Hey, at least I think I’m hilarious. That’s what counts, or so I tell myself.
This watch has seen some shit. I’m a bit of a watch nerd, and if I had my druthers I’d have a nicer looking analog watch, but the Citizen watches I’ve tried on shift, while excellent timepieces, have simply not held up to the rigors of the work.
For those unfamiliar: when you’re doing a search or advancing a hoseline, you make lots of sweeping motions with your arms, often hitting things in the process. Well, I kept knocking the spring bars off my Citizen watches; I suspect this has to do with the lack of extra rubber reinforcement around the spring bars the Citizens have as compared to the Casio.
This Casio is solar powered and is an “atomic clock” (more accurately, a radio-controlled clock) which receives the signal broadcast from the atomic clock nightly, allowing me to be lazy and A) never change a battery and B) not worry about having to set the time, just the time zone.
I’ve always been a huge fan of these two features, and refuse to buy a watch that isn’t either solar powered or mechanical self-winding, because yes, I’m that lazy.
A brief sidebar in regards to “atomic watches” and radios follows. Skip to the heading below if you don’t care.
Nerd alert:
NIST (the US National Institute of Standards and Technology) runs three broadcast stations: WWV, WWVH and WWVB. These stations broadcast the time on several frequencies – 2.5, 5, 10, 15 and 20 MHz, all in the HF (high frequency) or “shortwave” band. For reference, those cheap little radios you buy for kids (FRS or Family Radio Service) operate in the 460 MHz range, or UHF (ultra high frequency).
Additionally, WWVB broadcasts a 60 Mhz (VHF – very high frequency) signal from Fort Collins, CO that all these “atomic clocks” receive (usually at night when the signal is strongest) and then use to calculate the local time offset, thereby providing you with the time!
There are also counterpart stations at 60 MHz in Japan and the UK, as well as a bunch of other similar stations on different frequencies around the world – Wikipedia has a list here.
Incidentally, you can tune to these frequencies with most SDRs (Software Defined Radios) and actually listen to the time signal and the voice announcements! You can also call (303) 499-7111 for WWV in Colorado, or (808) 335-4363 for WWVH in Hawaii and listen that way; just beware that the calls are not toll-free, and they disconnect automatically at 2 minutes.
If you want to learn more, NIST has an excellent set of articles on radio controlled clocks and their radio broadcasts at those links.
Nerd out complete.
OK, back to gear.
There are two “flavors” of this watch – I’ve got the tactical as f##k all-black version, which can be found right here. There’s also a black and silver version that’s a fair bit cheaper right now:
Either one is a nice durable work watch. I’ll forever be a Citizen fan for casual or office wear, but for my work demands, I’m a Casio guy. If there’s interest, I’ll write more about my other watches in coming posts.
-T