The Breitling Watch Source Forums

Can you recall your very first exposure to Breitling? The first time you actually heard about the brand?
What was the very first Breitling watch you remember seeing? What impression did it make on you at that time?

For me it goes back to around 1998 when a colleague from our office in Sweden visited our Hong Kong office.
While in Hong Kong he went out watch shopping and came back with the Chronomat B13050, SS/Gold, blue dial with gold subdials.
The minute I saw the watch I just went "Wow, what is that?". It was pretty much love at first sight.
I remember seeing this model later all over the place in various advertisements in magazines and even newspapers.
Since than my next watch was going to be a Breitling.
It took a while though as my first Breitling did not come until 2001.

What brought this on? Simply the fact that one is sitting on my wrist today

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"It is just a matter of time!"

My first encounter was 15 years ago. Here in Australia, we are not as exposed to a great range of watches as in Europe or the States, on an everyday basis. So you have to know to be able to find and you have to track them down like on Safari. I might add, things are a little different today and all for the better.

I was always fascinated by Japanese watches with a circular slide rule, which are common place in Speciality shops and Makers AD’s here on the east coast. I have a few Japanese SR watches, but when I started researching (with the aid of the internet), I found many Swiss makers as keenly involved in SRW as the Japanese, and was astonished by my first Breitling contact. It was an old style Navitimer 806 from the mid 60’s, APOA style.



Today, I am wearing a Chrono Matic 44, which is a far cry from that first encounter. Funny enough, I still do not have an 806 in my possession, as I have been distracted by the dazzling array of Breitlings that have also take my fancy. There is always time later on for an 806!

Jim

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Jim

"You have Control".

Several of my clients have worn them since the 1980's.

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Breitling Chronomat 44 Evolution C13356 Rose Gold/SS
Breitling Chronomat 44 B01 LE Black Pearl Rose Gold/SS
Breitling Chronomat 44 B01 White Pearl Rose Gold/SS
Rolex Daytona TT White Face

Getting a dream luxury watch was what I had always wished for since young but it can be so hard to find a holy grail that u like from head to bottom. Rolex was the only brand I knew of among luxury watches many years ago but I wasn't impressed at all by their outdated design and felt that majority wear them just to show off that they could afford an expensive watch. Until about 10 years ago I saw my uncle wearing a Breitling Chronomat and I was stunned by the beauty and it's all rounded form. I am not attracted by blingy watches and have never felt that Breitling watches are blingy(except some of the versions where they have diamonds on their bezels). Where aesthetic appearance is concerned, I think beauty is the word to describe my first impression of the watch at that time(even now) because they combine the right size, design and polish to create just the right amount of wrist presence that impresses but not show off. The look on that watch just tells me that it is so unique as compared to other watches, yet classic that will never go out of style. After seeing the watch on my uncle's wrist I told myself that this is how a luxury watch should look like and it became my goal to own one. I only managed to fulfill that dream a few months back but I am happy that I fulfilled it after all. My uncle got his watch so much cheaper many years back so compared to now. All Breitling owners including myself should be glad with what we have already gotten because we can expect the retail prices to just keep increasing, even resale that we might find it harder and harder to add more to our collections. With their in-house movements now and many more in years to come, hope that it can one day catch up with Rolex in terms of value.

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Breitling Chronomat 01 Limited Edition
Breitling Navitimer 01 46mm

I was meeting my best friend for lunch about 3 years ago. Now at this time, we were in our early 20's and he was wearing a Breitling that a family friend let him borrow. Now at this time, I was still rocking my Movado that was a gift from my girlfriend (now wife) that I thought was a nice watch. But I remember being enamored with his Breitling. After some research I knew Breitling was the watch for me when I had the means!

I was on a cruise years and years ago and my Uncle was checking out an Emergency... I still want one, but I'm waiting to see the new version... whenever that may be. I remember a couple years later I was in a watch shop in the Caribbean and saw a Breitling that was around $800.00, I got all excited and told my dad we could probably get a discount and I could pay him back however long that would take. It turned out the $800.00 was just for a pilot bracelet alone!!

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sco
Breitling Chrono Superocean
Omega Aqua Terra 8500
Rolex Submariner Date Ceramic

While serving in the military during the 80's, a couple of the operators that I knew had Breitlings. One of the pilots (helo's) that flew for us had one as well. I had two Rolex's at the time, and while happy with those, was intrigued nonetheless.
I started collecting and have been doing so for the better part of 30 years.
-jbbb

I honestly can't remember when/where I first got interested in the brand. But I do remember the first model I was interested in was the Aerospace, because of the digital features along with analog hands. That was about 2006 or so. I'll also add that I wasn't into luxury watches at the time and had no other experience with other brands. Exciting huh .

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Chrono Jetstream
Montbrilliant 1903
Aerospace E79362

I remember looking at Breitlings on a trip to the Bahamas in 2005. I was set on getting a Tag Aquaracer but made a comment about a Breitling instead to the sales rep and she showed me some colts which at the time weren't a huge price difference more. I got back home, started doing some research and planned on picking one up once I finished my MBA a couple of years later. I told myself and my wife that it would be the last watch I would ever need. It's a watch I'll never sell since it represents finishing my MBA.



And pictured with the last Breitling I bought

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Justin
Please contact me via PM for the contact details for Govberg Jewelers
Govberg is an AD for over 50 fine Swiss and German watch brands.
Visit them on the web at http://www.govbergwatches.com or call 800-528-8463

When I worked in television during the late '80s, I attended the National Association of Broadcasters convention. It is a huge convention with mammoth halls filled with hundreds of booths for broadcast and production equipment vendors. A small company had a booth there, selling stopwatches and other timing devices used in production. They also showed a Breitling Aerospace Titanium. I fell in love with it as soon as I saw it, but at $1300 it was way too expensive for me. I finally achieved my dream of owning one last summer.

--Phil

After having spent twenty years with the NYPD I was forced to retire in 2001 due to injuries suffered while working. Working in the law enforcement field you are literally forced to account for every minute of every day. As soon as I retired, I rebelled somewhat and refused to wear a watch. After twenty plus years of noting what time it was and what I was doing I was no longer interested in knowing the time. After nine years of no watches, my wife surprised me at Christmas with a silver faced SuperOcean Steelfish X-Plus. It has been all down hill since then as far as the bank account is concerned as the collection has grown. She recently mentioned that I might want to reconsider my watch of the month purchase if I wished to remain married!! Food for thought!!

August 2008 on vacation at the Beverly Hilton, I spent the entire trip in the hotel's AD drooling over the Breitling Evo. The whole plane ride home I reading the chronolog and I became hooked on lings.

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

All I knew was Rolex growing up. In 2006 my friend who has a lot of money was wearing this watch white face, which I later new to be a navitimer. His friend was wearing wearing an avenger at the time. My friend with the navitimer his was all iced out which was not my taste. I do like certain watches with diamond bezels. So that's how I learned of breitling, but wasn't really exposed to the brand in depth till I bought my first ling last year, my blue faced navi world.

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Avenger Seawolf black baton (custom 1.7 diamond bezel)
Chronomat 01 MOP diamond dial and bezel

I blame Novacastrian. Always noticed his nice watches over the years, then he lent me his Cosmonaute DB... the rest is history The clincher was flying around for work with our helo pilots, one of whom has an Emergency.

It was impossible to avoid seeing them on wrists and in magazine ads, when I got into aviation.