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Replica Breitling Navitimer Fighter Review |
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Written by By-Tor
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Page 2 of 2 For people who are interested in the "slide rule" and other numerous features on the Navitimer, I constructed this help image from previously posted resources. The dial and bezel feature information is now in more compact form.
I tried to make a lot of research of this particular model, that's part of the fun in rep collecting for me. I found out that this particular watch (SERIE SPECIALE) should _always_ come with brushed case & bracelet (instead of the highly polished band & case). But during the same research I found out that there are probably 2 billion different variations of the Navitimer. I was actually overwhelmed, even Omega Speedmaster doesn't have so many different incarnations. You have to be a real Breitling fanatic to know all the models. My head is still spinning.
On the other hand, that makes "calling out" your rep very difficult, if not impossible for most.
There's also a version which has printing "EDITION SPECIAL" over the 6'o'clock subdial, Swiss Army Special Edition, and a mid-90's "Special Fighter Edition" which comes with the same subregister / date setting, but that watch has Arabic numerals on the dial, 5-link polished bracelet and different markings on the subregisters.
Actually, when compared to the original "Serie Speciale" model the rep isn't terribly accurate. There are numerous differencies on the dial and bezel. Here you can see the original "brushed" model.
In this following comparison picture you can see a standard Navitimer (early 2000's model) which is very identical with the replica but again it doesn't have the SERIE SPECIALE written over the subdial - and the caseback most likely won't have those engraved fighter planes. I suspect even the rep factory couldn't keep up with these variations when they produced the watch, because the "Fighter Special Edition" (with the differencies I previously mentioned) was produced at the same time.
You can spot the differencies yourself. Date font, more "silvery" subdials on the rep, a bit different lume on hour markers, bezel numbers are closer to the bezel edge on the genuine, etc.
Navitimer is very exceptional replica because it has the correct subdial spacing, a thing you rarely see in reps. The rep Navitimer basically uses a copy of the genuine movement... thus the correct placement of the subregisters. I don't know for sure, but I suspect a genuine dial would fit the rep after some tweaking. I'll leave the tech talk to the hardcores, I'm happy with my watch the way it is.
The diameter of this watch is a standard sports watch caliber: around 40mm. But it's very thick watch and I believe it would look a bit funny on a smaller wrist.
The only thing that I've never been quite fond of is the highly polished Breitling bracelet, and I've never been a strap guy, either. Maybe one of these days I'll transform this watch into brushed version.
Here you can see the fliplock clasp. The clasp itself is polished as well, and the bracelet scratches very easily from this area.
We all know how the unserviced Asian 7750 movement is a ticking time bomb, but since my watch has been functioning well for the fellow member the last 12 months... at least it's something. This combination of subregisters shouldn't be too problematic as it doesn't require any modifications to the original movement (unlike Daytonas with 6'o'clock running seconds). If the movement starts giving me problems I can always service it - or buy a genuine Swiss Valjoux 7750... and send it to my friends for a replacement job.
Well, it wouldn't be a typical unserviced old Asian 7750 if it didn't have at least SOME problems: The chronograph works but the stopwatch has an occasional reset problem. No big deal for me, I rarely use the stopwatch in any of my chronograph watches. If you're going to get a 7750-powered watch I recommend that you read Ziggy's excellent breakdowns and reviews of the Asian 7750 movement... so you have an idea what you're getting into. He has covered the issue very throughly. You can read Ziggy's articles
HERE,
HERE and HERE.
Movement. Excellent picture by Rschultes.
Summary:
I only buy larger sports watches (because of my physical size) but I'm always trying to look for some variation. Breitling Navitimer is an excellent, classic addition into my compact watch collection... and despite its small flaws it's a solid, substantial, heavy and good replica watch. And owning at least one Breitling is a "must" for all hardcore rep collectors. According to some, the newer rep version of the Navitimer is even more accurate... the one that has datewheel at 5'o'clock... but that watch has a nasty datewheel alignment issue. Either way, you can't go wrong with Navitimer. I already fell in love with mine.
Compare to Genuine Breitling Navitimers on eBay
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By-Tor |
| About the author: |
| By-Tor is a well-known poster on several forums related to the study of replica watches. His analysis is always detailed and colorful. |
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 29 November 2007 )
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