Hi guys, am a new member here and hope to learn about Breitlings since I don't have any yet. Saw a Breitling Navitimer with a moonphase that was possibly made for 2-3 years in 2000, they possibly came in only 2 colours, a blue and the other in a white dial. Have a few questions about that model, how reliable was the movement and how good is the waterproofing since saw a thread somewhere when googled complaining about the movement requiring expensive servicing and about the waterproofing. Also tech specs say this is an ETA movement that was modified by Breitling and not an inhouse developed movement, would that mean things could go wrong because of that? Also what am I looking at paying for one with boxes and papers and one without and should I be suspicious if a watch thats only a few years old like this doesn't come with papers? What's the best way to verify the authenticity of a Breitling?

Any suggestions most appreciated and sorry for this many questions on my first post,
Thanks

Breitling did not make an in-house movement until 2010 - the caliber B01.

Welcome to BreitlingSource.

All modern Breitlings until a couple of years ago were modified ETA / Valjoux so I wouldn't worry about that. The base movements have been used in millions of watches over the last 40 years or so and are well proven. The additional complications will make the servicing more expensive - reckon on a service every 5 - 7 years costing $650 - $700.

NNone of the Navitimer range is particularly waterproof, they are rated at 30m, but that really means that you should avoid immersing it in water. Details on ratings here - http://www.breitlingsource.com/articles ... ance.shtml

If it doesn't have papers then you may get a better deal than if it did have papers so don't automatically discount it for that. If you want to know if it's real then ask in the replica identification section here, and if the watch is listed for sale on the forums then you can rest assured that it is real.

Pricing advice is covered in the FAQs, #2 here - http://www.breitlingsource.com/articles_faq.shtml#8

EDIT - this is the last time I try to beat Roff on one of these!

The fact that it is a Breitling modified ETA movement is not a problem - Breitling did not make an in-house movement until 2010 - the caliber B01. Until then all Breitling movements in the recent past were heavily modified ETA based movement. That is true of the majority of models today as well. If anything, the movements based off ETA ebauches are usually regarded as less subject to problems and glitches. The are robust movements. Servicing is no more expensive than any other movement, less in fact than the in-house.

Waterproofing is a marketing word - there is no such tning in the world of mechanical watches. The water resistance on almost all Navi models is low - 30m usually. Not something you would ever want to swim in.

Boxes and papers are always best, but many genuine pieces only a couple or a few years old do not have boxes and papers. Some jewelers who sell a lot of pre-owned watches - Tourneau come to mind - don't keep the boxes etc...

THE BEST WAY TO AUTHENTICATE A BREITLING IS POST PICTURES HERE IN THE "REPLICA IDENTIFICATION" SECTION. You will get a more reliable opinion here than many AD sales people will be able to give you.

Good luck!

2009, but who's counting?

Yes, I forgot the Chronomat 01, but I chalk that up to the post traumatic stress syndrome caused when I first saw the bezel.