Man’s love of electronics knows no bounds - behold the best.
Our book, movie, music, game, and website recommendations.
Women. Impossibly beautiful women. Need we say more?
How-to’s, techniques, and insider tips straight from the gear gurus.
Gear to be healthier. Gear to be fit. Tips too.
A man’s home is his kingdom. It should be well-equipped.
Food, drink, and travel: three pillars of better living for men.
Gear for courts, trails, slopes, and courses.
Men’s fashion, grooming, watches, and accessories.
Whether by land, sea, or air, a man must get from point A to B.
Just because you want to prep the best possible cocktails at home doesn’t mean you have to mortgage the house for bar tools. Made of 18/8 stainless-steel in gleaming finish with handles wrapped in faux leather (for the look without the worry of water damage), the Metrokane VIP 7 piece bar tool set is both attractive and practical. Included in the kit is a strainer, citrus knife, stirrer, ice spoon, double-jigger measure, and bottle opener, so owning one for your home bar means you can whip up just about any libation under the sun, as long as you have a spare shaker lying around.
Currently on sale at Amazon for less than $20, as an added bonus Metrokane also includes a small book covering the 10 most popular cocktails in America and how to make them. In other words, you’ll have plenty of inspiration for using your newly acquired toys. If red happens to be too racy for your tastes, the same set is available in black.
Cost: $19
Anyone in the market for a one-stop solution to great home theater, optimized for both music and movies need look no further. The Onkyo HT-S7200 is the latest from the company that’s praised continually for the quality of their home theater-in-a-box systems. Combining two separately sold components capable of solid performance into one convenient set means a win for consumers.
Part one, and the brains of the operation, is the HT-RC160 receiver. Sporting 5 HDMI inputs, analog upconversion to 1080i, a text-based on-screen display, and on-board decoding of high resolution audio formats such as Dolby TrueHD + DTS-HD master audio, this component-grade device has all the modern basic features any basic to average home theater consumer could need. Part 2 of the package consists of the SKS-HT870 7.1 speaker set, which includes a pair of full-sized tower speakers and Onkyo’s proprietary UP-A1 iPod dock. While this set’s rather bulky size and black wood finish may not fit all interior tastes, its performance is definitely touted as being above and beyond smaller “lifestyle” focused HTIB speakers and, in our opinion, that’s worth any styling trade off.
Don’t let any previous bias against home theaters-in-a-box blind you. Though we’ve as yet been unable to put the system through its paces Gear Patrol style, based on our experience with similar Onkyo products, we’re confident that you’ll be hard pressed to compile any other brand new budget home theater system to best the Onkyo HT-S7200 in performance or features for the same price. This is especially true for those who already own a PS3 or Blu-ray player. Check out CNET’s take here though, if you’re still experiencing doubts and want to learn more.
Cost: $686
Based in Lancaster, PA, RGM Watches (Roland G. Murphy) harkens back to a day when it was the Americans who rivaled any timepiece the Swiss made. As a person with resounding appreciation for products Made In America, I’m totally fixated on RGM Watches. Constructed in the town where venerable brand Hamilton Watch Co. once resided, before they too were bought by the Swiss, RGM produces roughly 400 timepieces a year. The Model 222, a railroad style watch is part of the RGM Signature Series utilize some vintage Hamilton movements and dials, including the engraved details. This makes each watch unique and likely only a few hundred will ever be produced.
Of course, RGM produces many other timepieces, starting at just $1,750 - including those powered by the RGM Caliber 801, the first caliber to be produced in America in 35 years. Whether you share in your fellow man’s love of watches, it’s still worth a browse to see some beautiful domestically crafted pieces.
Cost: $4,500-$22,900
Following up on the rabid success of the E-P1, comes the Olympus E-P2, less than half a year later. Bound to irk some early adopters of the E-P1, the E-P2 continues with the retro goodness, but this time in a much sleeker all-black design, upgraded features that address all the problems and bugs with the E-P1, and upgraded price ($300+ premium over the E-P1).
The Micro Four-Thirds Olympus E-P2 new features include a new port to utilize a high resolution electronic viewfinder (included) or external stereo microphone (not included), continuous autofocus tracking in photo or video mode, 8 art filters including a Diorama Filter (think: tilt-shift) and Cross Processing, and a color boosting function called i-Enhance. It will continue to take 12 megapixel photos at 3fps, 30fps 1280×720p HD resolution video, and utilize the 3″ 230k LCD display. The camera kit will be available with either the ED 14-42mm f3.5/5.6 Zuiko Digital Zoom Lens or 17mm f2.8 Zuiko Digital Zoom Pancake Lens (our preference).
Cost: $1,099
It’s no secret that American car makers are in the process of reinventing themselves. Their image and their vehicles are being transformed, as well. Admittedly, we’re often enamored with the latest models to arrive at port from Asian and European manufacturers and, for years, our excuse has been that there simply wasn’t much to consider here at home. In other matters, we love all things Americana, but not so in our vehicular lusts.
We’re happy to report that, tough as times are, Detroit is starting to change our (hearts and) minds. Whereas it’s tough to put old biases and longstanding impressions aside, the 2010 Ford Taurus gave us pause and a real reason to rethink our prejudice against the American sedan. Gone is the El Toro that deserved ridicule in your high school parking lot; it has been replaced by a mature and well-performing mid-sized sedan, easily suited to a wide range of drivers and needs.
We didn’t expect to be won over by Ford’s newly redesigned flagship, but the wooing worked. Follow along to see why.
There’s not a lot to explain about this series of posters by visual artist/student Ross Berens. The visual appeal to your inner-astrologist needs no explanation. We’ll let you imagine how great an oversized framed print would be in your home or office. Unfortunately, the Under The Milky Way series is not yet available in print, though we’ve been in touch with Berens and hope to commission a set of prints for the Gear Patrol offices. If you’re interested in possibly joining us and starting a batch print, leave us a comment or email us at sayhello @ gearpatrol dot com . No guarantees, but we love a good find. Bringing it to fruition is simply icing.
We’ve dropped the larger images of all 9 planet posters after the jump. They’re stunning.
There are certain tools that every man needs, regardless of his station. From the suburban DIY guru to the loft-dweller with nary a free cupboard, much less a full-out workshop, each one among us can benefit from the prowess of a solid cordless drill driver. If you can only own one tool, that’s the one to have.
Interesting tidbits from our friends and colleagues from around the web.
Behind the Brothers: The Billykirk story (must watch) (The Scout)
Tsovet Series 2.0 Watches make their debut (Acquire)
Spiccoli’s dream chair and other 60′2 furniture (A Time to Get)
Max does his tour thing with Russell Moccasin (All Plaidout)
A Continuous Lean collaboration boots with Cole, Rood & Haan (Valet)
Huge picture collection of abandoned Chernobyl (KiddofSpeed)
Motorcycle trip down Patagonia (BikeExif)
United Airlines continues to innovate (The Onion)
The Prometheus Device (How long till this kid is a super villain?) (Like Cool)
Learn how to cook Shepard’s Pie (Heavy Tweed Jacket)
imogene + willie intro video (Anyone been there?) (imogene + willie)
Turning your beater into a respectable single speed (Men and Women of Industry)
A man’s first proper hat (The Gentleman’s Corner)
Parents…when they were cool (My Parents were Awesome)
Ten things you played with as a kid that weren’t toys (Chris Illuminati)
“These are the toughest, strongest, most stubborn jeans in the world, no argument.”
That description on Ironheart’s website intrigued us, to say the least. Bold statements beg to be tested, and test this claim we have. The Ironheart IH-634s jeans are defined by the 21 ounce selvage denim from which they’re constructed. For those of you unschooled to the nuances of denim construction, that’s almost one-third heavier than most high-end selvage. Other details like copper or sterling silver rivets, chain stitching, and a super heavyweight leather tag, make it blatantly clear that Ironheart takes their moniker seriously.
In spite of the super-heavyweight denim, the Ironheart IH-634s Selvage Jeans maintain comfort and mobility with a looser weave, made possible by using the highest quality long fiber cotton produced in their Japanese mills. These jeans are raw indigo, meaning that with dedicated wear they come to reflect you. Over time they will develop whiskering, honey combs, and wallet lines that all come from how you live life in these jeans. A lot more authentic than buying something trendy and preworn-in that won’t last as long and have no memories to vouch for the wear and tear.
This is an age old question, but I’m still unsure about the answer. Are brown shoes kosher to wear with navy suits?- Roger D.
