Thursday, 22 October 2020
Wednesday, 21 October 2020
FIRST IMPRESSIONS: TAG Heuer Monaco Heuer 02 'Black Dial' Chronograph
CBL2113.BA0644
It's nearly a year since TAG Heuer debuted the Heuer 02 Monaco with a blue dial and I suppose it shouldn't really come as a surprise that eventually it would be followed by a black dial variant. One might even say the red highlights (welcome as they are) are maybe a little predictable, will the missing 'CBL2112' eventually prove to be a carbon dial Monaco perchance? Only time will tell...
What was less predictable was the arrival of the first new Monaco bracelet since 2004 and, well... to be honest I'm not too sure I like it. Truth be told I wasn't much of a fan of the previous (angular) bracelet, though I acknowledge that those who own them seem to absolutely adore them, but what I don't get about this one in particular is the curviness of it and how that marries with this squarest of all watches.
The new bracelet is actually inspired by a Heuer bracelet that was available in the 70s and I can see why TAG Heuer would look the the past to inform their design choices because at this point the Monaco is 90% 'heritage' and a lot of these bracelets are going to be sold to existing Monaco customers for their older models. But to be honest I don't particularly like the older bracelet either and the new one seems to have taken that design and added a little too much 2000/Aquaracer into the mix with those chunky polished centre links.
I don't know, maybe I'm not the best person to ask because to be completely truthful I think the Monaco always looks at it's best on a leather strap of some description (or indeed the textile strap found on the Calibre 12 boutique edition), but again I just don't see how those curved links mesh with those slab sides and angular case. Wouldn't a squarer link design have been better, perhaps more like the ones we've seen on the Grand Carrera and Carrera ranges in recent years?
CBL2113.FC6177
As for the watch itself I think it looks quite smart, but for me it doesn't quite have the 'Wow' factor of the blue CBL2111. I've never been keen on the flat blue dial of the 'Heuer' Calibre 11 Monaco and that was one of the reasons why I preferred the old Calibre 12 TAG Heuer version with its sunburst dial. In turn I prefer the new version over that one and a big part of that again is the gorgeous blue dial.
CBL2111.BA0644
Needless to say the blue dial variant will also be available on this new bracelet, but not for a few months. From these renders I'd say it might work a little better than the black dial model, bit I'm pretty sure I'd still choose it on the blue leather strap it was launched with.
Prices for the various models are as follows:
CBL2113.BA0644: Black dial on a bracelet - £5600
CBL2113.FC6177: Black dial on a black strap - £5250
CBL2111.BA0644: Blue dial on a bracelet - £5600
CBL2111.FC6453: Blue dial on a blue strap - £5250
Tuesday, 20 October 2020
Monday, 19 October 2020
SPOTLIGHT ON: TAG Heuer Kirium 'Paddock Club' Quartz Watches
CL1184.FT6002 & WL131K.BA0709
The watch world is a funny old place, largely obsessed with 'rarity' and 'value' and yet while brands like Omega pump out 'limited edition' after 'limited edition' with the numbers in the thousands it is still possible to find super rare watches from big-name Swiss brands at 'cheap as chips' prices.
For example, if I told you that the quartz powered Kirium chronograph pictured above with its 'carbon' dial was a limited edition of just ten (yes 1-0) pieces, how much do you think you'd have to pay to own one?
£1000?
Nope...
£800?
Nope...
Well surely not less than £600?
In fact, one of these recently sold for just £450 on eBay. Which is insanely cheap... even without it's limited status I would have thought it would have fetched at least that. I mean okay, the Kirium isn't everyone's cup of tea and the 'late 90s' F1 tyre strap is a bit kookie, but even so.... ten pieces! That's like 'Richard Mille' levels of exclusive.
Damn I would have bought it without a second thought for that money, I mean how many mass-market brand watches can you even think of that are made in such small quantities?
And I have to wonder whether these watches were even made to be sold, or were they made as presents for esteemed members of the 'Paddock Club' (a posh name for the ultimate hospitality package for the fabulously wealthy who attend the travelling circus that is Formula 1, sipping champagne and munching canapes either at vast personal expense or as guests of the teams).
Either way you couldn't get a much more exclusive piece of Formula 1 memorabilia for the money.
As for the silver dialled ladies version, I can't pin down the quantity made, but I would be surprised if it was much more than ten and one was recently for sale on the notoriously expensive 'Watchfinder' website for just £595. Unsurprisingly perhaps, it has gone now!
Crazy prices for such rare pieces of TAG Heuer / F1 history, but it just goes to show that rarity in and of itself does not a good investment make!
Regardless of what it actually says on the dial, there are very few TAG Heuer pieces made in such small quantities and the opportunity to own them is rarer still. Most of the recent examples I can think of have been 'Avant Garde' takes on the Carrera Heuer 02T tourbillon and as such large sums of money has been required to join the club. Its rather nice to think that ultra rare pieces can still be had for very reasonable sums of money, but keep it to yourself, eh!
Sunday, 18 October 2020
Saturday, 17 October 2020
HISTORY: TAG Heuer Golf (2005-2009)
The TAG Heuer 'Golf' watch is perhaps one of the strangest models ever to come out of the factory in La Chaux de Fonds. Renowned mainly as the 'square' TAG Heuer that isn't the Monaco (although that doesn't stop some people listing them as Monacos on eBay...) the watch was designed to be worn when playing Golf - hence the name. As such it is on the small side for a modern watch and it features a unique and inventive fastening system, leaving the impression that the watch has no clasp.
In fact the case of the watch folds open (that's what the two buttons are for on the case) to reveal the end of the rubber strap which has to be cut to approximate length. It's a unique idea and presumably was designed to remove the clasp from the strap to maximise comfort and security for the player. Also to this end, the crown was fitted to the left side of the case, taking it out of the way when in use (assuming it was worn on the left wrist).
2005 CATALOGUE
The Golf was first featured in the 2005 catalogue, presumably born out of TAG Heuer's association with legendary golfer Tiger Woods, but just one watch was included; the WAE1111.
WAE1111.FT6004: 37mm, black 'golf-ball' dial, titanium/steel case, black rubber strap
2005 SPRING CATALOGUE
In the Spring Collection catalogue of 2005, the second Golf was added, this one featuring a 'Tiger Woods' logo at the '6' position. This one was apparently a 'limited edition', though with an 8000 piece production run it's the second least 'limited' limited edition in the TAG Heuer collection.
WAE1110.FT6004: 37mm, black dial, titanium/steel case, black rubber strap (L/E Tiger Woods)
2006-2007 CATALOGUE
Again the 2006-2007 catalogue adds just one new watch, the all white WAE1112. While this is identical to the WAE1111 in all but colour, the advertising clearly establishes that this is for the 'lady golfer'.
WAE1112.FT6008: 37mm, white 'golf-ball' dial, titanium/steel case, white rubber strap
2007-2008 CATALOGUE
The next catalogue announces two new Golfs, alongside the WAE1111 and WAE1112 (presumably all 8000 WAE1110s had sold out by this point?), one of which brings a vivid shock of colour to the range.
WAE1113.FT6004: 37mm, grey dial, titanium/steel/PVD case, black rubber strap
WAE1114.FT6011: 37mm, pink MOP dial, titanium/steel case, pink rubber strap
2008-2009 CATALOGUE
The 2008-2009 catalogue shows all four Golfs as featured in the last catalogue, with no new models added. This was the last catalogue to feature the TAG Heuer Golf watch.
NON-CATALOGUE MODELS
There are three Golf watches that were never shown in a TAG Heuer catalogue. The WAE1115 was a 500 piece limited edition and the WAE1116 and WAE1117 appear to be mildly facelifted versions of the WAE1111 and WAE1112.
WAE1115.FT6004: 37mm, grey/red dial, titanium/steel/PVD case, rubber strap (L/Edition)
WAE1116.FT6004: 37mm, black 'golf-ball' dial, titanium/steel case, black rubber strap
WAE1117.FT6008: 37mm, white 'golf-ball' dial, titanium/steel case, white rubber strap
A page from the 2007/08 catalogue illustrating the fastening mechanism
The WAE1115 is very hard to find information on. Googling it only brings up a lot of replica sites and I actually wondered if it was a genuine model at all. But Tom at Bicester Village helpfully confirmed that it does appear on the TAG Heuer system. Finding a genuine piece might be something of a challenge though given the amount of replicas out there, personally I think I'd go for the WAE1113 instead.
Friday, 16 October 2020
Thursday, 15 October 2020
SPOTLIGHT ON: Zenith Watches Available at the TAG Heuer Bicester Village Outlet
As you may or may not know, a limited selection of Zenith watches are now available from the TAG Heuer store at the popular 'Bicester Village' outlet (about 50 miles north of London). Zenith is a sister brand of TAG Heuer, being owned by the LVMH group, and while the brand is perhaps not so well known in the UK it is certainly respected in the watch community for it's technical engineering and for the renowned 'El Primero' movement which can be found in some higher end TAG Heuer pieces where it was renamed the 'Calibre 36'.
If you see something of interest please visit or call the store on (01869) 249008, but please bear in mind that stocks are limited and as such there may only be 1 or 2 pieces of each reference available.
03.2070.4054/02.C711
Captain Winsor Annual Calendar
LIST PRICE - £7800
BICESTER PRICE - £4700
03.2170.4613/01.M2170
El Primero Synopsis
LIST PRICE: £5500
BICESTER PRICE: £3300
03.2280.400/91.M2280
El Primero Sport Chronograph
LIST PRICE: £6700
BICESTER PRICE: £4000
03.1965.670/91.C591
Vintage 1965
LIST PRICE: £4200
BICESTER PRICE: £2500
03.2050.4035/21.C630
El Primero Tourbillon Chronograph
LIST PRICE: £31800
BICESTER PRICE: £19100
03.2062.4057/69.M2060
El Primero Stratos
LIST PRICE: £7800
BICESTER PRICE: £4700
03.2160.4047/02.M2160
El Primero Helios Chronograph
LIST PRICE: £9400
BICESTER PRICE: £5650
03.2280.400/91.M2280
El Primero Sport Chronograph
LIST PRICE: £6700
BICESTER PRICE: £4000
03.2310.679/38.M2310
Elite Lady Ultra Thin
LIST PRICE: £3700
BICESTER VILLAGE: £2200
03.2330.692/02.M2330
Elite Lady Moonphase
LIST PRICE: £5000
BICESTER PRICE: £3000
16.2310.692/81.M2310
Heritage Lady Ultra Thin
LIST PRICE: £6900
BICESTER PRICE: £4100
18.2010.681/01.C498
Heritage Ultra Thin Elite
LIST PRICE: £9700
BICESTER PRICE: £5800
24.2041.400/01.R576
Chronomaster El Primero
LIST PRICE: £7200
BICESTER PRICE: £4300
96.2430.693/21.C703
Pilot Montre d Aeronof Type 20 GMT
LIST PRICE: £6400
BICESTER PRICE: £3850
18.2150.4069/91.C812
Chronomaster Heritage
LIST PRICE: £12200
BICESTER PRICE: £7300
96.2431.693/21.C738
Pilot Montre d Aeronof Type 20 GMT
LIST PRICE: £6300
BICESTER PRICE: £3800
You can check out my 'On the Wrist' review (with photographs taken in store) of the 'Pilot Montre d Aeronof Type 20 GMT' by clicking HERE
Wednesday, 14 October 2020
Tuesday, 13 October 2020
BUYING EXPERIENCE: TAG Heuer Formula 1 Quartz Watch
375.513
It seems like only a few months ago that I had just the one 'classic' Formula 1 quartz, and indeed it was... but now I have, erm... five. And another one en-route from Japan (say it quickly and it doesn't sound so bad!) which will be my Christmas present from my wife, so that's fine. :)
This one also came to me from Japan, and was one of two I left bids on overnight (they finished at 5:30AM which is probably a sensible hour in Japan, but I'm not getting out of bed at that time of the morning to bid on watches) but the only one that I won. Never mind, I found another example of the other one elsewhere and that's what's coming for Christmas.
As you can see it was listed wearing this spectacularly dreadful non-original bracelet and believe me these pictures make it look a lot nicer than it actually was. It really was the most horrible, jangly, folded metal garbage and to be completely honest it kinda put me off. So disenchanted was I with it that I actually put it away for a few days, partly because I didn't have time to mess about with it but partly because I was kinda thinking that maybe I'd made a mistake buying it!
So it sat in the cupboard for a week before I actually decided to do something about it and of course, could I get this stupid bracelet off? My (inadequate) bracelet tool just wouldn't get into the space and so since I wasn't in the slightest bothered about keeping the bracelet, I dismantled it and then bent the spring bars to remove it. Obviously I will be looking into getting a better bracelet tool now for future use, a lot of them seem to be 3mm wide which is too wide for the slots in most of my bracelets.
I started to get interested in this model a few weeks ago when I photographed my wife's 375.508 on the beach and realised how nice it looked. I actually tried to get one a little while back (HERE) but it didn't work out, and as ever that was from Japan as well... this time things worked out for me and I already had two spare black plastic straps so I really didn't care if the watch came on the bracelet or not. In fact I told the seller he could keep the bracelet if he wanted (it would have saved me struggling to get it off), but I think he must have parcelled the watch up before the auction ended.
Speaking of which the delivery on this from Japan was phenomenal. The auction finished at 5:30AM on Monday morning and by lunchtime I had an email from DHL telling me the parcel had been collected and was on the move. A bit later I got an email telling me I needed to send them £18 for taxes due and I did that straight away and by the end of the day the watch was in Hong Kong and scheduled to arrive with me in the UK on Thursday. This was fine with me as my wife (who usually works from home) had to go into work on Wednesday, but would be at home on Thursday.
One thing I have noticed since I purchased the watch is that it looks to have had the bezel replaced at some point and in doing so they have switched it from a black/green bezel to a black/white one. It doesn't overly bother me since it still looks like it could have been that from the start, but I am pondering the idea of colouring the white numbers on the bezel to make it look original. I have already tried using a dry-board marker and it worked surprisingly well, except of course dry-board marker isn't permanent and it wasn't the right shade of green at all so I rubbed it off again, but I will try and find some way to do that and if not, well white looks okay anyway.
Happily, as soon as I put it on the correct black plastic strap all my misgivings about my purchase dissipated and if nothing else it just shows how important the right strap is to the overall look and appeal of a watch. Frankly I think any watch that was wearing that God-awful piece of junk strap would look decidedly unexciting and suitably appeased I wore the watch for the rest of the day.
So yes, now they are five in number, but this is my first steel cased model (or perhaps I should say exposed steel, since the others are coated steel, even though they look like plastic). I think overall I prefer the coloured cases, but that said the orange and grey one with the steel case looks quite nice...
Monday, 12 October 2020
Sunday, 11 October 2020
ON THE WRIST: TAG Heuer Aquaracer 'Batman' Calibre 7 GMT Watch
WAY201T.BA0927
TAG Heuer Boutique / Meadowhall, Sheffield, 17th Aug 2020
When I first saw photographs of the WAY201T back in February my reaction was more than positive; here was an Aquaracer GMT that took everything I liked about the 'Pepsi' bezel version and improved on it significantly. Indeed, if I remember correctly, I believe that in my First Impressions post I expressed my enthusiasm quite openly with the caveat that one shouldn't get too excited until one was able to handle and hold the item in question. Thankfully, six months later that time indeed came and I for one was not disappointed.
Of course, this was the same day that I got to try on the new green Aquaracer, which for me was a definite let down. I'd still love to see the original steel version as I have hopes that the new green bezel is dragging that dial down, but when and where that might turn up I have no idea. By contrast, this dial blew me away... honestly I can't remember a dial that looks so stunning close up and the photographs certainly do not do it justice. It has a jewel like quality, something people said about the original green dial Aquaracer Calibre 5, but which I failed to see in the new model, and while it might well be a little OTT for some people I though it was utterly beautiful.
For me, the Pepsi bezel variant was always half-way there. I liked it, but I never loved it, and it never made me want to save up for it. Replacing the red part of the bezel with black and switching the blue part to the 'day' side of the bezel is a great improvement and combining it with that amazing blue dial completes the picture perfectly. I'm still not completely sure about the GMT hand in blue, I think black or silver might have been better, but it's not a deal breaker and it doesn't offend the eye in any way. Then again, as someone who really has no use for it, the GMT hand is pretty unobtrusive, so in a way it's perfect as it is... and after all, the design is clearly a 'homage' to the Rolex GMT 'Batman' which has of course a pale blue GMT hand (albeit on a black dial).
But then it has a black dial, so it's a lot easier to see it!
On the wrist the WAY201T is exactly as you'd expect if you've tried on any recent 43mm Aquaracer. It's satisfyingly chunky without being too big, at least for my 7.5/8 wrist and it comes on the standard BA0927 bracelet with a wholly brushed finish and a push button clasp. The case is polished on the sides but with a brushed top edge to match the bracelet. Sure, it's not elegantly slim, but at the end of the day this is essentially a dive watch* so you wouldn't expect it to be.
*Okay, technically it's not a dive watch since the minute markers on the bezel have been replaced with hours for the GMT hand, but well... how many people were ever actually going to dive with a £2550 watch anyway? Certainly not I!
I didn't get an enormous amount of time to play with the WAY201T, but it was enough to convince me that I seriously need to consider it for the future. The dial is phenomenal and from what I've read the Calibre 7 (ETA 2893-2) movement is a better bet than another Calibre 5 (which is apparently known for winding problems).
Mmmm, okay so now I might need to start saving - no more classic F1s for a while!
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