What is the Best Breitling Watch Winder for you?

See our Page of Winders suitable for Breitling Watches

Contents

History of the Brand
Who Wears a Breitling?
Best Breitling Watch Winder
Frequently Asked Questions
Watch Winder Settings
How Long on the Watch Winder?

A Brief History of the Brand:

Breitling SA is yet another of the famous Swiss luxury watchmakers … founded in 1884 by Leon Breitling in Saint-Imier, Bernese Jura. The company was sold by the Breitling family to Ernst Schneider in 1979 until 2017 when the majority stake was sold to CVC Capital Partners and then the remaining 20% in 2018. Breitling’s Headquarters are in Grenchen, Switzerland.

Breitling has a rich heritage and are probably most well known for producing watches synonymous with Diving and Aviation, namely the SuperOcean and Navitimer series of watches.

In the 1940s Breitling adapted their chronograph models by adding a circular slide rule to the bezels for use by pilots which then became the famous Navitimer model.  The Navitimer has been used by pilots the world over ever since and in the 1950s and 1960s, a special version was offered by the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association with the AOPA logo set within the dial.

Breitlings in space … In 1961 one of the original astronauts in the Mercury Space Program, Scott Carpenter approached Breitling to see if they would add a 24-hour dial to the Navitimer due to the lack of day and night during space travel. The 24-hour Navitimer was born and was worn by Carpenter on his spaceflight in 1962 … commercial versions of the watch were produced under the name Cosmonaute Navitimer.

The Breitling Emergency: is an extremely special watch designed to be worn by aviators as it contains a radio transmitter which can be activated in emergency situations to broadcast on a distress frequency to aide rescue.  The Emergency can be purchased by people without a Pilot’s License but they must sign an agreement to bear the costs of a rescue attempt should the distress beacon be activated accidentally.

Breitling for Bentley: Breitling has been associated with Bentley Motors since 2002 when they designed the dashboard clock for the new Bentley Continental GT.  A number of special pieces have been produced by Breitling since this time to mark their relationship. In 2015 Breitling designed a very special clock for the new Bentley Bentayga, the Mulliner Tourbillon dashboard clock which spins 3 times every 15 minutes.

A more personal relationship goes back even further as Willy Breitling, grandson of the Breitling’s Founder Leon was a devoted Bentley fan and drove many Bentleys from the 1940s onwards.

Who else wears Breitling?

The following list gives a few celebrities and brand ambassadors of Breitling, not surprisingly there are a number of pilots amongst the list:

• Bear Grylls
• Brad Pit
• Bruce Willis
• Gordon Ramsey
• Idris Elba
• James Martin
• John Travolta
• Sir Richard Branson
• Tom Cruise

What do I need to consider when choosing a Watch Winder for a Breitling wristwatch?

The two main factors to consider when choosing a watch winder for your Breitling wristwatch are to ensure that it will wind your watch according to Breitling specification and that it looks great you’re your watch inside! Breitling can offer some watches with larger cases sizes which is always worth considering when choosing a watch winder.

Best Breitling Watch Winder?

With so many beautiful Watch Winders available it is more a case of finding the winder that you like the most!  Most Breiting’s with Automatic movements can be wound adequately by the majority of watch winders, typically Breiting’s automatic movements require 650 to 800 Turns per Day and can be wound Bi-Directionally.  This means that your choice is vast so take your time and enjoy choosing a lovely winder to suit you and your watch.

Watch Winders require two parameters to perform do their job correctly, the direction of rotation and the Turns per Day …

Rotor Winding Direction – The movement within your Automatic Breitling is designed to be wound by the movement of the watch on the wearer’s wrist.  The direction of how this movement is wound can change from watch to watch and can be wound a clockwise, counter-clockwise or bi-directional direction. 

Turns Per Day – This again differs between movements and it simply relates to the number of times the mechanism in the watch needs to rotate in a 24 hour period to ensure the watch is kept fully wound.  The TPD will vary from watch to watch and many will fall within the parameters of a standard watch winder however programmable winders allow you to set the TPD to match your watches exact requirements.

Some of the important things to consider when looking at watch winder specifications:

Does the winder I am looking at need to be programmable for the Turns per Day and the direction of winding or is a winder with a standard program adequate? 

Power Source – does the winder need to be powered Main power or by batteries or by a combination of the two?

Does the weight or case size of my watch influence which winder is suitable for my requirements?

Programmable Watch Winders

It is no coincidence that the majority of automatic watches produced today share very common winding specifications and therefore it is easy to find a winder that suits.  Basic watch winders with a standard winding specification will wind the majority of Automatic Breitlings on sale today and examples of these would include the Swiss Kubik StartBox, Scatola del Tempo RotorOne, Rapports Evo Cube etc …

You may have a watch that requires a different winding spec in which case a programmable winder will be required allowing you to set not only the direction of winding but also the Turns per Day.

These winders are programmed through a variety of methods depending on the brand from Tech like USB connection to a computer or Bluetooth connection to an App through to LCD touch screen and simple knobs or switches.

Even if your current watch does not require a programmable winder it is often worth considering as it offers greater flexibility if you change your watch or add to your collection.

Power source

Think about how you want to use your winder and where you will keep it as these factors do alter the type of power source that is most suitable for you.  The three options are:

Battery Powered

Main Powered

Both Battery or Main Powered.

If you are wanting to keep your winder in a safe or wardrobe or move it regularly then battery-powered winders are great for that added flexibility.  It is a great option for winders that are to be kept in safes … Swiss Kubik and Scatola del Tempo both offer winders that will give up to 3 years life from just 2 C Cell batteries.

Mains power is great if you are not planning on moving your winder around much or if you are wanting to power winders with multiple winding heads. 

Winders offering Mains and Power offer the best of both worlds.

What’s your style?

We stock an extensive range of winders from a number of leading manufacturers giving huge scope to find the perfect winder for you.  Once you have sorted what the specification of the winder needs to be you can start to look at how you want it to look.

The winder cases can be Leather, Wood, Plastic or metal with a staggering number of options of styles, colours and accessories. 

You could match your winder to the colour of your watches face, strap or bezel.  A SuperOcean Heritage with a blue face and strap looks amazing in a SwissKubik MasterBox in Blue Aluminium for example. Alternatively, you could sit the same watch in a Scatola del Tempo Rotor One with a Blue Leather strap and chrome bezel and it would look as equally impressive. 

Take your time and enjoy choosing the right winder for your watch.

Watch Winder FAQ’s for Breitling Watches

Setting a Breitling Watch Winder

It is essential to use the correct winding specification for your Breitling watch.

You can either contact a Breitling Authorised Dealer or contact Breitling directly, find the information online or in the manual that accompanied your watch when you purchased it. Alternatively, ask us! 

As with most brands, there are many differing winding specifications for Breitling but as you’ll see from the table below that the two most popular settings are 650 TPD (turns per day) and 800 TPD depending on the movement.

Once your watch winder is programmed you can simply leave it to it and it will keep your Breitling fully wound and ready to wear!

Which winder direction … What direction should I wind a Breitling? (Clockwise etc.)

The table below shows that most of the current Breitlings on sale today are wound Bi-Directionally but there are always exceptions so ensure you know the correct specification for your watch.

(Always make sure you use the manufacturer’s specification for the number of Turns per Day and the winding direction.)

Popular Breitling Watch Winder Settings:

How long should I leave my Breitling on the watch winder?

Now you have the knowledge to choose the correct winder for your watch it is safe to leave it on the winder until you are ready to wear it again.  The whole point of selecting the correct winder is that you don’t need to worry about your watch and it will always be set correctly whenever you choose to wear it.

If you do require any help selecting the correct winder for you and your watch then please let us know as we are always delighted to help!