Behind the Scene: The Tactical v1 Dive Watch
Cranked up toughness for those on a mission. Designed to take the abuse. We put it through its paces in Canada’s extreme conditions. It came back asking for more.
Inspired by vintage diving watches with their multi-functional design and rugged, tough construction. Form following function in all its glory.
TARGET 01: Ruggedness and Reliability
We love vintage diving watches but their age and historic value often precludes them from actually being used in tough terrain. We also don’t want to discover we need a rare part in the middle of nowhere because our vintage watch needs servicing.
Modern equivalents are either bloated with lots of functions we don't need or fragile with only the looks of an authentic military watch but not the ruggedness. We need a watch that is as rugged as it looks and that we can rely on wherever we are.
The Redwood Tactical watch case, caseback, bezel and crown are all solid stainless steel (grade 316). SS316 is one of the toughest, most corrosion-resistant steels. It is basically indestructible.
The PVD coating on the black cases is anti-reflective for a stealth look and is also extremely scratch-resistant.
For the heart of the watch, we selected a high-quality Japanese quartz movement. It is ultra-reliable, ultra-accurate (set the time and forget it), requires zero maintenance, zero adjustment. Shock-resistant. True worry-free operation with a battery life of 2-3. Just pick it up and go.
To ensure the watch is as rugged in wet conditions as on dry land, we went with a 100m (330ft) water resistance. With the 100m rating, it resists the elements and can stay on your wrist when you have to go underwater. Monsoon conditions? No problem! Lake rescue operation? Bring it on!
TARGET 02: Functionality
There are a lot of clunky watches available with tons of bells and whistle and tiny, hard-to-read numbers. Lots of mostly useless functions. Sure we wanted a watch that looks good, but first and foremost we wanted a watch that works. For us, form always follows function.
The Redwood Tactical watches have a comfortable 40mm case size: A perfect fit for most wrists and not so huge as to hinder your freedom of movement. The oversized crown and the bezel have a coin-edge finish for easy manipulation in difficult conditions.
The dial is clean with no useless extras. Just like vintage diving watches. It feature large numbers that are easy and quick to read. No double-take when you check the time.
The rotating multi-function bezel is a very simple but extremely effective tool. Use it as a timer, second time zone, elapsed time counter or as a compass to orient yourself in the wild.
The tactical nylon straps are ideal for hardcore outdoors. They are very strong, durable and 100% waterproof. These 1-piece straps are easy and quick to change without tools. An added bonus is that if one spring bar were to fail, the watch would not fall off. Mission ready.
Drilled lugs facilitate spring bar removal. This means you can use a strap-change tool to easily push out the spring bars for replacement or to install a 2-piece strap.
TARGET 03: Value
Let's put it bluntly. The overwhelming majority of watches on the market today are grossly overpriced. By skipping the middleman and selling directly to you, we are able to cut the retail price considerably.
TARGET 04: Designed in Canada
We are proud to call Montreal, Canada home. Redwood watches are inspired by the great outdoors and are ready for any mission you throw at them. With the Great True North just north of us and the vast and varied terrain of the US just south of us, we are lucky to have the ultimate testing field right in our backyard.
01. Redwood Tactical Black – Classic good looks with the white lumed numerals on the contrasting black dial. Lumed hour and minute hands with red seconds hand. Lumed rotating bezel. Brushed stainless steel case with black 1-piece tactical nylon strap.
02. Redwood Tactical White – High-contrast good looks with its black numerals on a unique full-lume white dial. Lumed hour and minute hands with red seconds hand. Lumed rotating bezel. Brushed stainless steel case with black 1-piece tactical nylon strap.
03. Redwood Tactical Stealth – The badass of the family. Low contrast, stealth-grey numerals on black dial. The grey lume doesn't glow as bright for a truly under-the-radar look. Scratch resistant black PVD case, crown and bezel. Black hardware on black 1-piece tactical nylon strap.
Here's a small selection of what our backers had to say about Redwood Watches:
“I love it! Very simple and clean not too flashy which is just what I want. A great everyday watch that works with everything!” Chris M.
“I bought two watches during the Kickstarter campaign and I love them both. Simple elegance combined with solid craftsmanship. I couldn't ask for more.” Alex G.
“It is the only thing I wear 24/7” Abraham D.
“Excellent design, very well constructed, and lovely minimalist design. I cannot find any points to criticize. 10/10” Marton M.
“Best watch I've ever had. It's very comfortable and I've never had to reset the time.” Jarrod G.
“This watch has withstood a good sixth months of fieldwork with constantly being hit by tree branches and shrubs and hasn't been scratched by any of it. Can't complain about anything with this watch.” George H.
“One of my daily go-to watches. Clear and simple face. Durable finish. No complaints. There are a lot of 'field' watches out there, but this one actually performs.” Greg B.
“It's been everywhere from the office to the summit of Mt. Adams - I love it!“ Brooks B.
We started making watches in 2015 and had several successful Kickstarter projects. Watches had always fascinated us. Growing up, we have always been in awe when faced with the wide open spaces of the North American outdoors. Our travels across the continent, from the cliffs of Big Sur to the wind-battered St-Lawrence valley, from the Colorado Rockies to the Reefs off Key Largo, but above all, the majestic redwood groves, have inspired us to create the Redwood watches.
