What kind of watch would Modern Mac wear?
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Paladin
  Posted: 24 January 2015 - 12:17 PM                                    
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My post re. Leatherman's new Tread multitool bracelet (w/optional watch), reminded me of another question I had: what the forum members thought New Mac would wear as a watch? (assuming he didn't just rely upon his smartphone) Have watches been discussed before?

There are many different alternatives. There's mechanical or quartz electric movements. Under mechanical, there's automatic/self-winding or manual. Under quartz, there's electronic digital display or, usually, mechanical analog dial. There's also replaceable battery or solar powered.

To me, the show's use of a plain Timex Camper was a mistake that I don't think they should repeat. While an analog dial would allow him to improvise a sun compass during the day if there wasn't cloud cover and his location would work with it (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cardinal_direction#Watch_face), I don't recall him doing that. Even back in the '80s they could have given him a watch w/more functionality. Just having an analog dialed watch with a functional bezel would have made his watch more useful. See four functional bezel examples at: http://chronomaddox.com/4bezels.html That list does not even include the simple, unidirectional rotating bezel of a diver's watch used to keep track of submersion time, like on a Rolex Submariner:
user posted image

Even a simple diver's watch bezel have provided Mac with more functionality than a Camper. (And, yes, they are found on watches a LOT cheaper than a Rolex and were around decades before the show.)

That got me to thinking about a watch w/analog dial that incorporated more than one functional bezel (a multifunction watch), and I found one by Victorinox:
http://www.swissarmy.com/us/product/Timepi...onograph/241527
user posted image

It has a diver's rotating bezel outside of a tachymeter bezel. Downsides is it is $2,300 US retail and it is big at 44mm dia., so goes against Mac's "low-profile" style-philosophy that helped him avoid attracting unwanted attention. (FYI: a tachymeter scale requires a chronograph watch (stopwatch function), which raises its "profile" w/extra pushers (push buttons), and extra hand.)

Wenger offers another possibility:
http://www.wengerna.com/nomad-compass-70430
user posted image
It has a built in LED compass, which I'm sure, would have come in handy for Mac and it is a lot cheaper at $400 US, but it is also big (43mm dia) and noticeable.

The soon-to-be-released Leatherman Tread with watch option could work. The watch has a diver's bezel, but I don't know it's diameter and I don't know if the tools are redundant when EDCing a SAK.

There's the watch Jack Bauer used (but a discontinued black version) w/built-in LEDs: http://www.specialopswatch.com/products-pa...s/thunder-hawk/
user posted image

And last, once it comes out, there is the Apple Watch: https://www.apple.com/watch/
They're making a lot of variations and I haven't looked into all of its functions yet, but think it will have built in GPS and a maps app so you will know where you are all the time. I do not think it has a function for transmitting information, like calling 9-1-1 or the Phoenix Foundation.

Of course, there are a TON of Casio G-Shock variations, most of which could fit Mac's active lifestyle.
http://www.casio.com/products/Watches/G-Shock/
http://www.gshock.com/watches/

But again, "on the job" his "tools" were handy and low-profile so as not to raise eyebrows and/or get them confiscated.

I can make this more complicated: what type of band/strap would he use for his watch? Leather/simulated? Synthetic? Metal? Paracord? Leatherman Track???

What do you think/feel?



 
                                                                     
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KiwiTek
Posted: 24 January 2015 - 05:18 PM                                    
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I think he would still wear a watch because it's light and always with you and doesn't need to be charged every other day, unlike a smart phone. It's also much more convenient to look at your wrist than to dig a phone out of your pocket and turn it on simply to check the time, or to do anything else actually. Further on some assignments he may not have a phone with him.

You're point about having a bezel is a good one. I use mine regularly for basic timing of my half hour lunch breaks at work as well as other non-precise timing.

I think he would want something basic, reliable and durable. Something he doesn't have to worry about getting broken on missions etc. So I can picture him wearing something like this. (maybe without the leather strap, although we have seen him wearing leather straps in the original show)

user posted image







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denizen
Posted: 25 January 2015 - 09:34 PM                                    
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I love the Victorinox above! Great looking watch!

But if I think about it, Mac was never really one to "Show off" so to speak. This is why he wore regular clothes, a cheap watch and carried a SAK of all things. Not to say that any of his material items were of no value. But the image they tried to portray was that this guy could do amazing things with just a cheap watch. Like create a spyglass. biggrin.gif

Saying that, it would make no sense for the new Mac to walk around with a Rolex. So not his style. But if they wanted to up his game, that Victorinox watch is a great choice.



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denizen
Posted: 30 July 2015 - 09:32 PM                                    
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I sense a contradiction in my response to this. If a new MacGyver were to arrive it is possible that developers might wish to give the man a smart watch as this could aid him in sending important messages or connecting to a command centre via server etc...

With today's tech out there, there are equally a number of additional gadgets they would arm the new Mac with.

Might not execute as effectively as the original but at the same time, normal folks use these devices for every day life. So I guess it would make sense for him to do the same.
user posted image



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KiwiTek
Posted: 30 July 2015 - 10:36 PM                                    
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QUOTE (denizen @ 31 July 2015 - 05:32 PM)
normal folks use these devices for every day life.

No. Normal folks look at these and say "what a pointless waste of money that is"

Plus they're not water proof, impact proof or even scratch proof to my knowledge so it wouldn't last very long on MacGyver's arm, also would he really want to be "tagged" with smart devices?

Back to the Wenger. laugh.gif





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MacGyverGod
Posted: 31 July 2015 - 12:05 AM                                    
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Perhaps if they provide him with a strap to cover the smart watch like and army watch or something.



I think the poison that was used was applied to this knife, passed to the mutton when it was cut and then activated by the wine. - MacGyver.
Sometimes you just have to die a little inside to be reborn and rise again as a stronger and wiser version of you.
It's better to be a little sad than to be fake content.

 
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denizen
Posted: 31 July 2015 - 12:35 AM                                    
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Absolutely, my point is that society have changed and accepted most technology. We contradict it but how many of you have a cell phone / smart phone?

How many of you have internet?

Smart watches are new on the market but give it time. They will have an impact. Already in the US alone, a total of 2.8 million Apple watches have been sold. That's just Apple.

A new MacGyver would not only have to please old farts around the world (Sorry for the expression, it was funny
laugh.gif ) but also impress the current generation with what they currently know.

See it from this perspective. When we saw MacGyver back in the day, His watch was cheap but modern. His Jeep was new. His SAK was the current model etc..

We have just associated the man with the past because it was where we came from.

As times have changed, it would make sense to associate the new Mac with the present. Not the past.



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Barry Rowland
Posted: 31 July 2015 - 03:59 AM                                    
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I think Mac would still wear a watch. You can't beat the Wenger watches...mine is going on 20 years old and has seen alot of beatings but is still going strong.



Barry

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perfectlykevin
Posted: 5 September 2015 - 07:14 PM                                    
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I'd imagine something simple and functional like in the original series. Perhaps a Timex field again or something Eco-driven, like a Citizen?



 
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MacFan77
Posted: 9 January 2017 - 05:43 PM                                    
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Sorry to revive an old thread, but this is something i have thought of many times. Ok, this may sound odd, but I have picked out my watches based on what I thought Mac would wear. Of the below, I know that the Suunto would be his last choice due to price, but it does have a compass, GPS, speed, etc., on it, so maybe it was something Pete would give him as a present (I know, I'm grasping at straws here. Lol). I had an old school wind up Camper watch that I wish I still had.
user posted image



 
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Barry Rowland
Posted: 9 January 2017 - 06:14 PM                                    
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You know Mac 77, I think you're right! I never saw Mac with anything other than what was functional. I don't think he'd spend a lot of money on his watches, just get the ones that would get the job done.



Barry

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MacGyverGod
Posted: 10 January 2017 - 04:45 AM                                    
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I prefer the digital ones like in Countdown.



I think the poison that was used was applied to this knife, passed to the mutton when it was cut and then activated by the wine. - MacGyver.
Sometimes you just have to die a little inside to be reborn and rise again as a stronger and wiser version of you.
It's better to be a little sad than to be fake content.

 
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Maclover
Posted: 12 January 2017 - 10:03 AM                                    
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I wear a ladies Victorinox chronometer with a rotating bezel and three sub timer dials, but mine has a stainless steel strap. It slightly resembles the look of that Rolex at the top of the thread, but mine has a brown face. Although he only wore the plain Timex I always feel quite 'MacGyver' when I have it on.

Which watch have they given the new Mac?



 
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Joe SAKic
Posted: 12 January 2017 - 01:58 PM                                    
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I have no idea. However and don't forget that the Swiss Army Original that he wore in Strictly Business was issued in the late '80s and is still around today in relatively similar form. Made to be waterproof, durable, and extremely accurate in keeping time, it was/is priced for those who don't want to drop a barrel load on a watch but need something very dependable. I sort of think this best fits the bill and could/should be the preferred model ....







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MacGyverOnline
Posted: 13 January 2017 - 01:22 AM                                    
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QUOTE (Maclover @ 13 January 2017 - 07:03 AM)
Which watch have they given the new Mac?

user posted image




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Barry Rowland
Posted: 26 May 2019 - 09:33 AM                                    
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👍👍 Exactly!!



Barry

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