Haveston IVA Series Skylab '73 Watch Strap

Alex, the founder of British strapmaker Haveston, is fueled by a passion for horology and history. Throughout Haveston's varied and growing portfolio, its designs are defined by a focus on the honest utilitarian character of vintage military industrial equipment used by service personnel for aviation, space exploration, combat and other purposes.

If Haveston's commitment to continuous refinement and innovation is any indication, we can expect much more from the company -- with one underlying idea. According to Alex: "At the end of the day, it always comes back to that service-driven purpose, regardless of whether that is to your community, family, or the world. Having a little reminder of that on your wrist is quite special."

Haveston's IVA collection is inspired by the original vintage space-flown straps used by astronauts to wrist-mount mission tools. The utilitarian construction lends itself to a variety of lunar, pilot and other tool watch styles. IVA makes a great dive strap!

Skylab, the first US space station, launched in 1973 and operated for 24 weeks. It used preexisting and adapted Saturn V rocket sections from the Apollo era to achieve a stable orbital laboratory, and represented a conceptual springboard for further exploration.

Haveston's Skylab '73 IVA strap is based on retro '70s Skylab crew photos of orange Intra-Vehicular Activity suits, with the color adjusted to overlap with the subsequent brighter pumpkin-colored shuttle suits. (A similar tone can be seen on the SK-1 Gagarin suit of 1961.) Skylab '73 features a deep orange nylon exterior with black lining and contrasting white mission patch icon and historical tribute markings. 

Double layers along with a hook-and-loop configuration give the IVA a higher side profile than other Haveston straps. Full-length webbing lining provides uniform structure and support, while the high-grip rubber locking keeper ensures secure closure (spare also included). The one-piece configuration provides security in the event of spring bar failure, and the robust stainless steel bead-blasted hoop buckle makes this strap a highly secure mission tool.

Material:

• Nylon exterior with hook-and-loop (Velcro) lining
• Rubber keeper
• Bead-blasted stainless steel buckle

Sizing:

• Available in 20mm and 22mm
• Shorter than traditional externally mounted EVA straps; engineered for enhanced functionality, comfort and aesthetics
• 1.6mm - 2.5mm thick
• 290mm (11-3/8") long, excluding buckle
• Fits wrists 160mm - 210mm (6-3/8" - 8-1/4")

Notes:

• For watches with limited spring bar-to-case clearance, install bars over the strap, and consider using curved bars
• Avoid forcing the strap through; this may deteriorate the strap, bars and case

Includes:

• One free pair of strong, seamless double-flange stainless steel spring bars
• Spare rubber keeper