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Hi Guys,

Been looking into as much info as possible on the Top Time. I have one that is dated as a 1966 (based on the S/N) and the case is stamped '2002' (pictured below) It has the following features:
-Stainless steel monocoque
-Orange chrono hand
-Silver dial with tachymeter readings on outer rim.
-Two black sub-dials at 9 and 3 (sub-seconds and 45 minute totalizer)

My questions based off of this are:
-Is the chrono hand original or a replacement?
-What kind of movement is in there (Valjoux 7730/33 or Venus 178)?
-How common is this iteration of the Top Time? I found 1 piece that looked exactly like it in terms of aesthetics but it was a 2002-33.
-For insurance purposes, how much would this cost to replace?

Nice piece!

Chrono seconds hand is not original, movement will be a Valjoux, they aren't particularly rare and sell for around $1,200 or so - say $1,500 for insurance to be on the safe side.

Welcome to BreitlingSource.

regarding the movement, these were produced with the Venus 188, later renamed the Valjoux 7730 and later 7733, all rather similar lever movements, though the similarity of the bridge to the column wheel Venus 175 make the Venus 188 or V7730 a little more desirable, the 7733 is a bit of an ungly duckling, though highly reliable; am not sure all 7733 2002s were marked -33.

Agree with all of that, but with a '66 date I'm pretty it's going to be a 7730 - too late for a 188 and too early for a 7733

absolutey correct of course, Roff, got carried away w/ techical possibilites without stating that chances are very close to 100% this one has a Valjoux 7730, all others rather theoretic.

Thanks guys! The movement thing was really hard for me to figure out. Because Valjoux bought out Venus around that time (right?), so it was a bit confusing.

I'd also never seen an orange chrono hand on a Top Time (except on a select few pieces) so I assumed it wasn't original.

Also, just in case any of you guys frequent other forums, I have the same username on dobberhockey.com and badgerandblade.com

Cheers!

Valjoux bought Venus in 64 / 65 and the 188 became the 7730. The 7730 evolved into the 7733 / 7734 starting in 67.

Some top times did come with orange chrono hands.. One of my ref 2002s did and have seen plenty of others.

Nice example - been looking for one of those myself as its the opposite of my black with silver subdial 2002, but has the orange chrono which really stands out on that dial combo.

Not that shape they didn't!

My 1967 top time had a venus 188.

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Not sure why, Venus didn't even exist as a company in 1967.

Thanks for the tips guys, got it insured for 1750 to be on the safe side.

One other fun thing I found: I took a REALLY close look at the caseback, and found on the ref. stamp a very very very faded "33", so it is indeed a 2002-33 (and thus a Valjoux 7733). Just not very noticeable. 46 years of wrist wear will do that.

Interestingly enough, the "2002" stamp is centered on the case-back, while the "33" seems to be off to the right. I'm thinking they had switched to the 7733 and were still using older cases that were already stamped.

Really appreciate the help, and sorry for resurrecting this thread.

My '67 2002 has the 7730.

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1961 ref 806
1967 ref 2002
1991 A10096
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Admittedly I haven't had my morning coffee yet but what's wrong with that orange sweep hand? Pretty common to see on a Top Time and I like them better because they're easier to see.

Nothing wrong with orange, but compare yours with the one in the OP`s picture - thicker tail in OPs and black mark near the tip.