Highflyingclive

If you have the Swiss movement - and you probably have - spares are available, so it is not a big problem. Any good independant watch repair man can fix this easily. Be sure to phone first... Or you could drag a magnet across your carpet and find the missing component. The spring is out there...

You are kidding, right? Poor taste joke.

Go to the ETA website, fish around a bit and you will get to the "Technical Communication" (spare parts list, exploded diagrams, etc) for the 6497-2 & 6498-2 movement. That's the one you need - download the PDF, print it out - it will help a lot.

It is, as you say, a complete bugger to find. Perhaps Admin would consider pinning the link at the head of the Auction Scams forum.

Not a jab, Willith. Just good-natured teasing. Didn't you see ther smiley?

My mistake. Just went back there. Its slower than Willith's repartee (Just kidding W... )

Jos is the man! He started well... I was one of his first customers... and has just got better and better. Sadly, if he put really good straps on his watches, he would price himself out of the market. It is not uncommon for me to spend as much (well, almost as much) on a replacement strap as I did on the watch, But it is money well spent. A good strap will transform a watch. But you don't have to spend a fortune on a replacement. BOB makes some great straps, as do www.banda.com. Stingray does tend to be pricey, though bargains are to be had at www.thaishop4you.com. I just wish that they offered polished stingray... the lumpy stuff is nice, but polished stingray is the ultimate strap material for a dress watch. I'm looking forward to seeing a pic of your eight-day mounted on an HK Tan stingray.. that sounds fabulous!

Jos is the man! He started well... I was one of his first customers... and has just got better and better. Sadly, if he put really good straps on his watches, he would price himself out of the market. It is not uncommon for me to spend as much (well, almost as much) on a replacement strap as I did on the watch, But it is money well spent. A good strap will transform a watch. But you don't have to spend a fortune on a replacement. BOB makes some great straps, as do www.banda.com. Stingray does tend to be pricey, though bargains are to be had at www.thaishop4you.com. I just wish that they offered polished stingray... the lumpy stuff is nice, but polished stingray is the ultimate strap material for a dress watch. I'm looking forward to seeing a pic of your eight-day mounted on an HK Tan stingray.. that sounds fabulous!

Slow? Nah... its just you. Seems to be up to speed from here.

I like PayPal... it has been very good to me, both as a buyer and as a trader. But I am delighted to hear that it now has some serious competition. that can only be to the benefit of the customers... that's us, guys!

Wives? How many do you have?

Admin... calm down... take a breath and try making a clain on you home insurance policy. It worked for me. I had my Nikon SLR on a tripod... the kids were fooling around. You know what happened next. The tripod went over, the large, expensive lens ended up punched hard into the camera body. Both lens and camera suffered extensive damage. The repair quote was in excess of £1500 - and this was about ten years ago. Serious money. My standard home insurance policy paid up, without a murmur. I hope that you have similar good fortune.

It could be that you are allergic to the "rubber" used to make your strap. Switch to leather. If the problem persists, paint the back of the watch with clear nail varnish. That will cure the problem. Years ago, I had a similar problem... the bracelets on a bunch of very cheap Hong Kong watches raised red swellings and blisters on my wrist. Probably a reaction to cadmium... but clear nail varnish cured the problem. Be sure to use clear nail varnish. Red would fix the allergy problem... but you don't want to look like a tart, do you?

No. Its not the watch. Its you. You're riding too slow

It has been done, many times - and in my view, is a great improvement. There was a thread on one of the forums recently of a similar conversion, mounting a Daytona on leather. If a Sub on leather is good enough for Demsey, it is good enough for anyone! Straps with a replica Rolex deployant appear on e-bay from time to time. Alternatively, have a custom strap made by www.banda.com and recycle the clasp on your current bracelet. You need a deployant - a standard tang buckle would look very silly. Happy timekeeping! Clive

Do you have a better suggestion?

I'm sory, Bres... it was not my intention to be politically incorrect. Some of my best (well, second and third best) friends are uphill gardeners. And I think that they would like these straps. Nice :-)

Very interesting. Thanks.

Just nudge the 6 o'clock subdial to the timezone of your choice and ... Bingo! GMT function at no extra charge. Bargain. This will probably be my next watch from Josua.

Strap 1 - gay as a tree full of parrots Strap 2 - that green stitching looks queer. I don't think that a big butch watch works at all well with a soft, fluffy strap. But whatever floats your boat, sweetie.

Jos Nana offers leather straps for Breightling, with deployant clasp. for $45. his website is www.perfect-clones.com

It must be awful to be poor.

Can you post pics, please?

My "travelling on business" watch is a rep Omega DeVille GMT. With the retail price of the genuine a few quid below £2K, this is about right for my pay grade. Posh enough to impress, not so flashy as to be doubted. I'm so cool... :-)

But if you want an honest opinion, good advice, fair pricing, cuddlesome after-sales support - and a prompt response, stick with Joshua. And - he has the high end reps, too. Just thought I'd apply my two-pennn'orth to Pauls sly dig. Old-timers will know why. For the benefit of newcomers, there is a clue in the fist line of this post...