rionrlty

It all seems kind of silly to me. Everyone knows that entertainers and people in the limelight are basically phonies anyway. They are not concerned about whether something is real or not but only how it is perceived by the public. Most everything about them is illusion and showmanship anyway. There public lives and persona's are, for the most part, simply more illusion, so in that respect a fake watch seems right in order, right along with phony stage props.

That's beautiful. I think they list a blue dial one on Puretime and Trusty time, but it has white subdials, which is not listed on the Breitling site. In fact all Breitling lists are the black dial with white subdials and slide rule bezel. They do list an all white version as a limited edition. I'm especially fond of the the blue dial two tone and wish they would bring that back.

That looks great. When did they make it? Do you have a larger picture of it. I just checked the Breitling web site and they only list the Black/White version and the all white one, in either stainless or all gold. I guess they dumped the two tone also, which was a favorite of mine.

Thing with the new Navitimer 01. I can't find any evidence that Breitling even make a blue dial on the new Navitimer.

I gave this reply to a comment received (below) regarding my recent review in Breitling forum of my New Navitimer 01, which has the (so called) “low beat” 21,600bph A7750 movement. As it regards a subject that I would like to know more about I am starting a new string here in hopes that some of you more knowledgeable folks will comment on the subject. Despite the fact that most seem to believe that this movement has a noticeably more stuttering second hand movement (it actually does seem to), because of the lower beat count, I am skeptical and spell out my reasoning below. Is it really that simple or are there other factors at play here? __________________________________________________________________ Yes, there is a “low beat” version of the 7750 in both the Chinese version as well as the older gen ETA versions, however the term “high beat” has always been a relative term. I’m not an expert but my understanding is that there were many (high end) watches prior to the 1960’s, with accurate chronometer grade movements, which only ran in the 10-11,000 bph range. I still have a Bulova automatic that I purchased new in 1965, which I believe runs in this range. Curiously the large second hand sweeps smoothly and the watch has always been quite accurate, even though it was only serviced once about 30 years ago and it was not treated gently during that time. I believe that one of the first “high beat” movements was produced in the 1960s by Seiko. It only ran at 18,800bph. A few years later they produce one that ran at 36,000bph but ran into reliability problems with it. So, it would seem that, while the newer 7750 runs at 28,800, the older version at 21,600bph (while it is slower), in the long term scheme of things, should not be referred to as a “low beat” movement, only less high than the newer version. The mystery to me is that when a true “low beat” (11,000bph) movement can reach chronometer grade accuracy, with a smooth running second hand, then why is the high beat version so important? The second hand on my new Navitimer 01 (21,600bph) is clearly not as smooth as the one on my fighters, which has a Breitling B-13 caliber (ETA7750 based 28,800 bph) movement. What I can’t seem to figure out is why the second hand on my old Bulova, which runs at less than half that speed, appears just as smooth as the 28,800bph version. Could there be something else at play here contributing to the stutter. I have heard much about the Chinese movements being dirty. Could this be a factor in the stutter of the second hand? Also, it would seem to me that the higher the beat the faster that parts, related to the balance and escapement, would wear out. I would love to hear others opinions on this.

Guys, thanks for the response. Here are my 4 current Navitimers. The Fighters rep on the left is a franken with gen croc strap, gen B13 movement, gen crown, gen stem and gen 18mm deployant. The case, crown and pushers have been brushed to look like the gen. All the reps came polished, which is incorrect. TT second from left is a franken w/ gen ETA 7750, gen crown and stem and gen blue TT dial. Third from left is my standard rep Datora. Last, on the right is my new rep Navitimer 01.

I just took my 49 year old Bulova out of the drawer, waved it back and forth a few times to start it running and the second hand runs smooth as silk. It is shorter than the Navitimer being a 36mm watch, but it has completely fluid movement.

I know there have been many comments on Chinese movements being dirty from the factory. I wonder if this could contribute to the stuttering.

I gave this reply to a comment received (below) regarding my recent review in this forum of my New Navitimer 01, which has the “low beat” 21,600bph A7750 movement. As it regards a subject that I would like to know more about I am starting a new string here in hopes that some of you more knowledgeable folks will comment on the subject. Despite the fact that most seem to believe that this movement has a noticeably more stuttering second hand movement (it actually does seem to), because of the lower beat count, I am skeptical and spell out my reasoning below. Is it really that simple or are there other factors at play here? __________________________________________________________________ Yes, there is a “low beat” version of the 7750 in both the Chinese version as well as the older gen ETA versions, however the term “high beat” has always been a relative term. I’m no expert but I believe that there were many (high end) watches prior to the 1960’s, with accurate chronometer grade movements, which only ran in the 10-11,000 bph range. I still have a Bulova automatic that I purchased new in 1965, which I believe runs in this range. Curiously the large second hand sweeps smoothly and the watch has always been quite accurate, even though it was only serviced once about 30 years ago. I believe that one of the first “high beat” movements was produced in the 1960s by Seiko. It only ran at 18,800bph. A few years later they produce one that ran at 36,000bph. So, it would seem that while the newer 7750 runs at 28,800, the older version at 21,600bph (while it is slower), in the long term scheme of things, should not be referred to as a “low beat” movement, only less high than the newer version. The mystery to me is that when a true “low beat” (11,000bph) movement can reach chronometer grade accuracy, with a smooth running second hand, then why is the high beat version so important? The second hand on my new Navitimer 01 (21,600bph) is clearly not as smooth as the one on my fighters, which has an ETA7750 28,800 bph movement. What I can’t seem to figure out is why the second hand on my old Bulova, which runs at less than half that speed, appears just as smooth at the 28,800bph version. Could there be something else at play here contributing to the stutter. Also, it would seem to me that the higher the beat the faster that parts, related to the balance and escapement, would wear out. I would love to hear others opinions on this. _______________________________________________________________________________________

Rek001, Breitling apparently does not make the gen watch with the dark blue face although it is available as a rep. This watch does have the so called “low beat” movement (21,600bph) and yes the large chronograph hand does stutter slightly, but not the small seconds. The term “high beat” however has always been a relative term IMHO. I’m no expert but I believe that there were many (high end) watches prior to the 1960’s, with accurate chronometer grade movements, which only ran in the 10-11,000 bph range. I still have a Bulova automatic that I purchased new in 1965, which I believe runs in this range. Curiously the large second hand sweeps smoothly and the watch has always been quite accurate, even though it was only serviced once about 30 years ago, plus it has not had an easy life. I believe that one of the first “high beat” movements was produced in the 1960s by Seiko. It ran at 18,800bph. A few years later they produce one that ran at 36,000bph. So, it would seem that while the newer 7750 runs at 28,800, the older version at 21,600bph (while it is slower) in the long term scheme of things should not be referred to as a “low beat” movement. The mystery to me is that when a true “low beat” (11,000bph) movement can reach chronometer grade accuracy why is the high beat version so important? Wouldn't it just wear out the balance and escapement parts faster? The second hand on this new Navitimer is clearly not as smooth as the one on my fighters, which has an ETA7750 28,800 bph movement. What I can’t seem to figure out is why the second hand on my old Bulova, which runs at less than half that speed, appears just as smooth at the 28,800bph version. Could there be something else at play here besides beat? I would love to hear others opinions on this.

Bigdav13, I’m older already, but Navitimer has been a favorite of mine for decades. My favorite Uncle was a Military jet pilot for 25 years starting in the Korean Conflict. He wore a Navitimer later in life and still had on when he was laid to rest. I believe my admiration for him cause me to like them. I’ve had many Breitlings of all models over the years, but the Navitimer has always drawn the most attention and comments.

MOAB, I have had a lot of Navitimers over the years including the original 38mm version, a gen 70s vintage cosmonaut hand wind and several more recent versions. I don’t currently have a gen, but at one time was able to compare my gen 6,9,12 to the first low beat version of the A7750 fighters from around 10-12 years ago. It looked the part, but performed horribly. I’ve since frankened it with gen parts and a gen Breitling B13 movement. I also have a franken TT 6,9,12, with a gen 7750 and beautiful gen blue dial. I don’t think I could part with either of these and will probably wear them, one on each wrist to the promised land, ha ha. This new version is quite good and I like it a lot. Only time will tell if I establish a long term connection to it, but for now things look very favorable for it.

Although I have bought many new reps over the last 15-20 years this is my first ordered from a TD since I became involved with the forums about 1 ½ years ago now. Mind you I’ve done many m2m purchases but shied away from buying from a dealer due to some really unpleasant experiences just prior to joining. Although I own other brands, Breitling has always been my favorite and I have owned many gens as well as reps during that time. Although I am the proud owner of two franken Navitimers, a fighters and a TT, when the new Navitimer 01 was announced I knew I had to have one. I also knew I wouldn’t be able to wait for one to become available m2m. Although I initially planned to buy one from Angus at Puretime, I eventually ended up ordering from Andrew at Trusty Time mostly due to method of payment limitations. They were nearly the same price with one charging more for the watch and less for shipping and the other less for the watch and more for shipping. It basically evened out in the end. In the end I was extremely pleased with the service I received. I had needlessly resigned myself to be patient, as the process took much less time than I anticipated. The watch was ordered on March 8th and 5 days later on March 13th I received QC photos. I was unable to find any obvious flaws and approved them the same day. The watch arrived at my home in Southern California 5 days later on March 18th. Communication was excellent all through the process. Upon receipt the watch proved as good as the QC pictures suggested, with no noticeable flaws. All in all I was quite pleased with the look and quality of the watch with just a few qualifying comments. Of course we are still dealing with the sunken date wheel although with the white graphics on the black background it is much less obvious than on previous models. I won’t comment on the font style as I never found this to be a big deal on the earlier reps as some did. The double AR on this model is as good as I've seen on an un-modded rep and the Lume is excellent too in my opinion I immediately set about resizing the bracelet and was surprised to find that, unlike on previous reps, the bracelet was very supple, without any of the stiffness on previous examples, even with the screws tightly cinched down. Still, just for safety I removed and used Loctite on the screws before re-installing them. I was pleasantly surprised with the fit between the SELs and the lugs, which was much better than on previous models. Also the shape of the lugs, especially the width and beveled outer edges, seemed very close to the gen. This is one of the more noticeable flaws in the earlier models in my opinion. I also re-arched the clasp slightly, as I do on most, so that it fit the curvature of my wrist better and more comfortably. The marks on the clasp in this picture are lint, not scratches as they appear. I’ve heard others comment about knurled edges of the bezel being wrong on earlier models too, but I never agreed with this as I have compared them with gen and found them to be very accurate. On this newer rep they appear very close to gen pictures although I don’t have a gen to compare directly with. Unlike on the earlier watches the slide rule ring scale matches pretty well with those on the dial. The back cover, to me, is one of the bigger improvements as it appears very close to the shape of the gen, at least in pictures. Additionally, although the watch is stated on the official Breitling site as being 43mm in diameter and 14.25mm thick, the rep measures 42.5mm diameter and 15.5mm thick. I understand the additional thickness because of the date wheel problem, but although this affects the appearance very little I wonder with the amount of effort that must have been put into the design of the watch why the diameter could not have been copied more closely, especially when compared with my Datora, which is spot on. Finally, although there may be very small flaws in the execution, this is a very nice rep with a high quality appearance. When I judge a rep I use this analogy. If this watch were placed in front of an average consumer (not nitpickers like us), on a table side by side with the gen, I doubt that person would be able to tell which was gen and which was rep. It may not be a super rep, but it’s darn nice just the same and I for one am quite pleased with it. .

The problem here is that there are many different sizes and configs on gen crowns. Maybe you just didn't get the correct one.

The problem here is that there are and least two different sizes and maybe three and they will not interchange. On the older reps (not the new Navitimer 01) if you tighten these then the bracelet is stiff and binds. This stiffness causes the screws to loosen and fall out eventually. The solution is to remove the screw one by one, put Loctite on them, and then tighten them just enough so the bracelet doesn't bind. This has worked well for me and I haven't lost a screw since doing this. Just for safety I've even performed this on my new Navitimer 01.

Keys, I can’t tell for sure if there is enough hook or not in the picture you furnished. It doesn’t take much and a small jewelers file should do the trick. Also a dremel tool with a good bit assortment could work, I’ve used both methods, but read further before you attempt this. I’ve had these that wouldn’t stay closed even with a decent overhang on the lower catch. The trick is this. You’ve got two arched pieces that hinge together and you’ve got to shorten the top one in relation to the bottom one. This seems impossible until you realize that the more curved the arch of the top piece the shorter it becomes compared to the bottom piece where the hook is. So, you need to bend the top piece (it’s thinner and easier than the bottom one) to a little more curve than the bottom piece. One way is to do this is to use some thin pliers and pad the jaws with vinyl tape so it won’t scratch the surface, but if you have strong hands you may be able to do it without the pliers, I can. It won’t take much so bend it in a tighter arch just a little at a time and keep trying it until it catches firmly. If you bend it too much then it will be hard to close and you’ll need to straighten it out a little. Don't worry, it shouldn't break. When you press the two pieces together you should feel a slight snap when it engages properly. Try this before you file on the lower catch as it is not so much that it needs a hook, but more the angle that the top piece pulls at that keeps it closed. After you get it tight enough so that it closes firmly, if it still will not stay closed then a little filing on the lower catch is called for. Like I said it won’t take much. I hope this works for you. It did for me. It is the same procedure I use on any deployant clasp that is either too tight or too loose. Mike

It is the old Navitimer and the slide rule doesn't line up with the dial. Back cover is wrong shape but engraving looks better than before.

Glad I could help

Apparently Trevor has these. I just order one for my own BCE. I'll post on quality after I receive it. http://trevorwatch.v.yupoo.com email: trevor123.bobo@gmail.com

This may seem obvious to many but on the chance you don't know here is a suggestion. On a Rolex you pull the clasp open from under the clasp lock, However Breitlings are different. Simply catch your finger nail under the end opposite the clasp lock and pull up. This will usually unlatch it from the other end. Took me a while to figure this out too many years ago on gens.

Does anyone have a dead Breitling EVO or Blackbird for parts. I need a set of pushers but would consider buying the complete watch. Picture attached

I have internet explorer and have been having the same problems. It just started doing it one day.

I'm looking for one too.

I looked all over for one like this and couldn't find a rep strap. I found one similar for a 22mm TAGHeuer on Ebay and it looks like it might fit a Breitling Deployant, but not buckle

It could be that the hand has slipped on the pinion. I've had this problem and tightening the tube and resetting the hand fixed it.