Camille Fournet Straps Review
Camille Fournet is a small leather goods and watch straps manufacturer located in France. They’re known in the watch community as one of the best strap maker and OEM strap makers for JLC and some Omega models. However, skill comes at a cost as they’re one of the more expensive custom straps next to famous names such as Aaron of Combat Straps, Jean Rousseau and ABP Concept.
My choice of strap is a bit limited this time around as exotic materials are not available to order from them depending on your location. Australia has a stricter law regarding importation of animal leather that Camille Fournet does not want to ship alligators or crocodiles. Another experience I had with this law is a delayed shipment of a Grand Seiko SBGW231 as Seiko took a while to get a clearance for the crocodile strap.
Pricing
Their prices vary depending on material and if it’s custom made or off-the-shelf. For off-the-shelves, their alligator can start at USD$166 to USD$350 for the more expensive hand-stitched with an alligator lining.
I opted for a curved custom made calf as it’s one of the cheapest and also available for shipping to Austraia. There’s not a lot of strap maker who can do curve straps as well. I initially ordered one first and ordered another one. Below are my configurations.
Prices for both are identical with the latter being cheaper as I did not opt for a buckle. A notable configuration I chose was opting for machine stitched. Hand stitched considerably increases the price
Shipping and packaging
Camille Fournet delivered when it came to delivery and packaging. They use a priority FedEx to deliver to Australia so it arrived in less than 5 business days. Inside the parcel is a thank you letter and a nice black rectangular box. Upon sliding to open, there’s another velvet pouch which holds the strap.
Review
The initial strap I ordered couldn’t be anymore perfect. The curved ends are curved and it is identical, if not better, than the Moser strap.
You can already feel what makes CF straps the choice of major manufacturers upon receiving. The stitching, albeit machine stitched, is consistent from start to finish. Even the ends of the stitches matches the opposite side and very little to no signs of glue marks. The lug holes are big enough for a moser spring to pass through. Moreoever, the edges are some of the best ones I have seen for painting and sanding.
The buckle looks very unique as well. It’s dubbed as “CF” stainless steel buckle which I have to agree as I haven’t seen this design anywhere yet. It feels solid enough so I got no complaints about that. Just a note that if you plan on using your own buckle, the hole where the hook comes out is a tad small so thicker hooks will stretch it a bit.
The strap exceeded my expectations that I decided to order another strap. However, compared to the first one this is a bit less perfect, but still a high quality strap nonetheless. The difference is that the curve is not as curved as before. When you have a watch that has a really short lug, every curve matters. The good news is that it still fits! Another thing I noticed is that the leather is smoother compared to the grain and an option if you are fitting it in a dressier watch.
Both straps were made in the highest quality that I could see in any strap thus far. Both were not too overly stiff out of the box and got softer as I got to use it more. After three weeks of daily use, it has a more comfortable fit.
Final Verdict
I would recommend this if people are looking for a custom made curved strap. I would rank them as 9/10 and would be back for more.