The Second Fratello × REM Strap For The Speedmaster: The Lunar Rover
Last month’s Fratello × REM strap for the Speedmaster (the Lunar Lander) was a huge success and received an incredible amount of interest. Today, we introduce to you our second collaboration, which is based on the Apollo 15 mission. However, you don’t need a Speedmaster Apollo 15 limited-edition watch. This strap will fit any Moonwatch with a 20mm lug spacing. We also took your feedback on the quick-release pins seriously and asked REM to make it happen for this and the upcoming Speedmaster straps for 2023. As we wrote for our January release, there will be a Fratello × REM strap for the Speedmaster every month this year. This will include (later on) a 19mm version for the straight-lug models.
Fratello × REM Lunar Rover Strap
NASA’s Apollo 15 mission (July 26th – August 7th, 1971) was the first to make use of the Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV) on the surface of the Moon. Astronauts Dave Scott (who we interviewed here), Al Worden (command module pilot), and James Irwin were the Apollo 15 crew and put the first lunar rover on the Moon. The lunar rover was folded and stored in the Apollo Lunar Module (pictured on the first strap we introduced). NASA brought three rovers to the Moon in total during the Apollo 15, 16, and 17 missions.
All three lunar rovers are still on the Moon, and a fun fact is that Gene Cernan achieved the highest speed driving one during the Apollo 17 mission (18 km/h or 11.2mph). Together with Totte el Siddig of REM, we came up with the idea of using the lunar rover on the strap. As you can see, it’s a black 20mm strap with white-filled engraved lunar rovers. The strap tapers to 18mm and comes with a satin-finished Fratello-signed buckle.
The details
We considered the positioning of the rovers on the strap and ultimately decided to cut them in half. This means that if you put the two strap parts side by side, the lunar rovers are pictured in full. The reason behind this is that we wanted to make the images large enough to identify them as the LRV with as much detail as possible.
The entire production takes place in Sweden, including the laser engraving of the strap. The laser cutting is done with high precision and then colored white by hand. The strap measures 127mm for the long part and 74mm for the short part. As written above, the strap comes with a Fratello-signed (18mm) buckle.
The organic leather strap wears comfortably on the wrist, and we think the black and white colors are neutral enough to fit most Omega Speedmaster Professional variations. We asked the folks at REM if they could also include quick-release pins on this and upcoming straps.
Although they never did before, they got the right tooling for this, and all straps will now come with quick-release pins. If you, like me, are not a fan of these quick-release pins, you can easily take them out and replace them with normal 20mm spring bars.
Every strap has “Fratello × REM Straps” and “February 2023” engraved in the lining. As mentioned, together with REM Straps, we will introduce a new leather strap for a Speedmaster every month this year.
Therefore, you can expect to see a strap made for the Snoopy, the Speedy Tuesday models, the FOiS, and so on. The Lunar Rover strap is available in one length only and exclusively as a 20mm strap. For the smaller Speedmaster models, such as the FOis and Calibre 321, we will use a 19mm size.
Available now
This second Fratello × REM Strap for the Speedmaster is now available in our shop. Each month, we will have a new design with new colors. Though we’ll design these with specific Speedmasters in mind, the straps might also work on other models as well.
You can order the Lunar Rover strap for €129 (€106 excluding VAT) from the Fratello Shop. The strap qualifies for free worldwide shipping as well. Let us know what you think of this strap and our ongoing project with REM Straps in the comments below!