Hi Ron, yes I do agree somewhat to your point, but I wouldn't put any blame on the actual 'shape' of the re-editions.
Apart from the Monza, which shared just only the name with its supposed ancestor, the other re-editions well kept the spirit (kind of anyway...) of the original, especially the Carrera 1964 Re-edition (manual version Lemania powered).
And that's what they were intended to: appeal the vintage lover and find out a new stream of potential buyers, while keeping glorious names alive or reviving others. The original will have its specific features and a balance that over the years Heuer fans have learnt to know and love, no doubt about it.
To win over new fans, however, or simply to make up with what's available (sadly, not the 'real' Cal.12 presently), some concessions have to be made to the period's prevailing taste, but the very best re-editions managed to either do this very cleverly (Silverstone) or even imperceptibly (Carrera manual wind).

So for me it sums up to:
- indeed nothing can beat the originals
- most re-editions are really good or even excellent, and the Silverstone squarely (pun intended!) seems to fit here
- the only issue is the pricing compared to the 'true' item, and more specifically so for the Monza and the current Silverstone

Cheers

Fabrizio