The Breitling Watch Source Forums

Like the title says, WTF happened to this place? It use to be a great little forum. Place has taken a huge dump in recent years to snails like pace.


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Activity has moved to other platforms like Facebook and Instagram. Posting photos is much easier there, but discussion and learning is lost on those platforms.

I think as the brand started to decline, so did members on here. Maybe in time as things turn around, more members will come again.

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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

I really hope that Breitling gives us some pieces that are smaller in size. Both in a thickness level as well as a lug to lug length.


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Sounds like I joined just in time...

I think Breitling serves an aesthetic that has a smaller following these days. I love the design but the only one that really fits my wrist is the 1990's 40mm Aerospace - along with the ana-digi appeal for me. As a vintage piece, I love it. But modern ana-digi's run circles around their quartz movements in terms of features-per-dollar, and its hard to justify. My $300 Momentum Format 4 pretty much out features even their current highest end digital features. Its not SuperQuartz accurate but the quartz accuracy is a bit of a mugs game - how accurate do you really need to be? If you need that there are lots of internet connected or radio receiver sync movements out there. I have several Citizens and Casios with RC syncing and they are dead on.

I would love to get a Colt or Super Ocean but I just don't have the wrists for that much hardware and it would spend more time in the watch box than on my wrists. I still love the brand though.

Long time reader, first time poster...

I’m an avid Breitling fan, have been for as long as I can remember. The fall of the luxury watch market is sad to see. I think the advent of smart watches has been the biggest factor, heck I wear my smart watch more than my Breitling on a daily basis. With that said, I’ve had a Breitling for over 20yrs and my smart watch is obsolete in 2-3 years.

There are some advancements that Breitling could surely capitalize on, but their value is in their longevity.

Strange times, people have higher priorities to focus on, like staying safe and well. The brand will continue to prosper I suspect but I don’t like the direction it’s going in. As a source of advice to wary purchasers, those with older pieces and those finding family heirlooms the forum is invaluable. The appraisal of new releases and some useful inside information is also to be welcomed. Whether this is enough to sustain the forum I don’t know. I check for posts of interest every day but I’m retired and at the moment don’t have too many demands on my time.

Maybe the responsibility of re-energising the forum rests with us all, though the mods and mr Breitling source himself may have some ideas.

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Breitling B-1 1999
Breitling Chrono Superocean 2004
Casio G Shock
Citizen Eco Drive AT4000-02E (for gardening)
Seiko 5 SNZG15J1
Hamilton X Wind LE

I came here to learn more about the brand and my watch, and while the traffic is not huge, the replies I've had have been friendly and very helpful.

There is a lot of Breitling activity on Facebook and some over on Watchuseek. Breitling is a respected and upper tier brand, but I don't think it has the number of followers that Rolex, Omega and Seiko have. Some may say that Seiko should not be grouped with those two however I am speaking of mindshare which drives forums and posts.

I presume most people are accessing this forum through Tapatalk. The experience of using the Breitling forum through browser, is subpar because the forum software is old and outdated. It works but it's not a particularly enjoyable experience. That might be another reason why there is less activity here than there might be. That's not meant to be an insult just an observation.

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I don't use IG at all, and while I'm a member of a few watch groups on FB, I personally find them a bit irritating. Firstly I find FB tends to attract more "casual" watch fans than traditional forums, which often leads to keyboard warriors offering entirely wrong information and "advice" some of the time. Secondly it caters far more to "humble bragging" so you just get countless wrist-shots usually in front of car steering wheels instead of any valuable information or discussion. And lastly FB doesn't really have any kind of decent search function, so you get the same questions again and again... and again.

To be fair, the FB Breitling groups aren't too bad, and they definitely seem to have a great community spirit going on (much like this place used to have!), but ones like the Rolex groups are more likely to have me shouting at my laptop/phone than actively taking part in them! If I see another "is this a good investment" thread I'm likely to damage something!

Personally I much prefer forums like this, and I'd love to see the "golden age" this place had a few years ago come back again. Sadly I think the 5 second attention span that social media engenders mean the days of forums like this are probably numbered.

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Driver8

Site Moderator

^^^ this.

Further to that, Breitling is a very visual brand, which lends itself to that sort of 5 second IG mentality. Fewer people these days seem to be interested in what is actually under the dial and how even more stunning that can be than the surface looks themselves.

??

2020 has been a rocky year for obvious reasons, and I don't think we know the figures yet, but the sale of luxury watches has just gone up and up in recent years - for the last year that we do have stats, 2019, global Swiss exports of watches costing over CH3000 rose 7.3%.

I googled for some longer-term stats and found for example

https://www.statista.com/statistics/940 ... worldwide/

which says: 'In 2018, the global luxury watch market was valued at approximately 6.93 billion U.S. dollars, and was forecast to reach a value of 9.3 billion U.S. dollars by 2025.'

Driven I think in particular by the Asian market, the luxury sector has been very resilient - no need to be sad for it!

Welcome to the forum btw.

Same! This is my first post.

I purchased my first Breitling two weeks ago, an Avenger 43 with the blue dial, and I can not be more thrilled. I have never bought any watch, or item, this expensive and not have immediate buyers remorse until this watch. I nearly walked away from luxury watches all together. I felt like a “flipper”, I never made any connection with any of my previous watches. And that includes IWC and Tudor.

I’m already looking for another Breitling. This one needs a brother.

Danny

This is correct with the Alfa Romeo forums I go to.

It is not all Facebook platforms.

I completely agree with you! I have left the FB Breitling groups because OPs post the same photo on multiple groups, and they're all the same: What should I buy, is this a good investment, look at my watch and car, etc. It feeds the 5 sec attention span crowd but does little else. I find this site to be much more informative for learning and discussions.