My Next EDC Bag - Helikon-Tex RACCOON

Greetings readers, six months ago I shared with you some of the shortcomings I faced in using the 5.11 Rush 12 backpack. In the same post, I surmised that the solution to the problem was a bag that Helikon-Tex had just released back then; the Direct Action Dragon Egg. Well, six months later, I still haven't acquired the Dragon Egg, and now I don't think I will. Why? Straight up, the Dragon Egg isn't the cheapest bag. It'll set me back by at least $150, which I didn't think was worth it considering the Rush 12 still serves me decently. Second, and also the main reason behind this post is that I've found something else.

The Helikon-Tex RACCOON backpack.

Now, why was I dissuaded from going with the Dragon Egg?

Picture credit of KICKAss Tactical

I came across several pictures of the Dragon Egg in actual use and it simply seemed to large for my purposes. Understandably, I did mention that I wanted a larger bag than the Rush 12 in the aforementioned post. I've now graduated from college though and gone are the days where I have to pack my textbooks along with my gym shoes and a shaker bottle. I have begun to find even the Rush 12 a little larger than I'd like it to be. Therefore, the next EDC bag I go for would have to smaller than the Rush 12. I was faced with another choice, competing for attention with the RACCOON however.

The Direct Action Dust is the Dragon Egg's little brother, sporting similar features, construction materials, but being five litres smaller in capacity (same as the RACCOON at 20L). It would also ideally by my EDC bag of choice. Here's the thing though, the lowest price I could find for the Dust backpack was 82 EUR while the RACCOON was just half of that at 41 EUR. Of course, there's a trade-off; the RACCOON is made from polyester and doesn't feature Duraflex buckles like the Direct Action line does, which is also made from 500D Cordura.


 

Still, the RACCOON sports the meshed ventilation on its back, one of the things I needed most but the Rush 12 didn't have. The RACCOON is relatively cheap, seems to be decent and it looks great to me. And for that, the RACCOON shall be my next EDC bag purchase. Expect to see a review of the RACCOON in a couple weeks time. Thank you for reading and stay tuned!

Review of the Archules Bronx Hill II Double Monk Straps

Greetings readers of The Watch Post, I have good news to share with all. After close to three very lousy months spent job seeking, I have finally secured employment. And thus, my first steps in the corporate world are about to begin, which means it's time to put those sneakers aside for the weekends. During the weekdays I'll be all about Oxfords, Derbies and of course, monk straps.

With that, let's move on to review the Archules Bronx Hill II monk straps in tan which I bought sometime back. Let's go through some of the specs on this particular offering from them. 

• Constructed with cowhide leather
• Lambskin lining
• Cemented construction
• Rubber soles 

The Archules Bronx Hill II series goes for SGD $115. While I'd like the shoe to feature Goodyear welt construction, that would be most unreasonable to ask for at this price point. The Bronx Hill II comes with cemented construction which is understandable, however that also means there's nothing special to comment on in this aspect. One should be reminded that shoes with cemented construction are unlikely to be reconstructable and once the sole has worn out, that will likely spell the end of the shoe's life. Meermin would be a good direction if you require Goodyear welt on your shoe as a minimum.

Moving on, the shoe uppers are constructed from cowhide. The quality of the leather is very decent indeed, once again considering the price point at which this shoe is going for. The leather has some spots here and there, but these are just minor quibbles and won't detract from the overall aesthetic of the shoe, especially when you view them from a distance such as on your feet. The interior is lined with leather as well which is a nice touch for something at this price point, as I wasn't expecting any sort of lining.

The Bronx Hill II features a cap toe, with a chisel toe profile. It also comes with some sort of premade patination on the toe cap area which I think is really well done. While I don't have any Allen Edmonds or Alden shoes to compare with, the lasting on the Bronx Hill II is fairly slim and overall I'd say it makes for quite an attractive silhouette. Obviously, a definite improvement from square-toed shoes that I've been using in the past.

One point of contention I've had with this pair of shoes so far is the buckles used to tighten the shoes. The silver-colored buckles are a little to thin for the straps to be going through them. As a result, threading the straps through the buckles has been quite a frustrating experience for me. The stitching between the lining and the leather uppers often get caught on the buckles as I'm trying to do the buckles. I foresee the straps which go through the buckles becoming quite creased and deformed as this shoe is used for longer periods.

This shoe is surprisingly comfortable, even as I wore it out for the first time. Break-in time for the Bronx Hill II is nigh non-existent; I didn't suffer any blisters even when I wore this shoe out for the first time and the shoe was already relatively flexible. The cushioning system that Archules features seems to work well, and standing for extended periods won't be too much of a pain to your feet. The soles on the Bronx Hill II are rubber, which has provided me with good grip right out the box. I haven't got to test the grip in a wet environment but there is no reason so far to suspect that these soles will not rise up to the challenge.

Overall, the shoe has been satisfactory on most fronts. The construction, from leather quality to the profile and silhouette of the shoe have all been executed pretty well in my opinion. The comfort has been quite good indeed, with the cushioning system doing it's job well and there being little to no break-in time necessary. About the only gripe with the Bronx Hill II, considering it's price would be the buckles used to secure the straps. I think leaving the straps unlined or using buckles with a wider opening would have made the somewhat frustrating experience when doing up the straps a much better experience.

Archules does include an accessory pack which contains the following: plastic shoe horn, a tin of Kangaroo neutral shoe polish (I believe they will give you the relevant color of polish based on the shoe you bought) and a shoe brush (can't tell if the bristles are synthetic or natural, but it is of a pretty nice quality), all of which are contained in a small velvet drawstring pouch. Other things that are included in the purchase of the shoes include two drawstring pouches (one for each shoe) and a logoed zipper bag which contains the shoebox. All in all, I consider the package to be a rather good.

Archules does home delivery as long as you're living in Singapore and delivery is free. There is an express delivery which comes with an extra charge if you need that. They will bring two sizes for you to try on and you may select the size which better fits you. The second pair however can only differ in size from the first pair by either one size up or down, subject to availability. I personally found this service to be excellent, as I'm a size 41 in some brands and 42 in others. They also have a returns and exchange policy which seems rather friendly although I haven't had any personal experience with it.

The service standards from Archules are commendable to say the least. Singapore isn't exactly known for the best customer service or consumer protection laws. Archules has realized this and capitalized on this by providing better service and I guess you could say it paid off; I am a happy customer. The two size delivery policy will save quite a lot of sizing worries and overall I'd like to applaud Archules on providing a quality of service and product which has been pretty good.

So that's it folks, thanks for reading this review of the Archules Bronx Hill II double monk straps and I think as I start receiving my paychecks, I'll slowly be able to dabble into higher levels of footwear. I think I'll go with a Meermin next, and hopefully one day I'll be reviewing shoes from the big leagues such as John Lobb and Edward Green. Be sure to keep checking The Watch Post for when that happens, thank you and have a good day!

Review of Crumpler Dederang Heist

Good day, readers of The Watch Post. Today, I shall be reviewing the Crumpler Dederang Heist laptop bag after having used it for about two weeks. As with other reviews on The Watch Post, let's take a look at the technical specifications on this bag:

- Width: 40 cm
- Height: 29 cm
- Depth: 8 cm
- Volume: 10 Litres
- Empty Weight: 0.65 kg

- Neoprene padded carry handles and shoulder strap

- YKK water resistant zippers

- Wing design for structural strength

- 900D/300D Nylon ripstop construction for exterior

- 150D Ripstop lining, flamed polypropylene webbing

- Bonded nylon thread with bar tack stitching on all stress points

Now, the main reason I was attracted to this bag were its looks. It seemed as though someone mated the average laptop bag and a tote bag, resulting in the sleek, futuristic look which I simply think looks great. Let's continue digging within though, to see if Crumpler has managed to make form meet function.

Let's begin with the construction of the bag. I won't say that I'm the leading authority when it comes to nylon, as I've only one other nylon bag which is the 5.11 Tactical Rush 12. However, for the environment that this bag is likely to be used in (e.g. office environments), 900D is very much sufficient. Thread denier alone is of course, not a good indicator of durability or quality if the manufacturer does not know how to make a proper bag in the first place.

Rest assured then, that the Dederang Heist is really a solid bag, with sound contruction all over. The many stitches that reinforce stress points should put one at ease from knowing this bag is unlikely to fall apart even if you cram it with piles of documents as well as jam a laptop inside. I am of the opinion that this bag will easily last me at least five years of daily use, unless I start carrying this bag into the jungle.

My Dell XPS 15 rested snugly inside, it being a 15.6" laptop. I felt really safe when my laptop was in this bag thanks to the internal padding present in this bag, which is colored a nice bright orange so that you may easily discern the contents of the bag with a glance.

Apart from the laptop compartment, there is another pocket that runs the length of the bag which I've used to put my documents, a 650ml water bottle and an umbrella. There are also four smaller pockets which one can use to put smaller items in the main compartment. This bag will fit a surprising amount of stuff. I did find the lack of penholder pockets a little disappointing, this being a bag designed for office use. Putting a pen in one of the four smaller pockets is not the best solution since you might have to fish for your pens quite a bit.

On top of the aforementioned compartments, there is a seperate compartment which can be accessed by another zip. As well, I'd like to have seen some organization pockets here since being the big plain compartment that it is now made me have to fish for my items on occasion.

The zips are YKK zippers all-around, and are rubberized to make it harder for water to pass through. There is a little bit of a trade-off in that these zippers require a little more force than normal zippers to operate but I appreciate the amount of effort Crumpler made in keeping this bag water resistant.

The handles feel sturdy, more than enough to support the weight of the bag and any contents you may have inside. They are padded with neoprene on the bottom so that they'll go easy on your hands. I've carried this bag for extended periods by the carry handles and the neoprene does a great job indeed at keeping the handles comfortable to hold, even with a considerable load.

Likewise, the strap that comes with the bag has a portion which is padded with neoprene that keeps things comfortable. It has a rubberized Crumpler logo on the strap which keeps it grippy while on your shoulder. The strap does it's job of transferring the load onto your shoulders well.

To end off, I think the Crumpler Dederang Heist is a great-looking bag with good construction and materials. It'll contain laptops up to 15.6" and protect them very well indeed. I felt that content management could have been a little better though. The addition of pockets for pens and notebooks would be good in reducing the amount of effort needed to fish things out of the bag. Still, if you're fine with the plain compartments this bag has, the Dederang Heist is a laptop bag which I will wholeheartedly recommend. Crumpler seems to have long discontinued this particular bag but there seem to be a couple of online retailers which you can still buy this bag from.

So that's it for today's post, thank you for reading and in the next post, I shall be reviewing the Bronx Hill II double monk strap shoes from Archules!

Muh Driving License

Notice: I posted this exact same post in my other blog, Hangouts of Singapore as I felt the content of this post didn't fit into The Watch Post well. Still, I'm changing my mind now as I feel that I want to share this with all readers of The Watch Post. Enjoy the read!

Ladies and gentlemen, let me start off the post with an announcement that I am immensely happy to make; I have just acquired my driving license and am now qualified to drive on the open roads of Singapore. This is a buildup that has begun since the start of 2012, where I had driving lessons for a short period and then stopped as I wasn't fueled by the urge to drive back then. When I resumed lessons again, it would already be at the start of 2014. Talk about procrastination.

I made a terrible mistake of going over the stop line during a right turn at a junction which had a red arrow. That was the story of my first attempt. The second attempt saw me having the jitters, and I could barely control the clutch and accelerator which resulted in me striking the kerb twice, along with numerous other mistakes which stemmed from a lack of confidence. Somewhat deterred by the two failures, I booked the my third attempt at the practical driving test.

So the day of the third test eventually came. With the pressure of a three-month wait and close to $300 of test fee mounted on my shoulders, I went ahead with it anyway. Sitting in the room awaiting for the my assigned tester to read out my name was perhaps the worst part. This room has never failed to bring out some nervousness in me, in spite of this being my third attempt. This time however, I was not going to let it get the better of me. I whipped out my phone and played several games of 2048 which really took my mind off the fact that I was going to have a driving test and away with that went my nervousness.

Eventually I heard my name being called. An instructor who went by the name of Choo Cheng Sang was assigned to me. Went through the circuit relatively smooth, only abit of rolling backwards on the ramp. Outside, I thought it went pretty good as well, with just a short drive to a junction to do a U-turn, followed by changing lanes to do a right turn back to CDC. I followed my tester up to the results release room and he called me in and I was thinking, 'Damn it, failed again!'. This stems from something I've read on forums, where the instructors won't bother calling you into the room if you passed and will instead ask you to wait outside while they print your result slip. Knowing that, I had a heavy heart as I stepped into the room and reluctantly took a seat. He was collating the results and took quite a long while, during which I was praying hard that being brought into the room still meant a chance of passing.

Eventually, the tester came and sat infront of me. He started chiding me on how it was my third attempt yet I couldn't move off the ramp properly, and how my overtaking skills were causing an inconvenience to other road users. He was holding the result slip in his hand which gave me no chance to look at it, but based on the things he were saying, things were not looking the best. I was bracing myself to go for a fourth attempt already when he changed his grip on the result slip, allowing me to take a glance at it. I managed to make out the word "PASSED". From that point, I couldn't give a shit how badly he scolded me. I had PASSED! FINALLY!

Mr Choo Cheng Sang, you ain't so bad in my books after all. I'm loving this tough love thing you've got going on actually. This slip of paper is a result 36 months in the making and some $3000. Slow I hear you say? WHATEVER! I'm overjoyed at the achievement of attaining a Class 3 driving license and I'm not taking shit from anyone.

So, to bus service 854, trips to ComfortDelGro Driving Centre and to Mr. Chua Ah Huat, I bid you farewell for you are now a thing of the past. Alright, I've got to newfound swag to be handling people, thanks for reading and stay tuned for more!

The Year 2015, and the Incoming of Double Monk Straps

What's up readers of The Watch Post! First off, I have to apologize as you may have realized that I never got about to making a post to sum the year of 2014 up. I'll make no excuses here, I was just plain lazy to do a write-up. So let's skip ahead a little, what can you (the reader) expect from The Watch Post this year?

Well, ironically watches will no longer be take the spotlight in The Watch Post in 2015. Why? That's because the Casio G-Shock DW5600E-1V is pretty much my only go-to watch now. I've flipped most of my other watches away and am left with only the Casio G-Shock and a MDV106. There might of course be some watch related content sometimes but the focus of this blog in 2015 shall be on these few topics; office wear, shoes and EDC. Regarding the new interest in office and footwear, this naturally stems from the fact that I'm about to enter the workforce and my preferences in clothing and footwear is now influenced by what's presentable at work. So, following up from the previous post, I present a pair double monk strap shoes from Archules, the Bronx Hill II in Oak.

Of course, stay tuned for the review which I will post up as soon as I receive these babies. This pair costed me SGD $115 so I'm definitely not expecting these to be in the same league as Crockett & Jones or Edward Green. Still, they seem to have received quite a good amount of feedback on their Facebook page so I hope that these shoes will serve me well. Now, as for EDC, I always had a strong interest in it and 2015 will be a year where you readers can expect to see much more content relating to EDC.

For starters, I'm looking into getting my first multi-tool and my heart is set on the Leatherman Skeletool for now.

Now that's a sweet bit of kit. As well, you may have seen my post here on my gripes with the 5.11 Rush 12 backpack and I'm hoping to replace it with the Helikon-Tex Dragon Egg.

So today's post shall come to an end here. In the next post, you can expect a review of the Crumpler Dederang Heist which I bought to use as a bag for work. A quick impression of it so far; great. Thanks for reading and have a great day folks!

Shoe Porn - Double Monk Straps

It's been awhile, readers! The month of November was a period of hectic studying and exams. I should add that they are too some of the final ones that I'll ever be taking in my life, unless I choose to pursue a master's degree or take professional exams.

For now though, the end of my final semester in university means that I'm about to be thrust out into the working world. Naturally, in fitting with the culture at The Watch Post, this thought dawned upon me; "What better way to start my career than to look the part?".

And thus, let's start from the bottom-up. First though, a little background on my work shoe situation: I've been using a pair of black square toed shoes for work so far, something I bought years back having not known better. I've since learned that square toed shoes seem to be quite the fashion faux pas.

Luckily though, there seems to be a type of shoe out there which is capable of washing away the sins of such a heinous footwear faux pas; the double monk strap.

Shoe Porn

All I could think of when I first saw these shoes was, holy shit, these look damned good.

Edward Green Westminster

Reading up on double monk straps led me to brands such as Edward Green, John Lobb and Alfred Sargent. Unfortunately, those are just a pipe dream for now as I'm not about to spend half a grand on a pair of shoes even if my finances permit me. I'll come back for a double monk strap by these brands when I'm a managing director or an executive. I promise.

Archules Bronx Hill II

Meermin Classic Collection Dark Brown Calf

Ah, here we have something more in line with my financial situation. Double monk straps from Meermin of Spain and Archules of Singapore. I'll be making my choice between either of these soon and then, as is customary, a full review shall be posted here.

Also, stay tuned for the next post which will be an end of the year summary post about what The Watch Post has went through during the year and what you can expect to come in 2015. Thanks for reading!

Shortcomings with the 5.11 Rush 12

It's has been a little under four months since I acquired the 5.11 Rush 12 and I've come to realize some of the shortcomings which I've failed to see earlier. Using the pack on a daily basis over these months has changed my perception a little for the worse.

First, and also my biggest gripe with the 5.11 Rush 12, is that it has absolutely no ventilation to speak off. The Rush 12 simply features four slightly raised panels at each corner of the pack which touches your back. Slightly meaning it's not nearly enough to raise the pack off your back in a way meaningful enough to allow any air to flow into the area. As such, carrying the bag is akin to carrying an oven. I've perspired immensely whenever I carry it with both straps on. This is further made worse by the weather in tropical Singapore; hot and humid all year round. A short walk of a couple hundred meters will often leave the back of my shirt drenched in sweat. I now resort to carrying this pack on one strap whenever it's a sunny day outside; not the best of solutions given my usual load. In my opinion, 5.11 should seriously consider incorporating mesh ventilation panels in future revisions of their Rush packs.

The rubber patches found on the side in contact with my back could also be done away with. I think they are largely unneccessary since they don't really help the pack in staying still against my back. These also abrade away at the clothes I'm wearing and mine have shown serious signs of wear from just normal everyday school use.

Next, I can't say I'm the biggest fan of the strap which incorporates a neck yoke system. It does indeed do it's job of distributing some of the weight onto your neck but for the most part the yoke simply gets in the way of comfort.

Over on the other side of the pack, the compression straps aren't the most effective straps as there is only a pair of them, situated in the upper half of the pack. The bottom of the pack is usually where most of my items end up, making the placement of the compression straps at the upper half of the pack quite a poor decision indeed. At the very least, I think the compression straps should be situated right in the centre of the pack, but the best solution would be of course to have a pair of compression straps, one serving the upper portion and another serving the lower portion.

I'd also like if 5.11 made a size in-between the Rush 12 and the Rush 24. The Rush 24 is much too large for me at over 32.7 litres of capacity, yet the next smaller option is immediately the Rush 12 which is over 11 litres less at 21.2 litres. A pack at 25 litres so would be the perfect size for me, and could well exist as a Rush 18.

Recently though, there seems to be a bag which overcomes all these shortcomings; a pack from Helikon-Tex's Direct Action line known as the Dragon Egg. It's 25 litres in capacity, has a meshed ventilation system to keep things cool, features normal straps that doesn't have a neck yoke nor does it have the rubber patches and has compression straps across the upper and lower part of the pack. It looks really nice too, barring two problems; it's constructed in 500D Cordura and also there's the rather hefty price of around EUR115. I'd have preferred 1000D or 1050D nylon construction, althought it's already 1.4kg with 500D construction so I think 1000D would have been unnecessarily heavy. I'm not too sure about the paracord handle but I think I'll assess that when I have the pack itself.

So that's it for today's post, thanks for reading!

Review of Casio G-Shock DW-5600E-1V - Simplicity Done Right

Greetings readers, it's been a long time since the last post. The reason for the absence? Getat, and the less said about him, the better. The watch from Getat did eventually arrive around three whole months after I placed my order. To top off the quarter of a year waiting time, the watch arrived completely dysfunctional; the movement just doesn't start ticking no matter how much it has been wound.

Alas, I wasn't too motivated to write about my very poor experience with Getat and it'll certainly be my last time dealing with him. I like the way the watch looks and thus have chosen not to send it back to Getat for a refund which God knows how long will he take to process. So for now, it'll be just lying around on a shelf till the day I decide to bring it to a watchmaker.

That is all I'll say on Getat in this post, because today we are here for something else; to cover a new acquisition I've made in the last couple of days. What exactly have I procured?

Why, the venerable classic, Casio G-Shock DW-5600E-1V of course.

 Long have I yearned for a digital watch to accompany me on runs and visits to the gym after the straps on my Casio F-91W broke. Since then I've been using analog watches to cover these duties but analog watches simply cannot do the job as well. Using a countdown bezel on a diving watch is after all, not the most convenient nor accurate method to measure rest time between sets. It didn't serve well for timing my runs either, which is why a digital watch had to be had. Without further ado, the technical specifications of the DW-5600E-1V:

• Shock resistant
• 200 meter water resistance
• Electro luminescent backlight with Afterglow
• Multi-function alarm 
• 1/100 second stopwatch
• Countdown timer with auto-repeat function
• Auto calendar (pre-programmed till year 2099) 
• Accuracy of ±15 seconds per month
• Battery CR2016 
• Approx. battery life: 2 years 
• Module 3229
• 48.9 x 42.8 x 13.4mm / 54g

 The DW-5600E-1V is held as the quintessential G-Shock by Casio themselves. It is the latest iteration in the evolution of the square-shaped DW series that begun with the DW-5000C, released over 31 years ago. To start off, let's discuss the size. The DW-5600E comes in at a perfect size in my opinion, large enough to have some wrist presence yet not being stupidly large. The size is considerably bigger than a F-91W which I liked a lot since the F-91W always felt a little too tiny for me.

The watch wears very comfortably, partially thanks to being just 54g in weight due to the resin construction. Now, I'm used to wearing watches made of metal since just about every other watch I have save the F-91W is metal. Coming to resin is therefore a big departure for me and I have to say, it is pretty nice. The DW-5600E doesn't feel poor in quality or durability despite the resin construction and you feel that this watch can actually survive a beating more than watches made from metal. There is a YouTube video here of the watch being thrown off seven stories and it continues to function so yes, this watch is likely to outsurvive the person wearing it. The resin strap is decent enough, being sufficiently pliable and comfortable. The buckle though is where I felt an improvement could be made, since it was just a stamped buckle which is really thin and felt quite cheap.

Reading the time is a breeze, with a LCD display that is relatively large and has great clarity and contrast of the digits from the background color. Viewing angles are excellent but not at the level of OLED displays; one would have difficulty reading the time from angles nearing 90 degrees. I don't see this as a major disadvantage though since turning your wrist or your neck by just a little will always ensure you can get a clear view of the display.

As is standard with most G-Shock watches, the display is covered by a mineral crystal which will do nicely in protecting the display. The raised bezel assists with keeping scratches off the crystal unless you happen to have an impact very precisely landing on the crystal. Sapphire would have been a nice addition but keep in mind that the DW-5600E is one of the cheapest in the G-Shock range and it would no longer be so if it had a sapphire crystal. The choice of mineral crystal is more in line with G-Shock ideology as well since it is harder to shatter. The display is backed with a bright electro luminescent backlight that makes for easy viewing in low light conditions. It glows with a nice green color and serves the purpose very well indeed.

The face of the watch is flanked by four buttons, namely the adjust, mode, start/stop and backlight button. All the buttons are covered by a lip which protects the button from being depressed should you drop it. The adjust button is markedly more recessed than the other buttons in order to prevent accidental adjustments in the course of usage. Changing between modes also produces the signature 'beep' sound. The beep produced when going back to the main screen which displays time is higher in pitch than the beeps produced when accessing other modes. This gives you an auditory indicator that you're back to the main screen. Little touches like that show the amount of thought that Casio has put into their watches.

Over on the back, we have a backplate that is held down by four screws. Usually, only the higher-end or older G-Shocks have screw down case backs. Since I'm no G-Shock collector though, the case back on the DW-5600E suffices for me as it still commands a very respectable water resistance level of 200m.

Timekeeping has been on point so far, with no deviation in the two days I've acquired it from a website I used to set it against. Further testing is required here to see the deviation in a month and in a year's time.

The Casio G-Shock DW-5600E-1V is a simple digital watch with extreme durability, and it is for that reason why it is such a great watch. It isn't addled with twenty alarms, thermometers, altimeters and barometers, just plain and simple timekeeping with functions such as a countdown timer, an alarm and a stopwatch, all of which I see as being rather useful.

This watch is one of few that has been approved for use in space by NASA and I can see why. It is the epitome of simplicity, of form meeting function, of durability meeting intuitivity. Then you add in the price; the DW-5600E can be had for about USD$42 on Amazon. Now it's a brilliant watch with a brilliant pricing. This is the watch I'd take with me if the world is going to be a zombie-infested, post-apocalyptic world tomorrow. On that note, thanks for reading and stay tuned!

Review of Zebra F-701 - Addition to My EDC

Today we shall be looking at a new addition to my EDC, the Zebra F-701 pen. Before that though, let me give some background information; I've been using Pilot G2's and other run-of-the-mill pens all my life, and I thought I'd change that by investing in a pen fit for EDC, which would serve to fill the pen slots in my 5,11 Rush 12 too. I wanted a pen that had good build quality, preferably metal construction, as well as good writing performance; nothing outrageously demanding in my opinion.

A quick search on Google showed that Fisher Bullet Space Pens, Parker Jotters and crowdfunded efforts on Kickstarter ruled the day. These were all great choices in their own rights; the Space Pen is known for the refills which can write in highly demanding environments, the Parker Jotter for their classic design and the multitude of Kickstarter pens for their custom craftsmanship and special designs.

The Kickstarter efforts were of course, way beyond my budget, nice as they were, while I didn't like the idea of fidgeting with a cap for the Space Pen. I already in fact have a Parker Jotter pen in stainless steel, and the Jotter's design just doesn't speak to me. I disliked that the barrel of the Jotter tapers towards the tip, something which I think will compromise comfort whenever there is considerable writing to be done. Where does that leave me then?

Enter Zebra F-701, the darling of many an EDC forum.

This pen has a reputation which precedes itself. The reason why is clear when you pick one of these pens up. It features a fully stainless steel barrel, which although isn't monocoque in construction (the knurled grip and smooth barrel are separable), feels very solid indeed. The weight is satisfying, reassuring and feels like something much more expensive than the price F-701's go for; the presence of the F-701 in hand is truly outstanding for the price. Top points to Zebra for the well-designed feel of this pen.

Writing with this pen has been a pleasure thanks to the addition of the knurled grip which is both functional and classy at the same time. It does its job well, allowing you to get a nice grip on the pen. The pen has remained comfortable to use for even for extended periods of writing. Perhaps the grip is a little less comfortable than the rubber grips on G2s but the tradeoff for the good looks is ultimately a plus for me. Of course, that is also dependant on how tightly one grips the pen while writing.

On the back end of the pen, we have a retraction mechanism which Zebra claims as being quieter than usual. It is indeed a little quieter than a standard Pilot G2 I'd say, and is a nice touch for those who like to click their pens on occasion. The retraction mechanism has a nice, springy amount of tension to it, and while may not be the most authoritative of clicks, is nice enough that I have no qualms. The plunger retracts fully when the tip is out, meaning that it won't rattle around when writing or turned upside down.

The surprising thing about the retraction mechanism is that it is plastic in construction, while its lesser brethren, the Zebra F-402 actually lays claim to a metal retraction mechanism. I certainly see myself hacking my F-701 to accomodate the F-402 retraction mechanism in the near future. Not that the stock F-701 mechanism is awful, it is actually quite decent, but I'd like my F-701 to have metal construction as much as possible.

Next, we come to the writing performance. The Zebra F-701 plays host to a fine ballpoint refill. For all intents and purposes, the stock refill is decent enough. The lines are clean, and is comparable with a typical ballpoint. It's by no means a great ballpoint, but that might be a problem rectifiable!

There are numerous topics on the Internet on people hacking the F-701 to fit Fisher and other refills. Having not tried a Fisher refill yet in my life, I don't know how these refills stack up against each other. Again, I'd certainly hack my F-701 to fit a Fisher refill in the near future.

The F-701 comes right out the box with a metal clip that is nicely adorned with the Zebra logo and the model number. It serves its purpose well enough, clipping onto shirt pockets and other objects firmly. The amount of tension is not too little such that it flops around after being clipped and not too much to make clipping a hassle. The clip feels solid enough and seems unlikely to break as long as it isn't abused. Hopefully, the tension will stay the same with usage. In a word, I have to say the clip on the F-701 is nice.

Coming to the price, the F-701 costed me SGD$8.30. I have nothing but good things to say about the F-701 and that would stay the same even if costed twice as much. At the price it goes for, the F-701 is astoundingly good value for money. Of course, there are some things that stop this pen short of being the best that it can be; plastic retraction mechanism and writing performance which is just average. Even still, I am thoroughly impressed with this pen, and I would highly recommend it to anyone who is looking for a nice writing instrument but doesn't want to burn a hole in their pocket.

So that was the review of the Zebra F-701, thank you for reading and stay tuned for upgrades to the refill and retraction mechanism!

New Strap for the MDV106 - Paros

As mentioned in my review of the Casio MDV106-1A here, the stock resin strap that comes with the watch was downright awful. It's thin, creates a creaky sound as it rubs against the lugs and just reeks of cheap.

Now don't be mistaken, the MDV106 is one of, if not the most brilliant watch I've ever come across for the price. Thankfully, although Casio chose to cut corners with the strap, this is a problem that can easily be remedied given the standard lug width of 22mm.

Therefore, I went off in search of a strap today, one that would be worthy of playing host to the venerable MDV106. That of course means paying a visit to K2 Watch Company, for nowhere else in Singapore will you find a watch shop which prices their straps so fairly.

And this is the the result of the trip; a Paros black leather strap with red stitching. More pictures to follow.

I'm quite pleased with the strap so far. It is quite supple and has a nice leather smell. It also claims to be waterproof as stamped on the back so I'm expecting it won't deteriorate upon getting wet. We'll see how true those claims are in due time. Overall, it's quite a nice strap and really fitting for the MDV106 in this aspect; value for money. I got this strap for all of SGD$13, a really good price for a leather strap in my opinion. The red stitching also complements the red tipped second hand well, and I'm loving the MDV106 more than ever!

The thumbnail type buckle that comes with the Paros has pleasantly surprised me. I was expecting a cheap stamped, tinny buckle to come with the strap but on the contrary, the buckle is actually quite thick and features a nicely brushed finish all over.

What happens when two kings of value for money come together? You get a beautiful combination. Paros meets Casio, this is definitely one for the ages.