Can You Change The Watch Strap Yourself, Or Do You Need To Take It To A Professional?

If you are new to watch collecting, or just own a watch, you might not realise that changing a strap is an option …and something you can do yourself.

You can get a professional to do it, but you really don’t need to, you can do it yourself very easily. You will need a tool though, but I will go through everything below …all you need to know is that you can change the strap of a watch yourself. 

You Can Change Your Watch Strap Yourself

Changing the strap of a watch is not difficult and is something you can do yourself without any real training or skill. It can be a little tricky at first, but after a few times you will start to find it really easy.

Metal bracelets can be a little annoying, but with a little patience you should be able to get these on and off without any issue.

When you look at a watch, you will see that the strap is held on to the watch by a spring bar. This is a little metal bar that goes from one side of the watch to the other and the strap is attached to this. The spring bar is sat into a little hole on either side of the watch, which is how it attaches to the watch.

All you need to do is release the spring bar, and the strap will slide out of the holes and then off the watch, so you can then replace it with a different one.

(You can read more about – Do Different Watch Strap Materials Require Different Care And Maintenance?)

You Will Need A Spring Bar Tool To Change Your Watch Strap

For the vast majority of watches and straps, you will need a spring bar tool. These are extremely inexpensive and often you may even get one free with your watch or a strap you have bought.

When you look at a spring bar …it’s a little bar, with a spring inside. Basically you can squeeze the bar and make it shorter, and then when you let it go, the spring pushes it back to its original size. 

A spring bar tool is just a little hook that allows you to push the spring down and shorten the bar. As I mentioned above, the spring bar is held into a hole on the watch, squeezing it down makes the spring bar too short and it is no longer in the hole …so it’s basically falls out of the watch.

As this is so small, you can’t really just stick your fingers in and move it yourself, so the spring bar tool allows you to get into that small space and move the bar.   

(You can read more about – A Review Of The “16 Piece Watch Repair Tool Set)

Quick Release Straps Will Make Your Life Easier

Some straps are designed in a way that they have the spring bar built into them, and they actually have a little handle attached to them, meaning you do not need a tool.

The little handle is tiny, but it is large enough that you can just use your finger nail to move it. It does pretty much the same job as the tool, pushing the two ends of the spring bar together and making its length smaller, so it falls out of the hole in the watch.   

These types of straps make your life so much easier and you can remove the strap in a matter of seconds.

You may still need a spring bar tool though, if the strap you are going to put on after is more traditional and doesn’t have quick release.  

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

How To Change The Strap Of Your Watch

I will quickly go through how you can change a strap on a watch. It really is straight forward.

1. Get your new strap ready and get your spring bar tool out.
2. Turn your watch over, so you are looking at the case back, and look at where the watch and the strap join.
3. Slip your spring bar tool in between the strap and the lug, and you will feel the two prongs go around the spring bar. 
4. Move the spring bar tool away from the watch and in towards the strap. This will make the spring bar smaller and the end will fall out of the hole and it will now come away from the watch.
5. Now the strap is off, remove the spring bar, and now feed this through the new strap.
6. Place the new strap into the gap of the watch. You should be able to get one side into the hole of the watch, so it is in place.
7. Take the spring bar tool and again push down on the spring bar to make it smaller, and while you do this, guide the end of the spring bar so it lines up with the hole in the watch.
8. Let go and the spring bar should stretch out, but more importantly pop into the hole, now securing it to the watch.

This can be a little fiddly, but just be patient and you will get the spring bar both on and off easily.   

Drilled Lugs

Before you do the above, just check the side of the watch. Some watches have drilled lugs, which actually make things easier. Sometimes the gap between the watch and strap is very tight and you can’t get a tool in, and drills lugs solve this issue.

All you need to is stick something into the hole and it will poke the end of the springbar and cause it to shorten and pop out the other side.

If you look at a spring bar too, it usually has a hooked end, and a flat end. The flat end is perfect for poking in to these drilled lug holes, although you could really use anything that would fit, but I would always suggest you use a proper tool.   

You Can Ask A Professional To Do It

If you really don’t understand what I’m talking about above, or you don’t have the tool, or just the confidence to do it, you can ask a watch maker to do it for you.

You can go to any watch shop and maybe even a jewellery shop would help. You can also go to those places where you get keys cut. I am sure they are cobblers? but they will replace watch batteries and swap straps too if you need their help.

Anyone you ask should be able to do it there and then and will only charge you a small amount. However, for the same price you could just buy a spring bar tool, and then you can do it yourself, whenever you wish.

Conclusion

Hopefully now you can see how easy it is to swap a watch strap. You really can do this as many times as you want, whenever you want.  It is super easy and quick and causes no damage to the strap or watch.

All you need to a spring bar tool and the information I mentioned above and you will be all set to change your watch strap whenever you want.