Camfam Bond Strap
Donald Grant
U.S.A.Posts: 2,251Quartermasters
Camfam wants to know what size strap you want for his "real" Bond strap. Let him know. Here is the link:
http://www.mwrforum.net/forums/showthread.php?p=69825&posted=1#post69825
DG
http://www.mwrforum.net/forums/showthread.php?p=69825&posted=1#post69825
DG
So, what sharp little eyes you've got...wait till you get to my teeth.
"People sleep peacefully in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf." Richard Grenier after George Orwell, Washington Times 1993.
"People sleep peacefully in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf." Richard Grenier after George Orwell, Washington Times 1993.
Comments
Thank you for keeping an eye on this. must say I am really looking forward to the new strap. I put in my two cents for a 20 and an 18, but the more I think of it I am leaning to the 18.
Hope Camfam is able to post a picture soon!
Bond’s Beretta
The Handguns of Ian Fleming's James Bond
No problem. I am somewhat of a watch nut. I too, can't wait to see a picture.
DG
"People sleep peacefully in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf." Richard Grenier after George Orwell, Washington Times 1993.
No, you don't have to register there. I have many disparate interests that take me to a lot of forums. Too many interests and too little time preclude me from joining every one. Since you notified him by email that should be sufficient. Camfam is a recent member here too, so you can also PM him here.
If you are desparate to have a certain size strap then register and vote. Looks like the 20mm strap is getting the biggest vote so far and will fit your 5513 quite well with no spaces between the lugs. The 18mm strap is, of course, more screen accurate.
DG
"People sleep peacefully in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf." Richard Grenier after George Orwell, Washington Times 1993.
http://www.mwrforum.net/forums/showthread.php?p=71501#post71501
Therefore, he has set up a poll to determine the best strap sizes and strap type here:
http://www.mwrforum.net/forums/showthread.php?p=71477
If you have a strap style or size preference sign on and vote, or PM him here and let him know what you want.
DG
"People sleep peacefully in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf." Richard Grenier after George Orwell, Washington Times 1993.
Thanks!
Cam
Any time frame for availability? My watch strap is wearing out!
Bond’s Beretta
The Handguns of Ian Fleming's James Bond
As for a timeframe, I have learned to take supplier's estimates of time with a grain of salt. The custom dye job and weaving will take 5-6 weeks, then the fabrication of the straps from the nylon strapping will take a week or so. The delay is with the mill, not Phoenix. I think March is realistic.
Cam
I actually enjoy the wait, since anticipation is one of the great joys in life. I am pretty sure that my inaccurate NATO strap will last until at least April!
Thanks again!
Bond’s Beretta
The Handguns of Ian Fleming's James Bond
It gives me great pleasure to announce Camfam's new website. It has been up for a little while now, but only recently has the Bond strap been added. The site is dedicated to Camfam and his brother's new homage watch offering the Bradley Dive watch. The Bradley is based on the Bulova Milspec prototype and the Tornek Rayville TR-900 Navy dive watch. It has been designed to original specs with some exciting upgrades added to make it an excellent tool watch.
Here is the link to the Bond Strap page:
http://corvuswatch.com/index.asp?page=watchbands
Navigate around to find out about Camfam's new watch offering. I will be adding one to my collection.
DG
"People sleep peacefully in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf." Richard Grenier after George Orwell, Washington Times 1993.
March is going to be a good month, with QOS, NSNA on Blue Ray and now this strap!!!!
Bond’s Beretta
The Handguns of Ian Fleming's James Bond
Where can I also find ordering options? Help from DG or others?
Thanks!
The RAF style would be the closest to the style that the Connery Bond wore. Camfam's strap will not have the extra srtap material keeper that was on the Connery Bond strap. So you will have to buy an extra strap to create the keeper. Hope that helps.
DG
Edit: Ordering is not available yet, but it will be here:
www.corvuswatch.com
Check under "Our Watches" and then "Watchbands" or click on the "Real Bond NATO Watchstrap" link.
"People sleep peacefully in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf." Richard Grenier after George Orwell, Washington Times 1993.
Yes, the keeper is the loop that holds the tale of the strap after you buckle it. On the NATO/G-10 the keepers are metal loops. The Connery/Bond strap had a keeper made out of the strap material. From what Camfam has said, the cloth keeper on the RAF style strap would add to the production cost. It's easy enough to buy an extra strap to make keepers out of. I'll be buying several straps myself.
You can also buy the NATO/G-10 style and cut off the part of the strap with the rings that keeps the watch head in position and make a keeper out of that material. However, you'll also have to cut off the metal keeper on the remaining strap.
DG
"People sleep peacefully in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf." Richard Grenier after George Orwell, Washington Times 1993.
Yes, that is correct!
DG
"People sleep peacefully in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf." Richard Grenier after George Orwell, Washington Times 1993.
Bond’s Beretta
The Handguns of Ian Fleming's James Bond
"The RAF style will have 2 metal keepers, just not the cloth piece that goes under the watch. The G10 style is just like your regular nato style. Sorry for the confusion."
I suppose you could remove the metal keepers and add a cloth one if you wanted to...
I thought it was strange to hear (in error) that the strap wouldn't have any keepers; at the price they're being sold at that could have been a deal-breaker for me!
I was referring to the cloth keeper that appeared on the original Bond/Connery strap. there were no metal keepers on the Bond/Connery strap.
Thanks,
Rick
DG
"People sleep peacefully in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf." Richard Grenier after George Orwell, Washington Times 1993.
As previously stated, you could Frankenstein one yourself...
Still looking forward to seeing one on my CWC. I'm going to get a couple of the 22mm's for my Seiko diver as well.
I was hoping Camfam would see this post and indicate that he would be willing to sell some "keeper" sized pieces for those of us who are overly concerned with "getting it right".
Bond’s Beretta
The Handguns of Ian Fleming's James Bond
We are making excellent progress on the Real Bond NATO Project. The photo to the right is the prototype of the actual webbing. I think we nailed the color and pattern. Having the olive green custom dyed was certainly worth the delay.
Over the past week, we have watched the first four Bond films on Blu-Ray. I highly recommend this new technology. The image quality on these films is astonishing. The new Blu-Ray discs are made by digitally scanning the original negatives at a higher resolution that the 35mm film stock. This means that every bit of visual information on the negative is captured. These Blu-Ray versions look BETTER than the original films looked when they were released, and way better than the crappy prints we are all used to watching over the past forty-odd years. As for the watch strap worn by Sean Connery in Thunderball and Goldfinger, there is NO question that there are indeed red stripes on the strap. Our straps will be faithful reproductions of the original worn by Bond in the films on his Rolex Submariner. I invite you all to enjoy these new Blu-Ray versions of the films and see for yourselves!
Buckles
The Real Bond NATOs will be equipped with very high quality polished stainless steel buckles supplied to us by Oesch in Switzerland. These buckles are nice and thick, and are a substantial upgrade from the hardware on other NATO-style bands. They will be discreetly laser-engraved with "Corvus" on the front, and, proudly, "Made in Britain" on the back. We think Commander Bond would approve.
Size Details
I have sent Phoenix Straps the final specifications for the length of the straps. The NATO G10 style will be 285mm long. These are guaranteed to be +- 5mm. This is a little longer than the 280mm spec straps as supplied to the British MOD, but realistically, it means that our straps will be a LEAST as long as the actual MOD specification. Many cheap NATO knock-offs are actually shorter than 280mm. The slight extra length was in response to many, many customer requests that we err on the long side for length. Having owned NATOs made by dozens of different makers, I think these will be perfect.
Also, on the G10 styles the extra nylon strap that locks the watch on will be a little longer than the spec. The spec calls for the locking strap to be 60mm. This is fine for the small CWC issue watches, but just too short for most other modern military and diver watches. On our straps, the locking strap will be a generous 70mm. My experience is that this is just right for 95% of modern watches. A very few large watches with 22mm lugs might not fit this, but in that case, I recommend the RAF style.
The RAF style (identical to the NATO G10, except no extra locking strap) will be 260mm long. Again, experience has shown that these straps work best at this shorter length.
We think everyone will be happy with these specifications.
Quantities
Our first run of straps will total 500. We have them broken down into three widths (18mm, 20mm, and 22mm). All three will be available in both G10 and RAF style. In other words, these 500 straps are coming in six different variations, in various numbers based on our polls. There should be plenty to satisfy demand from our loyal customers on the mailing list. I have not mentioned this project on the forums lately because I want to make sure all of you who have supported us from the beginning get your straps from this first batch.
Mailing List Discount
Pricing this project has been a bit like herding cats. The US, Swiss and UK economies have been extremely volatile over the past four months. The economics of this project involve three currencies that have been like a roller coaster since we began.
In short, our costs have been higher than we expected. But I am pleased to let you know that I will hold the line at $32 per strap for those of you who are on our mailing list. The price is the same regardless of size or style. I can still offer free shipping in North America. For orders outside North America, I must charge a flat $12.95 (my actual cost) for Priority Mail International, a fast and reliable method. This international shipping cost is the same for any number of straps.
The way that this discount will work is that you will be given a special code in the email that announces the early ordering. You can use this code when ordering to get this discounted price. Save the code because you will be able to use it for the foreseeable future, not just for the first batch of straps. Our regular price for the general public will be higher. Although we expect to sell out the first batch of straps fairly quickly, we plan to reorder quickly so the Real Bond NATO straps should be available as a regular stock item though the Corvus Watch website.
When Can You Order?
I will be sending an email like this one announcing the start of ordering. If you have received this email, you are on the list to get the notice of early ordering at the discount price. You will be directed to order through the Real Bond NATO page on our website: http://corvuswatch.com Ordering will be through our secure shopping cart, and payment will be accepted through PayPal or credit card through PayPal. I hope to be announcing the early ordering very soon.
Thank You All!
I want to thank all of you for your enthusiasm, encouragement, and support. This project has become bigger than I ever expected, but I am glad to have the chance to give something back to the watch collecting community. If you have any questions or just want to give us feedback, or even just want to chat, feel free to email us at info@corvuswatch.com
Cam and Tom from Corvus
"People sleep peacefully in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf." Richard Grenier after George Orwell, Washington Times 1993.
Looks like it's going to be real cool. Can't wait!
DG
"People sleep peacefully in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf." Richard Grenier after George Orwell, Washington Times 1993.
http://corvuswatch.com/index.asp?page=signup_form
Cam from Corvus
Thanks for all of the leg work on this project! This is a real coup for Bond fans!