SPOTLIGHT ON: TAG Heuer Aquaracer Calibre 5 Limited Editions

WAY201K.BA0927

Ever since the launch of the 50th Anniversary Monaco watches, I've cottoned on to the game of Googling TAG Heuer part numbers and changing the last digit. It's amazing what I've found online, including country specific limited editions and unreleased watches leaked by impatient sites in Poland and the Czech Republic (mainly). Indeed it was the Japanese WAY201H Aquaracer that led me to these two limited editions, which look pretty much identical but actually sport different part numbers.

First we have the Goldsmiths limited edition Calibre 5 Aquaracer, which is limited to 250 pieces and has sold out as far as I can tell. The watch was priced at £2350 and takes the basic current 43mm quartz black dial / red bezel combination and drops the automatic Calibre 5 movement into the case. It's a pretty simple switch out, with little in the way of cost, but it does create a limited piece and provides Goldsmiths with an inoffensive and easy selling Aquaracer.

 So when I changed the last letter to 'L' I was somewhat surprised to find this...

WAY201L.BA0927

In fact when I first found it I assumed it was a mistake, but then I realised what TAG Heuer had done. While this is basically the same watch, they've made it a limited watch for the American market by selling it as the 'Mayors' limited edition (I believe Mayors is a US Jewellery store). Of course, we've seen something similar before as the Tokyo and Oxford Street Heuer 01 Carreras were very similar, but they did have some differences in the materials used (I believe one had a matt ceramic bezel and one polished), but as far as I can tell these two watches are identical apart from the part numbers and the engraved back plate.

This American version (priced at $2900) might also be sold out as the website is inviting you to contact 'customer services', this is perhaps not surprising as this version of the watch was limited to just 50 pieces, which doesn't seem very many for a country as large as America, but then maybe Mayors only has a limited number of boutiques? Overall I think it's a smart looking watch and when they launched the quartz version (WAY101B) I can remember being somewhat surprised they didn't offer the Calibre 5 with this dial / bezel combination as it's a striking but 'safe' colour scheme.

There is one more version of this dial/bezel combo out there, although I'm yet to discover a part number for it or even a real life photograph, so to be honest I'm not 100% sure it ever made it into production. This one was (supposedly) a quartz piece made to celebrate Armistice Day and features a poppy and the text '1914-1918' on the dial. If anyone has any more information about this particular watch then please leave me a comment.