The Breitling Watch Source Forums

Hi guys, I have a newbie question about the B01 movement.

There’s been a lot of talk about the Chronomat B01 watch in general, the newer style of the dial, bezel, fonts, etc.
But I haven’t been able to find a lot about the movement itself. Not from a strictly technical point, as I am not educated enough on movements to understand things such as this:

“The movement incorporates a column-wheel switching mechanism and a vertical clutch, two hallmarks of a well-made chronograph”

“The 47 jewel movement uses a flat hairspring and a smooth balance wheel.”

So what I’d really like to know is, is this considered an interesting movement in any way? Is there anything innovative and exciting about it? Of course it’s cool that it’s their own movement, but what does it mean to those of you, who really know about this stuff?


Thanks for any information.

David


Source of quotes: Watchtime

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Super Avenger (Black, arabics, big logo, Pro II bracelet)
SuperOcean Heritage 46 (Black, Ocean Classic bracelet)
B-1 SuperQuartz (Grey, Fighter bracelet)
Chronomat B01 (Onyx black, Pilot bracelet)
SuperOcean Steelfish (Black, Diver Pro II, tang buckle)

Well....

The movement certainly isn't innovative. There's nothing in the movement that advances watchmaking in any way. That said, it's their first modern in house movement so not necessarily the time to push the boundaries. Smooth balance wheel - find me a quality watch that doesn't have one. Flat hairspring - not sure what the point of that claim is - the whole point is to prevent contortion of the hairspring.

The column wheel approach is a step forward from Breitling's usual ETA based movements, and the vertical clutch is an improvement for chrono operation, but these are features that some manufactures are now moving away from as they look to improve their movements further.

The ability to use the quick set date at any point in the cycle is a good feature, but again not particularly innovative in 2009.

The movement is a step forward from ETA based ebauche, but if the movement is compared against some other manufactures then it wouldn't stand out. Hopefully though this is simply the first step.

Could I trouble you to name some of those movements, or rather the watches they come in? I ask this because I'd like to see if they are in the same price range as the B01.


Thank you very much for your input. I must say, I am bit disappointed but on the other hand, I do like the watch as a whole.
In the photos, it didn't really impress me and I agreed with a lot of people on the bezel, riders and fonts. But when I saw it for the first time exactly one week ago, I was totally smitten by its beauty. I've placed my order for the Onyx black version on the SS Pilot bracelet and it should be with me before the end of the year, looking forward to it.

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Super Avenger (Black, arabics, big logo, Pro II bracelet)
SuperOcean Heritage 46 (Black, Ocean Classic bracelet)
B-1 SuperQuartz (Grey, Fighter bracelet)
Chronomat B01 (Onyx black, Pilot bracelet)
SuperOcean Steelfish (Black, Diver Pro II, tang buckle)

That's a very open ended question because it becomes subjective as to what constitutes a standout, but in watches that are at a similar price points, some of the manufactures / calibers / watches that standout for me would be.....

Omega's co-axial escapement - a fundamentally different way of addressing the way that the escapement works, with a very practical benefit - it reduces maintenance. Maybe the current standout is the caliber 8500 / 8501. This also has a free sprung balance - a technique which removes the need for a traditional regulator. The Seamaster Aqua Terra was recently announced as getting the 8500 and the reissued PloProf has the 8501 (the two movements are functionally identical, but the rotor is different).

Ulysse Nardin has been at the forefront of silicon technology using it for hairsprings and now other parts of the escapement. Potentially silicon has the potential to completely eliminate the need for maintenance. It's restricted to high end LEs right now, but UN are investing huge amounts of money and it's clearly headed for all of their watches.

IWC and Panerai have been at the forefront of bringing long power reserves to affordable watches. IWCs 50xx series of calibers have 7 day power reserves and that's in their Big Pilot and Big Ingenieur watches among others - more expensive than Breitling, but then it is IWC. Panerai has 8 day power reserves in a number of its watches with the P2002 movement base.

Rolex have been doing innovative things for years - they may not be seen as quite so innovative today, but that's because they have shaped the industry for decades - the parachrom balance spring is a good example that is now common place throughout Rolex.



Breitling is headed in the right direction, and with the B01 they have made an important first step, but they can't stop here. They need to build a family of movements, they need to push the envelope, and if they are going to compete as a serious player with the big guys then they need to develop in house grand complications - a tourbillon being the logical starting point.

Great, thanks again for your input, it is most appreciated.

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Super Avenger (Black, arabics, big logo, Pro II bracelet)
SuperOcean Heritage 46 (Black, Ocean Classic bracelet)
B-1 SuperQuartz (Grey, Fighter bracelet)
Chronomat B01 (Onyx black, Pilot bracelet)
SuperOcean Steelfish (Black, Diver Pro II, tang buckle)

I know that the instantaneous date change feature of the calibre B01 has been discussed, but can someone shed some light about "auto-centering reset hammers" and "customizable index regulator system"?

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Breitling Colt GMT
Breitling Navitimer World
IWC Portuguese Automatic
Breitling Transocean Chronograph LE

Well Breitling hasn't exactly been forthcoming so there is a fair amount of speculation on my part....

Reset hammers are what reset the chronograph afterit has been stopped. This involves a fair amount of energy being released and it's important that the reset hammers hit the heart cam that triggers the reset in a consistent way. I'm guessing that the B01 has a unique way of ensuring that the hammer is always in the same position relative to the heart cam.

In terms of the customizable index regulator system, well I have to admit that sounds a little bit like marketing spin. The index regulator is just the way that the rate is adjusted - the thing that sits on the balance with the + / - scale under it. Breitling advertise that this can be customized to the wearer, and I assume that means that the index can be adjusted so that a move of one mark will always increase (decrease) the rate by the same amount regardless of wear habits. I guess that's useful but in order to make that adjustment you have to time the watch anyway so why not just fix the rate - who cares whether it is one mark or one and a bit.

Thanks as always Roff. Understand that there is some speculation involved, but certainly helps in understanding.

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Breitling Colt GMT
Breitling Navitimer World
IWC Portuguese Automatic
Breitling Transocean Chronograph LE