He had been in all 7 oceans with it. And the strap was made off a binocular case strap because his rubber one died in the Indian Ocean... AFTER its rehab. He said please make it work but make it look "about the same" if you can Cazalea ...
Rubber straps die "quite soon", much sooner than the watch in any case, which seems immortal. These are probably the most widely used diving tool watches of the eighties and nineties and as much as I can se they are still for sale.