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The Bonhams
auction of the Haslinger Collection of
vintage Heuer chronographs was held in
London, on Wednesday, December 15, 2010.
The auction was comprised of 81 vintage
Heuer chronographs, 18 lots of Accessories
and a unique Silverstone Calibre 11
Chronograph, bearing the signature of Jack
Heuer on the dial, that was produced by
TAG Heuer for the auction. The auction of
the Haslinger Collection was an
overwhelming success, with almost all the
watches in the Haslinger Collection
selling at record prices. According to
media reports, total sales in the auction
were over £475,000 ($740,000), with
the highest prices being realized for a
Black PVD Monaco at $74,700 [Lot
98], a "Chronomatic" Autavia at
$46,800 [Lot 94], an 18 karat gold
automatic Carrera at $35,500 [Lot
96] and a "McQueen" Monaco at $28,000
[Lot 99]. Over half the
chronographs in the Haslinger Collection
sold at prices above estimates; only two
of the 81 watches failed to meet
reserves. The auction of
the Haslinger Collection represented a
historic event for the Heuer brand. Held
in December 2010 as part of the
celebration of the 150th Anniversary of
the Heuer brand, the auction received
worldwide attention and created
considerable new interest in Heuer's
historic chronographs. This was the finest
collection of Heuer chronographs ever sold
at auction, in terms of the range of
watches represented, the superb condition
of these watches and the unique
"pedigree" of the watches. Each of
the 81 watches in the Haslinger Collection
had been documented in the book, "Heuer
Chronographen, Faszination von Zeitmessern
und Motorsport 1960 / 1970er Jahre (or
Heuer Chronographs: Fascination of the
Timekeepers and Motro Sports 1960s /
1970s" written by Arno Michael Haslinger
(Callwey). In addition, many watches in
the collection had been featured in
magazine articles written by Haslinger in
recent years. Jeffrey M.
Stein This webpage
copyright Jeffrey M. Stein, 2011; all
rights reserved. The Bonhams Auction
of the Haslinger Collection has been of
considerable interest to many different
audiences. The auction received coverage
not only in the watch and jewelry press,
but also in the motorsports and business
communities. The auction brought new
attention to vintage Heuer chronographs,
among collectors who had previously
focused on other watch brands as well as
those who had previuosly focused on other
categories of collectibles. The watches included
in the Haslinger Auction, and the results
achieved in the auction, are of particular
interest to persons who collect vintage
Heuer chronographs. Within days after the
auction, information included in the
auction catalog was making its way into
the market for vintage Heuer chronographs,
and prices in the market (real or
perceived) were affected by the
auction results. Given the high profile of
the Haslinger Collection and this auction,
we expect that the watches and auction
results will continue to be of
considerable interest to those who collect
vintage Heuer chronographs. This review of the
Haslinger Auction has been written by a
group of collectors of vintage Heuer
chronographs, in the belief that
information about the auction will be of
interest to many watch collectors and
enthusiasts. Although prices achieved in
the auction are likely to remain well
above prevailing prices in the collectors'
community, the hierarchy of prices
reflected in the Haslinger Auction, the
features and elements that attracted high
bids, and information about the watches
themselves will inform the broader market
for vintage Heuer chronographs.
Importantly, one of the great assets in
the vintage Heuer community is information
about these watches; as much as the free
flow of information supported the
Haslinger Auction, we believe that
information derived from the Auction will
be of benefit to the community of
collectors. In seeking to
understand how the prices achieved at the
Haslinger Auction relate to the prices
seen in the collectors' community, it is
important to focus on two key factors that
resulted in the numerous record prices
achieved in the auction. First, the
watches in the Haslinger Collection were
distinguished by their superb condition,
the "extras" that were offered with many
of the watches (boxes, papers, store
receipts, original straps and autographs,
for example) and the provenance of the
watches themselves. Second, the
extraordinary efforts of Arno Haslinger,
Bonhams and TAG Heuer over the months and
years leading up to the auction produced a
"perfect platform" for the auction,
on which extraordinary results were
achieved. Key components of this "perfect
platform" are described by Thomas Seydoux,
in the introductory piece that appears
immediately below. The opinions
expressed in this review are those of the
respective authors. Our writers who are
providing the Lot-by-Lot reviews examined
many of the watches, at previews in New
York and London, and have also used
information in the auction catalog and
Condition Reports issued by Bonhams. It is
important to realize that these Lot-by-Lot
reviews represent only our opinions; we
will correct any factual errors that are
reported to us. The opinions expressed in
this Review do not reflect the views of
Arno Haslinger, Bonhams or TAG Heuer. We
would like to thank each of Mr. Haslinger,
Bonhams and TAG Heuer for their support of
the vintage Heuer collectors' community,
both in connection with the Haslinger
Auction and more generally. This webpage
copyright Jeffrey M. Stein, 2011; all
rights reserved. Special thanks to
the wonderful Heuer enthusiasts who have
contributed to this review: The 81 chronographs
included in the Haslinger Auction have
been documented extensively, including
Arno's definitive book and a series of
magazine articles that cover the history
of Heuer chronographs, in general, and
Arnos watches, in particular: Table
of Contents Thomas
Seydoux, "The sale of the Haslinger
Collection: The Perfect Platform"
(based on a
message posted in the OnTheDash discussion
forum, December 16, 2010) From an auction
point of view, I think the sale of the
Haslinger Collection was pretty much "the
perfect platform" to trigger the highest
possible prices. For a sale to be a
success, a combination of ingredients are
needed. In this case, they were all there
(except perhaps one): All the above
created a perfect platform or "ideal
comfort zone" for collectors to bid to
their highest possible level... (as Tracy
Chapman would say "if not now... then
when?"). These were the ideal conditions
for an auction success. Perhaps one element
was missing, at least that's what I
thought when I first saw the catalogue
online: the need for low and attractive
estimates. I
thought the published estimates were too
high, which could have acted as a
deterrent to the overall sale by
discouraging some potential buyers from
bidding (me). It is a known fact that the
greatest number of bidders -- attracted by
low estimates -- competing against one
another always leads to higher
prices.... Clearly, I was
wrong. Judging from the
results, low estimates were not needed for
this sale (and neither were my bids), the
sale platform was perfect as it
stood. Jeff
Stein, "A Triumph of Promotion (and
Perfection)" (based
on a message posted in the OnTheDash
discussion forum, December 15,
2010) The day that we have
been waiting for has come and gone, and I
wanted to share a few additional thoughts
with our readers before signing off. It
has been a memorable day for our
community, a day that we are likely to
discuss and analyze for the next several
weeks and months. We are probably too
close to the auction to put it into proper
perspective, but let me give it a try,
with the acknowledgement that this is
especially difficult, having not been in
the auction room today. A Triumph of
Promotion (and Perfection). I believe
that the strong prices achieved today were
the result of a fantastic promotional
campaign by Arno, Bonhams and TAG-Heuer.
We can ask ourselves how two bidders went
to the $70,000 mark for the PVD Monaco, or
near the $47,000 mark for the Chronomatic
Autavia ("Siffert"), but these bidders
didn't just wander into the auction room
by chance. Arno and Paul introduced our
beloved Heuers to a new audience, using
multiple channels (events, magazines,
blogs, videos, etc.), and some fantastic
imagery from the glory years of
motorsports. Of course, this auction was
much more than a promotional triumph;
these watches are the best of the best, a
collection of near-perfect watches that
Arno meticulously assembled and documented
over the years . . . in many instances,
perfect samples of rare watches. We have
all seen Panda Carreras, 2446C Skippers
and the colorful Camaros . . . what we saw
today are the values of the very best
samples of these watches, offered to the
most enthusiastic and well-funded
collectors. We saw the premiums that
promotion achieves for
perfection. The Value of
Motorsports. A quick review of the
auction results tells me that the tie-in
to motorsports paid a real premium. The
two Monzas fetched huge premiums over any
prices that we have seen previously, the
Caliber 15 Carreras, with their
"racier" look, finished well ahead of
the comparable Caliber 12 pieces. The
Calculators may have been laggards of the
day. Indeed, there is much more excitement
about the racetracks and the racers than
the laboratories and the scientists.
People would rather time laps that
chemical reactions, and the Monzas and
Carreras seem to have earned the premium
from the motorsports
connection. The Watches that
Got the "Ink" Drew the Cash. A quick
review of the results also tells me that
the watches that were featured during the
promotion of the auction achieved the top
prices. We saw the Carrera 1158 CHN as the
"poster child" for the auction (cover of
catalog and brochure); as we walked into
the Bonhams previews we saw banners with
the Chronomatic Autavia ("Siffert"); many
of the watches featured in the Hodinkee
blog or favored by Arno did very well.
These pieces became the icons of the
auction, and the bidders wanted to take
them home . . . it's that
simple. Steve McQueen Is
Cooler Than "Polished Steel Hands with
Squared Ends" or a "Brushed Metallic
Finish". As Rich pointed out in an
earlier message posted on our discussion
forum, people paid up for "the watch that
Steve McQueen wore in Le Mans", but were
relatively unimpressed by the scarcity of
a "Transitional" Monaco that has polished
steel hands with squared ends. Imagine the
winner telling his friends about his
triumph at the auction; would he brag that
he had won "McQueen's Monaco" or a
"Transitional Monaco"? Several lots
demonstrated clearly that scarcity itself
will not be valued above the "curb appeal"
of a beautiful dial. Perhaps scarcity is
more valued by the dedicated Heuer
collector who owns 50 Heuers, and is
adding numbers 51 and 52; people buying
their first few Heuers are not so
enthusiastic about having the super rare
ones; they prefer the beautiful ones with
strong story lines. Is This a Good
Thing for the Collectors? People are
already asking whether the very strong
results of the Haslinger auction will be
good or bad for our community, but this
seems like an easy question to answer.
Members of our community have a lot of
knowledge; we also have a lot of watches;
we do not need to bemoan the fact that we
may not have as much disposable income as
some of today's bidders. The fact that
today's bidders have marked up today's
prices of the very best vintage Heuers
does not seem like a bad development. Yes,
we may see some new sellers asking for
some very high prices, but I won't blame
the Bonhams bidders for that. Someone may
list a Carrera Ref 1158 CHN for $30,000,
or the Easy Rider for $7,000, but I expect
that these watches will continue to change
hands at some fraction of these prices.
What we saw today is that there are
different markets, and different
communities. I believe that our
community of dedicated, well-informed
collectors will benefit from the exposure
of today's auction, even if we chose not
to bid at these price levels. We
benefitted because the world saw what we
have known for a long time -- that these
are awesome watches, and good fun to
admire and collect. Thomas
Seydoux, "When is Scarcity Worth More?"
Scarcity doesn't
always translate into a higher value.
Because something is rare or even
extremely rare, it doesn't mean it will
automatically fetch a premium when sold at
auction. Two categories of
scarcity can be established and applied to
most collecting fields. Each category has
opposite effects commercially, so it is
crucial that they be identified from the
outset, before the auction catalogue is
published. Scarcity as a
Positive. Extreme scarcity can
occur when an object was produced in an
extremely limited number (and even fewer
have survived), and is unanimously
identified as the most collectible item in
its field. These items rarely appear on
the market because few of them have
survived and are usually directly traded
among top collectors, therefore not
getting the chance of appearing on the
open market, further contributing to their
perceived rarity. In the Haslinger
Auction, the Black PVD Monaco [Lot
98] and the Chronomatic Siffert
Autavia [Lot 94] are perfect
examples of rare watches belonging to this
first category. They are both extremely
rare watches, considered by all as most
desirable, and sitting clearly at the very
top of the Heuer collecting pyramid. When
offered at auction, these watches will
always fetch the highest possible prices,
as we witnessed at the sale, both fetching
record prices. Scarcity as an
Unknown. The second category
of scarcity is commercially much more
uncertain. This category includes items
that are rare because they sit outside the
established hierarchy of
collecting. They are considered
scarce either because they have seldom
appeared on the market (Heuer Solunar, Lot
44) or because they present an unrecorded
feature, possibly identified as a unique
commission or a prototype (for example, if
we were to see a special Autavia with an
additional hole on its side). In these instances,
the rarity premium becomes subjective; its
desirability will vary greatly from one
collector to the next. Because these items
are nevertheless "rare", auction
specialists are at risk of raising their
estimates above the norm, as they
correctly should with rare objects
belonging to the first category. But since
subjectivity comes into play, high
estimates will act as a deterrent shying
away bidders unsure of how collectible the
item really is. The modest result
obtained by the Heuer Solunar [Lot
44] confirms this. A low estimate or
even a "no reserve" would have had the
opposite effect and would have most
probably led to a higher price.
Letting the market
free to decide by publishing low estimates
or indicating that the lot is not subject
to a reserve price is always the best way
to obtain premium prices within this
second category. Sandra
Silva Galindo, "A Letter to Our
Community", January 11,
2010 Dear Heuer
Friends: I'm pleased to share
some thoughts about the Bonhams auction
event in London on the 15th of December
2010, especially with those of you who
were unable to participate in this most
meaningful event. Having had the
opportunity over the years to attend
numerous auctions - mainly of art, vintage
cars and watches - how could I talk about
such an experience without mentioning the
meeting that the OnTheDash team organized?
I mean the magnificent cocktail reception
on December 14 at the Bonhams premises;
the warm gathering on the eve of the
auction that allowed Heuerists from all
around the world to meet and get to know
each other, after so many years reading
each other's posts on the Forum. The
cheerful moment was shared by Arno and his
lovely parents and also included watches,
of course, and our favourite ones - as we
were surrounded by all 81 Heuers from the
Haslinger Collection! The perfect setting,
a scenario worthy of our craziest
dreams… plus, in the next room, there
were some 450 more timepieces ready for a
second auction that would follow the
Haslinger one - a number of other great
brand watches, including Rolex,
Jaeger-LeCoultre, Girard-Perregaux, Omega,
etc… Yes! An unique
display of candies for us vintage watch
freaks! The cocktail reception was a
tremendously warm event, as we could look
at each other, eye to eye, and then look
directly at each other's wrists with a
broad smile... I mean, what else could we
ask for? Human and mechanical bond in one
instant! Sharing a common passion,
revisiting together the Haslinger
Collection we've been talking about for so
long, walking from one side of the room to
the other commenting at the same time. And
I must say that I did "Shlrups!" some of
those glasses keeping us from actually
touching those beautiful timepieces? You
all know I did... Right after the
reception we walked to our Heuer summit
appointment (the dinner) in a nice private
club in Soho, ready to keep on sharing
watch gossip and more champagne while
taking pics of each of those treasured
timepieces, our loved Heuers are after all
that pampering... we know! "Joy" would be
my word... yes, it might seem exaggerated
but that was what one could sense in that
club room. Friends that represented all
together 18 different countries coming
from all around the world - from many
parts of Europe, the US, Hong Kong and as
far as from Australia. We could finally
talk together about so many watch matters
and the next day, more to come with the
keenly expected Bonhams auction.
I was for sure
thrilled, how not to be so if the occasion
represented the first exclusive Heuer
auction ever and I was about to attend it,
live!? As I arrived to the auction room
(at the last moment) I could feel the
electricity in the air; a great
expectation was noticeable and I guess
some of us had the slight dream of owning
one of those beauties . . . the place was
packed, a lot of people standing up, the
ambiance was just great! I was kindly invited
by Arno Haslinger to sit in the front, the
main action took place there and as usual
the auction started quite calmly and did
little-by-little improve as the best
pieces came out. For sure we could guess
not all the bidders were collectors but
probably acting on behalf of a company or
private parties!? Some of the outstanding
Carreras where keenly taken by two young
ladies representing TAG Heuer and they
were warmly applauded for their beautiful
acquisitions... it did raise the room
temperature and some smiles and looks were
shared among us... a nice enthusiasm was
growing! Also a certain silence after the
low price that the Gold Camaro reached
(Lot nº50)... sure many of us
regretted not bidding on the golden beauty
as I did! At a certain point
we all remained confused as two of the
auctions continued after the final hammer
had been struck, something I had never
seen in any of the previous auctions I had
attended. Nevertheless, there
were two culminating moments and the first
was the fight for the very rare first
series 'Jo Siffert' "Chronomatic" from
1969. The moment was amazing! The
strongest bidders where left alone in the
fight, among them a gentleman sitting in
the front row of the room, very serene and
the commissioner almost didn't have time
to breath as it got faster and faster...
so thrilling for us spectators. Finally
the 'Siffert' was given to a bidder out of
the room as the hammer came down to 30,000
GBP. One of the jewels of the crown was
gone! But the climax was reached with the
also very rare manual wind PVD Monaco from
1974... it started at a regular pace but
after the amount of 25.000 / 30,000GBP the
rhythm became crazy - like Federer and
Nadal on a tennis match, no pause, not a
second to reflect between two strong
bidders. It was an intense and
breathtaking moment, all in a matter of
seconds; we all where amazed to be a part
of such an scene. Finally the commissioner
said... "SOLD"... and that meant the
record price for a pre-owned Heuer: 40.000
GBP. The entire room broke out in a
combination of applause and laughter. This
was indeed the best moment of the entire
auction! Of course there are
many other watches that deserve to be
mentioned here as the contemporary
timepiece, the unique red Silverstone that
TAG Heuer donated with Jack Heuer's
autograph for the auction but I shall stop
it here my friends. To finish, I would
like to add that it was all so well
organized and the summit gave the perfect
frame to this unforgettable two days in
London with Heuer. I don't need to say how
much I did enjoy it all together and
strangely enough left London with a sad
feeling. Yes and do know now it wasn't
just only me feeling this way... an
emotional hangover? Would it be that we
had regrets as time ran so fast and missed
talking with some of the collector
friends? Or more than just that... that we
could feel some kind of emptiness as if
this was an event that marked a before and
after... asking ourselves "and what now"?
Thanks for reading
and also to the OTD team (specially Jeff)
for inviting to write these lines about my
days in London. Hope to keep on sharing
this PASSION of mine for a long time, with
all of you in our OTD site. Yours Sandra Photo
copyright Miguel Seabra, 2011;
used with
permission Miguel
Seabra, Editor of Espiral do Tempo,
Portugal, "One Auction to
Remember" [The following
are two interviews conducted by Miguel
Seabra, at the Haslinger
Auction.] The Pre-Event
Interview: MS: What is
the nature of your relationship with TAG
Heuer and Jack Heuer? AMH: I like
Jack Heuer, he's a great man. I'm a big
fan of Jack Heuer - he was such a great
visionary. When you think what he did on
1969, when he went into racing and putting
the badge on Jo Siffert's track suit…
he was both a creator and an innovator. He
technically innovated movements, he
launched the first automatic chronograph
together with Breitling and
Büren-Hamilton. And also design-wise,
he had a very strong feeling; if you look
at the vintage Heuer models, it's very
difficult to make them better; when you
look at the details, the hands are
touching precisely, the colours are
matching precisely - it's a fantastic
brand, I love it. MS: Did the
first TAG Heuer re-editions from the
second half of the 90ies spur your
collection? AMH: No, it
was always the original. It was the same
with cars. The first design is mostly the
purest and then it grows. Look at the
Porsche 911: it was a pure race car and it
developed into something different but
they still managed to not to change the
cues. TAG Heuer did quite well in
rejuvenating the brand and what we did on
the vintage part also helped TAG Heuer to
explain what the origin of the brand is.
MS: Has TAG
Heuer asked you for advice, for instance
regarding re-editions? AMH: No. TAG
Heuer is a very modern company and I'm not
sure if there is a place for a collector
in their vision. They have Jack Heuer and
obviously it's working out well. But now
they're going into glasses, telephones -
they have a very broad approach and we, as
vintage collectors, are covering only a
very small bit of interest for TAG Heuer.
So I don't think there's much time spent
with vintage collectors. MS: Which
model of your collection would you like to
see tried out as a re-edition? AMH: I would
make a Bundeswehr, the german army watch.
And the Montreal. I wondered sometimes why
they never have sent over someone from TAG
Heuer, [so that I could] explain
all the details to them. But they're not
very much linked to enthusiasts, they're
(just) a little bit linked to Jeff Stein
from OnTheDash.com and a bit with Calibre
11's David Chalmers. I love Mathilde
Tournois, who does the Museum; she's a
great person - and they invited me to the
first Heuer collection summit in
Switzerland, where a group of collectors
met with Jack for the first time. And in
the repair centre my book is the
Bible. The
Aftermath: Immediately after
the auction, I gathered Arno Haslinger and
Paul Maudsley (from Bonhams) for a quick
recap. They were still digesting what
happened, but here it is: AMH: It was a
very busy day. The auction exceeded my
expectations, especially with the Black
Monaco and the Autavia Chronomatic, but I
always knew they were very special watches
- especially the (Black) Monaco, such an
amazing new old stock piece. It was a very
good cooperation, I have to thank Paul -
he really believed in the collection and
the whole link between motorsports and the
cars and the watches. Obviously the book
helped us to make the vintage brand known
to collectors, emphasize the quality and
that's the reason why so many pieces have
been in new old stock. PM:
"Absolutely amazing results. It's been a
long journey, for both Arno and myself; we
had the idea of this sale two years ago
and then we decided to have the sale this
year, in TAG Heuer's 150th anniversary.
People got behind Arno has a collector,
the watches and their quality. We
generated world record prices, clearly the
quality and the rarity of the watches
speak for them selves". MS: So, was
there any moment where Arno wished he
could bid in his own watches? AMH: I was
not allowed to bid in my own auction,
obviously; Bonhams was very clever in not
showing me any kind of bidding
information, I had no idea how many bids
we had and who was bidding. There are
always a few regrets, it was hard to see
my babies go. MS: What are
your impressions of Bonhams? AMH: I
couldn't think of a better auction house
to work with, because Bonhams is very
unique offering this link between top
class watches and top class cars, plus
Paul and I know each other, I bought one
of my first Heuers off Paul. Paul was so
strong in his belief that it would work",
said Arno; Paul: "the room was so packed.
There might be a Haslinger Collection Part
II (looking at the red Silverstone on
Arno's wrist) - this exhausted us, it's
been a long year. Mathilde
Tournois, who bid for TAG Heuer at the
auction, also provided a recap of the
event. "We tried to help
Arno and Bonhams on the sale and TAG Heuer
is really happy to be a partner in this
auction. Jack Heuer made the introduction
of the catalogue. I came to buy or try to
buy what we needed for the Museum; we are
happy because our initial list was of
about 10 pieces and we got almost half of
those plus a few that we managed to buy,
on a last-minute decision". Mathilde
continued, "I can't disclose the budget,
but it was a good budget. We tried but
couldn't buy the most expensive ones.
Anyway, this kind of auction is really
good for the company". How good for
TAG Heuer? Replied Mathilde, "I'll be
hearing about that from Jean-Christophe
Babin in a couple of weeks". Terminology
Relating to Prices. The following are
some of the terms used in this
review: In some of these
reviews, we refer to prevailing prices in
the "Collectors' Community." The
prevailing price for a particular watch in
the collectors' community represents the
reviewer's estimate of the price at which
a watch, in the same condition as the one
sold in the Haslinger Auction, would be
sold in a transaction between two
well-informed collectors. We note that
estimates of these market prices may be
difficult, as sales of watches in the same
condition as those sold in the Haslinger
Auction have been very
infrequent. Terminology
Relating to the Condition of
Watches.. Bonhams published
Condition Reports for 37 of the 81 watches
offered in the Haslinger Auction. In
preparing this review, we have reviewed
all the Condition Reports, and summarized
them in the Lot-by-Lot descriptions below.
The following are some notes relating to
these Condition Reports: As a general matter,
there seems to be some inconsistency
between the descriptions of conditions in
the printed and online catalogs and the
conditions described in the Condition
Reports. In several instances, a watch is
described as New Old Stock (NOS) in
the catalog, while the Condition Report
for the watch will describe elements of
this same watch as Good, Very Good or
Excellent. [See, for example, Lots 69,
80 and 96, among others; these are
described as NOS in the catalogs, but have
E, VG and G elements, in the
condition reports.] A NOS watch
may no longer be in perfect condition, so
that an element may be in E, VG or G
condition, but where a watch is described
as being New Old Stock, we have simply
used that description of the condition,
and will not report on individual elements
as being E, VG or G. to be
added There were 11
Autavias from the 1970s offered for sale
in the Haslinger Auction, including one
Skipper and two Autavias that may have
been from 1969. A Lot-by-Lot discussion
follows the table. December 28,
2010 Lot Photo Description Final
Prices (in USD and GBP) Condition
(if reported) /
Extras Lot
19 Early
Execution MH, polished steel
hands, ridged markers,
1970 Not
Sold (Reserve Not Met) Lot
90 Skipper,
Ref 15640, 1972 $2,250
(L1,440) case,
dial and hands = G Lot
27 Manual-Wind
GMT, Ref 741603 $5,600
(L3,600) Lot
34 Ref
11630 MH, Black w/ Gray, Orange
accents, 1974 $5,600
(L3,600) Lot
38 Ref
73663 MH, Black on Black, w/
Green Arabic numerals (Bundeswehr
style), 1980 $5,600
(L3,600) case
and dial = VG; hands = PC
(replacements) Lot
39 "Viceroy"
dial, brushed steel hands, with
MH bezel $8,965
(L5,760) NOS
condition; box, papers and
sticker Lot
78 Early
Execution "Siffert", polished
steel hands, ridged markers,
1970 $8,965
(L5,760) unusual
in that "Swiss" is missing from
dial and it has the flat
"V" in Autavia Lot
83 Later
execution "Siffert", brushed
steel hands, 1972 $12,140
(L7,800) NOS
condition Lot
87 Later
execution "Siffert", white
painted steel hands,
1972 $12,140
(L7,800) unique
"Albino" hands, white-painted
steel Lot
69 Early
Execution MH ("Derek Bell"),
polished steel hands, faceted
markers, 1971 $13,100
(L8,400) NOS
condition; box (signed by Bell),
papers and sticker Lot
94 "Chronomatic"
Siffert, 1969; box and store
receipt (dated August
1969) $46,800
(L30,000) case
and dial = VG; hands = G; box and
store receipt (dated August
1969) Jeff Stein
provides our review of the 11 1970s
Autavias offered in the Haslinger Auction,
11 of which were sold. The 11 Autavias from
the 1970s included in the Haslinger
Auction may be grouped as follows: (a) the
three black-with-red "Bell" or "Viceroy"
(Minutes / Hours bezel) automatic
Autavias; (b) the four white-with-blue
"Siffert" (Tachy bezel) automatic
Autavias; and (c) the four "strays",
meaning that they do not fit within either
of the first two groups. The Haslinger
Collection included 11 manual-wind
Carreras, and this group was viewed as
being one of the strongest performers of
the Auction, with 8 of the 11 watches
being sold at or above $6,000 (Final
Price). Mark Moss provides our Lot-by-Lot
analysis, and Jeff Stein follows with some
general comments. December 22,
2010 Lot Photo Description Final
Prices (in USD and GBP) Condition
/ Extras Lot
61 Two
Register, Decimal Minutes, Ref
7753 D, 1969 $5,200
(L3,360) case
and hands = G; dial =
VG Lot
52 Gold-Plated,
Three Register, Ref 2448 S,
1970 $5,600
(L3,600) Lot
68 Three
Register, Black, Ref 2447 N,
1967, with silver printing on
dial $6,000
(L3,840) case,
dial and hands = G Lot
20 Three
Register, Decimal Minutes, Ref
2447 D, 1966 $6,900
(L4,440) case
and dial = VG; hands = PC
(replacement) Lot
56 Two
Register, Decimal Minutes, Ref
3647 D, 1966 $7,100
(L4,560) case
and dial = VG; hands =
G Lot
49 Three
Register, Black / White, Ref 2447
NT, 1969 $7,100
(L4,560) case,
dial and hands = G Lot
31 Three
Register, Silver (Standard), Ref
2447 S, 1965 $8,400
(L5,400) case
= G; dial = VG; hands = PC
(replacement) Lot
89 12
Dato, Black / White, Ref 2547 N,
1968 $9,000
(L5,760) case
and hands = G; dial =
VG Lot
37 45
Dato, First Execution, Black Dial
Ref 3147 N, 1965 $10,300
(L6,600) case
and dial = G Lot
43 Three
Register, White / Black, with
Tachy Track, Ref 2447 SNT,
1968 $12,100
(L7,800) case
= G; dial = VG; hands = PC
(replacement) Lot
22 Two
Register, Tachy Track, Ref 3647
T, 1964 $12,600
(L8,160) case
and dial = VG; hands = PC
(replacement) Mark Moss
provides our analysis of the 11
manual-wind Carreras sold in the Haslinger
Auction, as follows: Jeff Stein
adds the following comments: The Haslinger
Auction achieved some very strong prices
and the manual-wind Carreras were one of
the stronger groups of the day. Scanning
the results, we see that six of the 11
watches were at or above the $6,000 mark,
with Lot 43 (Three Register Panda, white
with black) and Lot 22 (Two Register with
red Tachy track) breaking the $12,000
mark. Perhaps the tone for the day was set
when the benchmark Reference 2447S
(Three-Register, with silver / starburst
finish) went for $8,400, approximately
double the price that a nice one might be
expected to fetch in the Collectors
Community. If the Silverstones and Monacos
were the stars of the show, these 11
Carreras had very strong supporting roles,
showing that these simple iconic watches
from the mid-1960s may still be the
ultimate link between watches and motor
-ports. Jack Heuer was right, that there
is a timeless beauty to the name
"Carrera". The sound of the gavel dropping
in the $6,000 to $12,000 range provided a
strong rhythm for the Haslinger
Auction. to be added:
Indianapolis Motor Speedway (three
Carreras), MG / Gonzalez, and Arcola
The Haslinger
Collection included 13 Carreras, from the
1970s. Mark Moss provides our Lot-by-Lot
analysis, and Jeff Stein follows with some
general comments. December 23,
2010 Lot Photo Description Final
Prices (in USD and GBP) Condition
/ Extras Lot
24 Ref
1153S, Silver w/ brown
(prototype), 1970 $2,800
(L1,800) case
and dial = VG; hands = G;
original bracelet Lot
92 Ref
150.573B, Dark blue w/ black,
1974 $3,000
(L1,920) NOS,
with sticker, on strap Lot
86 Ref
110.255, Gold w/ black,
gold-plated case, 1978 $3,360
(L2,160) NOS,
on strap, with buckle Lot
76 Ref
1153S, Silver w/ black,
1972 $4,100
(L2,640) case,
dial and hands = G Lot
85 Ref
110.573B, Blue w/black,
barrel-shaped case,
1974 $4,100
(L2,640) wonderful
condition, retailer's sticker,
bracelet Lot
74 Ref
73653N, Dark blue w/ white,
manual-wind 1972 $4,300
(L2,760) NOS,
on bracelet Lot
40 Ref
1153S, Silver w/ gray, watchmaker
school, 1972 $5,230
(L3,360) shows
very little wear Lot
62 Ref
1553N, Blue w/ silver,
1972 $5,230
(L3,360) NOS,
on bracelet Lot
79 Ref
1553S, Silver w/ dark gray,
1972 $6,550
(L4,200) NOS,
on strap Lot
82 Ref
1153N, Charcoal w/ white,
co-branded Abercrombie &
Fitch 1971 $7,100
(L4,560) "original
dial, crown and
pushers" Lot
54 Ref.
110.573F, Fume w/gray,
barrel-shaped case,
1974 $7,850
(L5,040) NOS,
with sticker Lot
88 Ref.
1153N, "Chronomatic", Charcoal w/
white, 1969 $11,200
(L7,200) NOS,
with original strap, box and
papers Lot
96 Ref.
1158 CHN, Champagne w/ black, 18
karat gold case, 1972 $35,500
(L22,800) NOS,
on strap, with box signed by Niki
Lauda Mark Moss
provides our analysis of the 13 Carreras
from the 1970s sold in the Haslinger
Auction, as follows: Jeff Stein
adds the following comments: The Haslinger
Auction showed an interesting contrast in
the pricing hierarchy, between the
Carreras from the 1960s and the 1970s.
Pull out the two superstars of the 1970s
(the Chronomatic and the 18 karat gold
1158), and we saw 11 Carreras from the
1970s sell in the range between $2,800 and
$7,800, compared with the $5,200 to
$12,600 for the Carreras from the 1960s.
So, other than some slight overlap, we can
say that the manual-wind Carreras from the
1960s began, about where the Carreras from
the 1970s finished. This is representative
of the relationship between the two
geenrations of Carreras in the collectors'
community, although the prices achieved in
the Haslinger Auction were generally in
the range of twice the current
market. Within the group of
1970s Carreras, it is fair to say that the
highest bids went for the very best dials.
We saw the fantastic "Fume in the Barrel"
Lot 54 go over £5,000, with the
Caliber 15 Carreras not far behind. These
Caliber 15s generally sell below the
comparable Caliber 12 models, but in the
Haslinger Auction we saw the premium paid
for the beautiful dials and the racing
style. The barrel-shaped Carreras also did
well, compared with their automatic
predecessors, but these barrel-shaped
Carreras were particularly nice
samples. introduction to be
added Lot Photo Description Final
Prices (in USD and GBP) Condition
/ Extras Lot
50 Ref
73345T, Two-register, Gold w/
black, gold-plated case,
1970 $2,250
(L1,440) wonderful
condition, with original crown
and pushers Lot
97 Ref
73345T, Two-register, White w/
white, gold-plated case,
1970 $4,100
(L2,640) NOS,
with sticker Lot
21 Ref
7228 S, Three-register, Gold
dial, 18 karat gold case,
1968 $5,250
(L3,360) case
and dial = VG; hands = G; on
original strap Lot
32 Ref
7220 NT, Three-register, Charcoal
dial, $6,537
(L4,200) NOS The Haslinger
Collection included five Monacos, with two
of these watches being among the three
highest prices achieved in the auction.
Rich Crosthwaite provides our analysis,
and Jeff Stein adds some
comments. December 20,
2010 Lot Photo Description Final
Prices (in USD and GBP) Condition
/ Extras Lot
41 Gray
/ Black, Manual Wind, Ref. 73633
G, 1971 $8,965
(L5,760) case
and dial = VG; hands = PC
(replacement) Lot
63 Blue
/ White, Manual Wind, Ref. 73633
B, 1971 $10,833
(L6,960) case
and hands = VG; dial = E; sticker
on case-back Lot
26 Blue
Automatic, Ref. 1133 B,
"Transitional" Model,
1969 $13,100
(L8,400) Lot
99 Blue
Automatic, Ref. 1133 B,
1970 $28,000
(L18,000) case
and dial = VG; hands = PC
(replacement) Lot
98 Black
PVD, Manual Wind, Ref. 74033 N,
1974 $74,700
(L48,000) NOS,
with sticker on case-back and
box Rich
Crosthwaite provides our analysis of
the five Monacos sold in the Haslinger
Auction, as follows: Jeff Stein
adds the following comments: Of these five
Monacos, Lot 98 and Lot 99 have been the
subject of the most discussion, following
the auction. Of the two, Lot 98 (the Black
PVD Manual WInd Monaco) is easier to
explain -- a very rare watch, difficult or
impossible to find in the market at any
given time, and two bidders wanted to
leave the room owning it. It appears that
price was no object, so it sold at two to
three times the prevailing price in the
collectors' community. Lot 99 (Blue
Automatic "McQueen" Monaco) is more
difficult to explain. The most likely
explanation is that there was confusion
about whether this one was actually "worn
by McQueen" in the movie Le Mans or
simply the "same model as worn by McQueen"
in Le Mans, and this $28,000 Final Price
was likely a mistake, over twice the
prevailing price in the collectors
community. While such a multiple may be
understood for the super rare Black
PVD Monaco, there is no good
explanation for the relatively abundant
"McQueen Monaco". Lot 99 will be
discussed and analyzed, but I believe
that it is best understood as nothing more
or less than a mistake by two
bidders. The Haslinger
auction included five Caliber 12
Montreals, all of them in New Old Stock
condition. The hierarchy of values for
these Montreals was representative of
collectors' usual preferences, with blue
dials at the top of the food chain. All
final prices represented premiums to
prevailing market prices, with the
blue-dialed models particularly noteworthy
(and both of them also well above
estimated range). The bottom
line: Montreals should be blue; New
Old Stock watches with the pretty stickers
bring the top money. JMS, December 16,
2010 Lot Photo Description Final
Prices (in USD and GBP) Condition
/ Extras Lot
46 Ref.
110.503 W (white dial; black
registers) $4,100
(L2,640) NOS
condition; hands noted as PC
(replacement) Lot
23 Ref.
110.503 N (black dial; white
registers) $4,700
(L3,000) NOS
condition; sticker on
case-back Lot
42 Ref.
110.50 N (black dial; black
registers; black
PVD case) $5,600
(L3,600) NOS
condition; sticker on
case-back Lot
64 Ref.
110.503 BC (blue dial; white
registers; luminous
indexes) $7,100
(L4,560) NOS
condition with retailers sticker
on case-back; bracelet Lot
80 Ref.
110.503 B (blue dial; white
registers) $7,100
(L4,560) NOS
condition; sticker on
case-back Rich Crosthwaite
provides our analysis of the three Caliber
12 Silverstones sold in the Haslinger
Auction, as follows: Lot Photo Description Final
Prices (in USD and GBP) Condition
/ Extras Lot
36 Silverstone
Ref 110.313 R, Red,
1974 $11,200
(L7,200) New
old stock condition, on strap,
with box and papers Lot
66 Silverstone
Ref 110.313 B, Blue,
1974 $14,000
(L9,000) New
old stock condition, on bracelet,
with box and papers Lot
95 Silverstone
Ref 110.313 F, Fume,
1974 $14,000
(L9,000) New
old stock condition, on bracelet,
with box and papers The Haslinger
Auction three Calculators, two Cortinas,
two Daytonas, two Monzas, and three
Veronas, for a total of 12 watches. The
results for these 12 watches are discussed
below. Jeff Stein, January
10, 2010 Lot Photo Description Final
Prices (in USD and GBP) Condition
/ Extras Lot
47 Calculator,
Ref. 150.633, Blue
Dial,1972 $2,240
(L1,440) case
and dial = VG; on
strap, Lot
70 Calculator,
Ref. 110.633, Blue Dial,
1972 $3,360
(L2,160) on
strap, sticker on
case-back Lot
29 Calculator,
Ref. 110.633, w/o "Calculator" on
the dial 1977 $4,100
(L2,640) NOS
condition, on bracelet
Lot
75 Cortina
Ref. 110.233R, White Dial,
1977 $4,100
(L2,640) on
integrated bracelet Lot
53 Cortina,
Ref. 110.233NC, Black Dial,
1977 $4,670
(L3,000) on
integrated bracelet Lot
45 Verona,
Ref. 110.213G, Silvered Dial,
1978 $4,670
(L3,000) NOS
condition, on strap Lot
91 Verona,
Ref. 110.215N, Black Dial, Steel
/ Gold Case, 1978 $4,860
(L3,120) on
new old stock strap Lot
35 Daytona,
Ref. 110.203B, Blue,
1976 $5,230
(L3,360) on
integrated bracelet Lot
77 Daytona,
Ref. 110.203F, Fume,
1976 $5,600
(L3,600) on
integrated bracelet Lot
93 Verona,
Ref. 110.213N, Black Dail,
1978 $6,537
(L4,200) NOS
condition, on strap Lot
60 Monza,
Ref 150.501, 1975 $7,470
(L4,800) case,
dial and hands = G; with original
Heuer helmet box Lot
28 Monza,
Ref 150.511, 1975 $7,850
(L5,040) with
original Heuer helmet
box Rather than going
Lot-by-Lot through this group, we will go
model-by-model, as the various executions
of the five models in this group stayed
together, almost every step of the way.
Considering the results for the five
models, we see a clear hierarchy of
values, with one powerful message
emerging. The message from this group is
that the Haslinger Auction was about the
Heuer-motorsports connection; regardless
of what we might expect to see in the
usual collectors' market, on December 15,
2010, at the Haslinger Auction, it was the
two models associated with motorsports --
Daytona and Monza -- finishing well ahead
of the other three models (Calculator,
Cortina and Verona). In
the Metal and In the Money -- A New
Appreciation of "Fume" In this section, we
review the results achieved for
[several] watches in the Haslinger
Auction that looked exceptionally good "in
the metal" and achieved exceptionally good
results in the auction. There may be
additional watches that should be included
in this category; these are simply four
watches that caught my eye during the
preview, and went on to perform well in
the auction. I will admit it
-- I have probably seen photos of 50
different Fume Silverstones, but
I have never been tempted, in the
least, to actually buy one of these
watches. This changed, when I saw the
Silverstone (Lot 42), at the New York
Preview of the Haslinger Auction. The
color and finish of the dial were nothing
short of stunnig, showing an amazing range
of colors and textures, at different
angles and in different lighting. This
watch looked far better "in the metal",
than I ever imagined it might look.
The same goes for Lot 54, a barrel-shaped
Carrera, with a Fume dial. In the metal,
this was an amazing looking
watch. There were two other
watches that caught my eye during the New
York City preview, not because of their
dazzling colors, but because of the
richness of their colors and patina. The
Reference 7764 Skipper (Lot 65) is a
relatively rare version of the Skipper,
and the colors of this sample were
fantastic -- red, white and blue in the
minute recorder, rich patina on the lume
(with hands and dial aged to exactly the
same shade). The "Panda" Carrera (Lot
43) also showed fantastic aging and
patina, and was rewarded with a winning
final price of $12,140, the second best
price in the very strong group of
manual-wind Carreras. Indeed, the
Haslinger Auction proved that the watches
that show well "in the metal" will also be
deeply "in the money", when the gavel goes
down. Lot Photo Description Final
Prices (in USD and GBP) Condition
/ Extras Lot
54 Carrera,
Ref 110.573 F, 1974 $7,850
(L5,040) "In
the metal", this one displayed a
fantastic range of
colors. Lot
65 Skipper,
Ref 7764 MH, 1970 $10,270
(L6,600) A rare
execution, in superb condition,
with deep, vibrant
colors Lot
43 Carrera,
Ref 2447 ST ("Panda"),
1967 $12,140
(L7,800) Extremely
rare execution, with beautiful
patina on dial and
registers Lot
42 Silverstone
Fume $14,000
(L9,000) To
see this one "in the
metal" was to understand the
beauty of the "fume" People have
suggested that there has been a "Haslinger
Effect", meaning that the Heuer
chronographs recently favored by Arno
Haslinger have also been favored in the
market; the performance of the Monzas and
Silverstones at the Haslinger Auction
seems to confirm the Haslinger Effect. But
we must ask, "What about the Hodinkee
Effect?" [For those not familiar with
it, Hodinkee is the absolutely sensational
blog that covers watches, both vintage and
modern, publishing fantastic articles on a
daily basis.] When Hodinkee says that
a particular watch should be "hot", then
so it will be. You get it . . . the Midas
touch . . . what Hodinkee touches turns to
gold, or maybe titanium or platinum.
Style-spotter; style-setter; watch curator
of the flash sale . . . if Hodinkee
recommends it, then you should buy it . .
. or so it seems. Hokinkee covered the
Haslinger Auction from beginning to end,
with six Hodinkee writers selecting
favorites in the days and weeks before the
auction.The watches featured by Hodinkee
generally did well in the auction, raising
the question, "Did the watches do well in
the auction because they had been
recommended by Hodinkee, or did Hodinkee
recommend these watches because they were
known to be some of the highlights of the
auction?" Let's look at each of the
watches featured by Hodinkee, and see
whether we can detect a "Hodinkee Effect".
Even more fun, let's
look at the six watches picked by Hodinkee
writers, one-by-one, and see which of
Hodinkee's "pickers" did the best, in
selecting a watch that outperformed
expectations. Just like we gather around
the water cooler on Mondays, to see who
did well with their weekend football
"picks", we will see which of Hodinkee's
merry men picked the hottest Heuer (or, as
we suggest above, which of the picks had
the greatest impact in making the watch
successful in the auction). Jeff Stein, January
8, 2010 Lot Photo Description Final
Prices (in USD and GBP) Selected
by / Date Lot
47 Calculator,
Ref 150.633, Blue,
1970 $2,250
(L1,440) Lot
24 Carrera,
Ref 1153S, Silver w/ brown
(prototype), 1970 $2,800
(L1,800) Lot
32 Camaro,
Ref 7220 NT, Three-register,
Charcoal dial, $6,537
(L4,200) Lot
58 Carrera,
Ref 3647N (Black), MG Logo
and name, 1971 $8,400
(L5,400) Lot
41 Monaco,
Ref 73633G, Gray / Black,
1971 $8,965
(L5,760) Lot
22 Carrera,
Ref 3647T (Tachy Track),
1964 $12,600
(L8,160) Lot
33 Carrera,
Ref 3147S, Dato 45, Indianapolis
Motor Spway, 1966 $13,100
(L8,400) Lot
94 "Chronomatic"
Autavia (Siffert), Ref 1163T,
1969 $46,800
(L30,000) Lot
98 Monaco,
Black PVD, Manual Wind, Ref.
74033N, 1974 $74,700
(L48,000) And so, the
winner of the 2010 award for the absolute
and indisputable proof of the "Hodinkee
Effect" is Jeff, with his brilliant
selection of Lot 22, the two-register
Carrera, Reference 3647T, with the
beautiful red tachy track . . . the
essence of racing . . . sleek, simple and
bold, much like Hodinkee
itself. to be added -- three
Argentina AIr Force Autavias, IDF Autavia
and Jordan Air Force Carrera 45 PVD Monaco, Carrera
1158CHN, Monaco 1133B (Standard); Ickx
Easy Rider -- how can we understand prices
that represent a large multiple of prices
that we might see in the collectors'
market? to be added
David
Chalmers, January 15, 2011 Evaluating the
impact of the Bonhams auction only four
weeks after the event itself is a tough
challenge, but one worth contemplating.
The 81 watches auctioned have now found
new homes, and as the euphoria of the
Collectors summit also starts to become a
memory, it's not unreasonable to ask the
obvious: what happens now? But before looking
at what impact the auction results will
have going forward, let's start by looking
at the success of the auction and what
factors influenced the
outcomes. Success? The easy answer is
that the event was a huge success- all 81
lots sold and collectors were able to add
some exceptionally rare, high-quality
pieces to their collection. There seemed
to be a good spread of buyers and prices.
Of course, a few watches sold for less
than they should have (the white Montreal
and the Calculators) and a couple sold for
far more than they should have (such as
the EasyRider)- but all of this is normal
for an auction and it's part of what makes
auctions exciting. Whether the sale was
a success from the vendors' perspective is
something that only one man knows- only
Arno knows how much he paid for the
watches, how much was spent on travelling
around the world for 12 months promoting
the sale, the time spent doing interviews,
writing articles- it's a complex picture
that at the end of the day is only Arno's
business. All Heuer collectors would
sincerely wish that Arno did make a good
return for all of his efforts and
investments. My personal view on
the prices is that they were very good-
but not as strong across the board as I
had anticipated and, as a potential buyer,
feared. Last week I looked back over the
results of the 2007 Omegamania sale, which
I would say performed even more strongly-
but that was 2007 and economic life in
2010 is of course very different. As well
as the change in economic conditions, its
fair to say that the collecting community
was more up-to-speed on vintage Omega's
than it was been about Heuers- a large
part of the Bonhams marketing effort was
to educate the market on the importance of
these watches. Perhaps the biggest
winner from the sale was TAG Heuer itself.
The auction was the perfect ending to the
150th anniversary celebrations and was a
great way for the company to again
emphasis the heritage of TAG Heuer. Adding
in the sale of a one-off Red Silverstone
was a master-stroke, as it perfectly
linked the sale of a vintage collection to
the watches available in shops
today. What Made it
Successful? The first critical
element of success is of course the
watches themselves. We've seen several
other Heuer-themed auctions, none of which
have produced the results of the Bonhams
auction. Yes, clever marketing plays a
role, but the bottom line is that these
watches were far superior to those sold
previously. Getting TAG Heuer's
support was also very important- it gave
an air of "officialness" and credibility
to the auction greater than if it had have
been an independent effort. It also meant
greater marketing support from TAG Heuer
as it toured its 150th celebrations around
the world- for example, there were flyers
for the auction at the 150th anniversary
event at Basel back in March. The next factor was
the incredible amount of publicity that
the sale was able to attract- articles in
car magazines, specialist collectors'
websites, the general press, specialist
TAG Heuer and Heuer websites and forums,
and even in the more general watch
blogs. The final factor was
Arno himself being willing to be the
front-man for the sale, getting out there
to give interviews, meet potential buyers
and discuss the watches. Do you know whose
collection was auctioned by Patrizzi last
year? I certainly don't. Having Arno as part
of the publicity made it easier for
journalists and bloggers who knew nothing
about the watches to write about the sale,
because they were ablke to personalise the
event and tell Arno's story as well as
telling the story of the watches. From a
distance, it seemed to me that it was as
much Arno selling the watches as it was
Bonhams, and I do think that this played
an important part in the overall results
achieved. So What Happens
Now? Well, the first
thing that I would be doing if I owned a
mint PVD Monaco would be to hunt down the
under-bidder and generously offer to sell
them my watch for say GBP40,000. It's easy
to say that the Bonhams prices won't be
achieved outside the auction, but someone
willing to pay that sort of money for a
watch doesn't lose interest all-together
just because they were out-bid. Sellers over the
next few months will be trying to sell
their watches off the back of the Bonhams
auction prices and fair enough- watch
dealers and collectors have always been
opportunistic. I doubt that they will
automatically get the prices that they're
looking for, because as illustrated above,
the Bonhams sale was much more than
opening up a suitcase full of watches at a
vintage watch fair and waiting for the
offers to roll in. No doubt there will
be a few more collectors now aware of
these watches looking to build
collections, but my feeling is that there
is still sufficient supply of most models
out there to more than meet demand. I
still maintain that given a month and a
reasonable budget, most of us could find
95% of Heuer's watch catalogue without too
much trouble. They won't be NOS, they
won't have the same provenance, but they
are out there and that fact will keep
prices reasonable. Collectors' seeking out
the "other" 5% or NOS pieces is a
different pricing market- and always has
been. No doubt there will
be some collectors who won't appreciate
the additional focus by the collecting
world on "our" Heuers. Everyone likes a
secret, and for a long time vintage Heuers
were our secret and club. Personally I
think that new collectors are a vital part
of keeping the Heuer community alive.
I've always felt
that the number one issue in collecting
Heuers is that most people switch off
after 1982, meaning that the universe of
watches to discuss, collect and analyse is
finite. Countering this is the injection
of new collectors with new perspectives
and of course the fact that TAG Heuer is
now making watches worthy of collecting in
the future. I'm very confident that
watches like the new Carrera Mikrograph
will be highly sought-after by collectors
in the future as much as the Autavia,
Monaco and Carrera of the 1960s are
today. So
How Much is My Heuer Worth
Now? to be
added What's
Next? to be
added
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