IN-DEPTH: The two TAG Heuer Carrera 160 Years Limited Editions – are they the perfect Two-Watch-One-Brand collection of 2020?
For me, the TAG Heuer Carrera 160 Years Silver Limited Edition (available for purchase here) could quite possibly be my favourite from the maison in the last 20 years, and I am not exaggerating. This is a pure Carrera chronograph, a sharp, clear and distilled version of its forefather, the silver monochrome Carrera 2447SD. It approaches the epitome of what a chronograph should be, and sits in the Goldilocks zone of a slender 39mm steel case. We are looking at a supremely comfortable size, though with a visual impact more like 40mm due to its delicate polished bezel and light silver tone. This is a powerful yet discreet presence on the wrist. The razor-sharp monochrome visage on a classic black leather strap means this will go with any outfit, from a summer shirt to a dark winter merino knit, and that sharp Italian cut suit. It might be the perfect one-watch collection, had it not been for its colourful namesake fighting for attention — the TAG Heuer Carrera 160 Years Montreal Limited Edition (available for purchase here). Though I admittedly want them both, I will carefully dissect each detail with a loupe to see what differentiates these two Carreras, down to…
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Editor’s note: Grand Seiko turned heads at the start of 2020 with the announcement of a brand new in-house movement – the Grand Seiko 9SA5 caliber. It was first launched in the Grand Seiko SLGH002 60th Anniversary Limited Edition, a quintessential yellow gold dress watch from the Japanese watchmaking firm, and it left jaws on the floor with what it had achieved. We saw the 9SA5 caliber again earlier this month in the Grand Seiko SLGH003, this time in a sportier watch in stainless steel that was a statement of intent from Grand Seiko. But what makes this new movement so special? We thought we’d get an independent watchmaker to answer that question, our friend Reuben Schoots. We first spoke with Reuben in NOW Magazine Issue II, about his journey building a tourbillon pocket watch according to the George Daniels method. By hand. You read that right. The first of its kind in Australia. By hand. So without further ado, here’s Reuben. Grand Seiko’s new movement, the 9SA5, boasts 80 hours of power reserve, a new movement architecture, a new escapement, a new balance, a beat rate of 36,000 vph, +5 to -3 seconds accuracy per day, oh, and the…
Within the watch community, you will hear the phrase “in the metal” a fair bit. With some watches it is as simple as paying a quick visit to an authorised dealer to become more acclimated with a watch. However, not all watches are available to view in-store – and no, this is not a conversation about Rolex. The Eichi II, from Credor, is a watch most people do not have an option of seeing on-demand. It typically hits stores for showings for special events put together in honour of trade fairs or VIP customer gatherings. Thankfully, for those who have not had the fortune of seeing one in person, we have the next best thing: photos and videos from macro maestro @horomariobro. Andrew McUtchen: Now this one is a very simple one and a very beautiful one. Or seemingly simple, I should say … @Horomariobro: Definitely. With the Eichi II, I am trying to show three things. One is the dial — I want to show how smooth and white the dial is. The dial is not made of enamel. A lot of people will think it’s an enamel dial, but it’s not, it’s made of porcelain. It’s extremely white. I actually had…
Editor’s note: Arguably, the GMT complication is the most practical in a watch. Everyone has at least one other time zone they want to track, but there aren’t many people using their chronographs to measure F1 lap times. The GMT complication also offers an opportunity to think about the world at large. It reminds you of how big the world is, and presents an opportunity to forget the moment-to-moment stresses that we all face in our lives. If that wasn’t enough, the wristwatch GMT complication has been imagined in innumerable ways over the decades, and are an exciting and creative corner of the watch world. So with that in mind, we wanted to look at what we think are some of the best GMTs of 2020 over $10K. Let’s go. AP Royal Oak Concept Tourbillon GMT The Concept range by Audemars Piguet is a latter-day classic, and since its introduction in 2002, has attracted a new clientèle to the brand. Hell, the cutting-edge angular weaponry of the Concept will blow even the flashiest Offshore out of the water, and that says a lot for its imposing presence. As Fergus Nash underlined in our in-depth story here, the AP Royal Oak…
The people have spoken, and it is clear that within the Fantasy Watch Collection 10K I was the people’s champion. I take great pride in my victory, listening to Queen’s “We Are the Champions” as I type this story. But I recognise I could not have won without your support, and thank you, the readers, for declaring me the winner of this segment. While I must confess that the two watches I selected were safely definitive crowd-pleasers, I truly stand by my choices and picked them without a desire to win the competition – these are genuinely the two watches I would pick within the 10K parameter. Let’s quickly explore why the two watches — that are seemingly similar — actually complement each other and make for a diverse and all-purpose collection. The case for the Black Bay Fifty-Eight “Navy Blue” Full disclosure, I was a tad biased in my BB58 Navy Blue pick as I actually own the watch on a bracelet – and it has had a lot of wrist time (arguably the most) throughout the course of the pandemic. It was really my first thought when tasked with building a Fantasy Watch Collection 10K, as its price gave me…