Off The Cuff - March 2023

A new series for A Wristed Development

Off The Cuff is a new article series at A Wristed Development focused on a more "snackable" content format. It will feature which watch I've had on wrist the most within the last couple of weeks and three other quick-hitting recommendations including (but not limited to) good reads, gear obsessions, great video content recommendations, vintage finds, and so on. Without further ado, let's get stuck in it.

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03/15/2023 - Fellow Northerners will commiserate with me, we are truly in the dog days of winter. That ugly time of year when the days drag on, temperatures fluctuate around the freezing point resulting in sidewalks turning into swimming pools by day and skating rinks by night, and roads riddled with potholes. Yes, spring and summer can't come quick enough, but at least our miserable outdoor conditions build some character, right? Right?!?

One On Wrist

Tudor Heritage Black Bay "Black Rose" Ref. 79220N

The “Black Rose” back on wrist.

Yes, you read that correctly, it is back. I hinted at the desire to bring this one back in part one of my state of the collection series, and yet, it still took me by surprise. I was lucky to come by one on the popular watch trading forum on Reddit, r/WatchExchange, and negotiated with the seller down to a price I felt was fair. The prices of these have taken off within the last 12 months, so I was happy to get this one at what I felt like was a good deal. I'll resist my urge to wax poetic about the lovable qualities of this watch but I do recommend you check out my article, State of the Collection — Part 1: What left the collection in 2022, for the backstory on what led me to let this go.

As the Brits say, I'm "chuffed to bits" to have this one back in the collection and back on my wrist. It is the watch I identify with myself more than any other watch and the one that ultimately got me deep into this hobby I love so much. I'm sure this won't be the last time I write about this piece so I'll leave it there for now.

Three Off the Cuff

The Wm Brown Weekly

The only thing classier than this flock of gents is Matt Hranek himself. (Photo - The WM Brown Project)

I would be doing a great disservice if I were to have any other recommendation for my first Off the Cuff than the Substack that inspired this series — The Wm Brown Weekly. For those not in the know (or maybe just those with a narrower scope) The Wm Brown Weekly is the substack of the one and only Matt Hranek. Matt is a real renaissance man and could easily be mistaken for a real-life 00 agent. Among his many talents, Matt is the founder of The WM Brown Project, and author of numerous heralded books including A Man & His Watch, A Man & His Car, The Negroni: A Love Affair with a Classic Cocktail, and The Martini: Perfection in a Glass.

When he isn't stirring up a mean Negroni or posing with immense slabs of beef or pork on his Instagram, he's writing excellent articles on his substack. He recently started a series called Bulletin Board, which was the inspiration for this very post series. If you read and enjoy Matt's books and your interests exist within the general ecosphere of watches, cars, excellent cocktails, classic men's fashion, and generally cool-dudery then you'll love this Substack by the one and only Matt Hranek.

Netflix's Drive to Survive

Fast cars, big egos, ultimate prestige — all the essential ingredients for a quality race drama docuseries. (Photo - Netflix)

Ok, let's address the elephant in the room right off the bat — I'm rather late to this party, five seasons late to be exact. Now that that is out of the way, let me tell you, this has to be the most addictive show I've watched in a good long while, and yes, I have seen HBO's The Last of Us. If you too are late to this party, Drive to Survive is a sort of docuseries drama that follows the sport of Formula 1 racing. It offers a behind-the-scenes look into the sport and follows the teams and drivers through the F1 seasons. The show first followed the 2018 season has become a big hit and has subsequently resulted in a resurgence of interest in F1 (at least in the American market). Netflix does a fantastic job of incorporating the drivers, the team principals, and F1 journalists in a way that makes the sport digestible for someone who has next been exposed to the sport before.

I remember when I was young, my brother's best friend's dad and his girlfriend had an F1 cable subscription and we would stay up late to watch the races during our adolescent slumber parties. After they broke things off my access to F1 was cut off and I didn't really have access to tap back into the sport. Drive to Survive has not only provided me that access again but has quickly reignited my interest in the sport to the effect of a wildfire. I absolutely burned through four seasons and am now watching the fifth season to get caught up to the current season and I have a hunch that once I finish I will in short order dial up an F1 TV Pro subscription.

RovyVon Aurora A8 Flashlight

With roughly the same form factor as a AA battey the A8 packs an incredible punch for its size. (Photo - RovyVon)

I've been exploring the world of everyday carry, more colloquially known as "EDC", and one part of the kit I've acquired is this handy EDC flashlight. RovyVon, the maker of this torch, makes a bevy of flashlight options but they seem to really specialize in lights designed for EDC. I've been exploring multiple pieces of kit for my personal carry and bought three torches (this one included) to test drive as part of the broader exploration. Among all of the kit I'm trying out, this is the one piece that has cemented itself as a winner.

The A8 packs a serious punch for its size (comparable to a AA battery) and price (~$45). It offers a 650-lumen front beam light, 450-lumen side white light, a UV side light (handy for checking watch lume), and a red safety light (also handy for illumination in a shared tent environment when camping). It has a 330 mAh USB-C rechargeable battery which allows for 72 hours of runtime on the lowest setting and 1.5 hours of runtime on the highest setting. Lastly, it includes a removable magnetic clip and removable tail base buckle, handy for clipping to a hat brim for hands-free operation on the fly or tacking to the underside of a car hood for an impromptu repair. The bottom line, it is just a downright handy tool that packs an incredible amount of handy features into a tiny form factor.