Interesting. How do you tell where they were actually made, as compared to where they are sold?

 

Very true - some watch parts supply houses (Ofrei for example) list spring bars that are differentiated by country of origin.

Buying off Amazon would be a crap shoot. I have bought spring bars from Rolex, Marathon, Sinn and Omega all of whom claim to be Swiss manufactured.

I’ve bought spring bars from Amazon and EBay for cents on the dollar by comparison, I have found some to be inferior but mostly I am hard pressed to find any discernible difference.

Is there a definitive answer to my question or is it really smoke and mirrors and the origin story that we pay for.


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My own sense is that its smoke and mirrors. Far too many people are playing the "Made in USA/Europe" card, when in today's world it might not be applicable at all. Sure there are sketchy manufacturers in Asian countries, but there are also sketchy companies in the Western world. Similarly, there are high-end companies in Asia too, just as there are these companies in Western countries.

 

Some of us prefer to send our dollars to USA/European makers because of the economic/civil rights policies of China. A few years back I needed a spark plug gauge, the auto parts store had one from china for $1.00, one from Canada for $1.50, I took Canada.

 

I have purchased a number of spring bars from a variety of vendors over the years.

The only "inferior" bars I encountered were some very thin and cheaply made ones I got one time on Amazon.

Otherwise, regardless of the country of origin, I have always been happy with "any" spring bar I have purchased so far.

 

And I think that's at the heart of my question - so many watch companies (even the big boys) are having components built in China, Vietnam, Taiwan etc.....does buying a brand name for these components (in this case spring bars) mean anything?

Should I pay $10-00 for a pair of Rolex spring bars or should I spend the same $10-00 and buy 10 pairs of similar spring bars on Ebay for no discernible difference in design, quality or performance.

 

I must beg to differ on the "all spring bars are created equal" fallacy. If you USE you watch; if it's not a "safe queen" or a desk diver, then sooner or later you WILL discover the difference - and I don't mean that in a GOOD way! I lost a watch while diving in Belize due to a (Chinese) spring bar failure - I just watched it pop off my wrist and spiral down, down, DOWN into The Great Blue Hole - SUCKS!

I use Marathon spring bars EXCLUSIVELY now. Yeah, they're "shoulderless", so if you install them on a watch w/o drilled lugs then you gotta CUT 'em off when you want to change/replace a strap/bracelet. They're pretty pricy too - I buy mine off Amazon. They're Swiss made, and once you've seen/used them, you too will feel, as I do, that they stand out like a diamond in a goat's ass compared to just about ever' other spring bar.

Go and do likewise, Gents!

 

I must beg to differ on the "all spring bars are created equal" fallacy. If you USE you watch; if it's not a "safe queen" or a desk diver, then sooner or later you WILL discover the difference - and I don't mean that in a GOOD way! I lost a watch while diving in Belize due to a (Chinese) spring bar failure - I just watched it pop off my wrist and spiral down, down, DOWN into The Great Blue Hole - SUCKS!

I use Marathon spring bars EXCLUSIVELY now. Yeah, they're "shoulderless", so if you install them on a watch w/o drilled lugs then you gotta CUT 'em off when you want to change/replace a strap/bracelet. They're pretty pricy too - I buy mine off Amazon. They're Swiss made, and once you've seen/used them, you too will feel, as I do, that they stand out like a diamond in a goat's ass compared to just about ever' other spring bar.

Go and do likewise, Gents!

I tend to agree with you - TheGanzman - my method for removing shoulder less (Rolex type) spring bars when dealing with non drilled lugs, is rather than try to cut them (and potentially damaging the case or the strap), I use a screwdriver the tip covered in tape and put the tip between the case and bar and just twist.

The bar will bend and come free - obviously the spring bar becomes damaged beyond ever being used again, so using Swiss bars is an expensive practice.

In this application Chinese spring bars are a much more attractive option, I have seen some are so thin that they barely deserve to be called spring bars, but my experience with 1.8 to 2.0mm shoulder less bars is that there is no discernible difference in performance or strength. Just my 2c.

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About spring bars. Get heavy duty, should be ok even from China.

 

Interesting - I think that these days Eterna (for example) is wholly Chinese owned and manufactured even though they remain officially headquartered in Switzerland.


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BTW - it is possible to pay a lot of money for 'Swiss Made' spring bars - advertising like this -

'100% Stainless Steel these Swiss made spring bars are assembled by hand in a small village in Switzerland. When you want the best spring bars in the world made from the best materials, then you buy these Swiss made bars.' - can be the precursor to you laying down the $$$ - this is from the Otto Frei online store - these prices are amongst the best for 'Swiss made' that I have come accross and having dealt with OF previously I have no doubt they are good.