Arpiem was founded by Vincent Repoux, who after 20 years in professional soccer, through this project wanted to reconnect with his passion for cars and racing. The Tribute collection was launched in 2018, currently consisting of seven models, each one honouring a driver or a personality from the motor racing world of the 60s and 70s: James Hunt, Emerson Fittipaldi, Graham Hill, Bruce Mc Laren, Alberto Ascari, Jim Clark and John Wyer, honoured by the TJW 2 model, reviewed here. Each model will come in colours representing the person they honour and will be packed with hidden symbols that only a true connoisseur of motor racing history will notice. Where others will see colourful watches, fans will be fired up to discover all the little details that these watches bring, besides the colours that have a meaning for those who know.

There is a paragraph in the Arpiem brochure that caught my eye, I find that it describes very well what this brand is about:

Finally, a time when the laws of aerodynamics did not create cloned cars in relation to each other, but each possessed a personality that reflected their progenitor’s. A universe made up of sounds, smells, shapes and colors dear to the creator of Arpiem, more sensitive to the singing of a V12 in the Hunaudières straight than to the virtues of embedded electronics.

Vincent’s dislikes the cloned racing cars of today, explains his approach to designing the Tribute collection, pure racing watches that are unique in a very ingenious way. So let’s take a look at the TJW 2, but before going into the details, a couple of words about John Wyer. He was a team owner and team manager, who at the turn of the 60s and 70s won several endurance races with cars painted in the light blue and orange livery of his longtime sponsor Gulf Oil.

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These are the colours that dominate the TJW 2 too and for better contrast, they are matched with a black background. The subdials of this panda have a unique shape that will immediately make you think of a speedometer and the sandwich dial will make the Tribute watch look like a dashboard. 

Under the round date window at 6 o’clock, we’ll find the name of three endurance circuits: Daytona Beach, Le Mans and Spa. Then, there is the 24-minute mark, highlighted in orange, another reference to endurance racing.

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The rounded bezel is also black and it features a tachymeter scale, a must for a racing chronograph, while the orange ring on the push button at 2 o’clock is again an expected feature of these types of watches. 

The TJW 2 comes with a black leather racing strap, equipped with a branded deployment clasp. The orange lining on the inside of the strap was the perfect choice to connect to the overall colour scheme of the watch. 

Under the hood, you can find a SEIKO VK64 meca quartz movement, an excellent choice for an affordable chronograph. Limited to 500 pieces, the price of a Tribute is €279.

I really like the way Arpiem honours the history of motor racing and I think it’s a fantastic choice to have an affordable watch with such a cool design. If you’re nuts about racing history, you will love the Arpiem Tribute collection. 

You can find Arpiem at https://en.brickyardstore.com/

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