- 12/5/12
- 2,608
- 45
- 48
I have read a lot of posts regarding whether or not you can or can't boil rubber straps and the effectiveness of such a practice.
This is my experience..
I received my Bell & Ross BR01 the other day and although very happy with it, i felt that the strap was a bit too stiff for my liking.
This was quite uncomfortable on the 'thumb' side of my wrist, almost painful.
I searched the web and this forum and there were some saying that it was effective and some saying that it wasn't (and someone even melted theirs..I shall name no names ;-)
Anyway, This is what i did :-
Got out my tools and found that you actually need two small hex tools, one each side of the strap end (otherwise it just rotates)
(I only had one correct size hex driver so i used a small screwdriver for the other end)
Once both straps were removed I used a small metal can (you need one about the same size as the diameter of your wrist, cut down to about 3 inches or so - you don't 'have' to cut it down but i did)
do up the strap as if you were going to wear it (obviously the watch head is not attached now)
Place the strap inside the tin can so that it wraps around the inside of the can (this will be the shape of your wrist when you take it out)
You may want to put a weight in the tin so that it sinks in the water
The water in the pan is boiling so i placed the can with the strap inside it,
(I lowered it in with my pliers) into the boiling water and left it in there for about 2 or 3 minutes.
Then took the can and strap out of the water, left it for about 1 minute and then poured over some water to cool (I made sure the water was tepid and not really cold) as i wanted the strap to stay warm.
The strap was then placed on my wrist, et voila...a perfect fit.
Re-fit the rubber strap to the watch and it now feels sooo comfortable.
In my opinion, this is an essential procedure for any rubber straps like the B&R ones as they are stiff and no amount of wearing them will soften or shape them.
So there you go. Some peeps will probably try different techniques but this worked perfectly for me and only took about 30 minutes.
This is my experience..
I received my Bell & Ross BR01 the other day and although very happy with it, i felt that the strap was a bit too stiff for my liking.
This was quite uncomfortable on the 'thumb' side of my wrist, almost painful.
I searched the web and this forum and there were some saying that it was effective and some saying that it wasn't (and someone even melted theirs..I shall name no names ;-)
Anyway, This is what i did :-
Got out my tools and found that you actually need two small hex tools, one each side of the strap end (otherwise it just rotates)
(I only had one correct size hex driver so i used a small screwdriver for the other end)
Once both straps were removed I used a small metal can (you need one about the same size as the diameter of your wrist, cut down to about 3 inches or so - you don't 'have' to cut it down but i did)
do up the strap as if you were going to wear it (obviously the watch head is not attached now)
Place the strap inside the tin can so that it wraps around the inside of the can (this will be the shape of your wrist when you take it out)
You may want to put a weight in the tin so that it sinks in the water
The water in the pan is boiling so i placed the can with the strap inside it,
(I lowered it in with my pliers) into the boiling water and left it in there for about 2 or 3 minutes.
Then took the can and strap out of the water, left it for about 1 minute and then poured over some water to cool (I made sure the water was tepid and not really cold) as i wanted the strap to stay warm.
The strap was then placed on my wrist, et voila...a perfect fit.
Re-fit the rubber strap to the watch and it now feels sooo comfortable.
In my opinion, this is an essential procedure for any rubber straps like the B&R ones as they are stiff and no amount of wearing them will soften or shape them.
So there you go. Some peeps will probably try different techniques but this worked perfectly for me and only took about 30 minutes.