FEATURE: Is Rolex Reaching Critical Mass?

A few weeks ago I got a call from a work colleague wanting my advice. She said 'My son in law wants to buy a watch as an investment and I told him that you know about watches, so I said I'd ask you what to buy'. To which my immediate answer was 'Don't buy a watch as an 'investment, either buy a watch because you like it or don't buy one at all, because the chances of any watch you buy from a shop window going up are absolutely miniscule'. I ranted for a while until she got the message, not sure if her son in law bought a watch or not, but it just shows that the 'myth' of the appreciating Swiss watch persists.

Of course there are watches that appreciate, but as a rule they aren't the kind of watches you can pick up in your local Goldsmiths or Ernest Jones. No, for those you have to run the gauntlet of the boutiques and in particular the Rolex boutiques.

It's a funny thing, but recently I've noticed that the You Tube watch gurus are starting to subtly change their stance on Rolex. As long as I've been watching they've all been all about Rolex and the unstoppable rise in value that the steel sports models represent. But now all of a sudden, it's reached a point where even they are starting to question the 'value' of these ridiculously overpriced models.

GALLERY: TAG Heuer Carrera Heuer 01 Titanium Chronograph by Jim Dollares

 

Instagram @ JimDollares

VIDEO: Heuer 2000 Series Quartz Watch by Birth Year Watches

 

ON THE WRIST: Tudor Black Bay Automatic Watch

 

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Goldsmiths / Milton Keynes, 13th September 2021

So some of you saw a version of this post on Friday morning, before I took it down and replaced it with the 'Timeline of TAG Heuer Production'. The reason for this was that somehow, I thought I had tried on a Black Bay 58 and it seems that what I actually tried on was a normal 41mm Black Bay. Bizarrely I somehow managed to get all the details right, and every single picture I used was also the watch that I tried on, but none of them were a Black Bay 58.

I now know that the easy way to tell the difference is that the Black Bay 58 has a gilt bezel whereas the original Black Bay does not, and of course it is 2mm smaller. Honestly I don't think it would make a lot of difference to my opinion, though it does appear from photographs that the gilt numbers on the bezel do liven it up a bit. 

But still, I couldn't leave a post up that was clearly wrong in every way (except that one that matters) and so I decided to rewrite it...

It's been a long time since I tried on a Black Bay (of any kind) and on this shopping trip I had already decided (since there wasn't that much new TAG Heuer available) that I would try out some different watches to spice things up. So on this day I also tried out a Bell and Ross BR-05 and a Brietling Pro Endurance Super Quartz, both of which will be reviewed at a later date.

GALLERY: TAG Heuer 2000 Series Tristar Quartz Watch

 

VIDEO: TAG Heuer Carrera Calibre 16 by Random Rob

 

HISTORY: The Timeline of TAG Heuer Production

This is something I've been thinking about creating for a long, long time (ever since someone told me that the Carrera and Monaco had been in constant production since their release in the 1960s). But every time I started it seemed like quite a difficult chart to achieve. But now, finally, I've done it and I think it's turned out quite well.

Admittedly you will probably need to open the image in a new tab to see everything properly, and the most important thing to note is that the numbers at the bottom of the chart represent the years from 1986 to 2020.

As you can see, there is not one single watch model that has survived from 1986 to now without falling out of production for a while, but the one that has been around the longest is the Formula 1 with just four years out of the range.

Obviously this is not really an exact science since watches can be 'available' even after they have been removed from catalogues and websites, but this is a good 'guide' to which models were available through the years from 1986 to date. 

Some models have a longer history of course; in fact every watch bar the Formula 1 which was available in 1986 was a carry over from the Heuer era and can also be found with a Heuer logo on the dial. 

Finally, in case you are wondering, the colours have no deep meaning, they are just there to make it easier to read.

GALLERY: Heuer Carrera CV2119 Calibre 17 Chronograph by Anthony Ranalli

Instagram @ Anthony_Ranalli

VIDEO: TAG Heuer S/EL 1992 by Erased Culture

 

HISTORY: TAG Heuer 6000 Series (1994-2001)

The 6000 Series was launched in 1992 as the brand's new flagship model (although oddly did not appear in any catalogues until 1994). To modern eyes it can either look glamorous or ostentatious depending on one's viewpoint. I will admit that I hover between the two viewpoints at various times of the day.

As you will notice, some pictures are missing, this is because TAG Heuer show two strap options in the catalogues, but only provide pictures of one variant. If I can find pictures at a later date I will add them in. 

Straps for the 6000 Series are rather confusing, I will talk about these more at the end of the post. One contributing factor was that TAG Heuer mixed up the codes in the 1996 and 1997 catalogues, showing FC straps with BC numbers in 1996 and then swapping both pictures and codes in 1997! Thankfully by the time I'd got to 1996 I had grasped the basics and realised what had happened!

Speaking of the catalogues, I've had to use quite a lot of catalogue (drawing) shots, I always prefer actual photographs if possible but some of these were just not available in head-on shots.

GALLERY; TAG Heuer 6000 Series Quartz Chronograph

 

Tomorrow we have the 'History of the 6000 Series' post... 

VIDEO: Bamford Watch Department by Design Atelier

 

ON THE WRIST: Maurice Lacroix Aikon Venturer Blue Automatic & Fiaba Ladies Moonphase Quartz Watch

 

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Ernest Jones / Milton Keynes, 13th September 2021

Over the next few weeks I will be posting six posts* focusing on watches I tried on during my recent visit to the 'MK' Centre in Milton Keynes. I haven't been there since September 2019 and much has changed in the meantime; thankfully the John Lewis is still there, but there are quite a few empty shops along the sides of the centre unfortunately. The MK Centre is still quite well served for watch shopping though as it has Beaverbrooks, Goldsmiths, Lyons (which has Hublot and Rolex as well as TAG Heuer and Tudor) and not one but two Ernest Jones! 

Even so, I knew there probably wasn't going to be a lot of fresh TAG Heuer to try on, because there really doesn't seem to be much new coming out this year, and what has appeared seems mostly to be limited editions that are never going to make it to the shops. Undaunted I decided this was the perfect opportunity to try out some other brands and so with that in mind I took the trouble to try on a Tudor Black Bay, a Bell & Ross BR05, a Breitling Endurance Pro and this Maurice Lacroix Aikon Venturer. I also tried on a couple of TAG Heuers too, but we'll get to those later.

GALLERY: TAG Heuer Carrera by Thingz I Like Too

 

INSTAGRAM @thingziliketoo

VIDEO: Heuer Carrera CS3111 Chronograph by Marshall Time

 

SPOTLIGHT ON: TAG Heuer 2000 Series Automatic Chronograph

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As time goes by I become more and more attracted to collecting the older watches from the TAG Heuer back catalogue; there's just something about the 80s and 90s pieces in particular that catches my attention - could it be the 'relatively reasonable' prices compared to the prices of the newer pieces I wonder? So when EST1897 sent me an email inviting me to take 'another look' at their ongoing sale, this one jumped out at me...

The email seemed to imply that the prices had been reduced again, but it looks like it's still a blanket 20% off the original asking price and so this beautiful 2000 Series is currently standing at a pretty decent £715 (down from £895). I'm not sure I would pay nearly £900 for this one, but at £715 it seems pretty reasonable and you do get a one year warranty when you buy from EST1897 so that's worth taking into account - especially for an automatic watch of this vintage.

GALLERY: TAG Heuer Formula 1 Classic Quartz Watch

 

VIDEO: TAG Heuer Aquaracer Quartz Watch by One Man Reviews

 

FEATURE: My Top Five White Dial TAG Heuer Watches

 

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When considering 'luxury' products, white can be a tricky colour to utilise well: it can easily look 'inexpensive' or (heaven forbid) 'entry level', but can also work very well... particularly when used as a 'partner' colour or (as with silver dials) if you want a watch that can wear a variety of coloured straps. So I thought I would trawl the TAG Heuer Enthusiast Gallery Blog once again and pick out my favourite white dial watches and try to put them in some kind of order of preference.

One thing that's worth mentioning before we go any further is that some watches that you think have white dials, when you look them up you find they actually have silver dials. One such example was the Carrera Calibre 360 which made my short list but fell out when I looked at the Watchfinder listing and realised it might not actually be white after all. Same goes for the quartz Aquaracer 'Night Diver' which looks white in pictures but definitely looks more silvery in the flesh, which is a bit of a shame really as it rather spoils the monochrome effect.

GALLERY: Heuer Monza 40th Anniversary Special Edition Calibre 17 Chronograph by Anthony Ranalli

Instagram @ Anthony_ranalli

VIDEO: TAG Heuer Aquaracer Calibre 5 by Watch Andrew

 

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: TAG Heuer Aquaracer Calibre 5 'Night Diver'

 

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When I first saw the new '2021' Aquaracer, I must admit I wasn't exactly jumping for joy... then a few months later I got to see one in the flesh and I was like, well, actually it's not as bad as I thought. I still didn't exactly 'love it' and I certainly didn't 'want' one, but at least I now knew it was one of those watches that looks better in real life than it does on a screen (yes that is a 'thing' kids, go to an actual shop* and see for yourselves!)

*'Shop'... I've just realised that creeping Americanization of the English language means that 'shop' no longer sounds 'correct' and I want to change it to 'store'. I will resist!

So while as yet I'm still not 100% convinced by the new Aquaracer, I do think that eventually I'll get used to the new look and it will feel more 'familiar'. Right now it still feels a little 'wrong'... like it's not really a proper 'Aquaracer'. But maybe that's just a by-product of the previous range being so damn cool looking that I really didn't want it to change and so all those supposed 'improvements' feel unnecessary and actually somewhat 'detrimental' in my eyes. Ironic right, I moan about other brands never changing and praise TAG Heuer for not standing still - until it doesn't suit me! Haha. 

GALLERY: TAG Heuer 3000 Series Quartz Chronograph

 

VIDEO: TAG Heuer Aquaracer Calibre 5 by GFW Watch

FEATURE: Is the Tudor Black Bay becoming a 'Problem'?

 

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This post was originally going to be called 'How to React When Your Friend Buys a Watch You Don't Really Like That Much!'... but the more I thought about it, the more I came to the conclusion that it's clearly me who's out of step when it comes to the Tudor Black Bay and I wonder if it isn't starting to become a little bit of a problem for TAG Heuer?

So we all know the problems one encounters when trying to purchase pretty much any stainless steel Rolex 'sports' watch, and it can't have escaped your attention that this has really played into Tudor's hands. While technically they may be more 'independent' than they once were, that distinction hasn't really bled through to the public consciousness and the brand is still seen (and most likely promoted within stores) as the baby, or 'accessible' if you prefer, Rolex.

UPDATE: 5th Anniversary of the TAG Heuer Enthusiast Blogspot

As you can see, I have uploaded a new (temporary) header for the T.H.E. Blogspot. We're not quite at the five year mark yet, but it's only a few weeks away now so I thought it was appropriate to start the 'celebrations'. Some of the keener eyed amongst you might notice that the picture I've chosen is of the prototype skeleton Carrera Heuer 01, which is particularly relevant since that is the piece that really inspired me to start this blog in the first place.

I'm trying to think of some 'special' posts I can do to mark the anniversary, but at the moment I'm just trying to keep on track with my regular posts. Speaking of which, tomorrow (or later tonight depending on where in the world you are) I have a post about the seemingly unstoppable 'Tudor Black Bay', I hope you will all enjoy that one.

Aqua-G

GALLERY: Heuer Monza 150.501 Chronograph by Anthony Ranalli

Instagram @ Anthony_ranalli

VIDEO: TAG Heuer 2000 Series Automatic Chronograph by Luxury Professor

 

FIRST IMPRESSIONS:TAG Heuer Carrera Heuer 02 'Japanese' Limited Edition Chronograph

 

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When it comes to limited and special editions collectors often cite Japan as the epicentre of the market and not without good reason. Of course other markets get unique products from time to time, but Japan does seem to get more than it's fair share of markedly different pieces. For example we could point to the 2018 white ceramic Heuer 02T Ginza boutique edition, or perhaps the 2017 'Men's Club' Calibre 11 Monaco with it's eye catching 'green tea' inspired dial and strap (both of which were made in extremely limited numbers).But going even further back than that one can also cite Calibre 16 Carreras with black mother of pearl dials and and other truly unusual pieces like the awesome multi-coloured classic Formula 1 released in the early 90s in honour of (Japanese F1 driver and TAG Heuer ambassador) 'Ukyo Katayama'. 

Clearly Japan has always been an important market for TAG Heuer, so perhaps we shouldn't be overly surprised that they have chosen to issue this first 'special' variation of the 44mm Carrera Sports there...

GALLERY: TAG Heuer Aquaracer Quartz Watch

 

VIDEO: TAG Heuer Autavia Calibre 5 Watch by Brent L Miller Time