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Spring bar search is over


dbane883

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Hey guys. Thought I'd drop in to say hello. Also wanted to share some analysis of 20mm spring bars I've "discovered".

 

For the past couple of years, I've sworn by ST (Startime) spring bars. Unlike most rep and aftermarket bars, the springs don't crumple, the ends are nicely rounded, and they are made in Switzerland. They really are terrific.

 

But I have an account at a part supply company called Beco-technic in Germany. I've ordered stuff from them a few times, but never thought of trying their spring bars until my most recent order.

 

To my surprise, they are superior to ST bars and I suspect genuine Rolex bars are made by the same factory.

 

Side by side, the ST bars are nearly identical to the Beco-Technic (BT) bars. The ST bar ends are rounded, and the BT bar ends are conically tapered:

 

6aa427bd5c7ed38724f38091a86e169e.jpg

 

Now here is a comparison of the BT bars (on the left) and gen bars (on the right). Both ends are conical:

 

9aa6ad4ad0986207d0d2b15c1653ea9e.jpg

 

Keep in mind, that these observations are based on a random and very small sample size and no two spring bars are identical .

 

Now here is a shot of all three together (ST on left, BT in middle, Gen on right:

7541d10f71efe79a430d66145b951a62.jpg

f19f318f8d6a31008ce5de0dccf852be.jpg

 

Conical or rounded, I don't think anyone will care. But a more important contrast is the strength of the internal springs. I've always found the ST springs are "noisy" when compressed. The BT and gen are much quieter.

 

Further here is some VERY unscientific measurements of the force required for full compression (using a kitchen scale).

 

The gen bars, are not new, but measured 506 grams on the scale; equivalent to 4.96 Newtons (if my math is correct. I have a Physics degree but I don't remember jack [censored]):

2005127ff86114ab2c741c327cbc9057.jpg

 

The brand new BT bars measured a whopping 580 grams (5.68 N):

3e9f2b185a45fbcadefb19c401f2d7a2.jpg

 

And finally, brand new ST bars averaged 380 g (3.72 N):

4013e5b6808649691fc190e08dff116f.jpg

 

Had the gen bars been brand new, I imagine the springs would be slightly stronger.

 

At any rate, I think my go-to bars from now on will definitely be the Beco bars.

 

If you try to order from them, keep in mind you will need to be approved. Also, I had a lot of trouble accessing their website recently (www.beco-technic.com). I'm in Canada and could not load the page for unknown reasons. So I changed my IP address to Germany and it worked fine. Odd.

 

Frankly, I think 20mm ST bars (or equivalent) are just superb for any watch that accepts them. But the BT's are as close as I have ever seen to what you would get from RSC.

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13 minutes ago, sputim said:

I ll try to order guys there should be a way to arrange this :) keep you posted and if it works I can order a latge quantity for all who are interested


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Good man. If it works out I'm interested in taking some please

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The mere fact that whoever gets to order from them first is going to be ordering 2 dozen or more should prove that "we are in the industry".

 

That's probably how they will accept someone is if they order so many.

 

I make jewelry as a hobby, and from what I've learned is that some of the jewelry supply companies have to fill out a lot of paperwork because some people launder money by turning in scrap gold.   But of course, other jewelry supply companies are simply not selling to the public for normal reasons.

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