Master of G

The Master of G is a line of G-Shock watches produced by Japanese electronics company Casio designed for usage in harsh environments. Many showcase new technology that Casio would eventually introduce into the G-Shock line of watches, such as an altimeter, digital compass and the Tough Solar feature.

History

In 1985, Casio released the DW-5500C, which was the first G-Shock to feature a mud-resistant structure. Called the G-Shock-II due to the new construction feature, it was nicknamed "Mudman" by collectors due to its mud resistance capabilities. Casio would then go on to release a mud-resistant line of watches in 1995 which would go on to be called Mudman.[1]

The Master of G series officially began in November 1993, when Casio introduced the G-Shock Frogman model in Japan; the case-back featured the word "FROGMAN" and a small figure of a diving frog. It was made for divers and featured a digital dive time mode. The model is made unique by its asymmetrical design of thick rubber shielding around a self-contained module which was to facilitate hand movement when the watch was worn over a diving suit and had a thick double-tang resin strap. The Frogman proved to be very popular and during the mid-1990s. Casio decided to produce more variations starting with the DW-8200 model, including limited edition colours. The DW-8200 model also featured a titanium case on some models in place of the stainless steel case used in the original Frogman.

The Master of G watches ceased production in 2000 with the exception of the Frogman which continued production and got a special MR-G variant dubbed the MR-G Frogman.

In 2006, the new Mudman models were introduced in the Master of G range of watches followed by the new Gulfman models in 2007.

Subsequent new models have since followed which have more advanced features. The Rangeman series was introduced in 2013 and has ABC (Altimeter, Barometer, Compass) features. The line was renamed MASTER in 2014, being continued with the previously named MAN line and now includes the Mudmaster (designed for people related for the army or people related with land related jobs), the Gravitymaster (designed for pilots or people related with aviation industry) and the Gulfmaster (designed for marine forces or people related with the naval industry).[2][3][4]

Characteristics

Master of G series watches are invariably amongst the largest G-Shock designs Casio produces, usually suited for those with larger wrists. They are almost always named with a "man" suffix after the initial Frogman model which itself was named for scuba divers.

Models in this series consist of a steel or (in most cases) a polyurethane case surrounded by a thick neoprene or polyurethane bezel providing outer protection. All models except the earliest Frogman models feature Casio's Illuminator display lighting system and are water resistant to 20 atmospheres (20bar/200metres) which thus makes them suitable for scuba-diving except at depths requiring helium-oxygen gas.

Some of the modules incorporate highly advanced functions. The Riseman features twin sensors that measure both temperature and atmospheric pressure, thus allowing it to serve as a barometer and altimeter. The Raysman was the first model to make use of Tough Solar technology to power its functions, the Wademan featured a digital compass, the Fisherman helped introduce the now-common tide graph and moonphase readouts, and the Antman was the first Casio watch that received an atomic signal that calibrated its timekeeping with atomic clock transponders in Japan.

Today, it is not unusual for two or more of these features to be found in a single Master of G model i.e. the GW-9200 Riseman has Tough Solar to power its radio-calibrated timekeeping and altimeter/barometer/thermometer functions; the GWF-1000 Frogman and GW-9110 Gulfman both feature solar power, radio timekeeping and tide and moon phase indicators. The current GW-9400 Rangeman with triple sensors has the most extensive feature sets so far, with mud/dust resistance, solar power, radio timekeeping, thermometer, barometer, altimeter, and digital compass functions, which have long been provided on Protrek/Pathfinder series.

Models

• Antman (discontinued): GW-100
• Fisherman (discontinued): DW-8600, superseded by Gulfman.
• Frogman: Current models are: GWF-D1000, GWF-A1000, GW-8230 and MRG-BF1000R. Discontinued models are DW-6300, DW-8200, DW-9900, MRG-1100, GF-1000, GF-8200, GW-200 series and GWF-1000
• Gaussman (discontinued): AW-570, AW-571
• Gravitymaster: current models are GR-B200 (quad sensor with Bluetooth connectivity): GR-B300 (solar atomic with Bluetooth time reception): GA-1100 (battery powered with twin-sensors) and GA-1000 (battery powered with twin-sensors). Discontinued models are GR-B100 (solar powered with Bluetooth time reception): GWR-B1000 (solar-atomic with added Bluetooth connectivity and carbon fibre construction): GPW-1000 (solar powered with atomic time keeping and GPS time synchronization) and GPW-2000 (solar-atomic with GPS and Bluetooth connectivity)
• Gulfman (discontinued): G-9100 (battery powered): GW-9100 (solar-atomic) and GW-9110 (solar-atomic)
• Gulfmaster (discontinued): GWN-1000 (Analog/Digital, solar-atomic with triple sensors), GN-1000 (battery powered with twin sensors) and GWN-Q1000 (Analog/Digital, solar-atomic with quad sensors and carbon core construction)[5]
• Lungman (discontinued): DWG-100 (pulse sensor)
• Mudman: Current models are G-9000 (battery powered) and GW-9500 (solar-atomic with triple sensors). Discontinued models are GW-9300 (solar-atomic with twin-sensors) and G-9300 (non-atomic: solar powered with twin-sensors)

Gallery

See also

• Casio
• G-Shock

External links

• International G-Shock website
• Casio Protrek
• ShockBase – Biggest G-Shock Database (Unofficial)