FEATURE: My Top Five Brown Dial TAG Heuer Watches

 
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Okay, let's be honest, TAG Heuer doesn't exactly have an endless supply of brown dial watches from which to compile a top 5... and even though I managed to cobble together a list of about twenty five individual references there was lots of repetition with the same watch featured on a bracelet and one or two different coloured straps. But ultimately I have come up with a reasonable list of watches that while I probably wouldn't actually buy myself with my own money, I certainly wouldn't object to wearing if given to me as a present. 

#5. WJ201D.BA0591: Link Calibre 5

I have to admit, at the bottom end of the list it was a toss up between this and the WAY2018 Aquaracer, but with the Aquaracer there are so many other much cooler options that this kinda made the list by default. Still, it looks quite nice, even if that polished bezel is a recipe for scratch-disaster. I would say this was a distant fifth (if I was being kind).

#4. WBE5191.FC8276: Autavia Calibre 5

For me the bronze cased Autavias were the pick of the bunch, although I always preferred the green version to the brown. This looks fantastic here, but having seen a photo of a pre-owned one on the Watchfinder website recently I quickly came to the conclusion that bronze is not for me. I'd want it to stay lovely and shiny and unfortunately it doesn't seemingly take long for them to start looking rather grubby. Damned shame.

3. CAR201U.FC6405: Carrera Heuer 01 Skeleton

I ran into these several times at the Bicester Village outlet store and indeed I nearly purchased one for our Swedish friend Jim Dollares but he changed his mind at the last minute and plumped for the titanium model CAR208Z instead. This is a pretty tasteful model, you don't necessarily notice that it is brown immediately, but once you do you appreciate the warmth it exudes. Available on a bracelet or a brown leather strap, I would say the strap is the better option... but even so I wouldn't swap my black CAR2A1Z for it.

2. CAV511E.BA0902 Grand Carrera Calibre 17

This is one I have tried on (at the now closed TAG Heuer outlet near York back in 2018) and again the brown is quite subtle. I really liked this, though conversely to what I said on the previous watch, for me this one looks much better on the bracelet than on a brown strap. The Grand Carrera model line has perhaps more brown dial models than any other TAG Heuer range, with diamond bezel options to boot. But for me this has always been the pick of the bunch, and that brown dial gives it a touch of class beyond even the regular black dial version.

#1. CAR2112.FC6267 300SLR Calibre 1887 Chrono

Clearly a Carrera, but despite all outward appearances this one carries the 300SLR name tag on the dial and is the only model in this list to feature the classic 'Heuer' logo on its own. Not sure that I've ever actually seen one in real life, but from the pictures it certainly looks the business. The subtle orange touches are a nice detail, as is the 6 O Clock date integrated into the bottom subdial. A very well thought out watch this one and one which I know has a lot of fans in the THF Forum.

Link to my 'On the Wrist' post for the Grand Carrera Chronograph from 2018:

https://tagheuerenthusiast.blogspot.com/2018/08/on-wrist-tag-heuer-grand-carrera.html

PLEASE VISIT THE 'TOP 5' MENU BY CLICKING THE LINK BELOW:

https://tagheuerenthusiast.blogspot.com/p/top-fives.html