CAR2A1Z.FT6044 CV2A80.FC6256
Hello readers, hard to believe I know for one so soft of skin and lithe of body🤣, but today is in fact my 55th birthday! Yay. Cake!!! And so I thought perhaps I would take a break from all these incessant new release posts and instead do what I really like doing. So today I will be writing about two of my most luxurious watches; my original 2016 Heuer 01 Skeleton and the titanium cased Calibre 16 day date Carrera I got from the Bicester Village outlet for my 50th birthday.
Now this post has in fact been in the works since late 2021, I even had some text written and pictures taken... but as three years have passed (!) I decided it would be much better to just start from scratch. I even briefly pondered the idea of switching out the Calibre 16 Carrera for my recently purchased Grand Carrera Calibre 36 for a true 'Clash of the Titans' post... but on reflection I decided that perhaps comparing my long time 'favourite' watch with the watch I am currently 'infatuated' with was a bit unfair. I mean maybe in time the GC Caliper will emerge as my 'favourite' watch, but it's far too soon to be throwing claims like that around.
CAV5115.FT6019
So let's stick with the plan. Thus far in my watch collecting journey I've only owned two (regular, non-Grand) Carreras, and I still own them. So that's a good start, especially when you think how many watches I've bought and sold over the last few years! And oddly, unlike my three Grand Carreras neither have exactly enjoyed a vast amount of wrist time.
I think this is a symptom of having bought them both brand new and in pristine condition, and wanting to keep their PVD coated steel bezel and case, polished steel lugs and blasted titanium cases looking that way. Not that I'm careless with my Grand Carreras, far from it, but all three of them are steel and polishable - something I would take into account before buying any more expensive watches.
He says, while casually eyeing up a nice PVD coated Grand Carrera on H&T! 🤣
So let's start with the CV2A80. I came across this one at Bicester Village in mid 2019, it hadn't previously been on my list, but I was instantly impressed with its extra-sporty and modern take on the day/date Carrera and the price was reduced from £4500 to £2835 (after VIP discount). With my birthday just a few months away I talked to my wife and we decided I should go for it.
Oddly I haven't written a single post about it since my 'Buying Experience' and searching the CV2A80 label just brings up that post and six photos... which just goes to show how 'under the radar' it has flown. Indeed there have been occasions when I seriously thought about selling - obviously not ideal for a 'birthday' watch, but then again not a good enough reason on its own to keep a watch of this value IMHO.
But then every time I do put it on I'm transported back to the outlet and how I felt when I first bought it and wonder how I could ever even contemplate selling it! I don't think I've ever had another watch quite so Jekyll and Hyde on and off the wrist. I love the carbon patterned dial, the lumed numerals, the red highlights, the bold white lumed hands (massively legible) and I don't even mind the day/date function, which is a novelty for me as it's the only one I've ever had.
The strap is nice too, with a similar carbon-esque texture to it, but I don't think it's particularly hard wearing. When I bought mine I noticed there was an odd lump in the strap and they got me a replacement, but whenever I notice this watch coming up for sale pre-owned it always seems to be on a different strap, which suggests to me that the FC6256 is perhaps a bit delicate (kinda like the Monza 40th Anniversary, which also rarely seems to resell on its original strap).
The clasp, like the case is titanium, and has a nice TAG Heuer badge on it. This is another one that tends to dig in my wrist at first, and needs a little bit of adjusting to get it just right so that it doesn't. I could live without that honestly, but it does look damned cool, and the red stitching on the strap is perfect for this model.
Funnily enough, for some reason this watch seems to come up pre-owned quite a lot, and usually for around £2500. I don't know whether TAG Heuer just dumped tons of them into the market through the outlets or what, but I reckon I've seen more titanium models than steel models over the last few years - which seems kind of strange doesn't it?
Still, even if it wasn't quite the bargain it seemed at the time, it remains a very nice watch. My only gripe with it really is that the lugs are a bit on the long side for a 43mm watch. No doubt many readers will scoff at that and proclaim the watch too big for the lugs... but I don't have a problem with the size of the watch, just the lugs. It's supposed to be loud and sporty, it just needed a couple of millimeters shaving off each lug.
This is the only watch I actually hand wind when I come to wear it, mainly because my watch winder doesn't seem to wind it. I'm sure it could if I could work out how to programme it, but I really can't be bothered. It feels pretty nice to wind, though I hate doing it (Calibre 5 PTSD, you understand) and it seems to work well enough, though I rarely wear it for more than one day at a time so the accuracy is anyone's guess.
Okay, so moving on to the Heuer 01... well this is a completely different kettle of fish. I didn't buy this one on impulse, not at all. From the minute I saw the prototype (released at Bazelworld in 2015 by the legendary Jean Claude Biver of course) in Q.P. magazine I knew I wanted it - just like when I saw the F1 Kirium that first time, but I wasn't sure I could wear a 45mm watch and I tried it on several times at jewellery stores while I saved up the money to purchase it.
I know this was a big turn off for a lot of people, and a big reason why TAG Heuer eventually brought out the 43mm versions, but they were never the same, and the 43mm version of this one lacks the black PVD case and the cool red ring that encircles it. And it doesn't wear as big as you probably think, because the lugs are shorter and the wide rubber strap is so well designed it really helps with the size - whereas the same watches on the bracelets look big and clumsy unfortunately. But yeah, it's not a shy, retiring kind of watch and I'm okay with that.
One of the main criticisms thrown at the H01 Skeleton is that it isn't 'legible' like a proper Carrera should be. Well, to that I say 'Pfft.'. Look at these gloomily-lit pictures and tell me you can't read the time at a glance. Absolute poppycock! The hands are big and bold, and well filled with lume and easily readable (thus avoiding another pitfall of most Carreras, poor night time readability). I've honestly never, ever struggled to read the time on this watch, the bold hands and hour markers make it a doddle in any light.
And truth be told, they call this a skeleton watch, but is it really? I mean yes it doesn't have a traditional dial, but it's not like you are staring into a maelstrom of cogs, wheels, pinions and whatever else it is that makes these things work. Basically you can sort of see a couple of cogs, kinda... but mostly what you can really see is the date wheel around the edge of the dial...
Unlike the CV2A80, the clasp on this one is wonderful... with the spare rubber tucking in behind and shielding your inner wrist from the tail of the deployant mechanism. Honestly, this is just so comfortable on the wrist. Sure you can always feel it's there, but the wide strap spreads the weight nicely and does a fantastic job of keeping the watch secure and in place on the wrist. I really love it.
Like the CV2A80, this one has come down quite a bit since it launched at £4000 on the dot. During it's run it did rise to £4300 and by the time it fell off the TH website it had peaked at £4900, but these days you can find really good ones for under £3000 and beaters for around £2000. Speaking of beaters I recently posted a video from someone giving their Heuer 01 a six year review, and if anything that made me so glad I never wore mine day in day out. Some watches look okay with a bit of wear and tear, but this definitely isn't one of them!
The lume is good enough for a non-dive watch, not spectacular, but a lot more impressive than the lume on my Grand Carreras for example, and works well even in dim light to provide extra legibility.
While I have hand wound this one in the past, these days I tend to wear it and then set it or put it in the winder (if I remember in time), I recall it was very quiet and smooth though - if you are interested in the Heuer 01 and the history of it I did post an interview with Peter Roberts talking about the work that went into redesigning it (as the Calibre 1887) after TAG Heuer bought the basic movement from Seiko and I will post a link at the bottom of the page. Again I haven't noticed any issues, but like with the CV2A80 this is generally only worn one day at a time so...
I don't think it will come as any great surprise to anyone that while I like the CV2A80 a lot, it really doesn't stand a chance against the awesome CAR2A1Z. It's been my favourite watch ever since I clapped eyes on it and even if the CAV5115 Grand Carrera does one day usurp its position as my absolute 'favourite' watch, it will still be an extremely special part of my collection and one that will NEVER be sold.
As a matter of fact, I've recently ordered a new strap for it which I am picking up soon from the TAG Heuer boutique in Sheffield. I've been mulling over the idea for quite a long time and finally decided to take the plunge when I bought myself some new white framed Oakley shades. Should be an interesting experiment if nothing else!
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