Yes, I was watching this one, it did look like a nice package. There were some minor paint issues on the dial around the date window that weren't picked up in the description, but otherwise it looked an honest watch - and let's face it, we all pick up some imperfections as we near forty years old!

It went for a reasonable price but remember to factor in customs duty/VAT when you're buying from outside the EU - can add a nasty surprise if you're not expecting it and also means the watch can sit in Customs for some time before you get it.

Don't worry, you'll get used to model codes the more you see :)

The 1153 is the classic 70s Carrera with two registers, one of 30 min capacity, one of 12 hours:

The 1553 came along later but didn't replace the 1153 - the Calibre 15 movement was intended as an economy movement so was sold alongside the Calibre 12, but at a cheaper price point. The 12 hour register is omitted and the watch displays perpetual seconds on a small register at 10 o'clock instead:

I'm not sure what the business logic was behind introducing a cheaper automatic (some 10% cheaper) when you could buy a manual-wind that looked like an 1153 bar the crown position for three-quarters of the price, but there you go!

They're both great watches - I prefer the balance of the Cal 11/12 dial but if you're the type who looks at a watch to check it's running, then maybe the 15 is for you (Dan once described the Cal 11/12 dial as "sleepy" and I think that's a great description - nothing moves on the dial between minutes unless the chrono is running). You have to admire the 1153's ability to survive pretty much everything Heuer threw at it to replace/supplement it, from different movements to different cases - right through the 1970s in one form or another.

Yes, I'm biased in favour of Carreras but I hope everyone would agree that the 1153 deserves its place with the Heuer icons (along with at least one of the early manuals).