The Breitling Watch Source Forums

Wow leather band selection is overwhelming! It sounds like the authentic Breitling bands are high quality but selection is still overwhelming.

I've been unable to find what I would call a good comparison...
-like how does shark compare to croc to leather in terms of things like water resistance, long term durability, comfort, flexibility, breathability, etc.?...then how do both compare to ol' bessie?
-are Breitling shark and croc straps 'pure' or do they have stitched cow leather on the inside like most?
-how do aftermarket shark bands compare? (I can find info on aftermarket cow and croc, but not shark)
-are exotic material bands offering much more other than a different look/something different?

I've also realized Breitling has two different deployment buckles as well as the standard tang...is one better suited to a smaller or larger wrist than the other?

hey check out wotancraft . found them from the panerai boys..

I've always had shark - one black and one blue. But recently I have had a calf strap fitted and I would say they are much thicker than shark. I believe they are both about the same for durability - naturally shark has better water resistance but I was not about to try. Also shark is no longer an official breitling strap option. So it Croc or calf from ADs.

I thought the different deployants were for different strap materials; one's for rubber.

Comparing my (aged and well used) croc strap to the aftermarket ones I've seen, I find the Breitling ones to be of slightly better quality all over. That said, there are some excellent aftermarket straps out there, and whilst Breitling ones might be of better quality, my next purchase will be an aftermarket strap

As blockheed mentioned, shark is no longer available from Breitling.

Lots of questions in there!

As far as I know, shark doesn't have any additional water-resistance that calf or croco (unless specially treated of course).

All Breitling straps have calf on the inside so they aren't "pure" shark or croco etc, in that respect.

Comfort-wise then all are very comfortable IMO once they they break-in. Croco traditionally takes longer than calf to break-in however as it's a harder leather.

They're all as breathable as each other IMO.

Quality-wise I personally think Breitling straps are as good as any by any manufacturer. Very high quality..... but you pay for the honour.

For more interesting (and pretty much comparable quality) straps, check out ABP-Paris. They have everything from fish skin to frog skin, from beaver-tail to camel hide.... heck they even had elephant at one point! The quality is very high..... but then they aren't cheap either - similar to Breitling OEM, but well worth it if you want something different.

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Driver8

Site Moderator

imho, i dont think i would spend the money for a breitling strap. at least not with so many top notch aftermarket straps available. usually better materail, craftsmanship etc....