A Week on the Wrist · Watch Lover

A Week on the Wrist

Figured after owning this Carrera from Tag Heuer for a week I would share my thoughts in case it might be helpful to anyone who maybe considering this piece.

Starting with the dial you will see it is a nice medium to dark blue which when combined with the white and metallic markers and indexes provides excellent legibility. Of course like most watches this one comes in multiple colors including a shade of burgundy that is very interesting to look at.

As is plain to see, this one is a chronograph and if you look at the markings between the second markers on the dial, it will allows you to time things down to 1/4 of a second. The pushers I have discovered take a little more pressure to push than the ones on my other chronograph but I consider this a good thing because you do not have to worry about starting or stopping it on accident. It also makes a satisfying clicking sound when pushed. And of course on the outside you have the numbers marking this as a tachymeter allowing you to measure speed if you are so inclined.

But my favorite detail I think would have to be 30 min. markers you see on the hour counter which makes it a lot easier to tell if it has been 15 minutes or 45 minutes. Why this is not the norm in chronographs, I have no idea.

But perhaps the thing that drew me towards this watch the most is just how clean everything about it is. Most chronographs and especially tachymeters lean heavily on the sporty side which makes sense. But this one is something you could wear with a suit and tie or jeans in a t-shirt, I do not think this watch could be any more versatile if it tried. Normally, I am a leather strap man when it comes to watches but I think that the bracelet it comes with works too well to switch out.

My one gripe with this watch is that I wish the movement had a little more pizzazz to it. There is nothing wrong with it but I feel it could have been far more eye-catching personally.

The last two things I want to mention are not problems for me but I can see them possibly being problems for other people. The first being is that since this is a chronograph with an automatic movement, this watch is thicker what you usually run into. To give you some idea I uploaded a photo of this watch next to my Baume and Mercier on their case pillows. If you wear made to measure dress shirts there is possibility this might cause you problems unless you had your maker add in an extra 1 to 1.5 inches to the cuff on your watch wrist. That said it does not affect the aesthetics while wearing it in my experience thus far. The second is this watch does weigh more than a typical mechanical watch, I honestly don't feel it on my wrist and when I hold it in my hand I find it strangely satisfying but as I understand it that might bother some people.

I am a firm believer that no watch, regardless of how much I or anyone else might like it, is for everyone. However if you are looking for an unusually clean and sleek chronograph and tachymeter that goes with just about anything and it is within your budget (about $8k); I can definitely recommend looking into this one. I tip my hat to Tag Heuer on this one well done.

Lastly, if you live in the Kansas City area, please stop by Tivol out on the plaza, ask for Percy, and tell her I sent you. In addition to Tag Heuer they also do Rolex, Cartier, Patek Phillipe, Tudor, Nomos, and a couple of American brands whose names escape me at the moment.

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