REVIEW: Hands On With The TAG Heuer Monaco Chronograph Skeleton Pink!

28

Ahead of the Las Vegas F1 Grand Prix, TAG Heuer has dropped a new Monaco Chronograph with a hot pink skeletonised dial, and we’ve had the pleasure of test-driving this piece for a week prior to the launch.

TAG Heuer and Formula 1 seem to be inextricably linked, not surprising given the Swiss brand’s history with motorsport all the way back to the 1960s. This link is further solidified with their watches – one carrying the famed sport’s namesake in the TAG Heuer Formula 1, the other with the Monaco, one of the most iconic F1 races, gaining fame thanks to Steve McQueen wearing the piece in his 1971 film, Le Mans. Yes, it wasn’t F1, but a screen legend wearing a sports watch prominently on the wrist in a film about another iconic motorsport event helped to put the Monaco front and centre. While the materials and designs these days a lot more modern, the classic Monaco DNA is still there and instantly recognisable.

So it comes as no surprise that TAG Heuer would drop their latest Monaco just ahead of the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix, and this time it’s a hot pink skeleton version, emulating the colours of the famous Glitter Strip! Now normally we would be writing up an article about the release of the new piece, but this time, we had the opportunity to review the watch ahead of its release, and what’s a better way to introduce you to the new piece than a review on all the ins and outs of the new TAG Heuer Monaco Chronograph Skeleton in pink?!

First Impressions

The TAG Heuer Monaco is one of the several iconic pieces in the TAG Heuer stable, and funnily enough, it’s the one piece that I was yet to actually review properly and have on the wrist for an extended period of time. Needless to say, I was quite looking forward to wearing a Monaco for a week or so and getting to spend some quality time with it. The bonus? It was the new black DLC titanium model with a pink skeletonised dial, yet to be released.

Now, I’m not one to love a pink watch, or red for that matter, the colour doesn’t seem to work all that well on me. But, the pink on the new Monaco really stands out against the stark black and for some reason, I was liking it. What helped it in my eyes was the pink isn’t in your face as it is done in the same way the turquoise and blue variants have been done with just enough colour on the black skeleton dial to give it some colour and depth.

I’ll say at the outset, I’ve never been a big fan of square-shaped watches. I appreciate them for what they are, but I’ve never really warmed to them all that much – probably because I’ve not worn them too often and my association of them with dressier timepieces. Plus, familiarity often helps, so if you’re not used to wearing something specific, you’ll probably not love it at first. Call it a comfort zone thing. Nonetheless, I wanted to give this piece a chance and hoped that with a longer period of time, I’d get used to the square shape on my wrist.

The Design

The design of the new TAG Heuer Monaco Chronograph Pink is similar to that of previously released skeleton models, from the original trio released last year prior to the Monaco F1 Grand Prix, to the Monaco Dark Blue released in May. The case has been made from grade 2 titanium, and coated in a black DLC to give the watch that stealth look, which admittedly looks great on the newer Monaco models. The pink dial however really hits home here and stands out quite a lot, and for this reason, you’re drawn into it.

RELATED READING: TAG Heuer Unveils Three Brand New Monacos Ahead Of The 2023 Monaco Grand Prix

The dial is really the focal point of this watch. I mean, it’s pink, you can’t miss it, but in a good way. Given that this is a watch that was designed with the Las Vegas F1 Grand Prix in mind, the pink makes sense. But if you put that aside, it is still a good looking piece that stands out. TAG Heuer has done the two subdials and their hands in pink, as well as the hour indicators on the dial and chronograph seconds hand, which is done in a pink lacquer.

The skeletonisation has been done well, showing the movement and its elements beneath the surface, along with the date disc running along the outside of the dial. The bridges are all sandblasted, and at the top of the dial sitting over the barrel at 12 o’clock is the TAG Heuer Monaco logo finished in rhodium plating.

Like its predecessors, the new Monaco is comprised of a grade 2 titanium case, which has been given a black DLC treatment to give it a stealth look and enhance the durability of the piece. The titanium and black DLC is sandblasted as well, making sure this is a sports piece through and through. This treatment has been given to the crown and chronograph pushers as well so you have a seamless blacked-out look for the entire case, and it works!

The one aspect of the Monaco that I loved, and originally didn’t think I would was the faceted square crystal. This does a couple of things for the watch. The first is the raised crystal, which allows the watch case to be thinner, giving the movement, dial, and hands more room inside without adding extra depth to the case dimensions. The second is that this helps aid the watch’s overall appearance, with fewer flat surface areas to draw your eye to. The third is, well, it just looks super cool and not something that you see every day on a watch.

How It Wears

This is where the rubber hit the road for me, the wearing experience. As I mentioned, not having had the chance to take out a Monaco before and wear it over a longer period of time was an injustice that I was looking forward to rectifying. The first thing that I immediately noticed was the weight or lack of it. The grade 2 titanium means the watch is light to start with, and then adding to this, you have skeletonised elements on the dial and the watch is paired with a rubber and leather combination strap. So as a sports watch, and a watch that evokes the vibe of F1 where weight is paramount, it ticks this box very well.

I really wanted to talk about the size of the TAG Heuer Monaco Chronograph. On the surface, it does looks like a chunky watch. Square sports watches often do as they take up more wrist space than a round watch does, but being square, the all-important lug-to-lug dimensions are often shorter. In the Monaco’s case, this is true. With a case dimension of 39mm in diameter, a lug-to-lug of 47.4mm and a thickness of 15.2mm, the Monaco isn’t large in diameter, but a 39mm square watch will traditionally wear more like a 41mm piece. However, with small lugs, they, and the strap don’t protrude much at all, so across the wrist, you still have plenty of space left. As a result, the watch appears proportionate on my wrist, which is 17.5cm in circumference.

Initially, when I first looked at the Monaco, the 15.2mm thickness had me a little worried, given the 39mm diameter. Would it feel too thick on the wrist? The short answer is no, not really. As I’ve said many times before, measurements on paper can deceive and it all comes down to how the watch is designed. If you have too much flat surface area on the case and sides, a watch will look thicker and wear bigger. Break these areas up with bevelling, rounder case shapes, stepped sides, a multi-faceted bezel etc, and all of a sudden, the watch won’t appear as thick. Where the new TAG Heuer Monaco alleviates this feeling of a thicker watch is the crystal, which accounts for about 2mm of the 15.2mm, and blends into the background almost when looking at the watch. The case is also angled on the top and bottom, so the side of the case doesn’t have as much flat surface area as if it was just a full block of titanium. Couple these factors with an all-black watch that is quite light, and your perception of the watch changes when wearing it. It just doesn’t feel thick at all.

TAG Heuer has equipped the new Monaco Chronograph Skeleton Pink with a combination rubber and leather strap. The leather on the top side is done in a checkerboard weave pattern and set into the rubber, giving the strap some texture and detail, which I really like and appreciate. The underside is rubber so it protects the strap from unwanted sweat and moisture, but also makes the strap comfortable to wear. The addition of the titanium folding clasp means you can easily do up or undo the clasp, plus it has the clamp style fastener so you can un-clamp it, and slide the clasp up and down the strap to get the perfect fit and then push the clamp back down to secure it.

The Movement

Like all modern TAG Heuer Chronographs that are at the higher end, the new Monaco Pink has the calibre Heuer 02 TH20-00 inside. We’ve written about this movement quite extensively in the last couple of years as it is TAG Heuer’s in-house developed movement under the guidance of Carole Forestier-Kasapi. You will find this movement now in many of TAG Heuer’s chronographs which are outside the standard. The new Glassbox Carrera, Carrera Extreme Sports, and the Monaco Skeletons and limited edition pieces as examples.

With an 80-hour power reserve off a single barrel, and a column wheel and vertical clutch mechanism, the operation of the chronograph is fairly smooth as it should be. The pushers have the right amount of resistance with very little lag thanks to the column wheel, and the way the pushers are designed is easy to use as the top of the pusher is angled to suit the angle of your finger when using it. The same goes with the reset pusher at 4 o’clock.

Now while the TH20-00 movement isn’t COSC (Yet!), the accuracy of it is very good. In this particular case, I measured the accuracy over a 48-hour period which included time on my wrist and off my wrist. Over that period, the watch lost about 3 seconds a day, which is very acceptable in my book. The crown is a pull-out crown, not screwed, and I would love to see this as a screw-down crown given the sporty nature of the piece. No, it’s not a dive watch, it’s a racing chronograph, but it is a sports watch with 100m water resistance, and for me, it’s that additional safety knowing it can’t come out accidentally when wet.

Final Thoughts

The TAG Heuer Monaco Chronograph Skeleton in pink is a prime example of taking your time in order to get to know a watch and if it’s right for you. At first, I wasn’t sold on the pink, a mostly black watch or a square watch. But as the saying goes, don’t judge a book by its cover, or in this instance, a watch at first glance. The pink took me some time to get used to, but I actually grew to really like it as it is such a contrast to the rest of the watch and in all honesty, made this a little more wearable for me as I tend to shy away from all black watches. It breaks the black up, and stands out, so I’d say that if you’re not a pink person, give it a try!

The case could be a little slimmer, maybe shaving off a couple of millimetres. It does feel slightly thick on the wrist when you first put it on, but as I explained, the case design, raised and faceted sapphire crystal and lightness of the watch makes it feel less so once you’ve had it on the wrist for a little while. On that note, I found it super easy just to pick it up, throw on my wrist, and go to the point where for me it could be a daily watch.

I didn’t think I’d love wearing a square watch as in general I don’t normally go for them, but this has given me a new appreciation for them, and should I buy a square piece, then the iconic TAG Heuer Monaco would be a contender for sure. Am I 100% sold on a square watch? Not yet, but I’m halfway there! The other thing the Monaco did for me over the week was also my non-love of black, stealth watches. This piece has now got me considering something a little more stealthy, and something in the titanium or ceramic world especially given the lightness and ease of wearing.

At A$16,300, the Monaco Skeleton in pink is at the same price point as the other black DLC Monaco Skeleton pieces in TAG Heuer’s catalogue. While I have heard some pushback on the price in wider watch circles, the reality is all watches are now more expensive than they were 2,3, 4 years ago, and when you look around at other watches with an in-house movement, titanium, skeletonised and a chronograph, there are not a lot of other options on the market, especially with the same level of iconic history the TAG Heuer Monaco has.

Overall, I enjoyed my time with the piece and got quite used to looking down and seeing that pop of pink against the black. I also got quite accustomed to the lightness as well, so putting on a steel watch after felt a little foreign and heavy I must admit. We always say at Watch Advice that there is no such thing as the perfect watch, only perfect for the individual, and the Monaco is not perfect. BUT, I grew fond of it and was one of the few pieces I’ve had for review this year that I did not want to give back, and that sentiment and feeling right there tells me something…

Reference: CBL218B.FT6236

Specifications:

• Size: 39mm, 47.4mm lug to lug & 15.2mm thick
• Case Material: Titanium grade 2 sandblasted black DLC
• Case back: Grade 2 Titanium with sapphire crystal case back
• Dial: Pink and black sandblasted dial, Rhodium plated TAG HEUER applied logo, 6 o’clock date with blue Super-LumiNova®, pink indexes with blue Super-LumiNova® and pink lacquered hands on the chronograph seconds, minute and hour counters
• Crystal: Beveled, box sapphire crystal
• Water resistance: 100m / 10bar
• Movement: Calibre HEUER 02 TH20-00 Automatic Column Wheel Chronograph
• Power reserve: 80 Hours
• Strap: Embossed black calfskin & rubber strap. Sandblasted titanium grade 2 folding clasp with double safety pushbuttons: TAG Heuer shield

Australian Recommended Retail Price: $16,300 AUD

Availability: Available now from all TAG Heuer Boutiques and online at tagheuer.com

Image Gallery