How-to: Match leather Apple Watch band lugs for red and blue models

Most Apple Watch bands from Apple and third-party manufacturers tend to have silver steel lugs. Unfortunately, they just don’t match the vast majority of watches on wrists. While these classic lugs do usually match silver stainless steel watches, other models like gold and space gray tend to get left in the dust. Some bands come with matching lugs in those colors, but it’s been particularly difficult finding bands that match the (Product) red and blue Apple Watch Series 6 models.

The good news is that you can indeed change the lugs on leather Apple Watch bands. Even better news, you can buy red and blue replacement lugs. Here’s how to swap out the lugs on your Apple Watch bands…

Where to buy

You can find red, blue, pink, and black lugs all over the web. But the ones I ordered were from Amazon. For $7.49 you can pick up two lugs and a replacement screw tool. You’re gonna need that tool in order to take apart your Apple Watch band of choice.

Remove the existing lugs

First thing’s first, you’ve got to remove your band from your Apple Watch if you are currently wearing it. You’ll notice two small screws on the front part of each lug that normally gets inserted and hidden when you put the band on your watch.

Use the included removal tool and unscrew the two screws on each lug. The lugs will break apart into 3 pieces when you unscrew the screws. There are two rails that you feed your band through and the actual lug component. I recommend using the tool to reconnect these three pieces so that you don’t lose them.

Add your new lugs

To add the new color matching lugs, you need to take the lugs apart with the replacement tool. Then connect the two rails with the band in the same way the original ones were connected. Attach the rails to the new lug and screw them in. You’ll need to do this on both ends. Make sure that they are tightly attached. You don’t want your watch falling off your wrist!

Voila! You’ve got a matching band

Now you’ve got a custom Apple Watch band with lugs that match your watch’s case seamlessly. It’s really a shame that Apple doesn’t sell bands with matching lugs or even their own replacement lug kits. Even though it takes a bit of work to get your leather bands matching, it’s totally worth it. The more cohesive look is just stunning, especially on the (Product) red Apple Watch.