What watch for wilderness ?and what are you wearing?

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bushcraft

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Hi Everybody.

What things do you look for in a wilderness survival, outdoors-man type of watch?

It must tell time right? :)
What else?
I have no use for some of the functions like barometer and altimeter.

A compass is nice.
What other feature, build quality, material, reflectivity, weight,size, do you look for?
 
Right now I'm wearing an older Timex Expedition (analog). No bells and whistles, tells the time and day. When I'm out in the "big back yard" (that's what my kids call the woods) I usually wear my Casio G-Shock. I've had it for many years. It's bulletproof.

I'm with you as I really don't my watch to tell me the weather conditions (my Kestrel does that just fine)
 
To tell you the truth,

…after carrying fancy timepieces in the field for years,

…I find myself trying not to watch the clock much these days.



Nature gives me the general clues I need to approximate time,

…and for me that’s generally good enough.



For times when I need to get out by a certain time, my cell phone is good enough,

…I’ll often set the alarm at the halfway time as a signal to start heading back.



I did have a nice Casio that included compass/barometer/altitude that was cool to use in the mountains.





Big Mike
 
Seiko (automatic divers watch) winds itself,rotating bezels for time calculation
and can be used as a compass.200m water resist built stout as hell.



Tyrantblade
 
I wear my Omega Speedmaster Professional almost every day and have worn it into the woods quite a lot, but that is a bit high end if you expect to beat it.

I wear a Chase Durer UDT 1000 when I think it is going to get very rough.

To tell you the truth, I think the best bet for an outdoors rough duty watch is a Casio G-shock.

Carl-
 
I don't usually wear a watch except on overnight trips or mountain hikes (for the compass and altimeter). I've had a Suunto X-lander for years. Good piece of gear.

Jeff
 
DRMUDD said:
Right now I'm wearing an older Timex Expedition (analog). No bells and whistles, tells the time and day.
Click to expand...

That is my knock-around watch too. It is water resistant and has a light to see the time in the dark. It is accurate, the battery life is long, and it is cheap enough that it would not be too upsetting if it got lost or destroyed.
 
Timex with the Indiglo feature for night time reading. If I need a compass, I carry a compass.
 
I'm Citizen EcoDrive fan, thought, that's not my suggestion for rough outdoor use.

Story: New Citizen Ti watch, C-130, and lots of turbulance. I fell out the door and was slammed into the side of the plane. The Ti bracelet broke and the watch fell into oblivion, never to be seen by my eyes again.

From that point forward, I've been wearing Casio G-shock for all outdoor activities. The G-shock has survived a few rough exits, and landings.
 
I got an iBeam watch for Christmas. Haven't worn it a lot, but I like it. Nice having a flashlight right there, plus it is waterproof. Magnifying glass works well as a magnifier, but not that good for fire starting. I compared it with a fresnel lens of which I did get a fire and the fresnel is far superior for that task.

http://ibeamtime.com/
 
G-Shock for me - currently I'm wearing a Mudman. But if I were going for a long trip through the bush, I think I would take my Casio PRG-130 Pathfinder. Solar powered, ABC (altimeter, barometer and compass) and maybe not as tough as a G-Shock, but tough enough :thumbup:.
 
C_Kyle said:
Story: New Citizen Ti watch, C-130, and lots of turbulance. I fell out the door and was slammed into the side of the plane. The Ti bracelet broke and the watch fell into oblivion, never to be seen by my eyes again.
Click to expand...
Ouch! :eek: :(
 
I wear a Rolex DateJust, with a white face and stainless steel. I wear it everywhere I go, hunting, fishing, camping, diving, or just at home. That things been to hell and back with me and still runs great.
 
I put a thread out a while back and I ended up getting the the casio g shock gw 330a, for $40 you can't beat it!!!!!

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it's solar powered and has atomic time keeping....
 

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I wear my $30 Timex Camper in the woods or when I'm fishing. It's a little cheap, but it tells time pretty good. If I were to get another watch I'd probably look at getting a bertucci. I'm not a fan of digital.
 
I'm not a fan of digital either. I prefer a tough and ready to go analogue clock. Right now I have the Casio Edifice. It got a decent Japanese action in there, a nicely working waterproof case and had no problem surviving the shocks it been through for years. I do need a new watch however, since after 5 years the second hand came loose. I think next time I go with something a little lighter though.

I have a problem of shredding leather, nylon, plastics and so on the wrist strap. I tend to rub straight through them in no time at all and I have to take off the metal watch while working around electricity of course.
 
Normally I wear a Seiko automatic diver for EDC, but I recently got a Suunto X9 Military and really like it.. Its got GPS, Altimeter, Barometer, temp, compass, and a bunch of other stuff.. Still need to spend some quality time with the instruction manual;)
If Im going out I slap on the Omega Seamaster Professional Chronograph.. The thing is built like a bank vault, and looks pretty slick...
 
Big Mike said:
To tell you the truth,

…after carrying fancy timepieces in the field for years,

…I find myself trying not to watch the clock much these days.
Click to expand...
A good idea that I try to follow myself. I find I don't really need a watch in the woods.
 
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