Walt's Corner

The Panzera Classivo 43 with stainless steel band, model C4301BM2A has an MSRP of $1350 USD. The sum of the parts do not justify that price at all, but then who buys watches at MSRP? You know these companies jack them prices up so that they can claim a once in a lifetime sale that will offer you 30-60% off. ACT NOW! This deal expires in 7 days. True. But the next deal begins on the 8^th.

TLDR: This is one gorgeous watch. Very unique. Very shiny. Huge! This thing is larger than life. But somehow it works. Maybe it’s the unusually wide band, but when worn it doesn’t seem as big as it looks. Buy this on sale and it’s almost worth its money in parts, but then value is in the eye of the beholder.  And the case – extravagant! This watch gets cased as if it were a Grand Seiko or Ball. If you like their unique style as I do, you’ll gladly pay a little bit more than you would have for a watch carrying a budget Miyota 8215 under the hood.

Panzera has been on my radar since last October. I was looking for a watch that had a face kind of like the Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra 150m, but didn’t carry the $7,000.00 price tag. Minimalist in design, deep blue dial, and sported the horizontal lines. That’s what I was looking for when I discovered the Panzera Classivo 43. Every day since I discovered it, this watch has been interrupting my facebook feed. Gently reminding me that it exists, and OH LOOK! It’s on sale for a limited time! And of course it has been on sale since October. Must be a quarterly long sale. I’m not much into square-ish watches, but there are a couple that stand out, this being one of them. I finally bit.

Company wise? Some of their watches are hand built in small batches and they tell you this. Buying this watch in February? You ain’t getting it until April. Bought mine in January, received it mid-February. Panzera kept me informed during the build of my watch and again once shipped. I received it within 7 days from Australia. Very fast shipping.

Movement.

Here is my only bone to pick, and it ain’t much. The watch incorporates a budget-friendly Miyota 8215 movement. I can buy an 8215 on Amazon right now for $31. For a watch retailing at over $1000, Panzera can afford to put at least a Seiko NH35 in there. Right now I can buy a NH35 for $74. These are MY prices. For a single customer buying one movement. When you buy these movements from wholesalers in bulk like Panzera does, you can expect to pay around $20 for the 8215 and $40 for the NH35. Both are quality workhorses, tried and true. Miyota is made by Citizen and NH35 is simply Seiko’s 4R35 movement branded for non-Seiko watches. The biggest difference between the two is in the automatic winding feature. The Miyota’s automatic drive is unidirectional while the Seiko’s mechanism will wind the watch in both directions. If they both keep your watch wound, what’s the difference other than preference, right? My particular model loses about 3 seconds in a 24 hour period which is outstanding for these types of automatic watches rated at -20/+40 seconds per day.

Crystal

Panzera utilizes a sapphire crystal with the usual non-reflective coating, so you’re not going to easily scratch the crystal. This material is what normally pushes a watch into the “over $350” territory easily. No need to baby it.

Case

Panzera uses 316L surgical grade stainless steel for the case with a screw down crown. This material will last forever. Their compass logo is prominently displayed on the over-sized crown. The screw down crown adds to the waterproofing, which is minimal at 5ATM. Washing your hands or the dishes should prove to be no problem for this watch. Just don’t go swimming in it. It’s no dive watch. This thing is a monster in size – 43mm. But it doesn’t seem too big when worn. This is probably due to the oversized crown and band that accompanies it. Keeps it all in perspective.

Face

The face is what drew me to this model to begin with. I love the details. The intricate pattern of vertical squiggly lines which impart an optical illusion of horizontal lines. The face is big enough to accommodate the brand name, the model name, the word “automatic,” as well as a date viewing window that encompasses three days – all without crowding it. The deep blue is just gorgeous. Lumination is generously applied and very bright.

Band

I’m torn about the band. It looks great. Uses a butterfly clasp to secure it shut. But the pins holding the band to the case are screws that appear to be on both sides, answering my question as to why Panzera included two jeweler screwdrivers with the watch. The screwdrivers are not for sizing the band itself. That is accomplished by collared pins. The collar is in the center link, and it does not matter which side you push the pins out from.

I subscribe to this email service called BookBub. It provides me a listing of books available that are usually on sale and tailored to my liking. Most of these books are on sale at a couple to a few dollars. I’ll go ahead and buy it just so I’ll have another book to choose from the next time I finish whatever book I’m currently reading.

This can also be a tool for authors to use. They can pay to have their books curated to a massive audience who are looking for that genre of book. So subscribe to BookBub. Fill your kindle up for cheap before you know it.

This morning, THE DEVIL WITHIN US ALL caught my attention. It was on sale for a buck. Clicked on it which brought me to the amazon page to buy it. Spent the better part of a minute trying to figure out how to buy it. Then I saw the clues. I had already purchased this book – over 2 years ago. Oops!

When I look at my kindle and all the books I have already bought and have not read yet, the total count is over 120. I read, on average, 15-21 books per year, therefore I should be set for the next 10 years, on top of the regular new books I buy from my favorite authors.

I was planning to mention what I am currently reading next, but I think I’ll just post another article with that.

If you have followed this blog for a while, you probably know I’m a sucka for a nice razor. The CYGNUS razor from Phoenix Shaving is no exception. I’ve been using it for a week now and I can honestly say this is by far the easiest, closest shave I have ever experienced. Being made from a solid bar of copper and some FDA approved Acetal Copolymer here in the old U. S. of A., it does carry a higher-than-average price tag. My advice – if you can afford it, snatch it up now! Who knows how long it will stay in stock. As I’m writing this I’m told by someone in-the-know that only a few remain.

I won’t bore you with an in-depth look into the specs. Rather, I’ll just show what the website says. All accurate and pretty dang clear. No need to expound.

Let’s get into the experience. When you hold this razor in your hand, you know immediately that what you are holding on to is no ordinary razor. This is quality and precision. Machined down to a 6-sided half-inch rod, this will nicely nestle into a half-inch socket. Nice to know if you want to concoct some home-made stand to proudly display this expertly crafted safety razor. A diamond pattern cut up and down all sides provide an excellent grip. And you will need a grip. Trust me, you do not want this to fall onto your tile floor. You just may chip the floor.

CYGNUS falls into the standard 3-piece razor – handle, baseplate, and cap. The copper handle and cap are a matte finish. You can bet this will create a unique patina over time. I’m looking forward to seeing how mine develops. It comes neatly packaged including a couple packs of Phoenix Shaving’s own Strangelet branded blades. First time using these blades and they are impressive. I would put them up there at almost Feather quality, if you know Feather.

The copper transfers heat very well and when coupled with a hot scuttle, you get an amazing temperature experience to go along with a great shave. Speaking of the shave, this is hands-down my best. Two passes. With and against the grain. Done. No nicks or scrapes. BBS or DFS, whatever you want to call it. I usually need three passes to that BBS. So not only do I get a BBS, but I get it done in two thirds the time it usually takes. My time is particularly important to me in the mornings before work.

I had consistent results all week long. Five times with the same blade (turned over after the third time). Today I threw in an RK and had nearly the same results as the Strangelet. Nearly. Towards the end of the week I’ll swap that out with a Feather and see how that Stranglet stands up.

I had this old brass Zippo lighter laying around. Getting a patina. You know, when the oils form your skin, air pollutants, moisture, and age make that shiny brass or copper discolor. Sometimes it looks good. Sometimes not so much. I recently saw a picture from someone who had made their Zippo lighter form an amazing turquoise-blue patina. I had to try this.

With a little research, I found that people make these ammonia and salt boxes and suspend various brass or copper parts inside while spritzing with ammonia and sprinkling salt on the metal. Repeat that spritzing process every couple hours. The longer you do this, the more of a patina that develops. There are all sorts of ways to do this, but I settled on this method here. If you’re not interested in knowing how I did it, you can quit reading here and just admire the photos. This is one gorgeous lighter. This is the only one like it.

First, I prepared my box by spreading out some paper towels along the bottom and spraying some ammonia on the paper towels. Not enough to permeate the towels and have standing liquid in the bottom, but a good amount – soaked without dripping. Next I sprinkled some regular old table salt on the towels. Maybe a couple tablespoons full. Finally, I put a hole on opposite sides of the container and strung some wire across with a little bit of slack to it. This will suspend the lighter inside the container preventing the lighter from touching the top, bottom, or sides.

Now that my box was prepared, I took some 400 grit sandpaper to the lighter shell and made it all shiny again. Washed it. At this point I put my gloves on so I could handle the lighter while spraying with ammonia. I suspended the lighter on over the wire, spritzed it with more ammonia and generously sprinkled some table salt directly onto the lighter. All sides.

Every 3 hours I spritzed the lighter again with the ammonia. I sprinkled table salt on the lighter one more time – the 3rd spritz. I did that overnight and then let it sit in the box the next day undisturbed. Dinner time I opened the box and let it all dry overnight. That following evening I sprayed about 5 layers of Rustoleum Lacquer over it. What you see as the featured picture (up top) is the final result. At this point I could take some 1000 grit sandpaper to it and wet sand it. Not sure if I’ll do that or not. I’m pretty pleased with the way it is now.

As is our tradition, we spent a week of Christmas at our favorite location – Big Bend Ranch State Park. The interior main road was worse than usual due to the summer storms of 2025, but we made it to our spot, roughly 12 miles from turning off FM170 just outside Presidio, in an hour and 45 minutes. Those were a slow, grueling 12 miles.

Whenever we are in the interior of the park we have to visit our favorite trail there, Ojito Adentro Trail. It starts as your typical rocky desert trail but then takes you down into a riparian canyon that ends in a fantastic world of vibrant green where there is a spring and waterdrip. Definitely not a waterfall. The part of the trail that transitions from the desert to the lucious greenscape was also hit hard by them storms with large trees uprooted and strewn across the trail.

Our water pump went out on our first night. Fortunately, I had a spare and was an easy swap. Last time it went out was also on a Big Bend Ranch State Park annual trip, 2018 or 19. Once we returned I ordered an other one to have on hand. Just like last time, there were no signs it was about to go out. It just quit while I was brushing my teeth for the night.

This year’s commemorative Zippo I had made from our vacation turned out really well. A picture from one of our quiet evenings next to a campfire, showcasing the Van Winkle Lot B bottle I got from Mary, windmill in the background, and classic kerosene lantern. Every evening was spent just like that.

This was our 250th place (Presidio on December 20) and 251st place at Rancho Viejo in this 2015.5 Lance 1995. No generators allowed, but our 200 LiFe battery and 4 roof-mounted panels keep us up to power. Even enough to run our inverter for the crock pot roast Christmas dinner. Until next year, Big Bend Ranch. Gonna miss you.