VIDEO: TAG Heuer Monaco 'Gulf' Special Edition Heuer 02 Chrongograph by Brent L Miller Time

 

SPOTLIGHT ON: TAG Heuer Carrera Heuer 02T 'Singapore Boutique' Limited Edition

 

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Released back in 2019 I only came across this one about a month ago while researching the history of the Carrera. You may remember there was a Ginza (Japan) boutique edition which was similar but had red highlights instead of purple. Purple has been chosen here as it matches the colour which decorates the front of the ION Orchard Mall (where the TAG Heuer boutique is situated) and which was celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2019 - hence this special edition.

VIDEO: Two Ladies Aquaracers by Brent L Miller Time

 

FEATURE: My TAG Heuer Grand Carrera LE Gets a Service and Polish Courtesy of Watchfinder

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N.B. THIS POST IS NOT A PAID PROMOTION OR IN ANY WAY 'IN AGREEMENT' WITH WATCHFINDER!

A few weeks ago, completely out of the blue, I received an email from Watchfinder offering me a free service and polish. It wasn't, as you might imagine, a 'personal' email for services to the watch community (...) it was a 'commercial' email that I assumed had been sent to all their customers at once, but after speaking to people at the THF Forum it seems not. To be honest I didn't really pay that much attention to it, because like most people I imagine, when you get an unsolicited email promising something for nothing... well, consider me somewhat skeptical.

So I kind of scrolled past it, but then a few days later I got another email reminding me that time was running out to book my free service and this time for whatever reason I decided to look into it a bit deeper. Naturally I assumed that if they were offering a free service it would have to be on a watch that I had bought from them, which, since all the watches I had bought from them (and still owned) were quartz, seemed a bit unnecessary. Plus I assumed I would have to pay the carriage and then there was the worry about it getting lost, and so on and so on.

VIDEO: TAG Heuer Carrera Calibre 16 Chronograph by Swiss Watch Expo

 

FEATURE: My Love Affair with the Heuer Carrera 'Ice King' 160th Anniversary Heuer 02 Limited Edition Chronograph by Jim Dollares

Today we have another splendid contribution from our Swedish correspondent / TAG Heuer enthusiast Jim Dollares, and today he wants to tell you all about his most favouritest watch ever.

Mom, dad, I want you to meet the love of my life, this is the Ice King. We met in December 2020 and my life will never be the same!

Those who know me will roll their eyes, the nickname ‘Ice King’ has been used by me hundreds of times for this superb Carrera that TAG Heuer released in 2020 to celebrate their 160th anniversary. I am sick of watch companies looking for any “anniversary” as an excuse to release new limited editions but this time I didn’t mind, since the result is the most perfect and beautiful watch I have ever laid my eyes on. When I first received it, I remember saying that this might not only be the watch of the year, but the watch of the decade.

[click here to read about the 'COCO Watch of the Year 2020' post]

VIDEO: Heuer Carrera 'Montreal' 160th Anniversary Heuer 02 Chronograph by Watchfinder

 

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: TAG Heuer Formula 1 'Stoplight' Quartz Chronographs

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Colourful watches have definitely been a 'thing' of late, and any maunfacturer offering up a steady diet of black, blue, white and silver/grey dials is at risk of looking like a complete dinosaur. Not that this is a major problem for TAG Heuer who have always experimented with colours, just look at their recent releases: Aquaracer and F1s in orange dials, Monaco in green and purple dials, Heritage Carrera in red and teal dials... and if we look back a little further you've had two different red/silver Monacos and a green Calibre 16 Formula 1. On the other hand we've also had the utterly hideous 'Tiffany Blueish' Monaco Riviera, which is the perfect example of how TAG Heuer's colour choices don't always hit the mark... thank God there's only 30 of those monstrosities out there!

VIDEO: TAG Heuer Carrera Ladies Watches by Brent Miller Time

 

ON THE WRIST: TAG Heuer Aquaracer GMT Calibre 7 Watch

 

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Steffans / Northampton, 31st August 2022

Right from the moment I saw the render for this (way back whenever that was....), I thought this could potentially be the one for me. I'd already tried several 2021 spec Aquaracers (including the green bezel titanium version and the Night Diver) and although I liked them, none of them spoke to me to the tune of £2500+ (or £3500 in the case of the titanium model). But I had high hopes for the GMT with its funky looking blue and white bezel and yellow accented GMT and second hands.... 

VIDEO: TAG Heuer Aquaracer Calibre 5 by Random Rob

 

OWNED: TAG Heuer 2000 Exclusive Quartz Chronograph

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For some peculiar reason, the TAG Heuer 2000 Exclusive range is one that is very overlooked and as a consequence rather undervalued in my opinion. I bought this immaculate CN1110 from Watchfinder back in January 2019 for the princely sum of £675 (or thereabouts: it was a three watch trade in deal, but that was the starting price) and even now you can still find these on Watchfinder (with a two year warranty no less) for about £750. 

If you are prepared to forego the chorongraph you can pick them up even cheaper: I saw a gorgeous blue dial WN1112 (another watch I own) recently in a sale on EST1897 for under £300 - which is insane value! I absolutely love that watch and would never sell it. Okay, the bezel was a bit scratched up (bit of a design flaw having a polished raised section) but at that price you could afford to replace the bezel and you would have a cracking Swiss made watch for very little money.

FIRT IMPRESSIONS: TAG Heuer Carrera Heuer 02 Japanese Limited Edition Chronograph

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I was trawling YouTube for TAG Heuer videos the other day, when I came across a Japanese video... I don't really know why I clicked on it since I can't speak or read Japanese, but for some reason I flicked through it and right near the end I spied something which caught my eye. 'What is that?' I thought to myself, 'I don't remember an Elegant Carrera with rose gold on it'. However, I wasn't 100% sure so I spent the next 15 mins trawling my Gallery Blog and anywhere else I could think of to make sure this was something new and then hit on the idea of visiting TAG Heuer's Japanese website where my suspicions were confirmed.

VIDEO: TAG Heuer Carrera Heuer 02 Chronograph by Brent Miller Time

 

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: TAG Heuer Carrera 2021 'Qatar' Limited Edition Heuer 02 Chronograph

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Unfortunately this one passed me by when it was released last year, so it didn't get its shot at the 2021 COCO Watch of the Year. Somehow I don't think it would have mattered much, but still, it's always interesting to get the feedback of the council whenever a previously unseen watch turns up and this one is pretty unique. It's also very exclusive, with just fifty examples made (although from what I heard very few were actually made available to the public for purchase).

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: TAG Heuer Carrera 'Omotesando Boutique' Heuer 02 T Limited Edition

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To celebrate the re-opening of the Omotesando boutique in Japan, TAG Heuer have produced this limited edition Heuer 02 tourbillon with a coated titanium case and forged carbon lugs and bezel. It's somewhat reminiscent of the 'Mexico' model launched last year (one of which was personalized and presented to Red Bull Formula 1 driver Sergio Perez) but this time highlighted with red on the tourbillon and rear crystal.

VIDEO: Heuer Skipper by David Harper Art and Antiques

 

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: Tudor Pelagos 39 200M Automatic Watch

 

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Of all the non-TAG Heuer watches I have the closest affinity with, number one is probably the Tudor Pelagos LHD. This is almost entirely because my good friend Rich owns one and as such I have seen and handled this watch quite a bit over the last few years. It is not without it's faults; I'm not 'crazy' about the red/black date wheel and the (admittedly clever) clasp is a bit weird, but overall I like it a lot and it is pretty much the only watch in the world with fauxtina that doesn't make me want to puke in a bucket. 

But of course an awful lot of people wanted the Tudor Pelagos in a smaller size and so there is understandable excitement for the release of this 39mm variant. I don't doubt for a second that this will sell like hot cakes, indeed I'm sure the waiting lists are already growing since as ever these days Tudor will have done a thoroughly terrible job of providing adequate inventory on release. But then of course we all know a lack of stock only feeds the hype; nothing makes a watch enthusiast crave a watch like being told they can't have one after all...

HISTORY: TAG Heuer Monza (2000-2016)

 

The history of the TAG Heuer Monza is relatively short and simple (certainly compared to our last two trips down memory lane!), and begins in the year 2000. New TAG Heuer owners LVMH, clearly pleased with the success of the Carrera and Monaco re-issues in the late 1990s, decided their next revival piece would be the Monza... and so began six years of watches, before the model once again returned to obscurity, returning only for one solitary 35th Anniversary piece in 2011).

Then in 2016, under the helm of Jean Claude Biver, and celebrating its 40th Anniversary the Monza returned once more in a 42mm titanium and PVD case, but if you thought that was radical, think again, the Monza isn't finished yet... 

VIDEO: TAG Heuer Monaco Restoration by Perpetual Time Limited

 

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: TAG Heuer Aquaracer Calibre 7 GMT Watch

 

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It's funny, here in the watch community we often get to see leaked pictures of watches before they come out, it's an inevitable side effect of authorised distributors having access to images and showing them to potential customers to try and presell watches before they come out. But in the case of this new Aquaracer GMT it wasn't so much that images were leaked (although they were, this one has been known about for a very long time) but that certain European AD's have been selling this in store for weeks before the official launch. 

So when TAG Heuer started their teaser campaign on Instagram on Monday it was hard to take it seriously... and to be honest, posting a photo of the bezel and asking if you can 'work out what's coming', well it was hardly 'smoke and mirrors'. Maybe they realised the game was up and it wasn't worth the effort of breaking out the high-def camera and shooting the watch from obscure, misleading angles? :)

VIDEO: TAG Heuer Monaco Heuer 02 'Dark Lord Tribute' Special Edition by World Tempus

 

SPOTLIGHT ON: Timpsons Watch Repair Service

 

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Some of you may vaguely recall the time I bought a classic (steel case) F1 for my wife from Japan and needed the glass replaced pronto so that I could give it to her for her birthday. For speed's sake I took it to a company called Timpsons who are not watch specialists themselves (they do shoe repairs, dry cleaning and key cutting amongst other things) but this doesn't really matter since anything more technical than a battery change and the watch gets sent to a proper watch repair centre (which also does work for 'Watch Lab' incidentally - who service TAG Heuer, Cartier, Breitling and Omega). Really they are just providing a convenient drop-off location, and to be honest I've used them a couple of times already and had quick, efficient service, so why not? 

So when I decided that my 380.513 needed a new glass and perhaps a replacement bezel I didn't think twice about dropping it off with them when I picked up my wife's 380.508 (which had also had a replacement glass). That one took about 6 days to get a quote, and a couple or three weeks to get back, this time not quite in time for my wife's birthday (so this must have been the second half of April 2022). 

VIDEO: TAG Heuer Autavia (Modern or Vintage Inspired) by Brent Miller Time

SPOTLIGHT ON: TAG Heuer x Bamford x RUF x High Snobiety Carrera Heuer 02 Limited Edition Chronograph

I guess it's my age, but up until now I was completely unaware of 'High Snobiety', and to be honest even after perusing their Instagram account for several minutes I couldn't quite decide whether the whole thing was a massive piss-take or not. It seems not, though I still can't quite be 100% certain. Not a great starting point for a collaboration between them, RUF, Bamford and TAG Heuer (though I'm not sure how much part TAG Heuer actually played in this one).

RUF is an exclusive specialty car manufacturer celebrated for its meticulously engineered production cars, again I don't really know a lot about them so to quote Wikipedia: 

VIDEO: TAG Heuer Aquaracer 300M Professional 'Orange Dial' by Time & Tide

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: TAG Heuer Carrera Red Dial 'Heritage' Heuer 02 Chronograph

 

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Did anyone know they wanted a red dial Heritage Carrera? I've been on the THF Forum now for about six years and I've never ever heard anyone there say they wanted one. But come to that, I've never heard anyone say they want a purple Monaco either and that sold out pretty fast. What you forgot about that one already? Yeah, these 'limited editions' come and go real fast these days don't they...?

With the Monaco though, it feels somewhat more 'acceptable' to push the boat out. For a start the watch is more adventurous and quirky in its design and wearing the 'TAG Heuer' badge and being powered by a Heuer 02 rather than a Calibre 11 movement somehow puts it less at odds with history than this new red-dialed 'Heuer' Carrera.

VIDEO: TAG Heuer Aquaracer 1000M 'Superdiver' by Monochrome Watches

FEATURE: Our Favourite Aquaracers

 

As a follow up to my 'History of the Aquaracer' quadrilogy posted over the last weekend, I thought I would poll a few members of the THF Forum to get their opinions on which of the many, many Aquaracers available is their own personal favourite...

As you would expect, there were a variety of opinions, with convergence on a few models, but really the common theme was that most people really like either the current WBP Aquaracers (and in particular the 43mm ceramic bezel models) or the previous WAY style Aquaracers, with other ranges barely even mentioned. 

First up we have our favourite Swedish Instagram influencer (who, let's not forget tried to buy an Aquaracer last year and ended up buying a Tudor Black Bay 58 by mistake)...

VIDEO: TAG Heuer Carrera Heuer 02 'Twin Time' Chronograph by The Watch Village

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: TAG Heuer Aquaracer 300 Professional Ladies Watch

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As some of you may well remember, last year TAG Heuer produced a 'piece unique' for the 'Pink Dial Project' which was auctioned in aid of breast cancer charities. At the time I thought it slightly strange that they would make the watch a 'piece unique' when it was something I could see being part of the regular range, and it seems I was right.... well almost. 

This new 300 Professional Aquaracer 36mm is pretty darned close in spec to that piece, with the only differences that I can see being a regular second hand instead of a pink one and the first quarter of the bezel text being rendered in grey instead of pink. Other than that it looks pretty much identical to me, which is great if you really liked the unobtainable charity piece, but perhaps slightly less ideal if you were the one who bought it!

VIDEO: TAG Heuer Aquaracer V Longines Hydroconquest by Chisolm Hunter

 

HISTORY: TAG Heuer Aquaracer Part 4 (Other Watches)

The fourth and final part of the Aquaracer odyssey. 

OTHER WATCHES (Non Catalogue Pieces - Specific Years Unknown)

These are the watches that did not feature in any official TAG Heuer catalogue and for which I have been unable to pin down the specific year of manufacture. If it had been just a few models I might have been willing to make educated guesses but there are just too many and I would rather not litter these posts with inaccuracies unnecessarily. Better to show the pieces and give you the range of years those model lines were produced.

HISTORY: TAG Heuer Aquaracer Part 3 (2019-)

 

The third part of our in depth look at the history of the Aquaracer.

2019 CATALOGUE

Some interesting new pieces could be found in this catalogue, not least the stunning green dial Aquaracer available in both ladies and men's sizes. 

HISTORY: TAG Heuer Aquaracer - Part 2 (2013/2018)

 

We continue our look at the long and voluminous history of the Aquaracer, this time focusing on the years 2013-2018.

To visit part one of this post, please click the link below:

http://tagheuerenthusiast.blogspot.com/2022/08/history-tag-heuer-aquaracer-part-1.html

2013/2014 CATALOGUE

In 2013 TAG Heuer launched the CAK range of Aquaracers, including a 'Regatta' chronograph available on either a bracelet or a rubber strap in either standard or Team USA limited edition format. These watches only appeared in this one catalogue (and for several years were readily available at TAG Heuer's Bicester Village outlet). 

HISTORY: TAG Heuer Aquaracer - Part 1 (2004/2013)

 

While the Aquaracer was technically born in 2004, in truth the model was a continuation of the 2000 Series that had been in the catalogue for the previous 22 years - indeed, were it not for the name change, the 2000 Series would actually be celebrating an impressive 40 years of continuous production in 2022 (something neither the Monaco nor Carrera can lay claim to). If ever proof were needed of this fact, look no further than the 2005 Catalogue, which features no less than ten 2000 Series and 2000 Exclusive models being sold as Aquaracers! 

In addition, the (WAB style) Aquaracer appears in the 2004/2005 Catalogue as the 2000 Aquaracer, so it seems that originally it was intended to be another variation on the 2000 theme (2000 Sports, 2000 Exclusive, 2000 Tristar, etc) but then they dropped the 2000 name and just let the model continue as the Aquaracer. Maybe they just figured the 2000 name had had it's day and the Aquaracer sounded a lot cooler and a lot more 21st Century? Or maybe LVMH wanted to cut the ties to the pre-LVMH days and getting rid of the 2000 nomenclature was one more way of doing so.

VIDEO: TAG Heuer 2000 'Moondust' by Teleology Diary

 

ON THE WRIST: TAG Heuer Monaco Heuer 02 'Gulf Edition' Chronograph

 

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TAG Heuer Boutique / Meadowall, Sheffield 18th June 2022

It's been a little while since I've had a Heuer 02 Monaco on my wrist, or any Monaco for that matter. In fact I think the last time I actually tried one on was February 2020 and that was a 37mm model with a white Mother of Pearl dial, a white strap and diamonds adorning the case. The last time I had a 'proper' Monaco on my wrist was December 2019, so it's perhaps not surprising that in the past two and a half years I had overinflated the size of the watch in my mind a bit. For sure it's not small, but neither is it an unwearable monster on my 7.1/2" wrist. In fact on re-acquaintance it seemed altogether quite reasonable!

And so we come to the new Gulf Monaco, a watch that received many positive words from the 'Council of Considered Opinion' on release, much to my surprise - seeing that it was replacing a Heuer branded Gulf, and one of the better ones the company has produced to date.

VIDEO: TAG Heuer Aquaracer Calibre 5 'Orange Dial' Watch by Brent Miller Time

 

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: TAG Heuer Carrera 'Day/Date' Calibre 16 Chronograph

 
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In an age where we are constantly bombarded by new and exciting pieces, perhaps it's no great surprise that watches like this (which are perfectly nice in their own right) sneak onto the TAG Heuer website unannounced. I guess the fact is there isn't really too much to say about this watch as for the most part it carries over much of the design aesthetic from the previous model. Now based on the Carrera Sports case the size has increased by 1mm (to 44mm) and the typeface used for the 'minute' markers look a little more modern perhaps, but by and large it's a case of as you were.

But then again perhaps that's a bit harsh, it does now feature a ceramic bezel and the pushers and crown are a bit nicer than they were before but once again, purists will complain that these models aren't really Carreras with their stubby lugs and thick case. Of course these people probably wouldn't have bought the 43mm predecessor either, so their opinion is probably not that relevant...