XM1014 | Watchdog (Minimal Wear)

Skin overview

The Watchdog finish sets carved lions against warm bronze, framed by green on the barrel, grip and stock. At Minimal Wear the look is practically the same as a fresh copy, with at most faint marks near the muzzle or receiver edges that are hard to spot in a match. It keeps the full contrast of green and bronze while usually asking less than the top grade.

Item type: shotgun. Mil-Spec Grade is the lowest rarity found in cases and the most common one among them.

Gunsmith: several techniques combined on one item; some parts rub off, others only dull.

How the skin looks in Minimal Wear

The barrel and the magazine tube are painted jade green with a fine textured pattern, broken up by a bronze band with carved detail near the muzzle end. The receiver and the ribbed pump are warm bronze, and the receiver side carries an engraved relief of lions, with another lion placed beneath the rear sight.

Light specks may appear at the muzzle and on the sharpest edges of the receiver. The pump ribs, the engraving and the stock remain essentially untouched. At normal viewing distance the difference from Factory New is barely noticeable. The colour contrast stays fully intact.

Minimal Wear wear: float 0.07–0.15

The whole float range of XM1014 | Watchdog is 0–1; Minimal Wear takes the 0.07–0.15 segment (8% of the scale). Within the range, copies with a lower float look cleaner and are valued higher.

Origin of the skin

XM1014 | Watchdog belongs to The Operation Riptide Collection, which holds 17 skins.

The source is Operation Riptide Case.

What it costs in each quality

Taking Minimal Wear as the baseline:

• Factory New — 2.6× dearer
• Field-Tested — 1.6× cheaper
• Well-Worn — 2× cheaper
• Battle-Scarred — 1.9× cheaper

The comparison uses our cheapest listing of each quality; where there is none, the market reference.

By price this skin is 7th of 16 skins Mil-Spec Grade XM1014 in this quality (the first being the dearest).

StatTrak™ and Souvenir

This skin has a the StatTrak™ version with a kill counter. Right now it is 2× dearer than the regular one. There is also a the Souvenir version with tournament stickers.

Which stickers suit it

Gold, bronze and deep green stickers sit naturally on this finish and echo its metal and paint. Placing them on the green barrel keeps the engraved lion scene on the receiver clear. Bright neon colours tend to clash with the calm ornamental look.

What to look at before you buy

• Check where the float sits within the wear range, since a low float in Field-Tested looks much closer to Minimal Wear than a high one.
• Inspect the muzzle, the pump ribs and the receiver edges, as these parts show wear first.
• Look at whether the lion engraving on the receiver is still crisp, because it carries most of the skin's character.
• Check applied stickers and any name tag, as they change the look of the receiver area.

Who should buy Minimal Wear

• Players who want a near-perfect look for everyday matches.
• Crafters who accept tiny edge marks in exchange for a lower cost.
• A sensible balance between appearance and price.