I have really enjoyed my Heuer Autavia 02 Chronograph. Being a vintage inspired piece I really prefer the looks of this watch on the distressed leather strap. The thick OEM leather strap pairs perfectly with this watch (IMO). However, I always prefer the security and convenience of a deployment clasp. Taking off the watch with OEM pin buckle clasp always felt dangerous hovering 4-5 feet over the hard tile floor in my bathroom. I have had some close calls. I also didn't like the way the strap looked on the underside of my wrist with the pin buckle clasp. The thick leather strap had to go through the pin buckle, curve over it, and then pass through the minder loops stacking on top of the strap. Being such a thick leather it just looked weird making this journey, whereas a thin leather would probably look fine. Here was my idea; get a custom strap made to look like the OEM strap, but pair it with a deployment clasp. I wanted an OEM clasp, but I also wanted a vintage inspired clasp without the Tag branding since the watch forgoes any Tag branding. I found the Tag Heuer clasp part FC5049. This only has the Heuer logo and can accept thick straps up to 3mm in height. Perfect. I had Artisan Straps (https://artisanstraps.com.au/) custom make a leather strap similar to the OEM strap, but with dimensions that would fit the Heuer FC5049 18mm wide clasp. I would highly recommend Artisan Straps. Jayson does an excellent job and cares about his customers. Here are some photos of the results. I am extremely happy. The leather looks better than the OEM strap and it fits perfectly with the deployment clasp. It is much easier to get on and off and I am not worried about dropping it when taking it off. It also looks much better on the underside of my wrist with the excess strap tucking under.
Hello, and best wishes to you all, This is an amazing alternative for the standard strap/buckle. Can you please tell which strap you ordered (material/thickness)? I would like one for myself. Thank you, Eric
Wow! I’d probably do this one day. All my Heuer Autavias are on pin & buckle but would like to get a Heuer deployment clasp also Thanks for sharing sir
Jayson at Artisan Straps doesn't have this strap on his website. I had him custom make it for me. Just let him know which strap you want and I am sure he could make you a copy. I told him I was linking to his website with my post. The lug width of the watch is 21mm tapering to 18mm at the clasp for the FC5049. Keep the thickness of the leather just under 3mm. I used the natural color waxy leather strap.
If you prefer a thinner leather strap, there is the clasp part number FC5042 that is basically the same, but it only accepts straps up to 2mm in thickness.