BARTON Elite NATO® Style Watch Strap - 18mm, 20mm, 22mm or 24mm - Seat Belt Nylon Watch Bands

I think I have nine or more Barton straps and bands. One thing I love is that they offer an extra long option with some of the rubber straps, which is great for my gorilla wrists. Their nylon NATOs are the best I've found so far. And prices are so reasonable!

I purchased this for my G Shock 5600, and am using jays and kays solid aluminum NATO adapter. The stock Casio band does not even come close to latching on my 8.5" wrist, so it looked as if the NATO deal would be the solution. The first purchase I made was a 22mm premium Craig Bond NATO from Crown and Buckle, and is a sweet band, with the exception of the height of the metal keeper loops. I am NOT one of these goofballs with a 6.5" wrist that likes mega sized watches and triple stacking my watch band because it is 3 inches too long, so I wanted to try at least one offering with the "RAF", or original bond type fabric loop strap keeper. After exhaustively looking at different companies, what they had to offer and what people said about them, I decided to pull the trigger on the 22mm Classic Bond black hardware Jetson Barton band. That they are on the other side of town from me is pure coincidence, but I also considered a bonus to get a good product locally sourced.Upon opening, I was looking for frays or any quality control issues others have mentioned. NONE were found and I instantly loved looks of the design and quality of it. To me, it is a bit heavier , but such a luxurious strap with a nice sheen to it. Next is to see how it fits the little 5600, fits fine, and the one metal strap buckle is what I feel is appropriately sized for two straps to fit through, without the loop being too high. I laid it next to the Crown and Buckle NATO to see how they visually compare. The Barton buckle is substantially more robust and the band is slightly shorter, which pretty much puts the excess band right inside the fabric keeper, at the perfect length. As for the height of the fabric keeper, it is unrealistic for the same fabric to wrapped tight enough to be as low profile as some would like, but as I like a smooth profile of EVERYTHING, IMO, the keeper strap is reaasonable. The ONE nitpick I have is I would like the slack space for the watch head to be smaller and biased more toward the middle of the band, but also having some mega headed dive watches, I know this is for those type of watches, otherwise, those watch heads just would not fit in there. That said, they did not market this as a Huge Wristed wears a little G Shock watch band. I am OK with that, because this band rocks, and I will buy more Bartons. I may have to buy a twin to this band, because it is SO NICE, it's kind of like a nice dress watch band to me. I hope this has helped you and enjoy.

To be fair, I read the reviews ahead of time and knew that this band would be a little longer than I preferred, but I really wanted the "Classic Bond" color scheme and it was not offered in Barton's ballistic style straps that I normally order (and thoroughly enjoy). Sorry in advance for the length of the review, but hopefully it will help others decide.Although the product description shows these as being 10.5 inches in length mine did, in fact, come at a full 11 inches when delivered. This is not a big deal to me, as I tuck the excess band material back in and don't have to worry about it!As others have also mentioned, I've gotten this band wet once or twice and as a result the band stretched ever so slightly and showed some fraying. Again, to me - I expected this based on the materials and therefore was not surprised/disappointed.The major downfall for me and my medium sized wrists is the combination of softer, "safety-belt" material and the length of the short/back strap. The short/back strap is about a quarter inch longer than on my other ballistic straps which means that the point of contact between my wrist and where the short/back strap attaches to the long/front strap is further away from the actual watch. Therefore, since the material is soft and more stretchy than the ballistic nylon the watch has more room to move side to side (relative to the watch face/band) and tends to not stay in place quite as well. It's not the worst thing in the world, but its a bit annoying to have to re-adjust the watch face. Those with larger wrists might not suffer the same problem.Overall, I still wear this band a lot and really enjoy it and the others I have purchased from this brand!

I was a bit surprised when I opened the package with this Barton strap inside. I ordered this the Jetson style over the ballistic style because I was looking for added durability, and I was not disappointed. I was surprised because the strap appears to be twice as durable as the ballistic style NATO straps that I use. I was worried the strap would be too stiff, but after a few weeks of wearing it, it broke in and outperforms similar products.Another detail that didn’t jump out to me in provided photos is that the watch strap has a sheen to it. When the light hits it, there is a slight reflection that makes it almost shiny. While I wasn’t expecting this, it works for the watch that I pair it with, so I’m happy, but you should know that before you decide on this color. The color is a beautiful dark blue that pairs perfectly with my dive watches.Other reviews mention the Jetson style strap feeling like a car seat belt. This is accurate. It feels nearly as thick as well. Since I have large wrists, it works well for me. With the added durability comes the extra thickness and stiffness. This means that your watch will sit higher off your arm than with other thinner straps. I have included pictures to illustrate this point. Again, this isn’t a negative, just how this type of strap operates.I find the Barton Jetson NATO watch strap comfortable to wear not only for days in a row, but overnight as well. I choose NATO straps for my watches because they stand up to abuse. They don’t cut or tear easily, they can be subjected to sand, mud, rocks, water, blood, basically anything you can throw at it, and will rinse clean. For a deep clean, take the band off your watch, loop it through a belt loop on a pair of pants, and run it through your clothes washing machine. (Hang it up to dry)It doesn’t get easier than that.This watch band is good enough to stand by you wherever life’s adventures may take you.