hi all. ive been into vintage watches for ages but always omega or the odd rolex. i love the monaco but cant afford the current prices and i fancied a manual wind and loved the patina on this one. it has ref number 73473 but ive read they only made 2 types with date, both reverse pandas. they had metal indexes so where does this dial come from or did heuer make more types of this reference. does anyone know?

 

hi. thanks for the reply. i bought it from a well known and respected heuer dealer and he says it was rare but genuine. i googled it and found 3 or 4 with the same dial and reference number and similar serial numbers as mine is 282957. if someone has put a dial from another model into the watch, i wouldnt want it as i want any watch i buy to be 100% genuine. chris

 

There’s no reference of these in the catalogues or price lists that are available.

I have seen a few online previously, but as far as I can see nothing else really to fully support a 73473 B. At the same time there’s no doubt in my mind the dial is definitely Heuer, and the case is definitely that of the 73473, just don’t know if the two left the factory together.......then again not sure where that dial would have been used otherwise.

 

That'd put this at about 1972 or 1973, so you could search for catalogs from those years. Maybe 1974 too

 

I actually checked those for the OP and no blue dial version, not even in the ‘72 price list.

 

Yeah, I can't find much about the economy models at all really. And most 73473 models had applied markers in addition to being pandas - yet I find two more just like this one, with all-blue dials and applied lume, and neither appear to be the same watch as this.

 

Can you please explain something. Why are they classed as economy models when they cost nearly double than the camaro but the Camaro sells for a good price and is not classed as an economy model?

 

They were the economy model back then.....you were thinking he meant today? No Calibre 11 movement as an example, no model name etc. made them the economy model.

If you did mean today I’m not sure you’ll find these going for double a similar condition of a Camaro, and would always expect the Camaro to be more expensive. It is the more iconic model after all.

 

My guess is that this is a mid '70s mark 2.
I see similarities between this and the Montreal range. The mark 1 Montreals from '72, apart from the gold model, all had contrasting dial and subdials and applied markers and date window. The mark 2s from '74 and onwards, besides the blue model, all had matching dial and subdials, oversized painted markers and a painted date window. All three changes match the differences between the known 73473 and the watch at hand.

 

Yes, in the 1970s these were considered "economy" models - no model name, using cam-lever manual-wind movements when the "new hotness" at the time was the automatic chronograph range.

When did it cost double the price of a Camaro though? In the 1970s? If so, that's probably only because by 1972 Heuer had discontinued the Camaro due to slow sales, and was probably clearing them out of stock.

 

The Montreal’s were bigger than the 73473s so I’ve no idea what this watch is, if it’s genuine or been made up of different watches. It looks right, even under a loupe but maybe I will never find out if it left the factory like this. I do like it and it looks great especially in the sun.

 

My tuppence worth-while not apparently officially listed I can't help but feel it's genuine and original. There are a number of other examples to support it, each with corresponding serial numbers; I think I know the 'respected heuer dealer' who sold it and if so, he's been handling many Heuers for many years.
Will be an interesting exercise to research it further.......
Steve

 

It’s a shame tag heuer don’t do an extract from the archives like omega do. I’ve seen a few 73473s with advertising for champion spark plugs and believe they were given as gifts. If it is a refinished dial it’s the best I’ve seen and I’ve no idea what dial they would have used as nothing identical but a few models did have similar dials.

 

Its so pretty, how much old it is?

 

they guy who sold me it said it was late 60s to early 70s.

 

It’s a shame Heuer didn’t keep proper records to even make an archive that is extractable from. Although it does bring up so many interesting conversations along the way!

 

It does make it very interesting. A few dealers that I’ve shown the watch to said it was not right and made up from different watches but I find that hard to believe as I’ve seen several like this so they must have made a batch of them many years ago as the patina looks right. I think it’s real and it keeps perfect time so I’m very happy with it and already looking for my next heuer purchase