FIRST IMPRESSIONS: TAG Heuer Carrera Skipper Solid Rose Gold Calibre TH20-06 Chronograph

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For most people the 'Skipper' dial version of TAG Heuer's 39mm glassbox Carrera has been the runaway winner, and even I must admit it does have a certain charm about it. So what better way for TAG Heuer to capitalise on this success than to issue a new version in a solid 5N rose-gold case? 

What? Yes, more solid gold watches from TAG Heuer. Has no one told them about the cost of living crisis or that the watch bubble has burst? I guess the people this is aimed at don't have such every day worries as mortgages to contend with and can probably find the requisite £18,750 simply by fishing a hand down the back of their Fritz Hansen sofa. 

But let's not get bogged down by such trifling inconveniences, what matters is does it actually look any good? Well, I would say it definitely looks okay. Does it look three times better than it does in steel though? I would say definitely not. Sure the blue looks nice against the precious metal case, but the orange I would say not so much. Hmm...

This was my one issue with that gorgeous solid gold bezel 500M Aquaracer that I wrote about a while back, the orange tipped second hand. It really looked a bit 'wrong', like it was a detail they meant to change but forgot. It's not as jarring here, oddly, despite being much more obvious, maybe because it works so well with the blue... and there's no denying it does give incredible legibility for the all important second hand. 

Did we need a rose gold Skipper glassbox? No. Am I upset that it exists? Not at all. I'm sure someone will derive great pleasure from it as they embark on their luxury (nautical?) odyssey, but I honestly won't lose any sleep over the fact that it's out of my price range. How many gold pieces is that now? Somebody must be buying them, hey?

Let's see if any of the COCO will be selling a kidney on eBay for one of these...

8/10. "Saw this in the flesh today. I like the rose gold. 8 for me."

3/10. "Rose gold and blue = winning, but mixed with orange and two shades of green and my eyes now need surgery!"

5.5/10. "I've never really like the Skipper but for some reason I'm warming to this one. I feel the rose gold adds a warmth to the watch and goes very well with the blue dial. Also that orange hand (and accents) really does pop very nicely against that dial."

4/10. "Mix of colours don’t work for me with the gold case."

6/10. "Same feels about the two subdials - 3 and it gets another point."

8/10. "I was looking at the live picture of it in one of the IG accounts, the gold wasn't that striking and actually quite subtle. If it is like this generated picture I think it would be way lower than that from me."

8/10. "I like it quite a bit. The gold works nicely with Skipper's color scheme. Can't say I'd be willing to pay the premium for a gold version over the steel version, but I do like it better."

7/10. "From this pic I want to say 3/10… but I have a feeling it actually looks good in person. I’ll vote 7/10."

6.5/10. "I don’t like it more than the steel Skipper CBS2213.FN6002, so it’s the same 6.5/10."

7/10. "Does look nicer in the flesh - or at least, live photos."

  

7/10. "Not a gold watch person. I think the steel looks better."