"Rolex Submariner 14060M" blues ...

The 14060M (Sub ND as in "Submariner No Date") is kinda like the *real* Rolex Submariner. The version with date complication is actually called "Submariner Date" (11660).

I like this watch. But the delima is that I probably won't own one. Reason as follow:

• There's no date complication.
  Though I love the simple and symatical dial of the Sub ND. I would *prefer* the date complication because it comes into handy quite often. This is not a deal breaker though.
  
• The Sub ND is one of the most common Rolex divers/sports watch.
  From the people that I know personally, I know four guys that owns a Sub ND! They are practically everywhere. Being so common makes it less "special" ;-)
  
• The lume
  I don't think I would be happy with the lume brightness of the Sub ND. The lume on the Sea Dweller still leaves a bitter taste in my month. And I can only call the lume brightness on the Maxi dial on my GMT IIc *decent*. So for the Sub ND, I already knew I won't be *happy* with the lume.
  
• And what? No solid end links on the bracelet for a watch that cost over USD$5000 MSRP?! My Marathon SAR and Omega SMP is cost much (much) less and they comes with fantastic solid end links with the bracelet. So what do you say about that? The clasp isn't something you would call home about either, but that's across the whole Rolex line (production before the new improved clasp), so its not just the problem of the Sub ND.
  
• With the funds for a SUb ND (and the version that I want, read below), I could have used the funds towards another watch thats higher up on my wish list. (Rolex black Milgauss (116400)? Omega Ploprof 1200m?)
  

Having said all that, would I own one if right opportunity present itself? Most definitely ... LOL There's something about the Sub ND that makes it so desireable: the simple and clean dial, the drill through lug holes, low profile case, reliable 3130 movement, robust triple lock crown, the whole tried and tested package ...

For me, it probably has to be the COSC version with the "Chronometer Certified" on the dial and RRR rehaut. I think those "extra" makes it *just* a little bit more special than the ones without. LOL :D



(picture from the web)

For sale blogs moved to new location ...

The for sale blogs moved to a new location, so that its easier for me to control the content and it won't clutter up my other BS-es ... LOL :D

Panerai delima ... ( + what should my next watch be? )

So, I thought I wanted the PAM 312. It looks very good with the 1950 style case, an *affordable* in house panerai automatic 3-day (power reserve) movement with date complication, no cyclops, the new quick change system (no more screws) for strap change, sandwich dial, ... everything looks fantastic. Unfortuniate, my local AD doesn't have one for me to try it out. Until I found out that its about 18.5mm thick! And that's THICK! Even thicker than the Rolex Deepsea Sea Dweller (DSSD). I don't think I will be able to pull off the Rolex DSSD, so now I have doubts if I can pull off a PAM312. "Regular sized" (44mm) Contemporary Collection Submersible (PAM 24 and 25) is already big for my wrist size. I would imagine the even thicker PAM 312 would over power it. Though I really like the 312, I might have to drop it from my wish list until I tried one out in person and it somehow fits ...

I have worn 18mm tall watches before, a Ball Engineer Hydrocarbon Titanium Chronograph. But that's a watch with curved lugs that really huge your wrist.

So, possibly another Panerai? 24, 25, 104, 111, 186?

• PAM 24 is a little too blingy as a diver,
  
• PAM 25 is matt and nice but I am afraid the titanium may get beat up quicker than I would like,
  
• PAM 104 is good because its automatic and its good for lazy people like me (too lazy to wind the watch every day or every other day), but I think the don't like cyclop (date magnifer). I think it looks better with the bracelet (PAM 220) but the bracelet is EXPENSIVE!
  
• PAM 111 is the most basic I could live with (3 hands) and I like the sandwich dial, but for reason I am having a difficult time justifying the cost of a simple watch and simple movement like that,
  
• PAM 186 is awesome, but its harder to come by and I would expect the anti-magnetic case (the caseback) would be too thick for me to wear.
  

That leaves me ... no choice?! No PAM! I digress. I am sure I can find other watches to buy. And there are always "impulse buy" ... LOL :D

Maybe another Rolex? Milgauss? Sub LV? Sub ND COSC? How about a 45.5mm Omega Planet Ocean (black/black) with rubber strap? And don't forget about my grail Omega SMP Plofprof 1200m ... hehe~ :)

And for some odd reason, the Zinex Heliox caught my attention. Its a huge chunk of metal that can take the pressure of up to 2500m. I am sure it will be pushing the limit of my wrist but I guess the odd case shape draws me to it.

I can never do this with my Rolex Sea Dweller 4000 ...

I can never do this with my Rolex Sea Dweller 4000



The Maxi dial on the GMT IIc (117610) provides much better lume than the Sea DWeller did. If the Sea Dweller has lume this *decent*, I would have kept my Sea Dweller.

Mind you, the Omega SMP's and Seiko Diver's lume still a few steps brighter than the Rolex.

Having said that, the lume on my GMT IIc can last beyond 4:30am and still *readable* in a dark room.

I would keep it just for looks ...

This is not the latest from Casio, but its definitely one that I like a lot. Its the G-Shock MTG910DJ-2A. I think its either the black & grey color of the case and bracelet, or the touch of blue that reminds me of this that makes it looks very nice.:


Its also the watch that appears in the movie Mission Impossible III (MI:3). The first two Mission Impossible movies both have G-Shock appearance (DW5300 and sterilized DW6900 respectively). It even has two limited edition release for the movie (MTG910D-2VER and MTG911DMS-2VDR).


Mine is the non limited edition with regular tin can and packaging.


Its a nice surprise to find out that this is a Made in Japan model with a nice and thick matt PVD (black ion ?) coating on the clasp



The curved lugs makes it an easy wear for even my small-ish wrist size and stay comfortable on the wrist. I do wished that the timing function is more complete. It has a date/time stamp function in place of a more functional countdown timer (IMO). But you know what, I still would live with it cause it looks THAT look ... LOL :D

(right out of the box and not sync-ed yet :p )

List of toys

Watches:

Have

1. Tag Heuer 200m quartz diver (old school, my first "nice" watch, and it needs a little TLC)
   
2. Swatch automatic (vintage)
   
3. Swatch Olympic edition quartz chronograph
   
4. Panerai 186 Luminor GMT Arktos (H)
   
5. Panerai 111 Luminor Marina (H)
   
6. Seiko Kinetic 200m diver (SMY089) (with SBDX001 Marinemaster clasps)
   
7. Casio G-Shock GW6900-1
   
8. Casio G-Shock GW9200 Riseman (has best features for all Casio G-Shocks IMO)
   
9. Casio G-Shock GW810D (reverse LCD with SS bracelet)
   
10. Casio G-Shock GW6100 (thermometer)
    
11. Casio G-Shock DW5600C with 901 module (Speed ...)
    
12. Casio G-Shock DW5600C with 691 module
    
13. Casio Pathfinder Triple Sensor PAW2000T with titanium bracelet
    
14. Casio Speed timer (vintage, my first Casio that I bought, I had at least 2 Casio(s) before that but they were gifts from my Dad)
    
15. Timex Ironman 8-lap 200m shock resistant (my gym bag watch, throw it in and forget about it)
    
16. Timex Ironman iControl with iPod control (pretty much only for using with my iPod when running)
    

Had

1. Rolex Sea Dweller 4000 (16600) M series
   
2. Rolex Sea Dweller 4000 (16600) Z series
   
3. Rolex GMT Master II (116710LN) Z series
   
4. Rolex Milgauss black dial (116400) M series
   
5. Omega Seamaster Professional 300m co-axial Bond with blue dial (2220.80.00, best bang of bucks at its price segment)
   
6. Omega Seamaster Professional 300m co-axial Bond with black dial (212.30.41.20.01.002)
   
7. Omega Seamaster Professional 300m GMT white dial (2538.20.00)
   
8. Victorinox Swiss Army Dive Master 500 LE
   
9. Ocean7 LM-7 1000m (blue dial with SS bracelet)
   
10. Marathon SAR May 2006 contract on maple leaf bracelet (best bang of bucks at its price segment)
    
11. Marathon SAR May 2006 contract on Great US Seal bracelet (best bang of bucks at its price segment)
    
12. Luminox 3202 (WR200M, SS case/bezel/bracelet, inside AR coated sapphire crystal, 10-yr battery)
    
13. modded Seiko 300m Tuna (SBBN007)
    
14. Seiko Marinemaster 300m automatic (SBDX001)
    
15. Seiko Landmaster 200m automatic (SBDX007)
    
16. Doxa SUB 750T Sharkhunter
    
17. Doxa SUB 1000T Professional Military Edition
    
18. Doxa SUB 5000T Sharkhunter
    
19. Traser P6506 with titanium bracelet
    
20. Traser P6504 Nautic
    
21. Casio G-Shock G2310 with zulu strap
    
22. Casio G-Shock hybrid GW810/GWM850 with rubber strap
    
23. Casio G-Shock hybrid GW810/GWM850 with bracelet
    
24. Casio G-Shock DW8800 Codename (with extra DW9052 straps)
    
25. Casio G-Shock MTG910DJ (MI:3 ... )
    
26. Casio G-Shock G9000-8V Mudman (Storm Trooper)
    
27. Casio G-Shock GW056CJ (2006 special edition with reverse LCD)
    
28. Casio Pathfinder Triple Sensor PAW1300T with titanium bracelet
    

Want to have

1. Rolex Submariner COSC (14060M),
   
2. Rolex Submariner Date 16610LV 50th anniversary
   
3. Omega Seamaster Professional 300m co-axial blue Bond
   
4. Panerai 24/243/292/312
   
5. Seiko Marinemaster 300m autoatic (SBDX001) or Landmaster automatic (SBDX007) or Landmaster automatic 10th anniversary (SBDX009)
   
6. Dievas Vortex 500m Diver
   
7. Casio G-Shock GW9110 Gulfman
   
8. Casio Pathfinder PAW2000T with titanium bracelet solar atomic multi band 6
   

Lights:

Have

1. Fenix TK40
   
2. Fenix L2D
   
3. Fenix L1D
   
4. Fenix P1
   
5. Fenix P1D (+ Leaf clicky body)
   
6. Fenix MC10 (black)
   
7. Nitecore EZ AA (revised version)
   
8. a bunch of Surefire + Leaf bezels, bodies & parts Lego (RCR123s, 18650s, LED lamp assemblies, clicky tail switches ...)
   
9. Inova X5 mil PVD
   
10. Inova 24/7
    

Had

1. Surefire G2Z
   
2. Surefire M3 (old style smooth bezel)
   
3. Surefire M3T
   

Want to have

1. Maybe a few more AAA or AA (eneloop) powered lights, cause I think I want to get out of the RCR123 business ...
   

Knives & Multi-Tools:

Have

1. Gerber multi-tool (old school)
   
2. Leatherman Charge TTi
   
3. Boker Plus Hyper
   
4. Spyderco Sage
   

Had

1. CRKT M16-10k
   
2. CRKT M16-12ZFD
   
3. Leatherman Charge ALX
   

Want to have

1. Leatherman Skeletool cx (with plain 154CM blade)
   

Getting ready ...

Well, two more watches gone. They are the Casio G-Shock G2310-1V on zulu strap

and Casio Pathfinder PAW1300T titanium

.

I think G2310 is a great G-Shock. It has the reliable ML2016 rechargeable cell, just like the one in the higher end GW200 Frogman. I have used it as my backup watch, so I didn't have too much chance to wear it. One annoying thing about though, is the start and stop button of the chrono and countdown timer is different from the conventional layout.

On a conventional chronograph, the start button is at the lower right corner and the stop button is at the top right corner. In the G2310 (and the G2300 series), the layout is flipped with top as start and bottom as stop. But many other Casio's are designed with the conventional start / stop buttons layout. To me, Casio just miss that little design detail.

As of the Pathfinder PAW1300T, though I like it a lot, its just another watch that doesn't get much wrist time at all. And since I am thinning down the herd, the ones that doesn't get much wrist time gotta go first. The newer multi band 6 Pathfinder PAW2000T is out already.

The good thing about the PAW2000T is that it has a conventional flat lug shape, so I would be able to take off the bracelet (attached by screws to the case) and replace it with a zulu strap if I need to wear it that way (i.e. out side of a thick skii jacket). but I am not in much of a hurry to get one. Its just that I have many other watches that's keeping me entertained. :-) Plus I can use the funds for what's on my shopping list. More on this later ... ;-)

I haven't found a new knife for a while. Partly because the Boker Plus Hyper suits my needs very well. I really like the size, the slim profile and the blade shape. I have used it a lot and it definitely can used a good sharpening. One very minor thing about it is that when I clip it to my front pocket of my jeans, the thumb studs gets into the way when I am trying to take the knife out. Because of that, I have been looking for a folder with a thumb hole for a while. And here comes my new knife, the Spyderco Sage.

It has a thumb hole instead of studs, so that solved my (very minor) issue with the Hyper. Also the Sage has a nicely textured Carbon fiber handle with steel liner, a liner lock, S30V blade (3" in lenght). The blade length is almost identical to that of the Hyper's, but the handle on the Sage is longer and makes it more comfortable to grip. That makes the closed length of the Sage longer than that of the Hyper's. Sage is still pretty slim in thickness and pretty light weight. I would imagine its still easy to carry around. One thing about the Sage is that it only have tip up carry option. I wished it also has tip down carry option which I prefer. I just received the Sage so I have put it through its peace yet, but I am liking it so far.

Another toy I haven't spent much money on lately is flashlights. :D But my recent discovery of the Fenix TK40 finally deemed cash-worthy for me to spend ... LOL.

Look at the spec here: running 8AA batteries (with the option of 4 in case of emergency), Creed MC-E LED, 630 lumen max output ... I stopped there, cause I have read enough of it and my next question was: "Where can I get one?" haha~

This flashlight appears right when I begin to think I should replace my flashlight that takes RCR123 and 18650 with safer and more widely available AA size NiMH batteries. So its only natural that I get the TK40, and then get a few single and 2x AA batteries flashlights. (Which also means I am going to sell of my 123 & 18650 powered lights). Anyway, I am still waiting for my TK40 to arrive. And in the mean while, I will be looking for some enelope (low discharge rechargeable) batteries to power the TK40.

Another light I am interested in (besides the Fenix LD20+), is the Fenix MC10.

It has a multi angle head, signal AA powered, can be clipped on the shoulder strap of my backpack and illuminate to the front. I think the design is great and I have been waiting for something like this for a while. But I am holding out for it cause I want to wait for the review from owners.

This blogging thing ...

I think I will need more time to get used to this blogging thing. The picture size, how to organize the posts, theme, etc ... I still miss the day of hhtml, where I have more control over the style, structure and everything ...

Something gotta give ...

As the arrival of the Rolex GMT IIc, gone are the modded Seiko 300m Tuna (SBBN007) and Victorinox Dive Master 500m LE PVD titanium. Both are nice watch, but I forsee they won't get too much wrist time in the future.

For the 300m Tuna, I like the idea of having the battery change log on the caseback, so that I know when's the next battery change. But I think I like the feeling of knowing that wearing the watch will help power it (i.e. automatic, kinetic and solar, sort of).

The Swiss Army Dive Master 500m LE is a nice watch, great watch for the money. The list of feature belongs to much more expensive watches. But for my wrist size, its just 1mm oversized. I kinda wished its a 42mm watch instead of 43mm. I think my quest for oversized watch may not over and I feel like 40-42mm is the perfect size for me. Well, I still haven't owned a Paneria yet, but that's another story ... LOL :D

Maybe I will let go of some other watches that I don't quite wear, so that they will get a good home and some wrist time that they rightfully deserve. But I guess I am throwing my previous list of keep-n-going out the window ... LOL :D

Rolex GMT Master II 116710LN is here ...

Ok, so the Rolex GMT Master II 116710LN (GMT IIc, c for the ceramic bezel insert) arrived. Its a very nice size cause I found the Sea Dweller just a little on the small side. But the super case of the GMT IIc made it the perfect size for a sports watch. The Maxi dial indeed allows more real estate for lume material, hence better lume brightness. That's a much welcome upgrade from regular dial and hands. I am liking it so far.

I am still trying to properly fit the watch, the bracelet sizing option includes: full links, hidden half link inside the clasp and hidden micro adjustment inside the clasp (circled red).