Gear’d Hardware Digital ZX1-1219 Watch Review

If there was ever a watch that could be considered the bully on the watch playground it would be hard to think of a timepiece other than the Gear’d Hardware Digital ZX1-1219. It is made to pretty much withstand any kind of adversity and will almost certainly increase your testosterone levels just by carrying it on your wrist. Its design is aligned with the theme of fast cars, lifting weights and guns in mind. This piece is most certainly born in the USA but is actually made in China.

Sports Car Dial

The dial on this piece of hardware is reminiscent of a sports car and as the owner of this brand alludes to, is actually modelled on his Dodge Viper. The red and black colours have an aggressive feel to them and the colour scheme has a carbon fibre appearance. In big red Arabic numbers we have the 3, 9 and 12 o’clock standing boldly out against the black backdrop. Underneath the 12 o’clock is the Gear’d Hardware printed in white and on each side of the 12 o’clock is the light and start button indicator. At 6 o’clock is the Gear’d logo in between the printed mode and reset indicators, each of which have a little screw next to it to fasten the dial down.

The four digital dials at the bottom are representative of car gauges and although it is bit much in my opinion I suppose, all things considered, this can only be expected. The far left dial is for the date and the next three dials are the hour, in 24-hour format, minute and second dials, even though the time is pointed out to the user with the skeletonised watch hands. Around the dial is a white blocked border for the minutes and seconds.

The finishing on the dial is not elegant but it isn’t meant to be so even though this might not quite appeal to what I usually look for but I am sure this watch will make a good gym companion for many others out there.

ZX1-1219 Case

The first thing that catches your eye here is there sheer size of the ZX1-1219. At 50mm in perimeter it is more applicable to say that it was constructed instead of crafted. The enormous case is made from stainless steel that has a matte black finish.

There is a button on the top left to activate the light and on the bottom left the button to toggle through the different modes. On the top right the start button for the stopwatch is red and the bottom right is the reset button. There is quite a strong crown that has a ragged edge on it. The stainless steel bezel has large Arabic numbers along its surface with a silver screw between each of those numbers.

This case feels like it can withstand almost anything you throw at it or, if the need arises, anything you throw it at. Now I am not quite prepared to go throwing it around but if the promises these watchmakers give are anything to go by it can go through almost anything and if you are not happy with how it performs you can send it back. The back of the case is a stainless steel silver with the usual disclaimers stamped on. The water resistance rating is 30m and the logo is in the middle at the back. The Japanese movement keeping this big boy on time is also represented on the back. The sapphire glass dial is probably the softest touch of the Gear’d features and gives it more than just strength but also consistency in its looks.

Stainless Steel Strap

Every part of the Gear’d ZX1-1219 does not waiver from its bulky personality. The strap is a black stainless steel gloss strap and it is quite wide at 3.2mm. I found it to be a bit flimsy and it rattles around a lot compared to the usual mid quality bracelets found on brands such as Seiko and Citizen.

It features a dual deployant clasp that has the Gear’d branding on the outside of the clasp. The strap does add more weight to the piece and that might put some people off but I don’t think many customers will be deterred by this.

Final Thoughts

While this piece does look very large on my arm I think many of the customers that end up wearing the watch will have larger wrists than myself. Even though this watch was conceptualised and designed in the USA, to keep costs down most likely, it was made in China.

There was a lot of thought that went in to designing this watch and it wasn’t simply thrown together. It was designed to be serviced so that it can stay in good condition for years. I would not look down on this piece if you are somebody that appreciates a watch that sticks well to its theme but the size of the Gear’d alone makes its potential suitors a limited group.

For more detailed specs and prices head on over to Gear’d Hardwares Official Website Here.