When Victorinox was deciding how to best showcase their incredibly tough watch, somebody apparently said “Coat it in re-entry heat shield material. That ought to do it.”
Their toughest watch, the I.N.O.X., is now available in a case made of carbon composite. This may have been a case of gilding the lily. In a watch whose defining characteristic is the incredible toughness it can withstand, I would have thought that changing the case material would be a significant deal. However, the carbon composite version, the I.N.O.X. Carbon, is just as touch as its predecessors… and the case material choice may have brought some other useful qualities as well. Apart from, you know, being able to fly through the atmosphere without burning up.
The carbon composite chosen by Victorinox apparently grants, and I’m quoting here, “extremely high structural rigidity with scratch resistance and hypoallergenic properties.” I guess it really is tough. I wasn’t kidding, this particular carbon composite was used as heat shields to protect space shuttles from reentry heat. Those temperatures can get as high as 1,260ºC. Just when you thought the stress tests couldn’t get any harder. “Test this by dropping it into the atmosphere. Take notes.”
Bear in mind this is a watch that is ALREADY, by design, as resilient as Victorinox could make it. The I.N.O.X. is Victorinox’s best-selling watch, and it is built around the idea of being the toughest, most resilient watch around. The I.N.O.X gets tested in ways that would make other watches weep, if not actually die. Each I.N.O.X. watch goes through 130 different stress tests. These include being exposed to heat, being frozen into a block of ice, and being driven over by a tank. (I love Switzerland. You know you live in a great country when you can just borrow somebody’s tank.)
“… this particular carbon composite was used as heat shields to protect space shuttles from reentry heat”
In any case, the I.N.O.X. Carbon came through all these tests with flying colors. In this case, the colors were black with a touch of red, because the I.N.O.X. Carbon is one tough-looking watch. As you can see, it’s dial is black monobloc carbon with a ring of red on it, denoting military time. The carbon gives the case an interesting multi-shaded black look, because apparently the watch company wanted you to think “Ooo, texture” right before the watch killed you. It’s that kind of watch. If it wasn’t telling time, it could be used as a pirate flag.
The I.N.O.X. Carbon comes with two choices of strap. One is a rubber strap, and the other is the by-now Victorinox staple, the excellent and handy Naimakka paracord strap. The paracord strap is normally usually used for parachute suspension lines, and it has a breaking strength of 250 kilograms. The strap will of course hold the watch to your arm. But if you unravel it, it can be used to perform a multitude of tasks. You can use it to tie yourself to a buddy while climbing, lash yourself to a raft (rafts sold separately.) The paracord can be woven into a net, or used to support a shelter. You can unwind the strap into a cord, and then unravel that cord into seven different strands, at which point you will have become MacGyver.
The Victorinox I.N.O.X continues to impress, and the carbon case with the red highlights gives it that touch of sinister intent that may be missing in your life. If not, well, you’ll love the paracord anyway, believe me.
