The Breitling Watch Source Forums

I've just returned last night from Shanghai, the first stop of Breitling's #legendaryfuture Roadshow Spring 2018, the first launch event for the new Navitimer 8 - and I can finally share some thoughts and information.

Rene (Dracha here, @rene_jk on ig) and I have been working with Georges Kern since he took over as Breitling CEO (actually a bit longer than that); documenting the brand's glorious past, analyzing those rich back catalogs - finally a Breitling CEO as passionate about Breitling heritage as we, the most passionate of collectors.

So I knew a bit about the upcoming product announcements, but could, of course, not comment about the theories and thoughts raised here and on other forums.

Before I share some pictures of that launch event; I'd like to address some of the fears & criticism raised on breitlingsource, other forums and the many watch blogs:

a) The Navitimer 8 will NOT replace the current, iconic sliderule Navitimer!
Just the opposite is true - we will soon see beautiful new variations of that most iconic of all Breitlings - the Navitimer 8 & the classic Navitimer will both be part of the core model range.

b) The "Breitling EIGHT (or HUIT in French) Aviation Division" provided design & naming inspiration for the Navitimer 8
When Willy Breitling took over the company management in 1932 he saw huge potential in the Aviation market - and in 1934 he established a new division, specializing in aircraft cockpit instruments & Pilot's wristwatches. In May 1937 Breitling applied for patent CH196710 for their Aircraft Cockpit Chronograph with 8-day power reserve that Willy chose as a name element for the division, but the pilot's wrist watches and wrist chronographs had the same 40-hour power reserve we see on all wristwatches of the period.


1939 Breitling HUIT catalog page

If you look at the bezels & dials of both the cockpit instruments and pilot's watches of the 1946 Breitling 8 catalog below, the design inspiration for the Navitimer 8 range should be quite clearly visible - the rotating pointer bezels for the wrist watches were an important navigation & orientation tool for pilots of the period, we see those in use well into the later 1950s when Breitling had already moved to different designs, just have a look at the Breguet TypeXX, Vixa or Auricoste Type 20


from the 1946 Breitling HUIT catalog


cockpit chronograph ref. 640; David's superb "pilot wristwatch with turning bezel" ref. 768 & one of the earliest premier, the ref. 765


c) Willy Breitling did not think "a Navitimer MUST have a sliderule bezel"
Many of us have learned to associate the Navitimer branding with that unique sliderule we love so much and so rarely use, but in 1956, very soon after the launch of the Navitimer 806, Breitling launched the ref. 66 - an elegant 3-hand "Navitimer".


Wayne's Navitimer ref. 66

So - it might feel unusual to us, but historically the non-sliderule Navtimer is clearly "correct" - and you can't blame Breitling for leveraging their best known branding (although the purist in you doesn't have to be totally happy with it) ?

d) No, a Navitimer doesn't "have to have" a wings logo.
When the Navitimer was launched in 1954 it was intended as a special edition for AOPA, the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association - it not only lacked a model reference, but also had no Breitling branding on the dial, "just" the AOPA wings - and it was marketed through that organization only. As the model apparently proved to be successful above the most optimist projections, Breitling added the model reference 806 and started to market through their regular sales channels too - but seemed unsure how to add their branding to the dial. We see the (mega rare) applied "B" version , AOPA wings without the AOPA shield, cursive printed "B" and capitals, wings & capitals, endless variations; as late as 1964 we see the new reverse panda Navitimer with a cursive B logo ... and no wings. Some (by far not all) variations below, if you want a in-depth look at the variations, please visit kurt-b.com for the Kurt Broendum Navitimer article, still by far the best resource available.



and here some first wristshots ... see if you can find some historic DNA ?









Glorious past, legendary future.
Heritage did take center stage in Shanghai, some impressions to follow ...

Hi Fred!

Hope you had fun in Shanghai - it sure looked like you did judging by the pics in the Breitling pressroom

Thanks for these insights. I can't wait to see what the future holds!

Like that three hand on the bracelet. Eyes should be able to see that without finding my glasses. Like to see it in quartz though.

poor iphone pics, but what a great gala evening it was!

Shanghai; January 29th, 2018

#gloriouspast




(hate Rene, that's HIS Lucy Mk1.4!)





#legendaryfuture

Thanks for the post Fred! I think this was just the explanation I needed to better understand the direction that Kern will take with Breitling. I'll admit, when I heard a new Navitimer series I was picturing something with a slide rule so maybe that's what first took me by surprised when the 8 series was introduced this week. The B01 chrono has grown on me but I'll still wait to see it in person.

Any insider info on what the new Navis with slide rules will look like at Basel? I've been contemplating picking up a Navi 01 but now I'm thinking of waiting.

_________________
Justin
Please contact me via PM for the contact details for Govberg Jewelers
Govberg is an AD for over 50 fine Swiss and German watch brands.
Visit them on the web at http://www.govbergwatches.com or call 800-528-8463

well, if you like the anchor/B/wings .... then buy now
I prefer what's coming up.

Thank you for the pictures and story Watchfed

While I'm not the one to criticize the new direction, on the contrary I tried to explain on the other forum that Breitling needs to move on, I can understand the Breitling fans reaction.

There is "before Schneider era", "Schneider era" and now comes a new time for Breitling. I think that most of current Breitling fans are "Schneider era" crowd and that is what Breitling represents to them. Furthermore, I think that those people will accept new Breitling direction but they need some time to adjust.

Maybe, just maybe, the preparation of Breilting's fan base for Navitimer 8 was not done well. While we were teased with some details of the new watch for some time, nobody prepared us that change of direction will be so drastic. And then BOOM.

"Here it is, it is totally different from what you expected, now love it."

Your explanation puts the new watches in some context and that helps a lot. Maybe, it was better to start with that context than to tease people to unexpected terrain where they felt that their favourite watch brand is endangered.

I accept the change but I think that message must be clear and better defined. If someone says that "there will be a 41 mm version" it is not same to me if it is a B01 chronograph or three hander. It seems that there is not a 41 mm version of 43 mm chronograph. It is a different watch that is not of my interest if I'm buying a chrono.

So I feel confused by this messages but there is no need for knee jerk reaction on my part. I'll wait for fog to clear

Other people, well, they may have a shorter fuse.

not really sure why you had expected a 41mm Navitimer 8 chronograph, but happy I could help a little!

yes, teaser campaigns can be a bit misleading - but I am sure the fog will clear now.

That's good to know. Any insight on the bracelet design for the Navi 8 series? It's the one thing I question on the model overall since I thought it would be something similar to the pilot or current Navi bracelet. I can see using the bracelet on maybe the auto or the chrono with the day/date model to keep costs down but I thought the B01 model would just have something different.

_________________
Justin
Please contact me via PM for the contact details for Govberg Jewelers
Govberg is an AD for over 50 fine Swiss and German watch brands.
Visit them on the web at http://www.govbergwatches.com or call 800-528-8463

not a bracelet guy myself, so haven't looked into that in depth - will be in Zurich on February 15 for the next event & provide more info.

I should've known based on all your wristshots. I don't think I recall ever seeing a bracelet in one of them.

Thanks again for the updates.

_________________
Justin
Please contact me via PM for the contact details for Govberg Jewelers
Govberg is an AD for over 50 fine Swiss and German watch brands.
Visit them on the web at http://www.govbergwatches.com or call 800-528-8463

The vintage originals are awesome; the new ones are quite uninspiring and impossible to make a dna-type connection.

_________________
Regards

Steve

Here is the first post on Instagram where I thought that we will have 41mm chrono:



OK, maybe in the future

„ in A (41mm)“ stood for „Automatic“, i.e. the 3-hand, but I now understand
no, that Navitimer 8 chrono will not shrink .... but expect other, smaller models.