The $100 Upgrade
Five things worth blowing a hundred bucks on this month.
A hundred dollars occupies a pretty great spot in the world of gear. It’s enough to buy something genuinely good without requiring weeks of financial deliberation. Welcome to The $100 Upgrade, our new monthly collection of five things hovering around the hundred-dollar mark that we think are worth your attention. No rankings, no common theme, and no requirement that you actually need any of them. This month: a seriously slim pocket knife, American-made cast iron, an old-school Timex, a screen-free digital camera, and a tiny fire pit.
The James Brand Ellis Knife
THE BRAND’S THINNEST KNIFE EVER
The James Brand has always had a knack for making pocket knives look a little more sophisticated, and the Ellis might be one of its cleanest designs yet. At just 0.4 inches thick, it’s actually thinner than a pack of gum. The non-locking slip-joint knife pairs a 2.6-inch Sandvik 12C27 drop-point blade with aircraft-grade aluminum handles, a pen-style pocket clip, and The James Brand’s All-Things scraper and pry tool. That last bit can turn screws, scrape labels and, most importantly, open a beer. It’s an extremely tidy amount of utility for a hundred bucks.
Price: $99
Field Company No.4 Cast Iron Skillet
MADE IN THE USA
Most cast iron skillets are inexpensive. The Field Company No.4 isn’t, and that’s sort of the point. Made in the USA using recycled iron, the 6¾-inch skillet borrows from the lighter, smoother cast iron pans made by companies like Griswold and Wagner generations ago. It weighs just 1.86 pounds, comes pre-seasoned with three coats of grapeseed oil, and has a polished cooking surface that’ll continue getting better the more you use it. The smaller No.4 is particularly good for eggs, individual servings, and those occasions when firing up a 12-inch skillet feels excessive.
Price: $100
Timex Expedition Scout
CLASSIC FIELD WATCH
The Timex Expedition Scout is proof that a good-looking field watch doesn’t have to come with a mechanical movement or a four-figure price tag. The 40mm case houses a highly legible black dial with 12- and 24-hour markings, a date window, quartz movement, and Timex’s excellent INDIGLO backlight. A green fabric strap completes the military-inspired look, while 50 meters of water resistance makes it perfectly capable of handling everyday wear. At $95, it’s a simple, handsome field watch you can actually wear without worrying about it.
Price: $95
Camp Snap CS-Pro Camera
ANALOG-INSPIRED FILM
The Camp Snap CS-Pro is a digital camera designed to make taking pictures fun again by removing one seemingly essential component: the screen. You point, shoot, and find out what you captured later, giving it some of the anticipation of shooting film without paying to develop a roll every time. The CS-Pro takes the original Camp Snap idea further with upgraded hardware and a more capable shooting experience, while retaining the intentionally simple approach that made these cameras interesting in the first place. Your phone undoubtedly takes better pictures. That’s not really why you’d buy this one though.
Price: $99
Solo Stove Mesa XL
COMPACT & SMOKELESS
A full-size fire pit isn’t always practical. A seven-inch-wide one is considerably easier to justify. Solo Stove’s Mesa XL shrinks its familiar smokeless fire pit design down to tabletop proportions while still burning real hardwood or pellets. It stands 8.6 inches tall, weighs just 2.3 pounds, and uses the same airflow-driven secondary combustion concept that helps Solo Stove’s larger pits cut down on smoke. Put it on the patio table, light it after dinner, and you’ve essentially purchased the atmosphere of a backyard fire without permanently surrendering a chunk of the backyard to one.
Price: $100
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