The Breitling Watch Source Forums

Sorry I did just assume you were in the USA but its good that your in the UK and I MAY be able to help but asking how old it is and when and where it was last serviced makes a BIG difference to Breitling themselves and is the key to getting it fixed either free or at a reduced cost that why its the first question I asked. So lets start there.

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Not sure why some of you guys are making this so personally personal and maybe being a tad sensitive of my utter disappointment and frustration with the way a company has treated me? There are no issues wit Breitling fans and I feel I've already done the corporate responsibility thing over the past 5 months. My anger/frustration is only the shabby way Breitling corp have treated me.

Rofennsian can you explain to me please what you mean by "if the watch passes pressure tests crown in and crown out then I can understand why Breitling are asking you to cover the cost". This looks like a constructive way to make me understand this utterly confusing position. Looks to me that a watch a few years old couldn't have a stronger position due to the care and servicing it has had... Their get out clause seems universal... (I ask this as a pure question - not as any attack on your personal position or viewpoint of course)

Cheers

D

Well we are allys after all so I forgive the USA thing

I've done the servicing/age/proof thing with Breitling UK and Switzerland (Switzerland just sent me a glossy leaflet on water ingress as if this is a totally given) yet they stilll me my watch is still totally waterproof but totally shagged due to water. I cant see, with respect, how you would change their mind mate. I guess I came here with resignation rather than hope. Thanks for offering help though.

Cheers

D

I think that people are taking things personally, because your emotional postings are very easy to interpret as personal attacks on the people who are responding to your posts - no one on here is simply going to defend Breitling because they like the watches - you don't have to look far on here to see that, so people responding to this thread are trying to assist.


In terms of understanding Breitling's position, if a watch has water ingress then the standard thing to do is to pressure test the watch to see where the leak is. If there is a leak around the caseback, crystal, etc then they have a cause of the issue and will fix it without question (assuming that there is no evidence of tampering with the caseback). If they can't find a leak then it makes sense to test the watch again with the crown out to see if there are issues with the crown seals.

If the watch passes all of those tests, then logic says that the watch is watertight and the only way that water got in was through misuse - that would be my conclusion as well.

Now you have clearly stated that you didn't use the pushers or crown underwater so then we are left with trying to understand what kind of problem could have solved itself. In theory I am guessing that the pressure test could reseat the caseback and 'hide' the existence of a problem - that would make even more sense if the battery was changed recently before the incident.

how old is the watch? Breitling has a 2 year warranty. If it falls outside of the timeframe, then there is nothing they are obligated to do. I am a deisel technician and deal with warranty issues every day and people trying to get something for free. Unfortuantely, if it's out of warranty...it's out of warranty.

Flipping on people who're trying to help you is not going to make things any better. Just my opinion, take it for what is worth.

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Collection
GMTIIc
Daytona
Nautilus 5711
Deep Sea D-Blue
Submariner Hulk
Tudor BB - FOR SALE
SOLD
Aerospace
Navitimer World
Bentley GT Racing
Cockpit
Navitimer 01 LE 788/2000

Speaking as an "outside observer" (at least until I posted this message), DieselE, I feel for you. This kind of inexplicable crap seems to happen to me all the time. Not for watches yet, thank goodness, but I am sure it is only a matter of time. I am constantly having things happen to me that people assure me are impossible, and it is frustrating beyond belief.

Having said that, I can easily see why some of your responses on here would be interpreted as attacks. I would like to think that no matter how frustrated I was, I would not try biting the hands of the many good samaritans on this forum who reach out and try to help me. I have seen them straighten issues like this out before, especially with BUK.

Good luck and best wishes,

///M

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There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness." --Dave Barry

I'm not in the habit of removing posts but I've removed one post from this thread for the simple reason that it added nothing other than to further antagonise an already slightly heated thread.

Can we all keep the interactions civil (at least on the open forum), with no name-calling please.

@ DieselE - as Roff said, people don't tend to be just blindly defensive of Breitling as a brand on this forum, so 99% of the responses you get will be in an attempt to help. I know you are irritated with your Aerospace, and maybe with due cause, but we aren't affliated with Breitling the company so don't take it out on the guys here please.

@ Everyone else - most of the posts have been constructive, but a one or two haven't, so let's try not to resort to name-calling please.

Thanks all.

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Driver8

Site Moderator

Guys - thanks for some sympathies - from those not too annoyed with me! Some useful advice too, and again apologies if I haven't kept my posts as unemotive and dispassionate as my first one where I was aware I needed to can the months of utter frustration and make a big effort & just to stick to facts. Ill try harder!!!

Rofensian thanks for your input & knowledge - I need closure on this as well as to warn others. Even if the watch had been abused or never serviced (not the case!) this 'perfectly waterproof but full of water' scenario is SO illogical and confusing. In fact it was SO full of water the watch face needs replacement too - it was really flooded, and after the first paddle too. It leads me to conclude that maybe it is Watches of Switzerland (who replaced the battery last) that may be covering their tracks? When I turned up there they just took my flooded watch to their back room, did a dry and wet test, crown in first, then crown out, and then told me it was totally water resistant. Maybe the pressure test re seated the back? I guess I'll never know...

As my last post, does anyone think this watch has a value as is? Maybe someone more familiar with 'diy' watch repairs would take it on, and can save on the high Breitling repair cost using Tissot parts (as King of Ling kindly suggested) to make it viable? Just a thought, and, as ever thanks for your help/advice in this miserable matter. I'll focus on cheering up and moving on... What's done is done - but hopefully some of this posting might help another via a search etc.

Cheers

D

I think that the only value is to someone prepared to spend the money with Breitling to get it fixed. Water damage isn't really a do it yourself fix, even if you were comfortable enough swapping out the movement. The dial would also need to be replaced, as would the seals. By all means advertise the watch in the Buy / Sell / Trade section here and see if there is any interest - especially as you have a repair quote from Breitling so the buyer would be aware of the crepair cost.

Let us see some pics, you never know someone here might take it off your hands!

Cheers

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Currently:
Avenger Skyland(Black)
Super Avenger(White)

Moved on:
Montbrillant Legende(Silver)
Panerai 312
SOHC 125th Ann. LE(Silver)
Navitimer World(Pearl)
Panerai 441

I know i'm late to this but I am checking with mt parts house on getting a ETA 988.333 and the price. It maybe a swap where you have to send them the old movement first...will know shortly.

Did you or BUK get the water out and properly dry the insides? If so that may salvage your dial & hands.
Gaskets are easy to come by.

I'd be happy to help, just inthe middle of a move and need ot get my bench and tools relocated before I can start tinkering again.

best of luck & please let me know if i can help!

Thanks for that RGoldberg. It definitely needs new everything as it happened on first day of my holidays and was soaking for over 3 weeks. Be great to know if we can salvage it cost effectively. It looks like it isn't worth much to anyone else after a few enquires and PM's - effectively a write off as it is circa 2000. 2009 one may go for £2000UKP used but not this one.

I'll post pics once I get it back from Breitling.

Cheers for a glimmer of light!

D

I think it has a value but again this be reflected in the ammount off work it takes to get sorted, If it has its box and papers and is on a bracelett then its value not working would be somewhere around £200 - £300 I guess as that as thats what a similar non working one sold for recently on ebay UK, If it needs new dial and hands as well then slighly less, I guess someone will buy it so put it in SC

Have you tried claiming on your home insurance buy the way?

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Yes claiming on home insurance may be an option - but I just claimed for a bit of a DIY bath panel removing disaster, so need to measured here...

To be honest with you mate, and due to the great help and info here, I am slowly concluding that I ambettersaving it til I have a bit of spare cashand then paying Breitling £500 to get a "£2.5k" watch back on my wrist. I still really like the watch - especially as it has the subtler pre massive number italics face, and stumping up £500 would get me a 'brand new' watch.

The only thing that puts me off is having to take it off everytime I wash my hands - just in case I nudge the crown

It arrived back from BUK today - they were good enough not to invoice me too. Guilty conscience or decent customer-care

As you've seen there is some emotion here - its more than just a nice timepiece - I bought it with the little £1k I had after my grandfather...

I may just put it in a drawer till after I change the car and get that higher priority Canon 5D camera !!!!

Thanks again for the input guys - has helped so much.

D