The Breitling Watch Source Forums

Decent watches? It seems that Kobold did what many of the other smaller micro builders are trying to do... he made a small watch company successful, with high desirability, alot of celeb support, and high prices. But my question is are his watches really anything special? I can't really identify anything which sets him apart from companies like Stowa, Doxa, Zinex... etc, yet his prices are substantially higher (sugg retail).

Just curious what the Ling'ers think?

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I don't have any experience, but I tend to agree with you - lots of marketing, lots of celebrity endorsements and lots of gimmicky type of promotional things (although they are generally for charity to be fair).

I think that buyers are just paying to sustain that image rather than getting anything substantially better.

Regardless of what we think about the watches, the guy did something right from a business perspective. I see pics of him posing with Clinton and Gandolfini, and hosts of other celebs, now he is climbing Everest with Sir Feinnes. All this spawned from a university project. Yup, he did something right... and I think that "something" is good marketing of an average watch. And yes, I agree he has done alot for charity, always a good thing.

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Resurrection time... I missed this thread first time around, but just found it with the search function (a Kobold has caught my eye today and I'm on a fact-finding mission )

Must say I like the look of a few of them. Agree completely about the price being too high, but that's a common criticism of one of my other favourite brands (B&R). Second-hand they seem to change hands for quite a bit less. I'll keep my eye on the sales forums - if I find a mint Arctic Diver, I might just be tempted.

Must say I am not a fan.

These models below for example, which are the only 2 I dont mind.. run $5000 and $3500 respectively!

http://www.koboldwatch.com/products/arc ... -p-63.html



http://www.koboldwatch.com/products/arc ... -p-28.html



Now this one the other hand looks much better IMO, has an awesome clasp and is $400-600 USD depending on wether you buy the or Auto.

Boschett Cave Dweller II

(The owner of this watch is actually a member on here. Zirotti)

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PAM359M | PAM311L | PAM305L | PAM219M | PAM292K

Spot on mate, those are EXACTLY the two I like. Although I'd probably steer clear of the DLC version, despite how good it looks.

Second-hand, near mint to mint SS versions seem to run around the USD 1750-2000 mark. Much more reasonable IMO. Supposedly these have the top-grade ETA movement in them too?

Seriously, buy the Boschett. You wont lose money on it and its a fantastic looking watch if you want that 'look'.

The Kobold is overpriced even under $2k IMO.

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PAM359M | PAM311L | PAM305L | PAM219M | PAM292K

While I kind of like Kobold Watches, to me they look like a weird combination of Rolex Dial + Sinn Case + IWC Hands most of the time. The Boschett looks much better in my opinion and costs much less.

The only Kobolds that are desirable are some of the ones that use the USA made watch Forsett movement that has been modified by Kobold, but those puppies are up in the $5K range.

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BreitlingSource Admin
http://www.breitlingsource.com - http://blog.breitlingsource.com

Sorry guys, still can't agree. The Boschett looks like an incredible watch for the money, but I wouldn't choose it over the Arctic Diver, for a few reasons:

1. It's too thick for my tastes.
2. The name - seriously, what's that about? I'm not wearing something that says "cave dweller" on it.
3. The movement, it's just not as good as the one in the Kobold, IMO, and I think that matters.

And perhaps to a lesser extent, yes I can be a bit of a name snob, and when there is some buzz around a brand, that has some attraction for me. I'm not saying it's the most important thing, but if it was completely unimportant then I'd just have a collection of the really good Seiko divers and I'd be happy.

lol.. no one is a bigger name snob than me.. I just know a value piece when I see it.

Cave Dweller - Sea Dweller... same difference right?

You found a good deal on the Kobold? It's certainly a nice watch - but just not much different from the Boschett to warrant over 5x the price.

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PAM359M | PAM311L | PAM305L | PAM219M | PAM292K

All this boschett talk is making me itch to get one....I've been wanting a PVD watch...

Completely different connotation!

I'm not going buy a new Kobold (there are many other watches I would rather put almost 4k US towards) but I will keep an eye out for a good one under 2k.

Perhaps the sudden urge is just because I miss my B&R.

Ahh me too! Not a PVD watch but a Boschett! I just got off their website and had to hold back as I havent even worn my SA yet and I got it about a month ago.

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SA-Baton White Dial/ProII
Tissot Le Locle

I noticed there is a $200 difference between the Cave Dweller(with Miyota mvt)and Cave Dweller S (with ETA mvt).Can anyone explain what extra you get for your money with the ETA?Is it worth the extra dosh?

A jap or swiss movement. For this pricepoint I usually dont mind, however, for an extra 200 I may go for the ETA. I would like others opinion on whether or not you think its worth the price.

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SA-Baton White Dial/ProII
Tissot Le Locle