Seiko Captain Willard homage Rdunae R2X with uncle strap 19mm chocolate bar strap

[@oktc68]

You can order the straps with regular non fat boy spring bars from Uncle Seiko. My Chocolate Bar just arrived, it too has some minor "scuffing" present although some of the dull patches seemed to rub off, mould release perhaps? It is a massive improvement on the ghastly resin strap that Rdunae supply, not a complaint, it's comfortable for an evening out and looks fabulous, I just can't wear it for any length of time before it irritates. Hopefully Uncle Seiko will soon get round to an FKM version.

[@seanrorie2081]

Strap looks good.I hate those skinny springbars on the Rdunae and just put mine on a Nato so if one gives way I will still retain my watch.The R2X is such a great watch.

[@zikandesu]

Thanks Sean! I agree about the skinny springbars that come with the watch... it really is underwhelming to say the least! I just finished doing a mod to the case to fit the fat boy spring bars. I'm hoping that it'll keep the R2X snug to my wrist but we'll see!

[@patzguitarz]

Uncle makes great vintage Seiko style straps. To make the strap even more comfortable, I do the hot water/cold water trick. I wear a chocolate bar strap on my Seiko Willard SBDC109.

[@zikandesu]

Hi Patz! Thanks so much for the tip! I was not aware of the hot water/cold water trick (I just did a quick looking around on google)! I'm going to try that out! You can't go wrong with SBDC109 with the chocolate bar strap! by the way, your triple pick-up SG is killer and great guitar lesson videos!

[@patzguitarz]

Thanks. The vintage SG is long gone unfortunately! I like guitars and watches obviously. There are several youtube videos on the hot water/cold water trick.@@zikandesu

[@michaelj8793]

You might want to look at the strap for the Merkur Willard homage 👍

[@zikandesu]

Hi Michael! Thanks a lot for the suggestion! It looks like the Merkur strap is 20mm wide. Do you know if it'll have enough clearance for the 19mm lug width on the Rdunae R2X? The strap looks great and I've been hearing a lot of good things about Merkur! : D

[@michaelj8793]

@@zikandesu It is a super pliable material but I'm not sure how it would look that would be up to you maybe even modify the ends to fit The Merkur Willard earned the nickname the King Willard I love both of mine Be well my friend

[@oktc68]

Hi guys, the Merkur "King" Willard has 22mm lugs, It's the Oceanmaster, its a beautifully made watch but is perhaps closer to the Prospex Willard shape although retains a 44mm (ish) case width. It has a MM 300 style dial and old style Tuna handset, dome sapphire crystal with clear AR coating and a sapphire bezel insert which is part lumed (first 20 mins). It came supplied on a very soft FKM rubber strap, similar but not identical to one Seiko used on some early MM 300 with a waffle pattern but with a couple of concertina sections at the lugs a la other rubber dive straps. The build quality is exquisite, one of the best bezel actions, finished to a high standard. It's a very solid piece and the case back has a beautiful turtle sculptured into it. I have Rdunae's Rx2 to scratch my Captain Willard itch, it's a nice watch (not keen on the resin strap but it looks fabulous) the Merkur Oceanmaster has a squarer case, lacks the Willard dial and handset, but is just a great watch, I don't think of mine as a Willard.

[@AnCar88]

Hey Zikan, I see that you couldn't help yourself with changing that dial:) Imho a rubber strap is almost always better than a silicone or a resin band. Although, until recently, I've never really found a rubber strap that I really enjoyed. What changed it for me was putting a green Delugs CTS on my speedy. Concerning the odd springbar sizing, I guess the original had thick springbars like the Uncle strap suggests. I guess Rdunae just copied the proportions for the strap holes but didn't go for the relatively unusual, outside of the Seiko diver world, bigger holes in the case.

[@zikandesu]

Hey Andrei! lol yeah i ended up doing it!😂 I totally get you about the rubber strap over the resin strap man, I think I'm that way for the most part as well but when I did an A / B comparison and showed it to my circle of friends, some of them actually preferred the original resin band! I was only into bracelets and leather straps for a really long time and only after I saw a sub with a rubber b strap, I got kind of curious! Delug straps looks nice! My guy, nothing really beats the speedmaster. Seriously, what an amazing looking watch with such a legacy! Regarding the lug holes, yeah you're right! It's a bit of a missed opportunity i think.

[@AnCar88]

@@zikandesu Yeah, the speedmaster has been my 'grail'. Managed to get it in 2022. Since then I haven't really been able to bring myself to not wear it or really look at adding anything else to my collection:) Just more straps for it.