FEATURE: Surprises in a Japanese TAG Heuer Catalogue

Over the past couple of weeks I've spent an inordinate amount of time searching out part numbers and photos to add to my Gallery blog and my list of TAG Heuer part numbers. I started out trawling my physical catalogues and then hit on the idea of utilising the scans on the Calibre 11 website (it's actually easier, and I don't have all the catalogues David has put up there). 

I completed the first line of catalogues and then opened the 'Japanese 1988' catalogue thinking 'this will be a waste of time' it'll just be a 'greatest hits' mini-catalogue. How wrong could I be? Very wrong, actually. In all I found 18 watches that I didn't already have in my list, albeit some of those were duplicates in different sizes.

First off we have what I initially thought were solid gold versions of the 3000 Series, but I've subsequently discovered are merely gold plated. These come in four different sizes with the 006, 008, 013 and 015 suffixes. 

937.413SG

I naively assumed that SG stood for solid gold, but a quick look on eBay shows one of these and the backs of the bracelet links are clearly steel, so I am rather disappointed because I rather liked the idea of a solid gold 3000.... bah! And given that information I think the seller is rather optimistic if they think they are going to get £750 for it...

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Vintage-Tag-Heuer-3000-Gold-38mm/254541767005?hash=item3b43df215d:g:GdYAAOSwLB5ebo6b

Next up we have something which is not quite as interesting perhaps, but still something I hadn't come across before, that being the gold dial variant of my own two-tone 3000 Series. Actually, there are plenty on eBay, I just never noticed so that's a failing on my part!

935.413

Again this comes in multiple sizes, but only three this time (406, 408 and 413). Incidentally, if you are not aware, the number ending in '08' is the smallest and definitely a ladies watch, the '15' is slightly larger but still a ladies watch, the '13' is what was back then called a 'boys' watch, or 'midsize and finally the '06' is the full size man's version. I'm sure many, many people have been caught out by this when buying 3000s on eBay as in the photos they all look incredibly similar (in fact the same thing happened to me one time when I accidentally bought a very small S/EL!).

I have to say, I definitely prefer the look of my two-tone 3000 with it's grey dial and plain black logo, this is a bit much and the gold on the dial doesn't really seem to match the bezel. It could be the photo of course but it kinda looks like it has a bit of a green tint to it as well, which I'm not too keen on either.

916.413B

Next we have the black dial variant of the 'Executive' series. That series is something of a forgotten one, but this black dial variation is even more of a rarity. Pretty much all 'Executive' models are two-tone of one description or another, I guess luxury was very much tied up with gold plating back then... but I think this black and gold design is one of the best. 

Only two sizes of this one, the mid-size '13' and the smallest '08' ladies. It's a pity the light is shining on the bezel in this picture, but I'm pretty sure it's largely black with a gold quarter running from the 12 to the 3 position.

280.001

Bearing in mind this catalogue was from 1988, a good couple of years after the TAG takeoever, it's slightly surprising to see the 'Heuer' branded Moonphase pieces in there. especially as they don't feature in any other catalogues I've looked at so far. There's three models on offer. two sizes of this gold dial / gold case on a tan strap and a white dial version on a black strap that looks like it might be steel, but again the picture is hard to read so I can't be 100% sure.

936.006SB

But this might be my absolute favourite of the lot. There are gold and black two-tone 3000 Series in the general catalogues, but they always have gold bezels (and sometimes gold centre links), this is the first time I've seen a full black 3000 with only the bezel markings and crown in gold. I think this is stunning, especially with that gold ring around the dial.

However, we are looking at a watch that, if one could actually find one for sale, is 32 years old now. What are the chances of that black finish still being intact? And even if it is, is it actually as black as it looks in the photo or is it a kind of dirty grey? On paper I would absolutely love to get hold of one of these, but I would need some convincing before parting with my cash.

Again though, it's odd that this particular range is branded as Heuer, not TAG Heuer - especially as there are definitely TAG branded 3000s by this time. So here's my theory... if you look back to the 1985 Heuer catalogue, it appears that there was a watch largely similar to this, but with a gold bezel. So perhaps what they did was they had some left over stock, or maybe incomplete watches and they just decided to put a black bezel on it? And maybe because they didn't have too many pieces left they just put it out in one market - in this instance Japan? It's only speculation on my part but the Heuer dials certainly suggest it's a possibility.

Once again this model comes in all four sizes, though whether any of them will ever come up for sale I really don't know.

The catalogue also contains a 'gold' 3000 cronograph, a different take on the black/gold 3000 chrono and a couple of pocket watches (with no part numbers, annoyingly). Also if you look right at the back end you'll even find something called a Heuer Anenometer, which I assume measures wind speed! I really couldn't have been more wrong about this catalogue could I?

Check it out here:

https://www.calibre11.com/catalogues/tag-heuer-annual-catalogues/1988-japan-tag-heuer-catalogue/

THANKS TO ROCKBURNER FOR HELPING ME GET BETTER IMAGES FOR THIS POST!