Watches: water, silt, mud and scum proof?

[koma]

I'm sick of not knowing what the time is when i'm on the water.

I've looked at the Casio G-Shock Mudman which looks pretty good, and at ~$100 is also affordable.

There's also interesting watches like the Nixon LoDown which has a nice tide display, but at $200 and without any decent reputation i'm hesitant.

There's heaps of RipCurl watches with tide displays, but i've had some in the past and they tend to break/leak/die.

When i kite i tend to crash a fair bit, and not in the gentle fall in the water style. I mean high speed, high impact, catastrophic water and legs going everywhere type crash, so it needs to be pretty damn solid and waterproof.

What water/sand/silt/scum proof watches do you guys wear when your on the beach or in the water?

Do you think a tide status feature would be useful or should i just check the tide times and quit whining?

[Jev]

I had 2 Rip Curl and both died on me after a while. On one of the Rip Curl I had the arrows falling off after a decent downhill run in my bike in the Swiss Alps, no issues with the G-Shok last time I went.

I've been using a Casio G-Shock Giez for tha past 4 years for everithing I do, Mountain Biking, Kiting, Work etc and the thing just keeps going - and it's precise!

They're pretty tough and you never need to adjust the Giez. It does it by itself.

It would be nice the have the tides on there but I just look it up once a week and thats usually enough to have a fair idea when it's high or low. You can get the Casio's fairly cheap on fleebay.

[plummet]

why the hell do you want to know the time?

what the time? kiting time. until your spent.

if your running late for something else. who cares its not kiting!... hehehe

if you need an exuse... sorry i don't use a watch when kiting.

[koma]

why the hell do you want to know the time?

what the time? kiting time. until your spent.

if your running late for something else. who cares its not kiting!... hehehe

if you need an exuse... sorry i don't use a watch when kiting.

In summer i usually get fairly attuned to the angle of the sun, but given how much i've been kiting in the middle of the day it's caught me out a few times.

I completely agree that kiting time is kiting time, but i'm coming in early because i don't know how long i've got until i've got to be at 'that work meeting' or 'that job interview' etc. If i had a watch on i'd know how long i've got left and can just go hard till it's time to leave. The other reason i'm keen to get a watch is so i can do 5 minute practice sessions for comp heats. I've been in a couple of comps recently and found i'd either rush things or run out of time! A few other riders have suggested setting a 5 minute countdown and using that.

G-Shocks seem like a good bet and certainly get positive reviews. I was just interested in if there was anything else on the market.

[Dave Shepp]

Apart from a G-Shock the only other watch I've ever used for kiting is a Suunto, they have a full range of sailing, diving and mountaineering watches that work great but due to some features they can chew thru batteries and the warranty on them is second to none

[sluggo]

I've had a G-shock for about 12 years or should I say my son now has it and it still is going strong ,I think it's on it's third battery . I now have a Citizen dive watch and it has copped a caning and keeps good time . Both are waterproof to ridiculous depths .

[SoutherlyBuster]

I use on of these:

Citizen Eco Drive. Use it for land and water action, has never failed me. I never have to feed it batteries, it's solar powered. The read out is simple, large and clear, no squinting your eyes when glancing down at your watch trying to figure out small numbers. The dial can be used as a timer. I've gone away from those fancy digital read out panels for a simple classic analogue read out.

Does it take the wipe outs in the water, sure does, you've already seen my wipe outs when I had the GoPro running.

The cost $500, but hey it will last me for a very long time, I've had it so far for 11 years plus. In contrast my Dad used to buy those cheap petrol station watches which failed left right and centre. Having no battery is a very big bonus, that means you don't need to have it water tested every time you get the batteries changed hoping for the best that the watch dealer did his job right -- that is how my Seiko died.

Regards,

Norman

[koma]

Having no battery is a very big bonus, that means you don't need to have it water tested every time you get the batteries changed hoping for the best that the watch dealer did his job right -- that is how my Seiko died.

That's an excellent point Norm! Putting in the extra bit of money for one of the solar powered ones is looking like it'll pay for itself fairly quickly, especially when my focus is on hard wearing and waterproof.

[SoutherlyBuster]

The other thing is the more fancy buttons you have on a watch, especially the ones that are to control watch functions whilst in the water the more chance is that the seal will eventually fail / needs maintenance. Compare the crown on my watch, it stays closed shut for a whole year, only to be opened to change the time when daylight savings kicks in/out, oops make that twice a year.

[Jason]

I have a G-Shock which I have owned for 12 years now.

Thats 12 years of bashing around not just casual wear. From years of abuse in the field smashing against guns and armoured vehicles to kitesurfing and buggying this watch has had everything thrown at it and still going strong.

I did have to replace the rubber band a few years ago but thats probably from a lot of exposure to oils and diesel etc.

[Oooo]

I have a G-Shock which I have owned for 12 years now.

Thats 12 years of bashing around not just casual wear. From years of abuse in the field smashing against guns and armoured vehicles to kitesurfing and buggying this watch has had everything thrown at it and still going strong.

I did have to replace the rubber band a few years ago but thats probably from a lot of exposure to oils and diesel etc.

so did it break from OVERWINDING mate

[Jason]

Umm, it's SOLAR

[SoutherlyBuster]

On 26/12/2011 at 12:04 PM, Jason said:

I have a G-Shock which I have owned for 12 years now.

 

Thats 12 years of bashing around not just casual wear. From years of abuse in the field smashing against guns and armoured vehicles to kitesurfing and buggying this watch has had everything thrown at it and still going strong.

 

I did have to replace the rubber band a few years ago but thats probably from a lot of exposure to oils and diesel etc.

Thanks Jason, a bit of a delayed reaction here. Zac's watch decided to stop working, and since he has been so well with his highschool exams, we bought an underwater watch for him. Then I remembered Jason's thread about the G-Shocks and they were selling them for a reasonable price at one of our local Jewlers.

and Zac really likes the watch.

Keep up the good work @TheVelcroCats.

[andy666]

I’m still loving my rip curl tide master 2.

the tide feature and having analogue watch face is great.

only issue is the battery only lasts about a year and the pre loaded tide data runs out in 2022. So I might look at getting a new watch then. 

[SoutherlyBuster]

Batteries, hm Zac's lasts for 2 years, then 80 bucks to get it replaced including pressure test. Did look at the solar watches but they were twices as expensive. My solar Citizen Eco is still going strong after 15 years. Tides, cool idea Andy.

[Chook]

10 hours ago, andy666 said:

 and the pre loaded tide data runs out in 2022.

 

The "highs and lows" of buggying eh?

[SoutherlyBuster]

On 11/11/2017 at 10:47 AM, SoutherlyBuster said:

Thanks Jason, a bit of a delayed reaction here. Zac's watch decided to stop working, and since he has been so well with his highschool exams, we bought an underwater watch for him. Then I remembered Jason's thread about the G-Shocks and they were selling them for a reasonable price at one of our local Jewlers.

and Zac really likes the watch.

Keep up the good work @TheVelcroCats.

The “Shock” in the G-Shock is the feeling when the strap fails during a kite surfing session and the watch dissapears. Big warning here.

 

Compare my Citizen Eco drive with a metal wristband with double lock mechanism - never came appart unintensionally.

[Mfwetu]

I've never been a fan of the plastic straps they use. It's too easy for the retainer ring to slip and then all you need is for the buckle to hook against something and the strap comes loose. After losing a few "cheapies" that way I tried a clip watch which you can attach it to your pants belt loop, kite harness, etc. So far so good . . . .

 

[Kamikuza]

I had trouble with watch straps only just going around my wrist, then since I broke it, it's impossible to wear wristwatches at all.

I bought a $10 watch at the the hardware store and leash it to my harness through the side straps. The watch's strap broke in a crash but it was wedged under the strap good, so didn't lose it and now I have a little leash.

When I have work in the evenings, I set the alarm and that gets the job done. Otherwise, I don't care about the time.

Mfwetu looks like the best solution. Anything on my wrists gives me visions of things catching the lines...

[SoutherlyBuster]

Line tangles and the wrist watch, that is exactly what Zac thought was the problem. The clip watch, what a funky chicken, never seen them before.