Casio G-Shock GW5000. G-Shocks icon.

Hey folks, this is a long time coming. Well sort of? I've had The Icon, the GW5000 for just over 6 months and it has only left my wrist to wear my GW7900 and GXW56 for short spurts. I've given my wrist a new square from the ever so reliant GWM-5610 which by the way was fantastic! I however can't take a break from solar and atomic features. Enter the GW5000. The iconic G-Shock for collectors and enthusiasts alike, not a real head turner but when you wear this model you feel like a boss. I chose to put the resin and stainless steel combi bracelet on it which is outstanding.

Hands down the most comfortable watch I've ever worn. No lie, no stretching the truth. There are no hot spots, no rubbing, chafing or anything. The DLC screw back of this model makes me weak when I think about it. It is incredibly comfortable, although the GWM-5610 had a standard back it was as well very comfortable but nothing compares to The Icon. I haven't tried the strap which came with it as I immediately swapped it for the combi bracelet which adds a ton of sex appeal to a square watch but as well miles of breathing room with pin and link adjustments to really custom fit this bad boy to your wrist. I highly recommend picking up the combi bracelet from a Casio dealer near you. It retails for about $50 USD but is worth every penny for comfort and fit.

The Icons face. The GW5000 has a very crisp display, subdued colors on the surrounding area. Let me speak to the crispness of the LCD display on The Icon, every number or letter has a great viewing range and I compared side by side with the GWM-5610 and just everything is flawless, no slight blur, no ghosting, but superb quality and compliments the build quality of this piece.

If you're looking for a subtle but real durability in a stylish package the GW5000 would be worth the investment. Although if you're looking just for a daily watch that still would do the job or just don't care the GWM-5610 would suffice in a second. The only thing I recommend is aftermarket watch bands for both. The more expensive combi bracelet or a cheaper Zulu or NATO band increases the comfort of both of these 10 fold. For the GW5000 I'd recommend that you get the combi bracelet as you wouldn't want to damage or rub against that beautiful screwback.

Lynch NW Titanium pry bar V1.2, you need it.

Recently, 2 months ago. I placed a preorder for a pry bar I've heard and seen good things about. Last week I finally got that pry bar.

The Lynch North West titanium pry bar V1.2. A beautiful piece of art inside wonderful packaging with a personal note from Casey Lynch as well. The box opens to contain an authentication card, a small thank you note and a small envelope containing the Allen wrench, lanyard and if you chose to remove the pocket clip, a cover for the opening. One thing you won't mistake is that this is "Made in the USA" proudly displayed on the bar, envelope, packaging! This is an all American quality made and finished pry tool.

I couldn't resist the first thing I did was pop a bottle top. Easiest tool to do it ever. All those "knuck animal pry bottle opener" gimmicks have NOTHING on this tool. It's so basic, two functions, bottle opener and pry bar with nail split. Bottle opener gets an automatic A+.

Secondly I had to use the pry to separate some old Ikea furniture and I reamed on it and it did its job! Casey says these are for hard use and guaranteed for life. I'll put it to the test!

The pocket clip is a great addition to a pry tool as if you're carrying light or have other things floating around in your pocket you can easily clip it inside the fifth pocket of your jeans. Having the option to remove it and still have a beautiful bar is even better if that suits your needs!

Downside? I can't name one right now. It does what it's supposed to do and it does it with 5 stars. A real class act from Casey. Highly recommended for anyone looking for a pry too that does what it promises and does it well. I'm not the kind of guy that needs an armadillo punch ring 1/4" bit driver flat screw driver pry bottle opener, so this is perfect. A grown-up toy for a real man (or woman).

Check out his site http://www.lynchnw.com and his Instagram for the most recent updates.

Fixed or Folder

This seems to be a frequent question asked by the EDC community, myself included. I had started collecting with folders and was completely against a fixed blade for a long time. I was in to the steels and locking mechanisms and so on and the fixed ones I saw were all high carbon rust boats if you forgot to wipe it once. Not my game. As well a knife is very personal as everyone says, what are you using it for?

I slowly was coming around to the idea of a fixed blade and started looking at the Izula in 440C but realized that it would be too short and too crap of a steel for my everyday use. I have always had great experiences with Spyderco and started looking up their Mule Team series.

So many great steels that I know and like. I ended up settling on the Elmax, lucky number 13 in the Mule Team lineup. A steel I wasn't fond of because I owned a Zero Tolerance 0561 and the steel was screwed up somehow, maybe the heat treat or something and the way the blade was ground didn't help it either but I wanted to really see how Elmax was. But the Mule Team is a beast, second knife to give me stitches. The other? The Elmax 0561 haha. Anyway I bought a fixed blade and haven't rotated it out of my pocket yet. A good size with enough leverage and great aftermarket Halpern Titanium black 3D G10 scales.

Now... Do I need a fixed blade? Not really. In my day to day life I need the most rust resistance while at work mainly, great edge retention and durability. I have that in almost all my folders as I try to only use better steels. I won't be batoning the folder but either way, they could stand up to it. I won't be prying, nothing too crazy at all. People have to understand, even with a small Izula neck knife it could take up less space with say a mini griptilian from Benchmade. I love my Doug Ritter M390 mini griptilian. Light, small and just as durable as a neck knife for daily use.

For a survival pack a folder would be just as sufficient as a fixed and take up less room in your bag. That as well as you can pack multiple folders or other tools for other jobs. Not counting a machete of course but for small work.

I'm not against fixed blades but for EDC they aren't totally needed although I love my MT13P I can safely rotate it with my folders and feel the same amount of confidence when using them.