FEATURE: In Defence of Quartz...

TAG Heuer Calibre S 'Hybrid' Movement

About a year ago I was all in on mechanical movements, I wasn't going to buy any more quartz watches and I was probably going to get rid of any I had (except the F1 Kirium), but here we are and I now own six battery operated watches. So what changed?

Well, I always wanted a Calibre S and now that I have one I really, really love it. It's an amazing movement and if it was possible to replicate what it can do with a purely mechanical movement then I'm sure we would be talking about a watch that cost hundreds of thousands of pounds.

I also got a bit tired of worrying about mechanical watches, and a bit tired of having to set the date every time I wanted to put one on. I think if you only own one or two watches, then mechanical is probably perfect, but it you own a lot of watches, then it's probably more practical to own a mixture of mechanical and quartz pieces. At least it is for me...

I find I am happier having 'special' pieces as mechanical and watches that I'm more likely to wear every day as quartz. I generally decide which watch I'm going to wear in the morning and I really don't have to time to be messing about with dates and winding, I just want to pick something and put it on.

Calibre 5 Movement

For the most part, watch companies don't tend to produce identical watches in quartz and mechanical versions, there's usually something different. It may be as simple as a coloured tip on a second hand or a different dial completely, and that helps to differentiate and to sell the more expensive watch. But recently I purchased a watch that was available in both and it was 'identical' save for the text on the dial, in this instance I chose quartz because it's a diver and I think I'm likely to wear it quite a lot for work (yes, I am a Special Forces Operative!).

When the watch arrived I loved it so much that I started questioning my choice - maybe I should have got the Calibre 5 version, because then it would be more 'special'... maybe it would, but for £900 I would have had to spend probably another 30% to get a (pre-owned) watch that would be less accurate, less reliable, more hassle and more worrisome - and as someone who's buying more and more pre-owned the nice thing about quartz is that generally you know what you're getting, if it works it works (the kicker here was that the Calibre 5 version was available NOS in Bicester Village for £1600, but that was still nearly £700 more than I paid).

Part of the reason I got rid of my CAU2012 Formula 1 was because it was a Calibre 16, I just felt that watch was too casual to merit a mechanical movement. If it had been quartz I would have kept it, but as it was it was always a watch that cost too much for work wear or recreation, and too casual to wear out... and yes I know my Aquagraph isn't exactly dressy, but I am much more connected to that watch and if there was a quartz Aquagraph then it wouldn't bother me in the slightest (although it is cool that it's a Calibre 60 with 46 jewels in it).

Aqaugraph Calibre 60 Movement

My new Grand Carrera GMT on the other hand is fine, because when I'm putting that on I'm going out somewhere and I don't mind the ritual of setting the date and hands and winding the watch. A dress watch deserves a mechanical movement and it enhances the 'special' feeling of wearing it.

They say the quartz watch is destined for extinction, killed by the Smartwatch revolution, but I hope not. It would be a shame if the only choice is Smartwatch or mechanical, but I guess there's probably already enough quartz watches out there to see me out (I rarely use a mobile so I'm certainly not going to entertain a Connected).

Don't get me wrong, this isn't a rant against mechanical watches, I know that most watch enthusiasts favour them and some tend to have a very dismissive attitude to quartz powered pieces. I'm guessing in the future the same thing will happen with people who own Ferraris, they'll grudgingly acknowledge that the newfangled hybrid-electro ones are more efficient, faster and feats of engineering in their own right, but... they aren't 'real' Ferraris, because 'real' Ferraris have a 'proper' engine.

All I'm saying is that I don't share that attitude, I think there's room for both and that kind of 'snobbery' can alienate and make people feel 'pressurised' into buying something they don't really want and which they don't really understand. Owning a mechanical watch is a pleasurable experience, but it can also be stressful if you don't understand why it might not keep perfect time all the time and you don't understand how to look after it properly.

Calibre 8 GMT Movement

The other day I got quite irritated when my Grand Carrera appeared to be losing chunks of time, but it was because it was running upright in a cabinet, as soon as I put it on my wrist it behaved perfectly - and then the next time it was running in the cabinet it was keeping perfect time as well. This is the 'joy' of a mechanical movement, but for those who don't want the stress quartz is an excellent alternative, and some watches are just better that way.

For me, my collection is one third mechanical right now and I think that's about right for the way I live and the way I use my watches, for you it may be different. But regardless, I think we should remember that quartz is right for some people and some collections (or parts of collections) and it really doesn't make the owner any less of a watch enthusiast just because their watch is battery powered not wound.

Unless it's a Daniel Wellington. Obviously!

VIDEO: How It's Made: TAG Heuer Watch Cases by Nicols TV

ON THE WRIST: Aquaracer 300M Calibre 5 Ceramic Bezel

WAY201A.FT6069

David M Robinsons / Chester, 17th October 2016

Bit of a lost post this one, but I remember it well. David M Robinsons is quite a plush little jewellers and this was back before I was completely confident about going into these places and asking to try luxury watches on. It seems kind of silly now, but when you're first getting seriously into watches it can be a little intimidating, especially the more upmarket shops. I seem to remember TAG being one of the cheapest brands in the window and I'm not 100% sure but I think they also sold Patek, but maybe not (I just checked and they do, so you can see it wasn't your average 'Ernest Jones' kind of place...). But I needn't have worried, the lady who served me was very nice and was only too happy to fetch a couple of TAGs from the window for me to try on. I think she may have even given me a catalogue...

This one was a 43mm Calibre 5 on a cool rubber strap with a yellow backing, and at the time I was seriously considering buying this one. My main objection was the cyclops, which was the new thing on TAGs at the time, and I really didn't like it. I still don't really like it, but now that I've got two watches with the damned things on I'm slowly getting used to them.

Eighteen months down the line my interest has waned somewhat, partly because I've now got several Aquaracers... but I still think that strap is very cool. On the wrist it felt fine, I'm definitely a 43mm Aquaracer kind of guy, every time I try the 41mm versions on I just feel they are too small for me. At the time the ceramic bezel seemed a little too shiny, of course we're now all a lot more used to ceramic and I have to say that while they are good from a resilience point of view, they pick up fingermarks like crazy.

When I tried on the Aquaracer WAY108A the other day I felt a little bad because they gave me this brand new, straight out of the safe watch and within seconds I had fingermarks all over the bezel. I don't have a ceramic bezel as yet and I'm kinda glad to be honest, and as for those full ceramic Heuer01s - they must be an absolute nightmare!

This was one of the first 'new' style Aquaracers released and it's shape is more familiar now than it was back in 2016. I remember when these came out the shape seemed incredibly angular, but now it seems to have settled in and barely raises an eyebrow. And while this remains quite a cool looking watch I can't help but feel that if I was going to go down this route I'm more likely to stump up the extra cash and pick up a WAY218A.FC6362 instead.

WAY218A.FC6362

That said of course, these watches have now made their way onto the second hand market and are trading for somewhere around £13-1400, I think the original price was about £1850 IIRC and about £400 more for the black version above. That kind of depreciation is probably about what I would have expected, and I do remember Goldsmiths having some of these on offer for £1400 or so at one point, maybe even less - which was a very good deal for those that picked them up. 

One thing about Aquaracers that never gets old is the lume and this one certainly lives up to expectations, what a cracker!

For the newcomers, here is a link to my review of the Phantom Aquaracer from October 2016

http://tagheuerenthusiast.blogspot.co.uk/2016/10/on-wrist-aquaracer-300m-calibre-5-black_21.html

SPOTLIGHT ON: An Instagram Worth Looking at if You Like 1000 Series Divers

980.913N

You may remember THIS POST where I wrote about an eBay sale for this gorgeous red dial 1000 Series. Well the new owner left me a message thanking me for the post and inviting me to view his Instagram page, which features some great pictures of 1000 Series Heuers and TAG Heuers. 

I've just noticed that the 'damage' to the top left lug seen in the eBay pictures is gone, so maybe it was just a reflection then?

I get the feeling Jose is slightly obsessed, but still, it's a pretty impressive collection! :)

INSTAGRAM - Batmandeslolar

VIDEO: TAG Heuer Carrera Juan Manuel Fangio Limited Edition Review by iReviewWatches

ON THE WRIST: Girard Perregaux Seahawk 49960-19-631-FK16A

49960-19-631-11A

Time and Gems / Bicester Village, 10th May 2018

This was the watch I tried on right before I checked out the Jean Richard Hokusai Wave watch, and it's in a totally different league (and to be fair, price range). Damned if I can remember the original price, I think it was somewhere between £7-8000, but today this was on offer for 'just' £5300 (according to the card that the lovely Sophie gave me to take home).

First things first, this is an unusual looking watch, and I'm sure it's not going to be to everyone's taste, but I liked it. I'm not totally sure about that bulging right hand side of the case, or the crown at the four-fifteen position, but the dial iself is fantastic. Sure the date positioning is a little wacky... but when you pick this watch up you can instantly tell that this is a very well made, quality item.

It's heavy too, really heavy, possibly even heavier than my Aquagraph (which is saying something), and while a lot of that may come from the very substantial, in fact downright 'chunky' bracelet, I'm sure even on a rubber strap (which is also available) it wouldn't feel in any way, shape or form - light.

49960-19-631-FK16A

Girard Perregaux is a bit of an odd brand, they don't seem to have a name to match the respect they garner in the 'watch community', indeed, I'm not entirely sure I've ever seen a GP anywhere but Bicester, not even in Selfridges or Harrods... maybe they've got a boutique in London somewhere but it doesn't spring to mind. Clearly the product is good, so maybe it's the marketing and brand awareness they need to work on?

When it comes to the Seahawk range, those who are a little... dainty of wrist, shall we say, clearly need not apply. This is a BIG watch, and you're going to need a man size wrist to pull this baby off. I'm not at all sure that crown guard would be comfortable long term and the crown itself is massive, but if you're a larger guy and you want a watch with wrist presence, this thing has it in spades.

The Seahawk operates at the price point where buying a Rolex Submariner makes a lot more sense, but clearly this watch is not aimed at your everyday punters. This brand knows it offers a niche product to a clientele who are more informed and aware, and for who the Submariners and Seamasters of this world are for the hoi-polloi. They know that not everyone will 'recognize' their timepiece and they don't care. They know some people will wrongly assume the watch is a fashion brand, and while it might grate a little they take comfort from knowing that on those rare occasions when they do bump into another GP wearer they give each other a nod and a smile. I imagine owning a Seahawk is a bit like being a member of a club that few can get into, or like owning a Koenigsegg. Evidently it's not a Ferrari - but who wants a Ferrari, 'everyone' has one of them...

Would I buy one? Sure, if I had the money to burn, why not. But no way I'd buy at retail, I bet these things tank hard. But if I was going to buy one, then I think I'd be searching out the green version, because if you're going to big and crazy, then why not go green as well - right?

I'd take that over a Rolex Hulk any day personally, but then if I was looking to spend £8,000 on a watch I wouldn't be looking at either of these, for that money I'd probably take a Heuer 01 with gold lugs instead. But still it's nice to know these things exist, for those with the resources and chutzpah to be bold and different.

VIDEO: Formula One Red Bull Special Edition Review by Govberg Watches

ON THE WRIST: TAG Heuer Link Calibre 16 Two Tone

CAT2050.FC6322

TAG Heuer Boutique / Bicester Village, 10th May 2018

I know that in the past I may have been slightly... outspoken about watches with brown leather straps, and this stems from the fact that at heart I'm not really a conservative kind of guy. I'm never going to choose something tasteful and restrained when there's something outrageous and brash available (although having said that I have just traded in an orange Formula 1 for a distinctly refined Grand Carrera GMT, so who knows, maybe I'm just getting old?)

So why then, when I stood in front of the cabinets in Bicester Village, was it this particular Link I chose to try on? In all honesty I don't really know. Maybe it was the shiny gold bezel, maybe it was the vertically fluted dial, maybe it was... the brown leather strap.

Probably not, but, it can't be denied that this watch wouldn't look right on a black leather strap. Which is why I'd have it on a bracelet.... but seriously, this design lends itself to a brown strap and as brown straps go, this one is quite nice. I don't mind brown so much when it's very dark brown, and this one is quite dark.

Look, I'm not going to bleat on about the strap, because I don't have anything bad to say about it. Indeed, it's actually a very nice strap, and I would happily wear it. Oddly enough, the strap isn't the thing I didn't like about the watch... and it's not like it's a big deal or anything, it's just something that I just wished was different.

I'm not used to two-tone watches to be fair, and if you are going to make a two-tone watch then there's only so much you can do. Clearly the pushers and crown should be rose gold, but I'd prefer it if they weren't. I don't mind the bezel, the sub-dial, the hour markers, the TAG logo or the hands... but the pushers and crown just niggle me a bit. So much so that I decided to mock up my own version.

I know it's only a little thing, but I think that looks better. I know I'm probably the only one, but to me the gold puts too much emphasis on the right side of the case and detracts from the design rather than adds to it. I'm not saying I couldn't live with it, or that I would order a steel crown and pushers to make my perfect watch reality, I'm just saying that's how I would have done it.

Given that any number of Carreras with the Calibre 16 have a glass display back it's a little disappointing that this watch has a solid rear plate. Still, the back is nice enough and fluted to complement the dial. Being 43mm in diameter may make it a little overstated for some people, especially for such a dressy piece, but personally I found it fitted my wrist just perfectly. And looking in the full length mirror by the door it looked very smart, but perhaps not with my navy blue combat shorts, T-shirt and lime green trainers (I dress to impress at all times, me).

Obviously with the rose gold elements this isn't a cheap watch, but the outlet price offers a hefty saving over list. I can't remember the exact figure but the outlet price is £3885, which is at least £1000 off. Sure, there's no way I would pay this much money for a watch like this because I wouldn't get enough wear out of it to justify the outlay. But, for something that's so not really my style, I did rather like it.

I do want a Link eventually, it's just finding the right one. I'm very tempted by the Calibre S models but like all Links they are hard to find pre-owned in good condition and the NOS ones are still a good bit over £2000, which for probably very occasional wear is a bit steep for me. Ah well, you never know what might turn up when you least expect it...

VIDEO: Setting the Time on Your TAG Heuer SLR Calibre S by Erelyx

FEATURE: Brand Loyalty - Pros and Cons of a One Make Collection...

I guess a question anyone with a one-make collection gets asked now and again is 'would you buy another make if you found one you liked?'. It's a fair question, and looking at the 'What's on Your Wrist' thread on Calibre11 it's clear that even the most ardent TAG Heuer fans aren't generally completely exclusive to the brand, and after all, why should they be?

It's not that I haven't looked at other watches, I surely have, and occasionally I've almost been tempted. It's not that long ago I really thought I was going to buy a Bell and Ross Diver, but in the end I decided against it. It wasn't because it wasn't a 'TAG', I just wasn't entirely sure I'd still like the watch in a year... not that I've always got that right in the past either of course, but if you don't even think you're 'sure' before you buy then you're setting yourself up for an expensive mistake.

I guess thirty plus years of watching Formula 1 has ingrained in me a love of TAG, even before it became a watch brand I really liked the TAG logo on the 1981 Williams F1 car, and then later the McLarens of Coulthard and Hakkinen, Raikkonen and Montoya, and later still Button, Hamilton Verstappen and Ricciardo. That red and green logo has always been there somewhere, and so I guess you could make a case that long term advertising really does work...

Funny then that I still don't have a watch with that green and red logo on it!

Breitling Hurricane Avenger 45mm

I've tried on quite a few non-TAGs in my time, but it seems I am cursed with expensive tastes. Over the last couple of years I've tried on the Breitling Hurricane Avenger 45mm (£7000), Breitling 44 Chronomat Jet Team (£6000) and the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore 'Vampire' (£22000), all of which I would be more than happy to add to my collection, but all of which are too simply too expensive for my wallet. Also, though I haven't tried them on, there are actually a few Omega's I quite like: the white-dial Apollo 11 'Snoopy' Speedmaster and the new Apollo 8 Speedmaster to name but two, but again, far too expensive for my meagre salary!

OMEGA Apollo XIII 'Snoopy' Speedmaster

True, in part it's not 'affordability' per se, I could sell all my watches and buy any one of these (except the Royal Oak Offshore) but aside from the fact that I don't want to sell most of my pieces, I'm not really a one watch kinda guy (just a one brand kind of guy...)

Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore 'Vampire' - £22,000!!!

Would I buy a non-TAG watch now? I don't know really, in one way it would add a different element to my collection, but on the other it would stick out like a sore thumb, and it's not as if there aren't plenty more TAGs out there that I wouldn't mind getting hold of. Plus, I do like the 'neatness' of a one make collection. I think truthfully, having my collection has made me more likely to stick with TAG, it's nice to be able to aspire to owning pieces rather than them being forever out of reach. I've never been a Rolex fan, but if I was what sort of Rolex collection could I actually afford? Even Omega's prices seem to be getting a bit out of hand, anything I like is £8000 and up...

Besides, now my collection is at the point where I love every single watch I've got, and that hasn't been the case for a while. So right now, I feel very 'connected' to TAG - perhaps in no small part due to the exemplary service I have received of late from the Bicester Village crew (and the Cheshire Oaks store too...). In fact I think it might finally be time to do my 'State of the Collection' post, I'm just waiting for a couple of things to arrive in the post.

Longines 'Insomnia Killer' Heritage Diver

The bottom line is, TAG Heuer aren't boring. I find so many watch brands desperately dull (cough, Longines - ugh!) and the ones that are making exciting product are just too expensive. For example, Bell and Ross make some nice watches, and as I said, I nearly bought their dive watch - but the one I really wanted cost about £13,000, and the other one I liked was still £8,000 or something. I'm sorry, but dropping that sort of money on a Bell and Ross is madness, and it's moot anyway because I couldn't afford to.

Long term, who knows, maybe one day I'll sell all my TAGs and buy a Ulysse Nardin or a Louis Vitton Regatta (for when I'm racing one of my many yachts). But one thing I can absolutely 100% guarantee is that my next watch will be a TAG because it's already winging it's way to me... in fact by the time you read this I'll be wearing it.

VIDEO: First Take - The TAG Heuer Calibre 16 Carrera Chronograph by Hodinkee

VIDEO: TAG Heuer Aquaracer Review by iReviewWatches

ON THE WRIST: Jean Richard Aquascope Hokusai Wave Special Edition

Jean Richard Aquascope Hokusai Special Edition

Time and Gems / Bicester Village, 10th May 2018

Bicester Village currently has at least four watch retailers, there's TAG Heuer of course, L'Atelier (which sells Rotary, Maurice LaCroix, Graham, Corum, Porsche Design and now Breitling), the woefully named Hour Passion (Mido, Tissot, Swatch, Longines and Hamilton) and most recently Time and Gems, which sells Gucci, Jean Richard, Ulysse Nardin and Girrard Perregaux.

I've only been in there a couple of times, in the past I found the staff a bit odd, but this time I was served by Sophie who was very sweet (despite her colleague being a bit of a dick to her I thought). I did try on a Girrard Perregaux, but this post is about Jean Richard.

The first thing to say about Jean Richard is that I actually thought they had gone bust, but seemingly not... in fact they are the official timekeepers for Arsenal FC! They actually had the Arsenal watch in there and boy, what a thing to behold that is.

I mean, look at it. Who wouldn't want a watch with a spinning cannon second hand. How classy. I take back every negative thing I said about Manchester United's logo on the Carrera, by comparison it's weapons grade Chanel.

Sophie was keen to impress on me the quality of materials used in Jean Richard watches, and that the ETA movements are customised to their exacting standards. Well, at the prices they're charging they better be. I somehow had the impression that JR watches were in the £700-£1500 price range, but a lot of the watches on sale today were £3000+ (albeit with a 65% discount) and that seems high to me.

Also, every single watch in the shop (and there must have been a hundred or so) uses the same case. Google tells me they do do other watches, but not in Time and Gems they don't. To be honest I didn't mind the case, it has a Panerai thing going on, but some of the watches do look a bit plasticy if I'm honest. There were a couple in very bright colours (particularly pale blue and purple) that looked as if they might cost £70 from Argos, but there were a few watches that caught my eye.

One was a grey dial chronograph with an orange second hand (can't imagine why that would catch my eye, cough WAJ1111!) and the other was the Hukosai wave dial model. This one looks like it's actually worth the money and at an outlet price of £1050 down from £3000 odd, you would hope it couldn't lose too much more when you got bored of it.

On the wrist the shape doesn't seem obtrusive, it's much less harsh than a Monaco for example and the black case, black rubber strap combo obviously helps give it a flow that it might not otherwise have. The watch is available in a stainless steel (uncoated) case as well, but they didn't have that in today. You can also get it in a PVD case with red markers and hands, but I think the blue is the better looking for sure.

Really, the movement speaks for itself and you know what you're getting, the thing that's going to sell this is the dial and it is pretty cool. Rather than just a print, the dial is textured like a carving, but I did feel like it was a bit... it wasn't exactly clear what I was looking at, if I hadn't guessed because of the Seiko watch-back Hokusais. I mean it's a nice texture and it looks quality, but I think you would tire of explaining to people what it's supposed to be...

I didn't have an opportunity to test the lume properly, I tried curling my fingers over the dial but not much was happening, so I'm not sure how good it's going to be. In my experience Aquaracers that have been on display in shops tend to glow at the slightest provocation, so I'm not sure the explanation that 'it's not charged' really holds much water.

Well it was interesting to have a look and try this on but I don't think I'll be buying a Jean Richard anytime soon, and those Arsenal watches should be banished from the face of the Earth if you ask me! I will post about my Girrard Perregaux experience shortly...

VIDEO: TAG Heuer Aquaracer 300M Review by iReviewWatches

ON THE WRIST: TAG Heuer Aquaracer 300M with Full Lume Dial

WAY108A.FT6141

Steffans, Northampton / 15th May 2018

Wes at Steffans is a very nice man, twice in the last two weeks I've been in there and asked him to put links into bracelets for me and twice he's refused payment. He doesn't know I'm blogging about him either, so I'm very impressed. Of course this is how service should be, but I've been charged in Goldsmiths before now - not that I object, in fact if I want a service then I should pay for it, especially if I haven't bought the watch there, which is why I offered to pay, but Wes wouldn't take my money, so thumbs up to Wes at Steffans.

Now, on to the watch. I saw a photo of this at Baselworld and it caught my attention, but the photo didn't show the true extent of the lume. In the photo the lume appeared two different colours, but what it didn't show was that the entire dial is actually lumed.

And indeed the bezel, which I don't think we've seen on a TAG before, at least not recently.

The dial is interesting, because despite appearing white in the pictures it is definitely a light silver colour (which may be to do with the lume?), at first I was slightly disappointed about that but on reflection it maybe softens the monochrome scheme a little bit. 

The watch is 43mm in diameter, but it's quite thin and with the black case playing its usual tricks you could be forgiven for thinking it was 41mm. The strap wasn't sized for me, so I'm a little nervous of the deployment clasp as it looks like being the kind that I usually have trouble with. The strap itself is very smart though, and I imagine it will be fine for everyone else.

Interestingly, Wes told me that when he was at Baselworld he was shown a picture of a prototype which came on the the black nylon strap similar to the one on the Phantom Aquaracer from a couple of years ago. I can imagine that probably looked quite good as well...

Price for this one is £1700, which is definitely on the higher side for a non-bracelet Aquaracer, but I'm sure that dial is going to sell it and I imagine this is going to be one of those novelties that doesn't stick around too long. So if you want one it might be wise to get your money out sooner rather than later, and avoid having to buy a scratched pre-owned piece.

I don't think I will be buying though, I really like it, but I'm wary of that clasp and in all honesty I've spent rather a lot of money on watches already this year and I don't think I can justify another one just yet.

VIDEO: Thoughts on the CAW211P Steve McQueen Monaco by A Guy Named Tommy

ON THE WRIST: Aquaracer 500M Calibre 16 Ceramic Bezel

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TAG Heuer Boutique, Bicester Village / 10th May 2018

If ever there was a watch you need to see 'in the metal', then this is it. None of the pictures I've found seem to do it justice or illustrate just how strong the green colouring on the dial is. If you are a lume fan, then this could well be a watch you should investigate because not only is the lume itself very strong, but the green hands and hour markers give the impression of lume even when the watch isn't charged.

This one was on offer at a discounted price of £2415, down from £3200 (IIRC). It feels very nice on the wrist and I must admit I was rather surprised how much I liked it once I got it on. So much so that I didn't really want to take it off!

CAK2111.FT8019

But eventually I did because I wanted to try on and compare the same watch with the (rather understated it must be said) rubber strap. I have to say I much preferred it on the bracelet, it seems to be a common theme with me lately - although I do love my Calibre S on the rubber band I bought recently. I switched back to the bracelet version and couldn't help but to start comparing it with my Aquagraph... both 500m divers, both chronographs, both sporting strong lume (although the Aquagraph has more if it - having a well lumed bezel).

This one though does have a ceramic bezel insert and is much more wearable than the lump that is the Aquagraph due to it's thinner case. Actually it's very nice on the wrist and gives off a very expensive air somehow, but that green is a constant reminder that this is at heart a tool watch.

This is a photo of the actual watch for sale in Bicester Village

I must admit I'm not wildly enthused by the Calibre 16 movement, I've had one (in my recently sold CAU2012) and it's not the smoothest of winders, but I believe it's quite a reliable engine. The only downside of the Calibre 16 of course is that dial layout isn't to everyone's taste as it's non-symmetrical (left to right), though I have to say it never bothered me at all. 

A slightly more flattering photo from the Parkers website

This is a tricky one, because despite my reservations I really, really liked this. I love the green on the dial and it looks much classier than on the chunky green and black 500M Aquaracers which are quite cool but not terribly versatile. Despite the strong green it retains a certain 'quality' feel and the bracelet, while brushed, seemed to give it a definite razamatazz somehow.

The sticking point for me really is that I can't help but think it won't add anything to my collection that the Aquagraph doesn't already bring. Another black dial steel dive watch isn't really what I need right now and the blue version doesn't have those cool green hands (because, well, that would look awful). Interestingly, they had the blue version in the outlet at Bicester, in fact they had two. Tom was telling me that they have the same part number but with a different suffix, but they are clearly quite different blues. One reminds me of the blue on the Tudor Pelagos, that kind of almost 'Royal' blue and the other is a bit darker and more subdued.

One other interesting thing to note is the rubberised crown which is kind of the pre-cursor to what we now have on the Carrera Heuer 01s. I did notice one or two on eBay that had the rubber crown missing (one listing claimed it was a 'common problem'..) so if you're buying second hand that's definitely something to pay attention to as I'm sure it won't be cheap to replace. 

VIDEO: Heuer Trackmaster Stopwatch c1978 by Birth Year Watches

SPOTLIGHT ON: TAG Heuer Aquaracer CAF101D (Project Fugly)

CAF101D.BA0821

Watch design, like most design of course, is subjective. But occasionally a designer drops the ball badly, and the CAF101D is one such example. I mean the three hand 41mm version is a fairly ugly watch, with it's vast expanse of plain yellow dial, but this one takes the biscuit. Seriously, as much as I love TAG, I'm fighting the urge to go full on Archie Luxury on this one.

"Get a Man on the Mooooooooooooooooon!"

Sure the case and bracelet are fine, as is the colour, you should know I have no problem with the yellow itself, I own a yellow Calibre S Aquaracer after all. The hands are fine too, no problem there at all. The date window is a bit ugly if I'm honest, it's not a good start... maybe a black edging with a yellow date wheel would have been the best way forward, or white perhaps if yellow was too much of a stretch (better white than a mismatched yellow in all honesty) and having the TAG logo stuck right up against it doesn't help either.

The half circle running seconds is, lets be charitable, a poor execution of a less than optimal design choice. It looks rubbish on the three-hander and it looks just as bad here, but the real problem is that once you introduce those sub dials what you've basically done is create a stupid looking face. And it's one of those things that once you've seen it, you can't un-see it, so every time you look down at your CAF101D you'll notice that dumb looking face staring back at you. And while generally I really like the black inner ring on these kind of Aquaracer bezels, in this instance I think it just emphasis this design flaw all the more, giving the face a defined shape in the way that a standard bezel wouldn't. 

I can't help thinking that someone, at the design stage, should have spoken up and said 'it looks kinda like a stupid smiling robot face, let's start again'. But clearly either no one spoke up or no one listened.

I don't really get why the subdials are so half-arsed as well, they look like an after thought just printed on the dial like that. Compare and contrast with the applied subdials on the Calibre S version, okay I'm sure it's a much cheaper watch (and frankly it shows with it's crappy, printed TAG logo), but for God's sake it surely wasn't that cheap, was it?

Interestingly, I can't find a single one of these for sale anywhere, which either means the owners love them so much that they're not selling, or... they've all been put in the crusher where they belong. We can only hope it's the latter. This one is surely best avoided unless it's dirt cheap, and even then you should only buy it as a gift for someone you don't like. In short, it's quite ghastly, and quite possibly one of the ugliest watches TAG Heuer have ever made.

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FEATURE: Water Resistance...

A few weeks ago I was watching a video on the Theo and Harris You Tube channel, I don't know if you are familiar with Christian and his channel but he's a young guy who seems to have quickly made a business for himself selling vintage watches.... so far, so good. Vintage isn't my thing, but his channel is still okay in parts because he doesn't stick exclusively to vintage, for instance today he did a pretty good job of ripping Breitling's new Navitimer 8 to shreds, and deservedly so it has to be said.

However, in the video I watched a few weeks ago he was talking about water resistance and made it perfectly clear that he had no idea how water resistance ratings on watches worked. I can't remember exactly what he said but it was something along the lines of 30M is fine because I'm never going deeper than that. Which is worrying from a man selling watches, is it not?

I left Christian a comment (as did other people, unsurprisingly) and he responded saying he felt very silly and he went on to address his folly in a video he made about water resistance and how the ratings work. To be fair, the ratings are bloody stupid and are wide open to misinterpretation, especially for the average Joe whose interest in wrist watches doesn't extend much beyond needing to know the time.

So, while I appreciate that most of you will already know this, for the benefit of any that aren't aware, a 50M rating DOES NOT mean you can take it to a depth of 50M. The problem is 'pressure', you could theoretically place that watch in a tank and fill the tank very carefully to a depth of 50M, but if you move the watch in the tank you increase the pressure and the watch will most likely leak.

Essentially, it goes like this:

30M or 3atm: Suitable for everyday use, splash/rain resistant. Not suitable for showering, bathing, swimming, snorkeling, water-related work, fishing or diving.

50M or 5atm: Suitable for swimming, white water rafting and fishing. Not suitable for diving and snorkeling.

100M or 10atm: Suitable for recreational surfing, swimming, snorkeling, sailing and water sports. Not suitable for diving.

200M or 20atm: Suitable for professional marine activity, serious surface water sports and skin diving. Not suitable for deep water diving

500M+ or 50atm+: Suitable for deep water diving.

So if you've got a lovely new Carrera with a display caseback and it says 100M water resistant on the back, you can go swimming in it, but you can't dive with it, this is because diving and moving in the water in general increases pressure on the seals.

And the other thing to bear in mind is that if you want to maintain your water resistance rating you should have your watch tested annually because the seals can dry out and fail. It is also important to note that chlorine, bathing products, some cosmetics and heat cycles can all play a part in degrading the seals in your watch.

But of course, even if you follow all these rules, there's still always the possibility of human error. Some watches, like my Aquagraph (above) have visible warnings to help you avoid costly mistakes, here the crown has a yellow (or sometimes orange) band that becomes visible from the front side of the watch when the crown is unscrewed.

But not every diver has this and if you really want to be safe then you need something like the latest Rolex Submariners which have a triple-lock system which keeps the water out even if the crown is unscrewed. Providing, of course, that it's been serviced properly...

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FIRST IMPRESSIONS: TAG Heuer Formula 1 Gulf Special Edition

CAZ101N.FC8243

Looking at this official rendering of the new Formula 1 Gulf Special Edition, it's hard not to imagine this thing flying off the shelves. It's stylish looking, affordable and it astutely rides the coat tails of the new Monaco Gulf SE, because let's face it, not everyone can afford a £5000 watch, and, well believe it or not... not everyone likes square watches.

In all honesty, I've always had mixed feelings about the Gulf Monacos. I kind of like them, but at the same time I always thought they never got them looking quite right. I think the new one is definitely the best one they've done, but if I'm honest I still don't feel like I would drop that kind of money for it.

A few weeks ago I came across a WAH1013 for sale at FineTimeWatches.com (which is where my WAH1110 originally came from), it looks in excellent condition and at £799 was more than a little tempting.

So far I've managed to resist, because a) it's still £800, and b) I just bought a Grand Carrera! But it's a pretty cool looking little watch all the same. The new version though, looks so much more... mature, let's say. Indeed, the Formula 1 range as a whole is looking a lot more 'together' than it used to, which is to be applauded, of course. But there's undeniably something 'fun' about these slightly older, slightly more rough around the edges pieces. While the new one looks like it would be the perfect watch to wear to a bar, this one looks like the perfect watch to strap on before you gun it up the hill at Harewood in your self-built Lotus Seven.

But don't get me wrong, that's more an observation than a criticism...

Because unfortunately the criticism starts with this photograph, because clearly the blue stripe looks nothing like the one on the render and it's clearly far too close in tone to the main dial colour. True, this picture is from Baselworld and it could well be a pre-production model that needs a little more finessing - we really won't know for sure until the proper release - but it's worrying that it looks so wrong, when the render version looks so right.

That said, overall the new model is clearly an attractive proposition and the blue does give it a fresher, cleaner look. But given that the watch is a Formula 1 and therefore at the cheaper end of the range, it's likely that that lovely blue bezel insert is aluminium and highly prone to scratches. Which is a shame, but ceramic isn't cheap and blue ceramic is apparently not the easiest thing in the world to make either.

So, colour scheme aside, what we're really looking at here is your basic F1 Chrono 1/10th of a second, 200M. £1350 quartz TAG, albeit on a very odd looking strap. The guys over at Calibre 11 forum seem quite excited about this strap, but me personally... I'm not sold. I think it's a bit of blue too far and I'd much prefer to see this on a bracelet or some kind of black leather or rubber (or both) strap, if nothing else it would complement the black pushers instead of fighting them as this blue strap seems to.

Let's give them the benefit of the doubt for now and hope that when we see this in the stores in a few months time that blue is bang on the money, if not it's going to be a bit of a shame. I guess the only other question mark is the case size, which at 43mm will surely be too big for some people, perhaps there will be a three hand 41mm along later?

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FEATURE: 'Trying' to Get a Second Opinion...

L-R Back Row: Microtimer / Aquagraph / Calibre 16 F1 / Calibre S / Heuer01 Carrera

L-R Front Row: Kirium F1 / Aquaracer Chronotimer / 6000 Series / F1 Quartz

The other day I thought I had come up with a great idea for a series of blog posts - but it didn't pan out quite as expected. My idea was that I would get my friend Rich to review my watches, I thought it would be interesting to get a second opinion and reassured him that I wouldn't be offended (much) if he said he didn't like something or other.

Unfortunately, Rich said there wasn't really anything he didn't like about my watches, except that he couldn't wear some of them because they were too big for him (Rich has a Tudor Pelagos LHD that is 42mm and that is the absolute biggest watch he can really wear because his wrist is pretty small).

COOL LUME: My Aquagraph and Rich's Pelagos LHD

So it quickly became apparent that a series of posts was not really on the cards and I suggested that instead it would be interesting if he was to rank my watches from one to nine and I would do the same, then we could compare our results and see what the outcome was.

Well, we both picked the Heuer01 Carrera as our favourite (even though at 45mm Rich hasn't got a hope of wearing it), and maybe that wasn't too unexpected... then the next three watches we picked the same ones but in a slightly different order, I picked the Calibre S Aquaracer then the Microtimer and then the Aquagraph, whereas Rich picked the Aquagraph, the Calibre S Aquaracer and then the Microtimer.

We both picked the Kirium F1 fifth and the Aquaracer Chronotimer sixth...

Then Rich picked the orange Calibre 16 Formula 1, the 6000 Series and lastly my quartz F1. Up until a few weeks ago I'm sure I would have done exactly the same thing, but because I was feeling so negative about the orange F1 at the time I picked the 6000, then the quartz then the CAU2012.

It's interesting to see that we both picked the same winner, the same second, third and fourth tiers and that there wasn't any watch that we really disagreed on. Indeed, the biggest mismatch really was that I rated the Microtimer a couple of places higher than he did, and I would imagine most would probably agree more with Rich than me. But that's fine... I know the Microtimer isn't to everyone's taste, but I love it.

Of course, we did this before my new Grand Carrera GMT Calibre 8 turned up... and I thought it was too new (to me) to include in the list proper. But I asked Rich anyway and after much pontificating and indecision Rich finally said he would have placed it fourth had it been on the list. For me I can't really say because as that watch has just arrived it's obviously got that 'new watch honeymoon' thing going on and it could be 2nd now and 5th in a month....

Then I thought, why don't I get my wife to rate the watches as well (she loves watches but has no interest in them beyond aesthetics and she's not impressed by movements or complications particularly), and that produced a slightly different set of results. Again she picked the Carrera as number one (because it's gorgeous*), and followed Rich's lead in picking the Aquagraph as number two (which I must admit surprised me a bit), but then went a little rogue and picked the F1 Kirium. I guess I shouldn't be that surprised as the Kirium was my first TAG Heuer and she's always loved it. Fourth was the Calibre S Aquaracer, and fifth the Calibre 16 Formula 1. I was actually quite surprised by that, but she said she liked the orange on it. I was even more surprised when she said she would have put the Grand Carrera next if we'd been counting it... so in essence she liked the watch I've just sold better than the watch I've just bought! Oh deary me.

*Incidentally, my wife loves my Heuer01 so much that when I got it she said if TAG made a ladies watch like that she would 100% buy it. As it happens she bought an Oris Atelier Skeleton not long after, but I reckon if TAG did make a ladies version and it was 34mm max she'd still be more than tempted...

Next she picked the Chronotimer, and then the Microtimer. She's never been a huge fan of the Microtimer, she couldn't understand why I bought it in the first place, although she has mellowed towards it a bit since I've had it and she does concede that it looks good on me. Okaaaay. Bringing up the rear were the perennial tail-end Charlies, the 6000 Series and the F1 Quartz. I actually feel kind of bad for the 6000 because honestly I really like that watch, it's just playing a bit out of it's league being a smaller quartz piece from the 90s....

I also got some more feedback from a couple of people (including 'dtf' at Calibre11), and here we started to get a bit of variation (finally). dtf picked the Aquagraph first, and then the Carrera (the Carrera's first defeat). Then he went for the Microtimer, the Calibre 16 F1 and the F1 Kirium, but he also said he would have put the Grand Carrera third ahead of the Microtimer. He didn't complete the list thereafter so I will award points equally.

My other response put the Carrera in first place, followed by the F1 Kirium and the Aquaracer Chronotimer (which surprised me slightly), then the 6000 Series (another surprise). This was followed by the Microtimer and the Aquagraph, the F1 Calibre 16, the Aquaracer Calibre S (its worst result by far) and the quartz F1. This person is really into watches, but clearly ploughs their own furrow! :)

So for the moment, counting the five responses I've had, the leader board looks like this...

1st - Carrera Heuer 01 Skeleton

2nd - Aquagraph 

3rd - Formula 1 Kirium

4th - Microtimer

5th - Aquaracer Calibre S 

6th - Aquaracer Chronotimer

7th - Formula 1 Calibre 16

8th - 6000 Series 

9th - Formula 1 Quartz

To be quite honest, on a different day I could quite easily have come up with this list myself, so I'm not unhappy with it. But what do you think? Do you agree - leave me a comment and let me know.

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