The Breitling Watch Source Forums

oh my god....

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Breitling Antares B10047
Breitling Chronomat B13050
Breitling Chronomat A13050.1 - pilot bracelet
Breitling Chronomat Blackbird A13050.1 - serie spéciale
Breitling Avenger Seawolf E17370
Breitling Chronomat EVO A13356 - pilot bracelet

Hmmm….

This kind of takes me back to when I was a kid and sat there quietly having started a huge argument between my mum & dad.

At the risk of getting a good ticking off (or more likely being ignored)….

That is probably the sort of answer I expected.

I understand ETA supply up to 4 different grades of movements, depending on the movements, being (I think) standard, elaborated, top and chronometer. The differences between the movement grades is given as things like pallet stones, barrel, regulator mechanism etc. This is clearly not applicable to an ebauche if an ebauche is devoid many of thee parts that differentiate grades. So are the ebauches graded, or is it simply an ebauche. Full stop!

… and if they are graded and the ebauche is supplied without any escapement assembly (and lots of other bits that will be hugely influential in regulation), and accepting the daily rate is highly dependant on the quality and consistency of the escapement, how can they sell a “chronometer” spec ebauche? In addition, if an ebauche is a kit, the quality of assembly must also play a very significant role in the quality of the assembled movement, so again how can the ebauche be classified as “chronometer”?

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Emergency + Co-Pilot
Navitimer Heritage
Chronomat Evolution
SuperOcean Heritage 46
Avenger Seawolf Ti
Colt 2 Automatic

Incidently, if you haven't poked around the ETA website some of it is fab.

Want to know how to disassemble a 7750?

http://www.eta.ch/swisslab/7750/7750.html

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Emergency + Co-Pilot
Navitimer Heritage
Chronomat Evolution
SuperOcean Heritage 46
Avenger Seawolf Ti
Colt 2 Automatic

Most ETAs have four grades, some have five, but chronometer is the highest each time. The name chronometer is a bit misleading though because ETA's definition is that the movement is designed to be capable of achieving chronometer certification - it's not certified. Effectively it's a name for their highest grade and not much more (I guess the same confusion can come from calling the second best grade 'top').

I agree that many of the parts that affect rate are not used by Breitling anyway (I'm not sure whether they are actually supplied as, although an ebauche is technically without the escapement, it's used generically as a term for a movement kit - chablon is not much used). The major rate affecting differences will be in the running train where parts that have the smallest tolerances are used for the chronometer grade movements.

DUHHH!!! Now you say it it's so obvious.

Interesting thought that, given the way the Swiss, or more accurately COSC, defend the term chronometer (AFAIK), that ETA are allowed to throw it around in this casual way.

Thanks Roff et al.

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Emergency + Co-Pilot
Navitimer Heritage
Chronomat Evolution
SuperOcean Heritage 46
Avenger Seawolf Ti
Colt 2 Automatic

Hold on. A watch manufacturer can't just slap an ETA chronometer grade movement in the watch and label the watch a Chronometer. It has to be certified first. Otherwise the most it can be labeled is "Swiss Made" if it meets other requirements or "Swiss Movement" if it doesn't. What ETA means by "Chronometer grade" is the ebauche, chablon, or movement is CAPABLE of meeting chronometer standards. 1 So putting a Chronometer grade movement in a watch does not make the watch a chronometer. And that is the important distinction.

1 See, Roff post to Breitling Mods to ETA Movements, Breitling Discussion Forum, Breitlingsource.com, March 12, 2011, 4:04PM MST

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SHARKMAN

But don't forget that chronometer / chronometre are legitimate words in both English and French with definitions equivalent to 'an extremely accurate timepiece', so COSC can't control use of that. Granted the way that ETA uses it is clearly intended to imply more than is explicitly stated, but I guess their lawyers know which side of the line they are walking.