The Breitling Watch Source Forums

I recall earlier this year we discovered a new Datora rep that was pretty darned convincing. Unfortunately I think I have found one much better and I'm having a tough time finding ANY flaws in it what-so-ever. In fact, I'm having such difficulty that I find myself almost thinking that it's a picture of a gen on a rep site. I do note however that the serial number seem to be the same for the black and white dial so that does make it look like it may in fact be a fake but it may also be it's Achilles heel.

Here's the old "good" rep done in a nice side by side by Sharkmouth.
Real is on the left and replica is on the right.


Here's the new replica on top with the gen on the bottom.



And here's the caseback for the replica.
As I mentioned the serial number seems to be the same no matter the dial color( 2105552 ).


What I'm seeing is they have fixed most of the flaws seen in the first good replica in the side by side. They have moved the 750 closer to the 7 and they have corrected the misshapen 9's. The distance between the bottom of the slide rule ticks still however does not extend to the bottom of the slide rule and the crescent on the date hand still is too wide. On a genuine Datora there is also a faint black line bordering the inside of the crescent which the rep does not have. It also appears that there is a discernible difference in the color of the dial and the slide rule on the white Datora that is not seen in a genuine. (Good luck on the black dials. ) The date (day) font is slightly narrower on the rep. Lastly, in every picture I could find of a genuine white dial Datora there seems to be a line around the 3:00 baton. On the rep it is much darker and seems to contact the baton. Not sure if that's an optical illusion or real though.

This is not so new replica (improved one).
It is very good, but one look at ticks on the slide rule, gives it away instantly.

You have much better eyes than I do.

I'm younger.
Just focus on the ticks and you can't miss.

Yeah, the slide rule ticks are the tell. Ironically, a month ago I would have spotted it instantly, because slide rule ticks were something I had just learned about. Since then that knowledge has been crowded out by other things, and I actually forgot to look, not spotting the difference until bnewbie pointed it out. So don't feel bad.

I guess I'm still not seeing what you guys are talking about on the slide rule The only thing I see is that the ticks don't reach the bottom of the slide rule. I'm afraid you're going to have to spell it out for an old man.

Old schmold. You're seeing it. The ticks on the fake don't reach the inner edge of the slide rule, bordering the dial. Technically, the ticks on the genuine one don't either, but they're very close - close enough that they can virtually be considered touching the edge. With the fake, there's a sizeable gap between the ticks and the edge. That's the giveaway. If you go back and look at a number of Navi and Bentley fakes, you'll see the same thing - big gap between the ticks and the inner edge of the slide rule.

I sometimes wonder if the counterfeiters glean information from the expertise on this forum and will one day present a visibly perfect replica.

I've wondered that myself. All the more reason why I only buy from ADs if at all possible.

Thanks, I thought I was getting senile with my old age. I am aware of that flaw as I mentioned it in my OP.

I guess I didn't make myself clear and I apologize. My point is that the best rep that I had seen up until recently was the one posted in the top pictures. There have been some modifications and improvements made to it as BN pointed out and now without really good close up pics it is a lot more difficult to identify it.

@hardrockminer: It will always benefit the fakers to make a copy imperfect in some way to avoid legal issues. If they are taken to court they could point to some tiny flaw and say "it's not exact".

Oops...yes you did. Sorry I missed that.


Indeed. And the slide rule ticks are a relatively easy fix. If the counterfeiters get that straightened out, I don't know that I'd know the difference.


They could try, but it wouldn't fly. If they're putting another company's brand on their watches, they're in violation of federal law; it likely wouldn't matter if their watches had flaws or not. Odds are, flaws wouldn't be seen by the courts as deliberate attempts to make the watches distinguishable from the real thing, but rather oversights by inattentive makers. If, on the other hand, they make it just like the original, minus the brand logo, then there's a question of whether the counterfeiters have infringed on any trademarks of the original manufacturer, and at that point distinguishing flaws might come into play. As usual, I'm talking out of my arse, given my general understanding of U.S. intellectual property law; I have not specifically researched this issue.

Thanks for answering my concerns guys,you keep talking, I'll keep learning.