The Real James Bond Watchstrap Comes To Life

James Bond WatchStrap

Back With A Vengance

Jake's Rolex World is the place to be if you are into exploring the old-school James Bond Rolex History. I published what is considered to be the ultimate James Bond Watch History Series named The James Bond Rolex Story...The Complete History of James Bond Watches.

I am so excited to be able to finally share this updated story with you. A few years ago, Corvus Watch Company introduced a watch strap that was really fascinating. It was based upon the nylon strap that Sean Connery wore in Goldfinger.

The only challenge was that it was offered in a NATO style and an RAF style. Why was this a challenge? Because Sean Connery never wore a NATO or a RAF. Instead, Sean Connery wore a standard buckle strap. Corvus FINALLY figured out how to create a model that is identical to the original in ever way!!!

In this first image we see Sean Connery sporting his tri-strip strap while relaxing on the set of Goldfinger.

Here is a photo of the all-new "Original Movie-Style Real James Bond Watchband" made by Corvus. If you examine it closely it is identical in every way to Sean Connery's, including the self-fabric keeper and the buckle. Click here to check out the strap on the Corvus site.

In this next photo, I am wearing the all-new Corvus "Original Movie-Style Real James Bond Watchband", on a vintage Rolex Submariner Reference 5512 from 1967, and it looks amazing in person!!!

I wrote the article below several years ago when Corvus came out with the NATO and Corvus versions which were commonly referred to as The Real Bond NATO. This following article will give you a keen insight into the history of this strap.

The Real James Bond Watchstrap

Comes To Life

Jake's Rolex Watch Blog has often been referred to by its readers as The Bible Of Rolex. I have never referred to it this way, but I believe readers do because I specialize in separating the fact from the fiction in Rolex folklore and I am happy to once again do so.

Let's go back to the origin of this story. In the first two James Bond Movies, Sean Connery played James Bond and he wore a Rolex Submariner as Ian Flemming intended him to. In 1964 Sean Connery once again played James Bond in Goldfinger as seen in the screenshot below.

In Goldfinger there are several scenes where there are close-ups of his Submariner Big Crown Rolex Submariner [Reference 6538]. This Submariner had a big crown and no crown guards. Sean Connery also wears this watch on a nylon diving strap as you can see in the next two photos. For some reason the strap is 16mm and does not properly fit between the 20mm lugs on his Rolex.

There has been much speculation about why the strap is only 16mm and I believe it is because Rolex watches were unusually large at the time and the producers of the movie could not find a 20mm nylon strap, so they used a 16mm which was as close as they could get. Ironically Golfinger was filmed before NATO straps were developed.

Why a Nylon strap? In the opening scene in Goldfinger, James has to wear his Rolex Submariner over his diving suit as seen in the photo below. When I first started writing about this watch, I pointed out in previous articles that the strap consisted of three colors, Dark Navy Blue; Dark Olive and fine Burgundy stripes as seen in the photos above and below.

The Fake James Bond Watchstrap

For many years people have been selling the strap seen below as the James Bond NATO. The supreme irony is NO James Bond ever wore a NATO strap in a James Bond movie and the strap below is the wrong colors and wrong pattern. The strap below is grey and black with 5 total stripes. The Real Bond Strap is 9 stripes and is Navy Blue, Olive and Burgundy.

The Most Supreme Irony

The most supreme irony is Daniel Craig, who currently plays James Bond wears a Rolex Big Crown 6538 that was given to him by the current producer of the James Bond movies, Barbara Broccoli–who is the daughter of the original James Bond producer, Albert "Cubby" Broccoli.

As you can see Daniel Craig is wearing the 6538 Submariner "Big Crown" on his wrist below on a grey and black NATO strap. What makes this so ironic is the myth became the truth and even Daniel Craig fell for it. In other words, NO James Bond actor in history ever wore a NATO strap and Sean Connery never wore a grey and black nylon strap.

The Real Deal

Many months ago I recieved an email from two brothers, Tom and Cam, who own The Corvus Watch Company. Cam mentioned he noticed, as had I, the fake straps that had been selling had nothing to do with James Bond and he decided to bring the real one to life!!!

I was very excited because there were many of us who wanted the real deal. Cam is an amazing guy and his Corvus Watch Company is also very impressive. We will take a look at Corvus and Cam in more detail later in this article.

Withouth further ado, lets take a look at the Real James Bond NATO. Actually, Cam pointed out that since no James Bond ever wore a NATO strap he was perplexed about what to do, so he decided to make a real NATO version of the strap along with a RAF version that is more similar to the one Sean Connery wore. Cam even has them made in Wales by Phoenix Straps which is the official maker of NATO straps for the British Ministry Of Defense.

I must begin by thanking my Pal Eric Ku for allowing me to use some of his amazing vintage Rolex watches for this photo shoot. Eric Ku is California's Premier Vintage Rolex Dealer and you can see his great watches vintage Rolex watches at 10PastTen.com or by clicking here.

The watch in the photo above and bellow is very similar to the Big Crown Submariner Sean Connery wore in Goldfinger.

When I was at Eric Ku's office, I could not resist putting the RAF version on this very rare and collectable "Milsub" [Reference 5517]. It just goes to show this strap looks great on any Rolex.

The Pussy

In the James Bond movie, Goldfinger, James Bond decides he is going to seduce a lesbian named Pussy Galore and in the end he does. Pussy is Goldfinger's private pilot and her character was the first I know of in a movie where a woman wore a mans Rolex Sport Watch.

The Coke Rolex GMT Master [Reference 6542] that Pussy Galore wore in Goldfinger is pictured below on her wrist, so of course when I noticed Eric Ku had one, I had to put in on the strap as seen above.

You can learn more about the Real James Bond NATO Watchstrap and order them for yourself by clicking here.

The Corvus Watch Company

As I previously mentioned, brothers, Cam and Tom own the Corvus Watch Company and they recently came out with his first American Military wristwatch homage called The Bradley Dive Watch and it is based on a U.S. Navy specification from the late 1950s. Of course they all come standard with a Real Bond NATO Watchstrap.

Although The Bradley Dive Watch is based upon a Blancpain Tornek-Rayville TR-900 prototype, Cam and Tom have gone far, far beyond by incorporating some really innovative technology into the watch.

The Bradley Dive Watch has an amazing lume pattern as you can see below which includes a lumed bezel insert that glows in two different colors. For whatever it is worth, I think Cam and Tome charge way too little for their Bradley Diver, but that is their choice. You can learn more about the Corvus Bradley Dive Watch by clicking here.

RubberB All-New Orange Strap Review & Videos...

RubberB

All-New Orange Strap Review & Videos

Wow!!!! I just completed my first video review and hopefully in the future I will do more. I am really excited to finally be able to share photos and video with you of the all-new Orange RubberB strap.

RubberB is a sponsor of Jake's Rolex World and I am a fan of their amazing products, and in particular, I am super stoked on their all new Orange RubberB strap which is pictured below. The Orange RubberB looks amazing on any black bezel Rolex Submariner or GMT Master. In particular, I was shocked at how great it looks on a vintage 1967 Rolex Submariner.

The Orange RubberB gives the vintage Rolex Submariner a whole new updated, yet retro-vibe which is very sporty, aquatic, and reminds me of Flipper and Jacques Cousteau. The shade of orange is perfect. It is almost like a light safety orange. Rolex sport watches tend to be works of art in-and-of themselves, but every rubber strap I have ever seen looks funky, but the RubberB is as much a work of art itself.

Next we see a video of the black RubberB on the same vintage 1967 Rolex Submariner, which offers another amazing look.

Here is a video review I just completed of the Orange RubberB:

I also just completed a video that shows how to install the RubberB:

Spanish Golf Legend: Seve Ballesteros

...Spanish Golf Legend...

Seve Ballesteros

1957–2011

Since we were just checking out Tiger Woods earlier this week, I thought it would make sense to check out another Rolex Ambassador. Seve Ballesteros past away earlier this year in May. He was only 53 years old, but in his golf career he won a total of 87 titles which included three Open championships (1979, 1984 and 1988). He also won two Masters at Augusta in 1980 and 1983.

Seve Ballesteros is pictured above and below after winning the 1997 Ryders Cup

Seve Ballesteros is pictured below with fellow golfing legend, Tony Jacklin who is the winningest British golfer in history. Notice Tony Jacklin is wearing a yellow-gold Rolex Day-Date.

Tiger Woods Is Back Wins Chevron World Challenge

Tiger Woods Is Back

Wins Chevron World Challenge

Rolex DEEP-SEA

Tiger Woods recently re-joined the Rolex family by becoming an official Rolex Ambassador. Recently, Tiger Woods won the Chevron World Challenge making back to back birdies to win the challenge, which represents his first win in two years.

Photo Credit: Scott Halleran/Getty Images

Perhaps wearing a Rolex makes Tiger Woods play better? It is great to see Tiger Woods coming back to life with his career. Tiger Woods is arguably the greatest golfer that has ever lived and I hope the best is yet to come. In the photo above and below, we see Tiger sporting his Rolex DEEP-SEA SEA-DWELLER.

On a side-note, it is really interesting to see Tiger Woods wearing Rolex watches. Back when he was a Tudor Ambassador, I thought Rolex was foolish not to make him a Rolex Ambassador, and despite all Tiger has gone through in the last few years, he just looks right wearing Rolex. Welcome back Tiger!

Photo Credit: Mark Terrill/AP Photo

A True Blue Sub A Rolex Submariner Customized–Kinda? Sorta, Maybe!?!

Update on December 7th: It is amazing how many people have mentioned to me that they love the look of this combination! My girlfriend saw it and freaked out and said, "I love that watch! That's the watch I want!!!" Since she saw the photos first without realizing what she was looking at, I had to tell her it was not available, at least off-the-shelf that way. Hopefully Rolex will offer this option in the future, because it looks great!!!!

A True Blue Sub

A Beautiful Ceramic Stainless Steel Rolex Submariner

Customized–Kinda? Sorta, Maybe!?!

There are several schools of thought when it comes to customizing Rolex watches. First, there are the purists who say you shouldn't modify a stock Rolex and if you do, you end up with a Frankenstein watch. There is another school of thought that believes it does not matter what you do to a Rolex as long as you make it look better.

What does Rolex think about customizing Rolex watches? I don't know for certain, but from what I have put together, they frown upon it. Some might argue Rolex should not really care, because the customizer has to pay for a real Rolex.

There is a third school of thought, which has a lot of grey area. It is an option where somebody takes a 100% genuine Rolex watch, and a part or parts from another model and combine them together. A really good example of this would be Xelor's Stainless Steel Rolex Submariner which he modified by putting a bezel and bezel insert from a white gold Rolex Submariner.

Photo Credit: sBmRnR

An all-new stainless steel Ceramic Rolex Submariner retails for around $8,000 and a White Gold Rolex Submariner retails for around $34,000. Of course, the standard black bezel stainless steel Submariner comes with a black dial, and the white gold Submariner comes with a blue bezel with a matching blue dial.

So Xelor, got the bright idea to somehow purchase the blue bezel from the white gold Submariner and put it on a standard Submariner and in my opinion it looks stunningly great!!! So if you want to obtain a blue bezel insert like Xelor did, how do you do so? I don't know? In the United States, as I understand it, Rolex does not allow you to purchase parts without trading-in the watch part that is being replaced.

I have heard that in Europe it is easier to purchase just parts, but never having done so, I honestly don't know. I just hope Rolex sees how beautiful this combination is, and eventually offers it, because it looks great!!!

Photo Credit: sBmRnR

Ellen DeGeneres & Portia de Rossi Cover of November 2011 Architectural Digest

Cool Rolex Hotness ;-)

Ellen DeGeneres & Portia de Rossi

Cover of November 2011 Architectural Digest

Yellow Gold Rolex Daytona

Ellen DeGeneres is a very popular talk show host and American personality, as well as being a fellow Rolex Fanatic. She can always be seen sporting different Rolex models, and on the cover of the 2011 Architectural Digest we see her wearing a yellow gold Rolex Daytona.

It's kind of ironic because on the cover of the November 2010 Architectural Digest, it featured Robe Lowe wearing his stainless steel Rolex Daytona.

Roger Federer Wins Barclays ATP World Tour Finals

Roger Federer Wins Barclays ATP World Tour Finals

Rolex.com is currently congratulating Roger Federer for having won the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals and published this photo of him with his trophy, and notice he is wearing the cool new rose gold Rolex Daytona.

Rolex Triple-Date Moonphase Red Hand with Black Moon 1953 Reference 8171

Rolex Triple-Date Moonphase

Red Hand with Black Moon

1953 Reference 6062

Antiquorum Auction House in Geneva, Switzerland sold this rare and beautiful Rolex Triple-Date Moonphase in March of 2011 for $76,000. It has a very rare red date hand coupled with an unusual black-back moon disk.

Update: John Goldberger wrote in to say that the dial on this watch is a "fake redone dial" and said "The quality of your blog is declining?" It is pretty funny, to have a guy like John Goldberger who is one of the top Rolex and Patek Philippe collectors in the world constantly pointing out errors I make ;-) Actually, I like his assistance.

Happy Thanksgiving from Jake!!!

Happy Thanksgiving from Jake!!!

Hi Everybody!!!

It is hard to believe it is already Thanksgiving again on Jake's Rolex Watch Blog!!! It has been another absolutely amazing year of filled with growth and amazing new Rolex historical content. Since last Thanksgiving I have met many new international readers and made many new and exiting friends.

I even started Jake's Patek Philippe World Blog as well as Jake's Who Knew World Blog. I publish all my blogs more as notebooks for my interest, and as the CEO and Designer at BulletTrain, I also publish the BulletBlog by JakeE. As you can imagine, I have so much to be grateful for and I wish all my readers a happy Thanksgiving!!!!

"The First Thanksgiving" painting by Jean Gerome Ferris (1863-1930)

Thanksgiving has always been my favorite holiday because it gives us a chance to pause and reflect on how fortunate we all are to be able to experience this amazing miracle, known as life, on this spinning marble we all share–named Earth.

Of course I realize Thanksgiving is a U.S. holiday, but I believe it's as timeless and universal as a sunset or a smile :-)))

Once again, Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Warmest regards,

Jake

RubberB Back In Orange...

RubberB Back In Orange

RubberB is an extremely innovative company as well as being a sponsor of Jake's Rolex World. When I first saw the RubberB concept I was blown away because they made the first rubber straps that were custom designed to fit perfectly into the complete lug space on many Rolex sport watches. I wrote a review of RubberB on Jake's Rolex World to show how their innovate system worked.

I spoke with the owner and I mentioned he had to offer his strap in Safety-Orange. I argued it would look really good, particularly with a standard Submariner or Sea-Dweller. Turns out RubberB agreed and just introduced their updated strap in orange!!!

This new model in orange is actually a second-generation strap, which is similar in many ways to the older version—including their T shaped design—but different in one way. Basically, the first generation version was designed to accommodate all wrist sizes including people with enormous wrists. The challenge is that 95% of the population has a small, medium or large wrist, but not a huge wrist. RubberB optimized the second generation so it fits better, particularly on the Submariner and SEA-DWELLER models.

I have review units of the second generation RubberB strap in orange, black and in white, and as soon as I get a chance, I will write a review with pictures as well as creating an installation video. In the meantime, you can check out these images.
I love the orange color, because it give the Rolex sport watches more of an aquatic tool watch vibe. There is something just really kind of preppy, sporty, fun and aquatic about the orange color strap. I know because I have worn my Submariner on an orange NATO strap.

The challenge of course with NATO straps is there is so much extra hardware and nylon, that it looks like a flea-market that blew up. The RubberB on the other hand is super streamlined and clean-cut. Very French and Jacques Cousteau meets SEA-LAB cool.