What all IWC RUBBER straps should be like.
I posted my new rubber strap (same as in picture above) not long ago, because the issued strap on my AT did not perform under water. Its too short to put over a divesuit.
I got some comments as why I did get another strap.. Here's why;
This isn’t so much a myth as it is a specific design feature whose use is unappreciated (or misunderstood) by those who don’t experience it firsthand. That rippled rubber strap found on IWCs See Pics) is one of the most ingenious innovations in dive watch history and it doesn’t even have to do with the watch itself.
For example: the vented rubber strap on the IWC Aquatimer Deep Three.
Water pressure exerts a force equivalent to the entire weight of the atmosphere above us for every 10 meters a diver descends. This has the effect of squeezing anything compressible in its way, from eardrums to soda cans. Thus, a neoprene wetsuit sleeve slowly gets compressed against a diver’s arm as he goes deeper. A conventional watch strap, such as a NATO or flat rubber, will simply then get looser and looser, causing the watch head to flop on the wrist. In 1975, Seiko (I know they best IWC to it..) was the first to introduce the accordion “vented” rubber strap on its groundbreaking 600-meter Professional dive watch, which introduced a slew of other innovations like L-shaped shaped gaskets and a protective bezel shroud.
Seiko so pioneered the use of vented rubber straps in the 1970s.
To counteract the effects of water pressure, a diver needs to “over-tighten” the vented strap, essentially pulling the ripples out flat, before entering the water. As the wetsuit compresses and the wrist circumference shrinks, those ripples slowly take up the slack and the watch stays tight. It’s a delightfully simple solution and a design feature of a dive watch as recognizable as a rotating bezel. But it is essentially useless on dry land and if you want your wrist to breathe, it’s better to just get a strap that has holes in it.
Above my new rubber bracelet on the diver(!)
so now you know
cheers
