The Breitling Watch Source Forums

Hey all,
I am 25 and from Melbourne Australia and I have finally decided that it is time to buy myself a good watch. I have been looking at many different types of breitlings and so many of them look too flashy and high tech. I then came across the steelfish x plus - superocean model which I am in love with.

I have decided it would be much cheaper buying the watch online but I am having so much trouble in determining what websites are legitimate or not. There are so many replicas going around (apparently the steelfish is a very common replica) and if I go into a local watch shop I can see myself over paying.

So I need advice,

What place would be the most reliable and ideally the cheapest?
How much is a reasonable price?
Where do I buy it from (is online the best method??)?
Are there any essential extras you recommend I purchase with the watch?

The watch I want is superocean - steelfish x plus ref. a17390

Cheers

personally id never buy online esp as if you get the right ad you can get the same discount

you won't find many people on here too keen on online buying. Most local AD's are very competative due to the economy. Plus you will get the peace of mind knowing you bought a genuine article PLUS the Breitling warranty wich can only be attained through an AD.

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SA Blue Dial Silver Subs Pro 2

There are threads here (do a search) regarding TRUSTED, online dealers. I wouldnt hestitate buying one from a trusted dealer as long as the SERIAL number was intact and all the paper work comes along. You will see that some online dealers polish off the serial to protect the AD who sold it to them at wholesale prices.

That being said, you can do fairly well at a good AD, as far as a discount goes. 20% is pretty common and more has ben hear of.

You will love the Steelfish. I have 2 and love them both.

Scott

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Breitling Steelfish(black)
Breitling Steelfish(silver)
Panerai PAM 312
Bell & Ross BR03-92 Phantom
Steinhart BreitlingSource LE #5/15

paule, the X-Plus was only made in 2006 but is identical (I think) to the Steelfish prior to the introduction of the arrow seconds hand in 2007.

Assuming you want the square seconds hand, you are unlikely to find it at an AD any more so you're almost forced to use eBay.

My advise is to monitor eBay for a LONG time to determine the market price for the watch. Get to know all the features of the watch as there are very good fakes of this model around (it is considered to be the very best Breitling replica made). Be sure you can spot the fakes before bidding. FYI, the box around the date is my way of spotting the fakes. Set a price and stick to it. Only buy if it comes with all the papers. Never buy without really good photos. And check what customs duty you'll have to pay if you buy from overseas.

Buying on eBay is perfectly OK so long as you're prepared to put some work into ensuring you don't get ripped off. I've bought lots of watches there without any problems.

You should also, once you've done your research, post a Want To Buy ad in the sales section on this site.

Good luck with your search.

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For more information on identifying Breitling replicas, please visit my web site
http://f4buz.com/watches/breitling/fakes/fakes.html

In contrast to a few of the other comments, UK AD are generally not prepared to compete with on-line prices in terms of discounts. Obviously there are some that are, but all of them near where I live are extremely reluctant to deal. You may get 10% if you're lucky. As an aside we all know there are some US AD's who are prepared to offer 30%, sometimes 35% (which is a real source of irritation to me that there is no global standard ), so it's worth bearing these ludicrously high levels of discount in mind before looking on-line.

While all my personally pieces come from AD's I have bought a couple of pieces from on-line sources on behalf of friends of mine, and in those instances I've been thoroughly impressed. Additionally, these watches did in fact come with stamped Breitling warranty cards. That said, I also know other people who have bought on-line and received watches that are missing the warranty card, and in some cases the COSC cert as well. So it's swings and roundabouts whether you get lucky or not......

Additionally, when I bought on-line the exchange rate was much more favourable than it is now, so bargains were there to be had, even once the VAT and customs charges were factored in.

As Sharky said, do your research, watch out for customs charges/VAT, and NEVER buy a piece without a serial number.

I still maintain that provided you are prepared to pick up the bill yourself should anything go wrong with the watch (i.e. if you are missing the warranty), and you know what you are doing (i.e. you have done loads of research) and/or buy from a trusted internet source, you can still pick up a bargain.

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Driver8

Site Moderator

This is a major purchase for you. I live in Vancouver Canada, waked into my AD got 20% discount on a Super Avenger with little effort. That is over a $1000 CDN. Plus I know its real and has all the correct papers, and I can rely on good service from the AD, plus you can try it one, select different bracelets. Can't do that online.
Would you buy a new Ferrari from anyone but a dealer?
jca
BC Cdn

The Steelfish is pretty well priced in Australia.

I'm guessing you mean the current model, which still appears as "Steelfish x-plus" on some grey market websites, because (as Sharkmouth has pointed out) it's not designated x-plus any more. I used to have a 2008 model, which as far as I could tell was almost exactly the same thing, apart from the seconds hand.

I'm not completely sure what sort of discount the Breitling authorised dealers near you might give if you don't have a history buying from them, but I think if you shop around you might be able to get it down to a level that's within a few hundred bucks of the advertised prices at online dealers (after converting from USD to AUD), maybe even closer. Taking into account that if you buy online you'll have to pay shipping and then Customs will hit you for at least $250 in GST when it arrives, I think you're much better off buying from a local dealer.

Good luck

I say buy from an AD, even if it costs you a little more. The peace of mind is worth it. And from what I've read, you can get a decent discount in Australia. I'm wearing my 'fish as I type this, and I know you're going to love yours. Enjoy.

Steve

Steve is right, you can get a decent discount here.

On reflection, my previous post was a bit vague about this (I hadn't yet finished filling up on caffeine for the day), but I know that 30% is achievable if you have history with the right dealer, including in Melbourne. Some dealers, whom I won't name, have a no discount (or minimal discount) policy, so if you aren't offered a decent discount fairly quickly, I'd say go elsewhere.

I'll also add that in my experience, if you look to purchase directly from an AD, try waiting until the end of the month as you're likely to get a greater discount as AD's are often conscious of numbers at that time, particularly if the month has been a little slow until then. Obviously I wouldn't apply that to every situation but it has worked for me in Sydney as an example.

I have no experience buying online as I prefer to "see" the watch etc but from the number of positive experiences present on the forum I don't think you can go wrong either way.

I've found personally that 20% is a pretty good discount in Australia although again that depends on a number of factors. 30% sounds awesome from Otto but then again, depends on your history. Shop around for sure although having said that only certain shops stock Breitlings in Oz.

Good luck!

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Happines is Good Health and a Bad Memory.
"Ingrid Bergman"

Hi Paule,

like everyone already said I suggest you to be very careful before buying watches online. On the other side of the internet there might be anyone!
Anyway you got to know the dealer. even if you buy it in the shop in front of your house.
I wouldn't go for a website where it's hard to understand who's the dealer.
if like you said you want to save some money buying it online, this two websites may be useful http://www.crono24.com and http://www.globalwatchmarket.com.
they simply give you the contact of the dealer selling the watch you want. then you have to ask the dealer for credentials!
Don't hesitate asking anything, even when if it seems to you that is impolite asking some questions. You can't trust them just because they say they are honest, it would be stupid!

I hope my advice will be helpful.

BTW super ocean is a very nice watch congratulations for the choice.

bests

sfra

I think that's www.chrono24.com