Unboxing the 30th Anniversary GWF-T1030A-1 / No. 277 Checking In

[Feisar]

When Casio USA announced the limited edition Rising Red 30th Anniversary collection and that the iconic and rare 1000 Frogman in titanium was heading to the USA, I jumped on the phone with various dealers to get on the list.

At this time not many high quality or detailed photos came out of the Shock the World Tour in NYC and only press release photos were available:



I was on the fence with the colorway and especially the retail price of $1700 USD. The GWF-T1030A-1JR was initially released in Japan at an astounding and wallet lightening 157,500 YEN (Approx. $1981 USD) followed by a UK release for 1500 GBP (Approx. $2384 USD). The limited edition run of 300 numbered units and titanium casing most likely attributed to the MSRP.

After making multiple calls and more photos surfaced, I bit the bullet and pre-ordered.

About 30 excruciatingly slow days later, I checked-in with my dealer in NYC to find out that this rare Frogman had finally arrived on US shores. The stars and moon must has been aligned because I was heading up to our studios in NYC that weekend for work.

Day 1
Acela'd to NYC, rushed through some meetings in SoHo, then jumped on the train to Midtown. After a bit of a wait, I was united with Froggie No. 277 of 300 - my bud Shocker has No. 276 . Oddly, I wasn't super excited compared to the sales persons helping me. They were wow'd with the Frogman design and packaging more than I was, LOL.

By this time I was exhausted from travel, meetings, slightly annoyed with the day and really wanted to pass out. I strapped the Titanium Froggie on - slightly more excited and most likely still in shock - took a couple of Insta'gram shots, and a bit of posting on FB. I rushed out, headed back to my hotel to shower, changed, locked the Froggie up in the room safe, and headed out to the East Village for dinner.

Day 2
It's amazing what 5 hours of sleep can do and woke a bit more energized than the day before. I opened up my room safe and took out the boxed trunk. It was a beautiful morning as I unboxed the Froggie and strapped it on. The gold LCD display and accents shinning vibrantly under the sun rays melted my mental fog and I was smitten with No. 277.

Closing Thoughts after the 1st Week
The GWF-T1030A is a mix of the 1000RD, 1000BS/T1000BS, and 1000G:

- Strap has the same color consistency of the 1000RD.
- 1000 bezel with red text reminds me of the 1000BS/T1000BS
- Gold accents from the 1000G - adjustment pushers, pins, decorative top screws, and 60 sec eye
- The titanium case is lightweight and the perfect weight for a Frogman
- 30th Anniversary engraved caseback with release number (xxx/300) is absolutely stunning

I've always enjoyed the weight of the 1000 Frogs - you don't wear it, the 1000 wears you, LOL! With the 1000 titanium case, its exactly the opposite and love the "wearability"

I wouldn't be surprised if Casio releases more 1000s in titanium in the future. Was it worth the price? Hard to say but for a die-hard Frogman collector, it was a must have.

Enough of my silly ramblings, now onto the photos - commercial free! Enjoy my friends!

Attachment 4815

[rutteger]

Beyond awesome, thanks for sharing your thoughts and most pics Do you mind if I share the pics on our facebook site?

What are you thoughts after the first week on the contrasting band and bezel?

[Feisar]

Don't mind it at all Rutteger.

The contrasting band and bezel surprisingly work fairly well. The band has the same color consistency as the Burning Red Frogman and GW-9330A Mudman.

What I should do is take profile shots so you could admire the gold pushers and two side pins from the 1000G. With great lighting the T1030A is a visually a stunning Frogman with the gold display and 60 second ring, the most distinguishing features.

I could admire the titanium 30th Anniversary engraved caseback all day. Surprisingly the color of trunk and trunk box are purplish red and would have thought it would have been more "red". That's my only nit pick and that they could have use a more commemorative storage case like T1000BS for the price.

[Roba666]

I tried one on at LDN when they had the 30% sale. Very nice but was out of my price range even with the discount. I was a bit gutted they didn't have the normal froggie as i've yet to get one but i did buy my RAF and got a white Haze effectively free!