As you surely know by now, each month in this 20th Anniversary year of the Aquaracer we're inviting a special guest to pick their 'Top 10 Aquaracers'. This month it's the turn of my friend, colleague and fellow COCO member 'Rich T'. Rich has long admired the Aquaracer and very nearly bought one a few years ago (he eventually bought a Tudor Pelagos LHD instead, but we don't hold that against him - 🤣) and he's accompanied me to Bicester Village and London's watch stores a few times too. Not to mention of course, he's exposed to my watch collection on a daily basis, which probably explains a few of his choices here...
#10. WBP231E.EB0247 - Calibre 5 'Naomi Osaka' Limited Edition
RICH: I think I'm the only person to choose the WBP231E so far, and I can understand why honestly. But there's something about it that just appeals to me. Maybe it's just that it's so different to everything else out there. At 36mm it's nominally aimed at women, but I have quite small wrists so I think I could wear it too. It's also nothing to do with Naomi Osaka, as I'm not interested in tennis and celebrity endorsement is more likely to put me off than draw me in.
#09. WBP201D.FT6197 - Calibre 5 'Night Diver'
RICH: This one is a lot more popular, at least in part because of the (loose) James Bond connection and the nostalgia for the 1980s 1000 Series 'Night Diver'. Again the James Bond thing is not why I like it, I just love lume and full-lume dials in particular, especially when combined with a black coated case.
#08. WAK2180.FT6027 - Calibre 5 500M
RICH: When I first got interested in watches, this was a watch that I saw a lot online and also in the Bicester Village outlet. It has a lot in common with my number one pick, but is just about different enough to warrant both being included. This one is slightly less 'showy', with a bit less yellow and the negative date wheel... I just wish the helium escape valve was black too.
#07. WAY208C.FC6383 - Calibre 5 Automatic
RICH: Another black Aquaracer, and another popular choice looking back at other people's selections. I love the chunky hands and the cool and unusual colour combination. The strap is also novel, and I do quite like it but I do think it does look better on the black fluted rubber strap, so I can understand why Rob's WAY208C lives on that permanently.
#06. WBP2115.BA0627 - Calibre 5 Automatic
RICH: This one is all about the green fumé dial, which is a little darker than you think it's going to be from the render, but it's still gorgeous. There's something very 'luxurious' about this one, it kinda reminds me of a green velvet smoking jacket or a buttoned Chesterfield sofa in a expensive men's club.
#05. CAF7013.BA0815 - Calibre S Electromechanical
RICH: Again, the vivid yellow colour is the initial attraction here, but I also really like the electro-mechanical movement. It's really cool how TAG Heuer managed to create a chronograph using the hour and minute hands and I love how it can look sporty but still elegant at the some time. I chose it on the bracelet over the rubber, but it works on either.
#04. WBP208D.BF0631 - Calibre 5 'W.O.S' Limited Edition
RICH: As the proud owner of a Tudor Pelagos LHD it's probably not too difficult to understand why this one grabbed my attention. I love the warmth of the sandblasted titanium and this combines with the 'aged' lume, the splashes of red and the black bezel to give me that familiar aesthetic. Being a limited edition also appeals to me, as it did with my Pelagos - although that turned out to be not so limited after all, hahaha.
#03. CAF1010.BA0821 - 'Chronotimer' Quartz
RICH: This is the fourth watch I've chosen that Rob owns, and it's probably fair to say that being exposed to his collection on a daily basis has influenced me somewhat. As a child of the 80s, I love digital watches and so I appreciate this having a digital/analog display and I like that it's all over the dial and not just in the framed box at the bottom. I also like the Breitling Aerospace for the same reasons but this being an Aquaracer makes it even better.
#02. WBP1112.FT6199 - Solargraph Quartz
RICH: Lume is a big thing for me, and seeing this one in person blew me away. The lumed carbon bezel is just awesome and that combined with the black coated case and bright second hand just really works well. I also really like the solar powered movement, the idea of not having to worry about battery changes really appeals to me and at 40mm it is the perfect size for me.
#01. WAY218A.FC6362 - Calibre 5 Automatic
RICH: And so we come to my number one pick. Again this is one that I saw time and again when I was first getting into watches and one that's still available in the Bicester Village outlet I believe. This combines so many things I love about watches: black case, strong lume, yellow highlights, perfect size... if the Pelagos LHD hadn't come out just as I was buying my first luxury watch I could so easily have bought this instead (as the Monza 40th Anniversary was a tad over my budget). If I had bought it I might have also purchased the rubber strap with the yellow lining, maybe one day!
Many thanks go to Rich for his exquisite selections, and if you want to check out the other 'Aquaracer@20' posts then simply click the banner below...
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