J. Crew Timex Alternatives: The Bulova Canvas Strap

The Green Canvas Bulova 96A102 – $81.14 and Black Canvas 98A102 – $106.25

You can get far on a good reputation. For men’s style, nowhere is that more clear than with J. Crew’s marketing & selling of Timex Watches. They look great and many swear by them despite the price, but reasonable alternatives exist for a fraction of the cost. For more, see our archive of similar looking watches that cost a whole lot less.

If it’s the vintage look of the J. Crew Timex that appeals to you, then the dial and hands on these Bulova canvas strap watches might be just as good if not better for half the cost.

They don’t come out of the box with a NATO strap, but the canvas bands have that same casual/tough look and feel, and they can be removed by anyone with a spring bar tool.  Try a mall watch kiosk or the jewelry counter at a department store if you don’t want to screw around with doing it yourself.*

*NOTE:  if you are going to do this yourself, do it right.  That means with a real spring bar tool, fully sober, and inside.  Not with a razor blade, two beers in, and outside facing the back yard.  It’s not worth slipping and launching the spring bar into the grass.  Trust me on this one.

The diameter is 40mm and looks a little smaller.  With of the band is 20mm so the J Crew straps should work on these.  It does have an acrylic crystal, which is as cheap as it gets, and a disappointment for a watch that looks this good.  But being that it was stuck at $150 full retail at Macy’s forever, and can now be had for almost half that on Amazon*, it’s hard to complain.

*Just the green is available for around $80.  The black is $110, and know that it’s not sold direct by Amazon.