Beware: premature Suunto D4 Strap failures

[CheeseAndJamSandwich]

I bought my D4 just after it was released and love it!

But a lot less than a year later, the little strap-loop fell off... I never remembered snagging it and looking at it, the rubber didn't seem it's usual stretchy self. Never mind, i pinched the spare off the unused strap extension.

Then, still under a year, the strap broke! One day, I felt the watch was a bit looser than normal and noticed it was only hanging on by half the strap, one side of the hole. :-(
Looking at the strap i noticed that the elastomer rubber again didn't look quite right. It wasn't shiny and as rubbery as usual... And the most alarming thing was that the strap was all cracked on the underside. Again, I did not remember snagging it on anything. And i almost never, ever took it off...

The appearance of the rubber and the fact that the rubber was cracked, suggests to me that the material chosen for the strap might be a bad one! And that a snagging, etc wasn't the reason for the cracks/failure. Rather that the elastomer rubber had perished for some reason. I've owned enough digital watches all thru my life and have never remembered a strap on any of them breaking in under a year. (usually lasting years).

Unfortunately straps aren't covered by the warranty (which is understandable in most cases). But in this case, it seems like a design flaw, the wrong material used. so perhaps it should have been covered.

Seeing that this computer is a) expensive and b) an very important part of my dive equipment, maintaining my safety underwater! Should the material choice be a bit better??? !

So yeah, i went to buy a new strap in Sanur, Bali and was then knocked over by the cost of the replacement strap (kit!). $70 USD! (list price) The shop owner felt sorry for me as he also thought it was too much and gave it to me for near trade price. Which was still and arm and a leg... Luckily i had one arm left to put the newly strapped watch onto!

So now, 8 months later, the little strap loop has fallen off... Making me think i should buy another spare strap... !

Anyone else had a D4 strap break?

 

[CheeseAndJamSandwich]

So it's less that 2 years old and i'm on my 3rd strap!

The little strap loop fell off the other day, so i thought i'd be clever and buy a spare strap kit... which i got stung 111NZD for! :-(
But when i got the new strap, i looked at the strap on the watch, only to find that it was cracked in 3 places!!! 1 on the long strap and 2 on the short strap!

So now i have the new strap fitted.

This is costing me a fortune!!!

One thing that has been mentioned is that mozzie repellents might eat the elastomer. But i'd used them very rarely with the first strap.
I also don't use nasty soaps n stuff when showering, Water's good enough. So it isn't that either.
And i've spent the last year in NZ, not wearing mozzie stuff or sunscreen at all...

So no mozzie stuff, no soaps, no sunscreen, nothing... And it's all cracked up and about to fail... :-/

Does the elastomer just not like the natural oils from the skin???

This is a joke.

So beware people. Check your strap regularly for the cracks/breaks.

 

[Bubbletrubble]

Maybe you should replace the stock Suunto elastomer strap with a Waterborne strap.

 

[HenrikBP]

Maratac Nato style watch straps are very nice and quite secure. Not that expensive and very easy to switch if you need a longer strap for thicker exposure protection.

Henrik

 

[CheeseAndJamSandwich]

Maybe you should replace the stock Suunto elastomer strap with a Waterborne strap.

There lies the annoying problem...
The Suunto strap attachment is totally nonstandard.
As you can see in one of my pics, it's 'inside-out' compared to normal watchstrap/pins attachment of every other watch in the world.

So there's the option of the original Black D4 strap or the spazzie coloured ones.

 

[nielk]

There lies the annoying problem...

The same happend to my D4 after about a year and a half... It would be nice to have had the option of something more durable to replace the strap with.

 

[grouperman]

I had the strap fail on my D4 after about a year and a half. I replaced it with a rubber strap from Modena Watch for $12 or $13, free shipping.

It is not a perfect fit since it does not flare out towards the watch like the original strap but it has endured a lot of dives in the past three months and of course, everyday wear with the watch getting banged around all the time. They have a pretty good selection as well. I don't know how durable this will end up to be but if I get a year or two out of it I'll be more than happy.

 

[jozidiver]

Suunto realy has it wrong. Are their straps made in China?

The Black strap breaks, the colour straps dis-colour .

Sadly I don't wear Suunto any more.

Get the straps right and I buy one again.

 

[johnnythailand]

My Suunto D4 strap failed on me pre-maturely as well. I had it for less than a year and a half and it broke in half on me.

Plus the colors fade very quickly within months. My friend's Pink D4 is now an ugly beige. My blue is now a ugly blue-green-brown.

But the main problem is they fail and break.

 

[drl]

My husband's Mosquito strap broke, causing him to lose the computer somewhere in Lake Michigan :frown:
He had had it for several years but still, to lose it like that hurts.