The Breitling Watch Source Forums

Absolutely on the money for me too, it was my first grail and is still my favorite watch! You dont get it till you own one, but it is the most well rounded watch I have ever owned.

But people have different tastes, for a bit more you can probably get a nice used Safari, at around 13-14000 USD. Fantastic watch!!!

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Certified watch nut.

Thanks Altair, I was hoping you'd chime in. Boy there seems to be a lot of support for that prticular Pam and I'll cetainly have to try it on. I love all the ROOs and tried on the Safari at the Breitling AD which is also the only local AP AD. Sadly the length/style of the case and thickness of the strap did not correctly hug my wrist, so it and the other ROOs were out. The style of the ROOs has always been a favorite.

So far my thoughts are towards the Pam 233, Brueguet type XXI (that XXII may know be my grail, but is too costly I'm afraid,), the Fifty Fathoms (if there was one I could actually try on short of a trip to the Blancpain NYC shop), the Deep Sea, and perhaps the JLC diver. Oh yeah, the IWC Portugese. I'd love to get some info on that LE Speedmaster but it is hard to find much.

In short every watch mentioned so far. Which is great since I hadn't before considered a one save the Deep Sea.

Thanks to everyone.

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SHARKMAN

If you are going to look at the IWC Portuguese also try and find a Vintage Portofino. It's larger than the regular Portofinos and may be too big at 46mm, but it wears smaller because of the thickness (only 11mm).

I don't get everyones love for Panerai's.. The radiomir's are cool but the rest seem very odd to me....also what's the purpose of the metal covering the crown?? I don't get it...am I missing something?

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"I don't own any watches, I just lease them"

Well gents I just got an email from my AD about that cool LE Speedmaster split second Altair posted some months ago. $15,000 list retail! Sheesh. But they are saying they MIGHT be able to do it for $10,000.

This is the watch that has been bouncing around in my head for 2 months. Of course I'd need to see just how much "wrist presence" it has.

I imagine the AD will come back around $12,000 out the door (sales tax is now 9.3% as of today!). But it's just a Speedy. Am I nuts for even thinking about it???

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SHARKMAN

NO WAY, DUDE YOU ARE IN "RARIFIED" TERRITORY AT THIS PRICE POINT YOU SHOULD BE FOCUSED ON THE BEST PRODUCTS AVAILABLE; ONLY...A P 15300 ST, JLC, VACHERON,(OVERSEAS) PATEK (CALATRAVA) TWO TONE ROLEX....BREITLING FOR BENTLEY.....

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Keepin' Time...

That's what I was thinking. Dang it I really love this watch too, but an extra $10,000 list retail for what - a zirconium oxide based ceramic dial and a small LE??

On with the quest.

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SHARKMAN

There is a limited Navy Seals model of the JLC MC Diving Chrono that is shockingly beautiful, imo.. The articulated rubber strap pictured is super comfortable, but I think there are also other options. The size is 44mm iirc, and it wears perfectly on my 6.75 wrist.

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-RJ

That's a hot piece!!!

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"I don't own any watches, I just lease them"

Well this one and the Breguet are top of the heap. Thanks RJ.

But I would be remiss by not saying - "GO CELTICS" - which is pretty much all you hear in Phoenix lately.

44MM eh? An actual link rubber strap? Must be comfortable as hell and right in the price range.

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SHARKMAN

Celtics!!!!!

The strap is just like a normal metal bracelet but has rubber links instead. Its pretty cool in person, and very comfy. Combined with the weight of the titanium case, the watch is a feather considering the size of it.

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-RJ

I agree with what others have said about determining what your own "holy grail" is. If you have to ask others on the forum, you probably should be doing more research.

In any case, you're going to find a large number of people on here like PAM's. I personally am not on the boat yet, but I can't deny Panerai makes some incredible pieces. Visually, I'm just not crazy about them . . . yet.

I would recommend checking out the Zenith Chronomaster line. They use the El Primero movement, which is an absolute classic. Also, all their movements are in house. I believe the steel versions are in the $6-8k range. If you're willing to spend $12k, you may want to look into Jaeger LeCoultre. You'll be hard pressed to find something in the 43-44mm range, though. The last line I would recommend is the IWC Portuguese. I think they're visually stunning, but I don't believe this particular line has an in house movement, like the Zenith or Jaeger's do. Finally, like someone else mentioned, Ulysse Nardin has some stuff you should check out . . . I think the Maxi Marine is what I'm thinking about. I'm not extremely familiar with the models, but I recall a few weeks ago looking at some in your price range.

-Craig

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Chronomat 01- Sierra Silver/Steel
Navitimer 01- Limited Edition #1337/2000

Shark...you need a Rolex GMT Master II so in two month when your tired of it I can buy it from you!!

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"I don't own any watches, I just lease them"

Just to confuse you even more, I'll throw this one out there -

IWC Portuguese Yacht Club Chronograph . At 45mm, it's slightly larger than you were aiming for, but what's a millimeter or 2? It's also only available on a rubber strap, so maybe that's too sporty. BUT - what a beautiful piece. In-house movement, display back, 68hr reserve. I've seen different numbers on retail, from $12-$15k usd.



Good luck!

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Breitling Colt GMT
Breitling Navitimer World
IWC Portuguese Automatic
Breitling Transocean Chronograph LE

RJ - that JLC is a great suggestion. So is the Portuguese Yacht Club in kstone's post. I'd love to have either of those pieces.

toddb - even though I love Speedmasters, I agree with the point you're making, but surely it's stretching things a bit to put Breitling for Bentley in that company?