Some people are allergic to gold. This can be a literal allergy, where exposure to the metal brings the victim out in hives, or a metaphorical allergy where the sufferer has decided the metal is vulgar and showy and not to be worn by anyone with taste.
At Chrono Hunter we have sympathy for the former and pity for the latter. Gold comes in a large enough variety of shades, from white through hundreds of iterations to deep red, for there to be a watchstrap to suit everyone. The difference in colours is created by the addition of different alloys. White gold is made by adding platinum, nickel or silver and red gold by adding copper. Green, blue and even orange gold can also be created.
If there is nothing among those colours for you, we politely suggest you haven’t looked hard enough. Even the shiniest, goldest of golds can look elegant and sophisticated on the right wrist in the right setting.
Pure does not necessarily mean good when it comes to watch straps. 24kt is too soft to do the job, it will scratch and stretch and end up looking a mess. It could even break, causing you to lose a valuable watch and a costly but useless strap. But this is no reason to go too far the other way. One thing Chrono Hunter would not recommend is gold plate. It may look good when brand new but, despite improved application techniques, over time it will wear and eventually reveal the base metal beneath it. In our opinion, this is the horological equivalent of underpants being visible above trousers – strictly for other people.
Historically some of the better manufacturers did use gold plate, so you may encounter it in some vintage pieces, but the better manufacturers have now turned their backs on that process.
Many manufacturers use 14kt gold, but the best ones have found that with a bit of tinkering, 18kt can be made strong enough to do the job.
There is no better company to look to than Rolex when seeking expertise on precious metals. It even has its own foundry.
Rolex uses 18kt gold for its watches and straps. The addition of platinum and some alloys (the precise formula is jealously guarded) brings strength and hardiness while retaining 76 per cent gold. There are three colours created - white, yellow and Rolex’s exclusive Everose. Everose is a beautiful pink/copper coloured metal that Chrono Hunter thinks is perfect for every occasion and a match for almost anything.
Gold will never match stainless steel when it comes to hardiness, although new manufacturing techniques and the addition of new alloys is closing the gap between the two. But stainless steel will never match gold when it comes to value and elegance. There is a huge amount of choice out there. Why not spend some golden hours searching for the right gold for you?