What To Do If A Leather Watch Strap Doesn’t Fit

Getting a new leather strap is always exciting, but there is always a risk that will not fit properly, but what should you do if that happens?

There are a number of different things you can try which I will go through below and hopefully you will end up with a strap that fits perfectly.

What To Do If A Leather Watch Strap Is Just A Little Off Size?

If you try on your new leather strap and it just seems a little off, that is okay and pretty normal.

You might find that one hole is too loose, and the next one is too tight, it like the perfect fit would be right in between the two holes. 

The first thing to know is that your wrist can swell and change size throughout the day. This is normally related to temperature and humidity. Basically the warmer you get, the more your wrist will swell.

As your arm changes throughout the day you might find that the loose hole can feel like the perfect fit, or if you go the other way, the tight hole may feel looser.

It is obviously not ideal to have to keep changing the strap hole every few hours, but you should wear your watch and notice if you can feel any changes throughout the day. 

(you can read more about – How Often Should You Change A Watch Strap?)

Let The Leather Watch Strap Break In

Usually the main problem with a new leather strap is that it is too rigid and this is why you feel like you are half way between two holes.

You need to wear the watch on a looser hole for a few weeks and allow the strap to break in. As it starts to bend and conform around your wrist, you might find that you able to get it to fit on the tighter hole and it will feel absolutely right here.

Basically the straps are no longer straight and rigid and that little bend they get now allows them to hug your wrist properly and make the distance shorter between the hole and the buckle, so the tight hole will now be the perfect size. 

Most times this is the problem and you just have to bear through a slightly uncomfortable few weeks until the strap breaks in.

(You can read more information about – Breaking In A Leather Strap)

Use A Depolyant Clasp On Your Leather Strap For A Better Fit

Swapping your buckle for a depolyant clasp can sometimes give you a slightly different fit. It is really not going to change the size too much, maybe a 1mm or so, but for some people this can be enough to make a tight hole bearable or loose hole that little more tighter.

I would still try and break the strap in and if you are finding that it still isn’t the perfect fit, then I would try one of these buckles to see if makes a difference. At the very least, using a deployant clasp is going to allow your leather strap to last longer as you will not be pulling and bending on it in the same way as when you use the normal buckle.

What To Do With A Leather Watch Strap That Is Too Small?

If you have tried the watch on and it is clearly too small, there is not a lot you can do.

If the strap is too short or you have a very thick wrist, or maybe a combination of both, you can’t really do anything about it.

Most straps have a little space between the last hole and the end of the strap, so you could potentially try and punch an extra hole, but that is not exactly ideal and if it’s too close to the end, then your buckle will be barely holding on to the strap.

Ideally you need to buy a longer strap. I know that’s not the answer you want, but it’s your best option.

I would try and sell the shorter one, since you can never wear it anyway and then I would use that money to buy a longer one.  

What To Do With A Leather Watch Strap That Is Too Big?

If you strap is too big you have slightly more options.

Punch A Hole

Firstly you can punch a hole in the strap and hopefully get something that fits perfectly.

If you are going to do this, I would try and use an actual punch. Don’t just not just a knife or something sharp you have found in the house.

It is very easy to make a mess of this and if you do it badly, your watch is going to look awful. If you do not have the right tool go to a watch repair shop or a shoe repair shop. Both of these should have a proper hole punch for leather and they should be able to do it properly for you.

While you can get the size right, this method is not always ideal. Depending on how you long your strap is and how slim your wrist it, you may still have a problem. When a strap is too long it is very easy to end up with a long tail. If it’s wrapping all the way round your arm and coming up over the watch itself, it can look a little silly.

You could trim the end off, but I feel then you leather strap is going to look like a mess and I would argue that it would be pointless to have a strap like this as that classiness that you get from a leather strap is going to be gone when you cut the end off!

Buy A Smaller Leather Strap

If the strap you have really is too big, I would suggest it might be easier to buy a smaller one. This is going to look much neater than punching extra holes or cutting the tail off.

You can also try and sell the larger strap and use the money to buy your new smaller one. 

Stick Something To The Case Back

If your strap is too big, but only by a little bit, you might find it helps to stick something to the case back.

This is not ideal, but can help in some circumstances.

If the watch is just slightly too loose, and there is a small gap between your wrist and the watch, having something stuck to the back of the case back and fill this gap. If the gap is slight it can really work and it can also stop the watch sliding around your wrist.

If the gap is too big this is not going to work. You are going to end up with a huge wedge under your watch and you will probably be able to see it if it is too thick. If this is the case, I would not try this method.

Honestly it really is quite rare that this method is used, but it something to think about if you are stuck with what to do.

Conclusion

Hopefully now you will be able to deal with a leather strap that isn’t the right size. Hopefully you can just break the strap in and allow it to fit better.

If it is really obvious that it is too big, or too small you can try the techniques I have discusses, but honestly, it sometimes easier and simpler to just buy a different size strap and go from there.

(You can read more about – How To Pick A Strap For Your Watch)