The fake Breitling Navitimer 1 Automatic 38 is a scaled-down, newly designed version of an iconic men’s watch from Breitling with a perfect movement, a sporty appearance, and vintage styling. It’s something that you seldom find, so let’s say it’s unique and special.
Breitling’s revamp, carefully rolled out over the past several months by new CEO Georges Kern and CVC Capital Partners, does not consist of a new ladies’ collection – not yet. It does however include the first of what are possibly to be smaller versions of the redesigned men’s models. The Navitimer 1 Automatic 38 replica watch was encouraged by a Navitimer from the 1950s called a three-hand watch. The absence of chronograph sub-dials makes the dial cleaner than the modern Navitimer, but the inclusion of a slide rule makes it less so than the much-lauded Navitimer 8, introduced in the fall. The beaded bezel, which is somewhat decorative in my view, takes the edge off the technical look of the slide rule and the red-tipped seconds-hand. It contains the fake Breitling automatic Caliber 17with COSC chronometer certification and a 40-hour power reserve.
In order to upgrade the Breitling collection, Kern brought in Guy Bove, who, as creative director at Chopard for the past 10 years, was instrumental in releasing that company’s L.U.C collection of premium watches with in-house movements. “The idea is not to remake old watches again,” says Bove. “I see it more as taking raw ingredients from older models and using them in new recipes.” Not all of those ingredients made the cut. Fans were surprised when the replica Breitling introduced the Navitimer 8 without the slide rule, a defining feature since the 1950s. It wasn’t that the slide rule was deemed out of date; actually it was too fashionable. The new design was inspired by on board-chronographs produced by Breitling in the 1930s and 1940s, an era before slide rules.
The Navitimer 1 Automatic 38mm size is an amazing spot that works for both men and women, and brands are increasingly putting out unisex watches in that size. The 38mm Panerai Luminor Due, introduced in January at SIHH, is another great one that comes to mind. And by the way, when I returned from the jewelry shows in Las Vegas, I can report that jewelry is going in the same direction. I found so many rings, bracelets, and pendants that could work for – and are going to be worn by – either women or men. This unisex trend appeals to what is being described as the “more gender-fluid” millennial generation, but even those of us who are older and don’t identify with that definition or with millennial at all can find a lot to appreciate in the unisex concept, particularly those of us women who love men’s watches.
This popular replica watch has a date window at 6 o’clock, a really beautiful extra function for an everyday watch. The dial on the steel model is either black or blue, with matching alligator straps with sporty white top stitching. There is also a steel version with an 18k red gold bezel and a beige dial with a brown alligator strap. The beaded bezel in gold and applied gold markers make this version look like a totally different watch – one that is dressier than previous Navitimers, despite the slide rule. As a matter of fact, I think it’s about as dressy as what most women really want in a day watch.

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While talking about the replica watch Breitling, aviation comes to mind immediately, this is not just because of the wings in its logo. Even before launching the Navitimer in the early 1950s, the company had provided necessary navigation tools to pilots, and was used in different occasions such as the cockpits of the British RAF. On another hand though, Breitling’s contribution to diving watches is often denied, and unfairly so. But by taking a deeper look at the detailed history of the SuperOcean, a pioneering line of watches which introduced no less than the first known reverse panda dial chronograph and a fascinating “slow counter” mechanism, someone is looking to make this wrong.
The two first replicas of the SuperOcean are now auction highlights, launched in 1957, the SuperOcean extended Breitling’s reach beyond the skies, matching the blossoming demand for diving watches that had led Blancpain and Rolex to create the Fifty Fathoms and the Submariner just several years before. Their current success can be explained by their special look as well that neither my friend Phil nor I can resist. After all, try to find the same long and pointy indexes on any watch other than the SuperOcean, which was incidentally the first chronograph to ever offer a reverse panda dial.
As a Frenchman, there is another thing which I truly appreciate about vintage Breitling watches: they sometimes come with a second signature from one of their French retailers from the time, either Uti or Lip. This is the case for the SuperOcean presented in detail in the article found here; to be fair, even with a basic dial, the reference 2005 is a pretty amazing watch. Launched in the 1960s, the watch went for a less extreme look than its predecessors, and offered a degree of legibility than many other chronographs would envy. Yes, despite appearances, it is actually a chronograph, with a single minute hand to measure the duration of a dive – since seconds are not important to find out your air reserve underwater, there is no seconds counter.
The genius of this watch boils down to its indicator at six o’clock, which shows whether the chronograph is engaged or not. You get a yellow dot when the chronograph is on and a black one when it is inactive. The fake Breitling heavily verified the Venus 188 movement so that it would offer this “slow counter” and only measure the elapsed minutes in the clearest way possible for its users, for which it was a matter of life and death.

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