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Why are breitling watches so relatively unpopular? Iam new to watches and the Navitimer is subjectively one of the prettiest watches for me. What are the reasons why i should reconsider a purchase? I have heard that these watches are relatively bad when it comes to holding value. But is the build quality inferior to other watches or what happened that makes them so unpopular?
Thanks
yea, Breitling made that Pistachio dial Chrono and I still think about it. My favorite Breitling is my Tudor Black Bay Chrono Panda.
Breitling is a thinking man’s watch. Technical and busy. I like them but I prefer a sleek aesthetic
I don't think they are relatively unpopular. Occasionally they pick up some flack but on the whole folks like them from what I can tell. Disclaimer - I've got two and love them!
Same here. I have a B-2 and a Super Avenger and I love them both although my B-2 is a bit small for me nowadays.
I fell in love with breitling, really wanted one... Then I tried one on and the moment it was on my wrist it looks totally different to the pictures and what it did under the bright light.
I was incredibly disappointed, I ended up with a omega seamaster 300m instead, and it's done nothing but increase in value while the breitling has stayed the same price...
Interesting. I tried them back to back and the Omega felt noticeably more fragile than the Superocean.
Maybe it depends on location. But in certain cities like LA or Miami, Breitling is still considered a popular watch particularly among younger people (think young urban professional in 20s, 30s and even early 40s). Whereas a nice brand like Omega is generally seen as an older mature man’s watch. Breitling is kind of the in between of Rolex and Hublot. Flash and pop of Hublot with that hip hop fame, yet still timeless and elegant.
I have the avenger Seawolf in titanium, love it but it’s a very difficult watch to wear. First the bracelet is squared off edges that dig in your wrist as you sit at the keyboard. There are gouges on my desk where the watch has rubbed on the desk.
Second the lugs on the crown snag on your shirt or jacket and is almost always rotated about 45’ instead of staying at the 12. I don’t even bother rotating back anymore.
The lum dots for a diver watch are so small and dim they are useless. In similar light exposure my submariner will still be glowing for hours. The only time I’ve actually noticed the lum on the breitling being useful was I came in from the tropical mid day sun to a darken hotel room.
Plus like others said their advertising is of an image of someone that flies fighter planes for work and races ww2 planes for fun. I’m not on the red bull stunt team, I don’t need a watch that has a knurled bezel that imitates a mag lite flashlight and still impossible to tell the time
Resale value isn't great, but the watches are amazing.
No discounts from the boutique, but you can squeeze 20-25% discounts from authorised resellers, which I feel brings it more into line with what the watch is actually worth.
Also worth noting, Navitimers come with 2 different movements. Breitling's B01 movement is in-house, and far superior (and more expensive) to the ETA movement.
There are slight visual differences on the actual Navitimer dial, between the two versions.
The B01 has a longer power reserve, compared to ETA as well.
Vintage navitimers are all over eBay in the 5k range.
And...?
Resale in the sense of AP, Patek, Rolex etc.
Modern Breitlings aren't in that resale value sphere.
Not an issue if one never sells...
I agree and I think the navitimer is one of the most iconic breitling model, especially the chronograph version.
I don't really know why, but if I may guess, a lot of people in this sub tend to want a steel bracelet and the navitimer doesn't come with it. The second one is that a lot of people prefer clean look, while the navitimer is quite busy.
What happened is this
Breitling used to be almost in the upper excellons of watchmaking in the XX century. But they have not learnt how to properly explore their own back catalogue and give people what they want.
They don't have a well defined brand image and that makes people opt for other brands in the same price range.
They tried to associate with Bentley cars to whom they've always been linked again to get out of this hole they've dug but...it hasn't been going too well. The cars are still more popular than Breitling watches last I checked. And also some brands costing less can sometimes offer a better product such as Tag Heuer or Longines nowadays
Personally I don't like Breitling watches because they are too busy. It's actually hard to read some of them.
Agree - but I just picked up a new model SuperOcean in black/white and put it on a rubber strap. It’s clean and high contrast. 42mm dial with short lug length and 12.5mm thick. Really clean, wearable watch.
too busy.
Agree. I’ve been on a Glycine romp recently and the Airman I think is the “busiest” I can handle while still being legible. It’s a 24 hour watch after all so there’s 13-24 you need to make space for on the dial
I think it's mostly a brand problem and not a watch quality problem. They got bought out in the 80s and has struggled to come up with their own identity ever since (similar to TAG Heuer's trajectory in the 90s). Their big heavy hitter is the Navitimer, but they haven't had any iconic new releases to capitalize on that heritage. Plus, at that price point it's overshadowed by the Speedmaster, which is even more iconic than the Navitimer. All the desperate celebrity ambassador partnerships haven't helped (TBF, Omega does the same thing, but Omega actually has the watch design variety to back the celebrity collabs up).
I find their iconic stuff too busy, and their newer stuff (like the dive watches with the mallet hands) really ugly.
All entirely subjective, YMMV.
I always loved the Navitimer, but it was kind of big for my wrist. Now that there's a 41mm I need to start saving up. What a gorgeous watch.
Thanks!
Navitimer plays down a mm or so IMO, the way the dial sits vs. lugs is sort of like an optical illusion. This is a 43 mm on my wrist (7.75") for reference. I probably could have gone with a 46, but I think this fits perfect. So long as lugs aren't slipping off the end (something I see too much on reddit).
It's funny, because my wrist is 7.5" and my daily driver is an Omega GSotM at 44.25mm, but I tried on a 43mm Navitimer a couple of months ago and it looked waaaay too big for me.
Looks just right on your wrist, though.
Not bad watches although many models are busy and over designed but they are very overpriced new when compared to the competition. They also have struggled to adopt to changing trends namely smaller case sizes and vintage inspired pieces. So much of their output still screams mid aughts.
I’ve always had a lot of respect and admiration for Breitling, even through the John Travolta “I’m a pilot and I wear Breitling” gaudy advertisement years. I think Kern is doing a good job overall, but one thing I just can’t get behind is their insistence on going back to an objectively hideous logo. It just feels like an Invicta logo to me. I love the B, and I love the anchor and wings, but the shield and wings is hideous.
Also, if Sinn can make a Navitimer with 100m water resistance, so can poppa Kern.
They don’t do much to push the envelope, and they rest too much on the Navitimer heritage, IMO.
The new premier line was a hit to me, and I almost bought one, but in the end it was too much polish for me to be comfortable with.
That's not even the real navitimer ;)
One of the most beautiful watch I own, even my wife can stop herself from stealing it once in a while when we go out
I love my Breitling Superocean, I’ve worn it as my daily watch for 2 years now, it’s solid and heavy and build like a tank. I also got my eyes on the newer Navitimer, it’s gonna be my next purchase.
Love my Navitimer in 46mm. Just a classy watch.
Unpopular is a good thing. In a crowd of identical Submariners I wear my Superocean proudly.
