Open-Ended Strap for a 1919 Omega Trench Watch

Trench watches from the 1910s were built with fixed wire lugs — the bars do not come out, so a modern strap with its own spring bars cannot be mounted at all. This order came from Louisiana for what the customer described as a “1919 Omega fixed lug trench watch,” and the answer was an open-ended strap for the Omega trench watch: orange Epsom, 75/115mm, with a narrow 10mm buckle to suit a small vintage case.

The build

10mm is the buckle-end width from the order. The lug-end width is cut to the watch and is not listed here.

Why these choices

An open-ended strap is made for exactly one situation: a watch whose spring bars are fixed, where a standard strap cannot thread through. Each end wraps around the fixed bar and secures back on itself, so a century-old case never has to be modified. On a 1919 Omega — a watch older than most of the tools used to service it — that reversibility is the whole point.

The 10mm buckle end tells you how small these early wristwatches ran. Very few makers cut hardware this narrow; the VGreen configurator goes down to 8mm, which is what keeps builds like this possible without oversized, mismatched buckles.

Orange Epsom is the bold half of the brief. Epsom is a stamped-grain calfskin, light and scratch-resistant, and the saturated orange turns a plain-dial military survivor into something the owner clearly intends to wear, not store. On a watch this age the strap is the one component you can choose freely — the case and dial are history, the leather is personality.

★★★★★

“Perfect natural leather strap for my fixed-bar 1942 Hanhart pilot’s watch. Very high quality materials and craftsmanship.”

WILLIAM S. · Custom open-ended strap

Common questions

How does an open-ended strap for an Omega trench watch attach?

Each end loops around the watch's fixed bar and fastens back on itself, so nothing on the watch is removed or forced. It goes on and comes off without tools touching the case.

What width should I order for a trench watch?

Measure the inside gap between the fixed lugs in millimeters and order that width. Early trench watches often take narrow, odd sizes — the configurator accepts widths from 8mm to 30mm.

Get one for your fixed-lug watch

Build yours in the open-ended strap configurator, browse other orange leather straps, or start from the full custom strap range. Every strap is made to order — allow 2–3 weeks to delivery.