Thursday, March 27, 2008

Day 7: Casio G-Shock DW-8400Y-9T Mudman

Yet another model in the Masters of G series, today's watch is the Casio G-Shock DW-8400Y-9T "Men in Yellow" Mudman. There are five different "Men in Yellow" models: Mudman, Frogman, Riseman, Gaussman and Fisherman. I'm missing the last two one (I saw a new and unworn MIY Gaussman on eBay this evening and jumped on it), but eventually you'll see the rest here (see my Men in Yellow group photo at the bottom of the post.) The Mudman label has actually been applied to three different models, but most would call this the original. Some Gaussman models have for some reason been labelled as Mudmen, and there is a newer series of Mudmen which carry on the tradition (which I have a couple of and you'll see at some point.) All of the Mudmen feature buttons sealed to keep out mud and dirt as well as the typical G-Shock 200m water restistance. I believe that most modern G-Shocks are also mud-resistant, but this is a feature that started with the Mudman model. I never realized how large the Mudmen were before I got one, but it rivals the Frogmen for bulkiness at almost 2 inches wide and quite thick, as you can see in the pictures. You can also see that the EL backlight features the "Moleman" character from the caseback, similar to the Men in Khaki Wademan, but in this situation he's digging a tunnel which obviously ties in to the "Mud Resist" features of the watch. Since I needed to change the battery in this one today, you can see below some pics of the inside of the watch, both with and without the black rubber shock absorber that goes between the module and caseback. One thing to note when changing G-Shock batteries: They typically have a small spring connecting the module to the metal caseback and you want to make sure not to lose it or forget to replace it. I believe it has something to do with the electical resistance of the module, but I've found that if you forget it the EL backlight tends to not function properly, if at all. Overall, the Mudman is a great watch and I enjoy wearing it, but it is a little large for everyday wear, probably something to do more with the thickness and length than the width. Definitely hard to overlook though, especially in bright yellow.

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