So glad Ive stumbled on this page when I have. I guess I have a passion for watches having worn one everyday since the age of about 6 when I had a teenage mutant turtles flip watch. I'm currently sporting an omega seamaster planet ocean on an orange rubber strap. It was my first "luxury" watch which I got on a crippling finance agreement when I thought I needed to impress people in my mid 20s. I'm still in love with it and don't regret my purchase at all looking back, still wear it every day.
It's been a fair few years gone and my next purchase will be in January most likely. I'm torn between two options.
Option 1 is a tag heuer Monaco Le Mans 24. It was released in 2011-2012 ish as a "limited edition." I first saw this in Bicester village about 18 months ago and didn't take the plunge, this month I went back to collect it, only to find it had been scratched to shit by the thousands of people who had tried it on in the store since I saw it last. TH are sending an A1 example over from Switzerland as they claim to only have one piece left that is unworn. I smell bullshit here because tag sales people seem to me like they'll say anything to sell a watch. I say limited edition in quotes because I believe there were about 1500 made in this colour combination, although there are no official numbers. Not sure if that makes it limited edition, rather just a discontinued model. It's still pretty awesome to look at although I'd imagine some experts will claim it's a lot to pay for the hardware, albeit in quite a pretty looking design.
I was in Zurich this weekend and tried on an IWC Portuguese chrono classic for the first time. The latest version has a navy blue face but the one I want is the slightly older black face model which is now also discontinued. It has an in-house iwc movement and a 42mm diameter which is good for me as I have quite thin wrists. The Portuguese is a classic looking watch and makes the Monaco look like a toy in comparison, both have a black Aligaitor strap. I get the impression (and may be mistaken) that IWC is a better brand for the purist but there's something about the square bezel of the Monaco 24 which makes me not want to pass on it again. The other thing is that the iwc is almost 50% more expensive than the tag, however a local Rolex specialist told me that the tag was way overpriced for what it is. But rolexes are ugly so who cares what he says.
There are some knowledgable people on here so I'd like to get some of your thoughts on which you would prefer of the two and why. It's a big decision for me and I'm often led by impulse so I would appreciate any advice.
Cheers
