PLEASE don't ask me how this happened....no drama, it was self-inflicted in a moment of complete madness trying to do something that I had neither the tools nor the expertise to undertake - 'nuff said. Thing is that, try as I might, just can't seem to locate a replacement sapphire crystal anywhere... The watch is a Breitling Navitimer 1 B01 46mm, a few years old now, but still going strong and I'd very much like to rectify the carnage. Please do get in touch if you know where I might source a new glass - I promise to use a smaller hammer when I eventually make the repair
The 24 hour subdial is a common thing on cheap knock-offs, it has spelling mistakes, it is clearly not made of real stainless steel, the crown is just scrap metal, there’s nothing even approaching a Seiko quality wise much less a Breitling.
I always find it interesting that people will wear a cheaply made knockoff luxury product and not be aware that its quality is pretty poor for what is supposed to be an $8,000 product. Self delusion or just not aware of quality, who knows.
I'd say it's lack of opportunity to examine any watch other that those (the one?) that that a person owns. I have never definitely seen a Speedy Pro, have a few glimpses of my neighbour's Rolexes (pretty sure they're genuine) but never held one. Have strapped on a couple of Heuers other than my own (thanks @SteveP ). Anything else is only seen in photos, and that's for someone with a bit of an interest in watches.
OK, this is not quite the same thing, and I don't think I'd be blind to something as obvious as the OP watch. However, there have been a couple of occasions where I failed to notice a significant flaw until I posted a photo of a watch online, and then it suddenly became incredibly obvious. Somehow, it allowed me to view the watch in a different way.
sorry for your loss(es) on this, mate on the bright side, sometimes people find out their own children aren’t their own children! Could’ve been worse!
Okay, having thought about this a while its cards on the table time.. This is not my watch, it belongs to a dear friend, a gifted engineer and small business owner who could comfortably afford to buy a luxury watch if necessary. But why would he need to – especially since he thought that he already owned one. It may come as a surprise that some 'people’ (yes, the withering smack-down of condescension has been noted) can’t tell the difference between real and fake, however isn’t that the whole idea with a knockoff ? To deceive… And in this case, when the watch itself came as a surprise birthday present, why would the default question have to always be: “Is it a real one” ??? A gift, especially from a loved one, carries with it emotional attachment and with that, quite understandably, confirmation bias. I wonder, therefore, just how many nasty surprises greet unsuspecting owners when they take their beloved watch in for repair only to be greeted by the unpleasant news that what they have always believed to be genuine is, in fact, a knockoff. I know very little about Breitling watches, my friend, knowing the story of my ‘Frankenstein’ Omega Co-Axial De Ville asked me to source a crystal because, in his part of the world, none was to be found. So let me apologise for the duplicitousness of my OP, I simply thought that, in taking responsibility for breaking the glass myself, it might in some way ease up the path toward finding a replacement. On a brighter note; there is a silver lining to this whole sordid affair. My friend, who has taken the news quite well, under the circumstances, has now asked me to discretely find him a genuine 1B01 46mm. Not wishing to cause any further family distress than he has already done by breaking the glass in the first place, he will now simply send the knockoff 'away for repairs’ only to receive a gleaming, and hopefully authentic, item in return. The hunt is on…..
Off topic a bit, but reminded me of going into a local Omega AD to adjust the bracelet on my NEW321 and some minutes later having the “watchmaker” emerge from the back to politely inquire as to whether I was sure it wasn’t a counterfeit watch. Confirmation bias, I think it’s called, is a wild drug - in all directions.
The family member buying it makes sense. Those of us who look at watches regularly can spot a cheaply made watch, but most non-watch people really can’t. My father owned a Breitling, i wore it for a year or so after his death and my brother expressed interest in it, so I gave it to him. I could see my older sister going to a flea market or some kind of shady jewelry store with her kids while out and about and seeing another “Breitling” for a hundred dollars and buying it for me to replace the one I gave my brother. She knew the name on the dial and knew it was expensive (to her $300+ for a watch is expensive) but never handled the watch, nor is a watch person- so she would be completely naive. Sadly, it happens.
I’ll take that fake off your hands and dispose of it properly- I’ll even pay the shipping to alleviate your hardship.
The Sinn 903 really is the best bang for the buck in this style as they actually bought the rights to it when Breitling went tits up back in the day. Anyone who says they are an “homage” or fake needs to go back to horological school.
