TAG Heuer Calibre 1887 Gold Automatic Chronograph 41 mm

Calibre 1887 controversy. The Calibre 1887 movement has been a bit controversial for TAG Heuer shortly after its announcement almost three years ago. The source of the controversy, the movement was actually designed by Seiko Instruments, Inc. (SII). The Calibre 1887 movement is actually based on SII TC78 platform which was patented by Seiko in 1997.

Tag Heuer purchased the rights to the SII TC78 patent from Seiko. Part of the controversy was that the movement was designed in Japan and not by a Swiss company. In part also because statements were released saying it was designed in house. Finally, in part is that the new movement was actually a over ten year old Seiko design. On the plus side, those who know Seiko watches do know that they produce some of the best movements in the world.

TAG Heuer Calibre 1887 Automatic Chronograph Rose Gold 41 mm. At BaselWorld 2012, TAG Heuer announced a variant of its 41 mm Calibre 1887 Chronograph watch.  Watch is your prototypical chronograph with the main second hand being used in conjunction with a 30 minute counter at the 12 o'clock and a 12 hour counter at the 6 o'clock to measure elapsed time. A date is displayed inside the sub-dial at the 6 o'clock. Continues running seconds is shown by a sub-dial at the  9 o'clock. The Calibre 1887 movement inside beats at 28,800 vibrations per hour and has a 50 hour power reserve.

The design is now new, but the availability of models in 18 Ct gold cases is. There are two Rose Gold variants and one in yellow gold and stainless steel.

The Rose Gold model with the dark anthracite dial is particularly striking. With the stainless steel versions of this watches retailing at about US$3,500-4,200, I would not want to venture a guess on the price of the gold ones, especially the Rose gold models. This and a similar release last year, indicates TAG is trying to penetrate the upper markets.

About TAG Heuer. TAG Heuer is a Swiss watch company founded by Edouard Heuer who founded a watchmaking company in 1860. TAG Heuer concentrates on chronographs with some less expensive models in each line lacking chronograph features. The lines include Formula One, Aquaracer, Link, Carrera, Monaco, and others.