Watch Strap Review Part 32. – Watchacc

A hook-up for a new strap for our Watch Strap Review feature comes from all sources. Sometimes I search for a strap on the web and new name pops, other times somebody suggests me a company they worked with. This time, I stumbled upon Peter and his amazing company Watchacc on Instagram. It just so happens that we have more than one mutual friend from within the collectors’ sphere. So I reach out to my good friend Jack Wong and asked him if he could connect me to Peter. Jack was of course happy to help and introduced us. We corresponded with Peter a bit but from the first moment I sensed that he understands what we’re doing at Fratello and what could be interesting for us. He graced us with two straps for our latest episode of Watch Strap Review.

How It Started

The story of Peter is something many of us can associate with; watch lover and collector in need of a strap that no one could provide him. Being a watch collector from his early 20’s, he knew exactly what strap would match his timepieces. The idea and design were already there but he had to find a team to make those blueprints come to life. Luckily he did and with a small but super skilled group of experts in Bangkok, Thailand the company came to life. His knowledge of watches helped him to perfectly match the straps to each and every watch individually. That however, was is not enough. You need to have outstanding materials to work with. Peter knew this and he went to the extreme, and sourced leather from prestigious tanneries like the one owned by LVMH.

Know-How

All materials come from the best sources possible. Peter hand selects them to ensure the leather is of the highest quality. All you need now are craftsmen who know what they are working with. Some of the guys at Watchacc received training from a former trainer at Hermes. Now when it comes to luxury leather goods, Hermes is one force to be reckoned with. Some of the colors are identical with the ones Hermes is using, meaning if your significant other owns a bag from this French manufacture and you want a matching strap, Watchacc can make it happen. It goes without saying that, as with true artisans, they only produce straps by hand. Every strap is individual, following the orders and expectations of the customer. Peter sent me two straps; let’s look at them one by one.

Brown

The first strap we are about to take a closer look is a beautiful chestnut brown alligator in 20mm. The buckle side  (18mm) of the strap is 75mm while the longer side is 115mm. Watchacc sent me the straps without any buckles, no big deal but worth mentioning. The strap, as one would expect from Peter’s company, is indeed top quality. It’s beautifully cut with color matching brown stitching, it looks and feels like an OEM product from one of the big brands. The production process of how Watchacc produces their straps is called remborde or folding edges. Straps are usually 3 layers; the upper leather that you see, a filling material and a lining leather underneath. During the remborde method the upper leather is folded under the filling material so technically 4 layers are created. Then comes the stitching and the lacquering of the sides.

These straps are not thicker than any other watch strap, but they are much more durable. The brown strap I have from Watchacc also has a bit of padding, not too much but enough the work with the thickness of the timepiece. Towards the holes and buckle the strap thins down and sits comfortably on the wrist. The edges have color matching brown lacquering to secure the strap. As dark brown is a very easy color to match to any watch the strap works with a number of different timepieces. Let that be a black dial or a bright dial watch, it’s a great fit. Of course, alligator straps are more elegant than plain leather ones, still they can “dress” a sport watch pretty well too. Just like in this case, on my Speedmaster Speedy Tuesday.

Black

The second strap from Watchacc is a bit different from the brown one. The length is the same (115/75mm) but while the lug size is also 20mm the buckle size here is only 16mm. This gives and the fact that the strap is black allows the watch to “pop” when on this strap. It optically shrinks the strap and puts the focus on the watch head. The vintage style side stitching matching with the leather is a great combination. While the leather hints exclusivity the beige side stitching makes the strap work on many watches from vintage chronographs to modern divers and more. It’s much more versatile than the brown strap in this sense. Even though this strap’s production did not involve remborde technique it is still a beautiful piece of leather art.

Pricing

As you probably already guessed, Watchacc straps are not cheap. Given the materials they use and the fact that the strap is technically customisable to your taste, they are not too expensive either. The average cost is between $179 and $199 USD. One thing is for sure; you will not be disappointed with the quality of the straps. Both straps I received are of the highest quality I’ve seen during the course of my time with Watch Strap Review. Peter’s devotion to watches and the fact that he is a great collector himself is just the icing on the cake. He understands what we watchnerds love and tries to fuse that into Watchacc as well. If you are indeed of something special I encourage you to send him a message on Facebook or their Instagram account.