Like any other enthusiast’s subject, luxury US cheap copy tag heuer watches collectors are liable to lavish hyperbole on the objects of their affections in a way that outsiders can find either endearing or a bit silly, depending on their point of view.
Horology chatrooms are full of fans referring to hard-to-find vintage models as “legendary” or innovations such as the use of a slightly different type of metal as “groundbreaking”.
Achieve both “legendary” and “groundbreaking” status, and one of the best AAA fake watches might even get its own nickname. The Rolex Submariner replica watches wholesale shop known as the “Hulk” (it’s green). The Patek Philippe ref. 3448 knowledgeably referred to as the “Padellone” (Italian for “frying pan”; its case is large and round). Another Rolex called – God help us – “Pussy Galore” (Honor Blackman wore the same model in Goldfinger).
Which brings us to replica Tag Heuer watches’ “Dark Lord”.
The Tag Heuer copy watches with Swiss movements is basically a version of the Monaco that Steve McQueen made famous, but blacked out in a matt PVD case. Produced briefly and scarcely in the mid-1970s its “legendary” and “groundbreaking” status earned it the nickname befitting one of Darth Sidious’s aliases, a villainous vibe only marginally undermined by the very-1970s pops of fluoro orange – ironically more commonly found on Rebel Alliance X-wing Starfighters. (Yeah, we can do nerdy too. Punch it, Chewie.)
Anyway, the “Dark Lord” rises again this November, as a piece produced for Only Watch: the biennial charity auction where watchmaking’s top names donate one-off perfect fake Tag Heuer watches to raise funds for research into Duchenne muscular dystrophy, an incurable genetic disorder.
It’s a personal cause for Luc Pettavino, the former chief executive of the Monaco Boat Show. After co-founding the Monaco Association Against Muscular Dystrophy 20 years ago to push for research into the condition, which affected his son, Pettavino came up with the idea of Only Watch in 2005 and has so far raised over €70 million (£59.8 million), 99 per cent of which goes direct to the charity.
Among one-off contributions from Audemars Piguet, Breguet, Hublot, Tudor, Zenith and dozens of other top online super clone watches, the “Dark Lord” is a particularly cool model, featuring a new bespoke skeletonised carbon dial with each facet of the movement hand-finished in a novel way, including a technique that creates the chequered flag motif. The strap too, is a one-off: silicon-injected leather, something Tag Heuer replica watches for sale has never used before.
The whole thing out-Dark Lords the original “Dark Lord”, and should be one of the most anticipated lots, come the Only Watch auction on 6 November.