WAW2170.FC6261
During the 00s and early 10s, and under the stewardship of CEO Jean Cristophe Babin, TAG Heuer flexed their horological muscles and produced a slew of hardcore time pieces including the Mikropendulum, the Mikrotimer Flying 1000 and the Monaco V4. The V4 was released in several different configurations (including a tourbillon) but this particular model was notable primarily for its platinum case.
Now, I had this quote in my head that all the platinum in the world would fit in an Olympic swimming pool... but I knew if I blithely slapped that into this post and it was wrong someone would call me out. So, like all good journalists, I Googled it... and it appears that I wasn't far wrong. Apparently it is estimated that there are 70,000 metric tonnes of platinum, mostly still in the ground in South Africa, but as far as how much has already been mined, well supposedly it would all fit in a room 25ft square.
Which probably explains why it's so bloody expensive! Indeed, the watch in question is currently available new from 'Watches of Mayfair' at a price of £89,279... I wonder if they have the nerve to charge carriage on top?
But you could potentially get a minty looking pre-owned version for much less if you head to the Phillips Watch Auction being held in Geneva next weekend (5/6th November 2022). They have a WAW2170.FC6261* listed for sale with a guide price of CHF20,000-40,000, which is approximately £17500-35000. I've put an asterix next to the FC6261 because clearly that brown strap is not the black alligator it originally came fitted with.
Now, it could be that Phillips won't sell the watch on its original strap because alligator is considered an endangered species (this is illegal in California I believe) or it could be that the previous owner replaced it with a strap more to their taste. But I can't help thinking they could at least have found a black strap of some description, which closer replicated the original, because honestly that tan strap looks pretty terrible (not to mention 'cheap').
The watch itself looks fantastic though, I love how much of the radical movement is visible on both sides of the watch, including the initially troublesome 0.07mm thick reinforced elastic-polymer belts, three of which link the gear train while one connects the four mainsprings. Also visible is the sliding weight which acts like a rotor in a conventional automatic watch, providing power to the aforementioned mainsprings.
I feel like perhaps this blog has rather neglected the haute horlogerie side of TAG Heuer in the past, probably because it very much is in the past; nowadays anything remotely avant garde seems to end up in a Zenith (TAG Heuer's LVMH sister brand) which is rather a shame. I do have a 'Masterpieces' catalogue, and I may well use that as the basis for some future posts highlighting these genuinely amazing timepieces. I know most of us will never see, let alone own these watches, but that's no reason to exclude them, after all you could say the same about many of TAG's recent 'limited edition' pieces.
LINK TO THE PHILLIPS AUCTION PAGE:
Is this mechanism reliable ?
ReplyDeleteHi, good question. I don't honestly know. I'm probably never going to own one at these prices, not do I know anyone who does. It was a very complex movement to create and like any super boundary pushing I imagine there may be some weaknesses. It certainly isn't something that can be serviced locally, if you know what I mean and presumably those tiny belts won't last forever.
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