5:39 pm Thanks for the review! They look great for outdoor activities and probably are pretty comfortable. These are now on sale for only £6 so can't resis for that price.

https://www.watchgecko.com/french-style ... -zuludiver
Thanks for the heads-up. I bought a couple to try...
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Re: Ooh la la! 'French Style' straps

Post by nbg »

nordwulf wrote: Fri Nov 15, 2019 5:39 pm Thanks for the review! They look great for outdoor activities and probably are pretty comfortable. These are now on sale for only £6 so can't resis for that price.

https://www.watchgecko.com/french-style ... -zuludiver
Frank thanks for pointing out they are now down to £6. :thumbup:

Just ordered a few more. Their inventory system seems top notch and seems to work in real time. One that I went for was in stock when I put it in my basket, but about 15 mins later when I decided to check out it had become out of stock.

Obviously I would have preferred it was still in stock, but at least I knew immediately.

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Re: Ooh la la! 'French Style' straps

Post by nordwulf »

I got the grey/black Bond in 20 and 22mm and a black in 22mm. Was considering other colors but black and grey pretty much goes with any watch. Black in 20mm was unfortunately already sold out.
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Re: Ooh la la! 'French Style' straps

Post by H0rati0 »

Thanks for the heads up and review, just ordered three. I don't usually do NATO types but these look interesting and that price, a steal.

Cheers!
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Re: Ooh la la! 'French Style' straps

Post by TP Fit »

Just picked up two of them for $14 USD!!! Thanks for the heads up! Happy Friday!
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Re: Ooh la la! 'French Style' straps

Post by nordwulf »

They have other nylon, rubber and leather straps and bracelets on clearance as well: https://www.watchgecko.com/other/special-offers

It may take a moment to load more offers when you scroll down.
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Re: Ooh la la! 'French Style' straps

Post by neilj568 »

And the code FB10 gets another 10% off watchgecko straps....not sure how long this is valid though
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Re: Ooh la la! 'French Style' straps

Post by willttqs »

I went for one too for my milgauss should look good
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