I recently tried a rubber strap on my PO and really liked it. The Planet Ocean is a thick, heavy chunk of metal and with a heavy SS bracelet, I'm always aware of it. With a rubber strap, I hardly notice it. This is the blue rubber strap I got on ebay from a seller in Texas. No logos or printing, just a sterile strap that the seller said would fit the PO. It fits my SMP as well as my PO's and was a snap to install. My only complaint is that a lot of dust and specks stick to the soft surface.
Next I got a black rubber strap from Naarika in the UK. Right away I could see that the rubber (silicone?) was different - harder and smoother. This strap stays clean looking and feels great. I put it on my new PO from ReplicaMake and have been wearing it ever since. It doesn't cling to my wrist and sure feels good in this hot weather. Naarika's strap has all the logos on the strap and buckle.
The Naarika strap was a bitch to install! I tried for nearly a half hour and nearly gave up. The damn springbar pins couldn't reach the lug holes no matter how hard I pushed and grunted. Finally, I had a moment of clarity and decided to stop trying to install the rubber the same way as a steel bracelet. I turned the strap 90 deg, found the bottom hole with the pin and compressed the top pin. Voila! It was in! Now how to straighten the strap without popping the springbar out. I figured it out finally.
I still waiting for a strap bought on ebay from a fella in Singapore. From the looks of the strap holes, it will be the same as my blue sterile strap only with logos (Seamaster but not Planet Ocean).
Next I got a black rubber strap from Naarika in the UK. Right away I could see that the rubber (silicone?) was different - harder and smoother. This strap stays clean looking and feels great. I put it on my new PO from ReplicaMake and have been wearing it ever since. It doesn't cling to my wrist and sure feels good in this hot weather. Naarika's strap has all the logos on the strap and buckle.
The Naarika strap was a bitch to install! I tried for nearly a half hour and nearly gave up. The damn springbar pins couldn't reach the lug holes no matter how hard I pushed and grunted. Finally, I had a moment of clarity and decided to stop trying to install the rubber the same way as a steel bracelet. I turned the strap 90 deg, found the bottom hole with the pin and compressed the top pin. Voila! It was in! Now how to straighten the strap without popping the springbar out. I figured it out finally.
I still waiting for a strap bought on ebay from a fella in Singapore. From the looks of the strap holes, it will be the same as my blue sterile strap only with logos (Seamaster but not Planet Ocean).
