Watch Necessities
A strap collection is only useful if you can fit the straps and store them correctly. Changing a leather strap for a rubber strap before a swim, swapping a nylon single-pass for a suede before dinner, or pulling out the Marine Nationale for the weekend — all of this requires the right tools and the right storage. Without them, straps sit unused in a drawer, watches get scratched during clumsy strap changes, and the full potential of a collection is never reached.
CNS Watch Bands produces the full range of watch necessities alongside the strap collection — spring bar tools and spring bars for fitting and changing straps, and watch rolls and pouches for storing and travelling with watches and straps. The same attention to material quality that defines the strap range applies here — leather rolls and pouches in full-grain and pebble-grain calfskin, suede, and canvas.
Spring Bar Tools & Spring Bars
A spring bar is the small cylindrical pin that holds a watch strap to the watch case. Replacing a strap means either using a spring bar tool to compress the bar and release it from the lug hole, or — with quick-release spring bars — simply pressing a small lever with a fingernail.
Spring bar tools — available in five variants: standard silver, standard black, Spring Bar Tool 2.0 with improved tip geometry, and a version with extra interchangeable tips for different lug configurations. A quality spring bar tool is the single most important piece of watch accessory kit — without one, every strap change risks scratching the case or damaging the lug.
Standard spring bars — solid cylindrical bars in all lug widths. Require a tool to fit and remove. Included with every CNS strap, but spare bars are essential for any collector who changes straps frequently.
Quick release spring bars — available in 1.75mm and 1.45mm diameters. A lever mechanism allows tool-free release with fingernail pressure — the most practical upgrade for collectors who swap straps regularly. Every CNS strap ships with quick-release bars as standard.
Fat spring bars — a larger diameter for watches with wider lug holes where standard bars produce a loose fit. Prevents lateral strap movement on the lug.
→ Shop Spring Bar Tools & Spring Bars
Watch Rolls & Watch Pouches
Watches left loose in a drawer or bag accumulate contact damage — case scratches, crystal marks, strap creases, and buckle impressions on dial glass. A watch roll or pouch eliminates this by giving each watch its own padded, lined space.
Watch rolls — hold up to three watches with straps already attached, each in a separate padded compartment, rolled into a compact cylinder for travel or storage. Available in oiled calfskin (oiled brown, oxblood), pebble-grain calfskin (pebble brown, pebble black, pebble midnight), suede (moss green, brown), and canvas (black, khaki, khaki green). Priced from £49.95.
Watch pouches — single-watch protection in a soft-lined pouch. The most affordable and compact storage option — a pouch for every watch in the collection is the correct approach for long-term home storage. Available in pebble-grain calfskin across an extensive colour range (black, white, petrol, teal, midnight blue, sky blue, nordic blue, burgundy, brown, olive, yellow, orange, pink, magenta, taupe, oxblood, and more) and in suede (grey, brown, khaki green, navy, olive, golden brown, pumpkin, mustard yellow, camo). Priced at £19.95.
The correct combination for most collectors: a watch roll for travel, a pouch for every watch not currently being worn.
Why Store Straps Correctly
A full-grain calfskin strap stored correctly — flat, away from direct light, not in contact with other buckles or hardware — lasts many years and develops a rich patina. The same strap stored loose in a drawer with other gear gets creased, loses its shape, and develops contact marks across the surface. The investment in a watch roll or pouch is small relative to the cost of the straps inside it.
The same applies to the watch itself. A strap change done with a quality spring bar tool using quick release bars takes under thirty seconds and leaves no marks on the case. A strap change done with a knife blade or a coin takes longer, risks scratching the lug, and eventually damages the lug hole itself. The right tools cost under ten pounds and last indefinitely.