Reply With QuoteTake it back for a replacement, and if they cant do that a refund. If its bugging you now it will always bug you.
Hey Guys,
I recently bought a brand new TAG Here Aquaracer Calibre 5 which arrived today - yay!
Unfortunately I'm a bit eagle-eyed and maybe even a bit OCD about my watches, especially when they're brand new. I noticed that there's a small speck of dust on the dial to the left of the 9 o'clock marker. It's only really noticeable in bright lighting conditions - it's definitely not on the crystal.
Pictures below (speck circled in yellow, you may need to zoom in to see it):
Am I being silly about this? Would you ask your AD to replace the watch or would you be okay with it? I know there are mass-produced watches but at £1,500 odd I wouldn't necessarily say they're cheap. I wouldn't want them to open up the watch or anything since it's brand new..
Any pointers on how you'd deal with this? Cheers!
Take it back for a replacement, and if they cant do that a refund. If its bugging you now it will always bug you.
I would not be happy about this either. It doesn’t matter that it’s not a £10,000 watch. It’s still £1500 which in the schemes of things is still a lot of money for a watch. QC should be better on a brand like Tag Heuer.
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Agreed. Once you have seen it you won’t unsee it OP.Originally Posted by Estoril-5
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Change it for another one.
Cheers,
Neil.
That would annoy me too. I understand why you wouldn’t want them to open it, I once sent a Seiko back for a warranty repair and it was returned with a couple of specks of dust on the inside of the crystal.
This.
F.T.F.A.
I had the same with a Longines many years ago.
The dealer replaced it without question.
I tried to live with it at first, but it just bugged me more an more each time I spotted it in the end as others have suggested.
Thanks everyone for your replies - I definitely agree that it's one of those things where once you've seen it you can't 'un-see' it which is always a nuisance.
I've contacted the AD and arranged to send this back. I've also told them that I'd be happy with a replacement but not a repair since the watch isn't even a day old and I only want it to be opened when it needs a service in a few years.
Will keep you posted on how I get on! :)
Take it back OP, it’ll bother you now you’ve seen it. It should be right
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I'd be more annoyed about all the other specks, but agree with the above - change it as it can't now be unseen.
Once had this with a Steinhart OVM, tiny spec but on a black dial once you’d seen it you couldn’t un-see it. I sent it back to be replaced and that was only a £330 watch. Turned out to be a tiny piece of lume that had flaked off of the indice and settled on the dial. Unfortunate but it happens - suspect this is probably the same thing. I’d ask for it to be swapped. Cracking looking watch though.
Purchased a couple of Tag Heuer watches from high street ADs with specs of dust under the crystal, on both occasions the watches were sent back under warranty but given priority treatment so only took a few weeks turnaround.
As per other posters, ask for a replacement, refund or get it done under warranty.
Another take it back vote, it may drive you crazy further down the line.
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The speck of dust I might be able to live with, but that yellow circle would bug me out over time:)
It's like a dead pixel on a screen. Tiny and insignificant, but once you see it then it's always going to jump out at you.
I would return it - once I’d noticed it I could not ignore it.
I’d return it if I wasn’t going to enjoy it as much with the flaw
Defo return, but I’d be very surprised if they swapped it.
I had a Tudor that needed returning and they categorically said they would not swap, only send for fix and rewarranty.
Less than a week old.
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Last edited by notenoughwrists; 3rd November 2020 at 22:29.
Unlike the previous "should I return my Speedmaster because the crown slightly turns backwards" thread, I think you've got a good reason to take it back. I'd also ask for a swap based on the fact Tag should get their QC sorted out.
As one who’s fixed a good few watches over the years I almost fell if my chair laughing when I read this. Honestly, it’s a 10 minute job to fix, the back gets removed, take the crown and stem out, remove the movement from the case, remove the spec of dust, reassemble.......job done. it's under guarantee so it needs to back to TAG, but its really no big deal.
I suggest you run the watch for a few weeks and check the timekeeping carefully, give it chance to settle down. There maybe scope to improve it by fine regulation whilst the spec of dust is being removed.
Not wanting the watch to be opened is irrational!
Last edited by walkerwek1958; 4th November 2020 at 00:10.
Take it back, it is an easy fix for them. You shouldn’t have to live with this staring back at you every time you see the watch.
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Hey All,
So the watch is going to be replaced, and hopefully TAG has one in stock so I'll get another one soon. Otherwise it'll be in a few weeks.
I must say, the service I've received was fantastic and even though I felt like a pain in the a*se for sending it back, the AD has made this painless and easy, making sure I'm happy with the watch.
Here's to hoping the new one arrives soon! :)
Good outcome, you did the right thing.
If you had a £30 Seiko from Argos and it wasn’t right, you’d return it.. so why not for a £1.5k Tag.
Enjoy when it comes back; hope this hasn’t taken any of the shine off it for you!
Very true mate, and even though it was a bit deflating to see that little speck of dust I'm still pretty excited to get the replacement. Have had my eye on this piece for quite a while so I just want to finally get it on my wrist and start enjoying it!
No it’s not. If only for the inconvenience and tainted experience. He did the right thing IMO.
Haha! That gave me a good chuckle :D
Should not really need to remind folks of this but:
https://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rig...mer-rights-act
I'd accept the "repair" frankly. In truth I'd have got it into my trusted local guy and had him fix it for me. In the time it took me to walk to the coffee shop, have a nice coffee and pastry and walk back it'd be fixed.
I would if I'd had the watch for a while and it developed on it's own, but for a brand new watch that I had only just received I'd send it back for a swap, or failing that just send it back and buy another. Much less faff than it going off for a 'repair' for who knows how long and with what affect on the warranty.
I am also possibly jaded in my experience by the fact that I have sent off watches before to have dust removed and they've come back with different dust. It's happened to me three times now!
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