{"product_id":"breitling-for-bentley-motors-chronograph-special-edition-as04398","title":"Breitling For Bentley Motors Chronograph Special Edition","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWhy We Love It\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eIn a market full of timepieces produced in limited runs to commemorate automotive partnerships, it becomes easy to become rather jaded and dismissive of the nomenclature; particularly when you've been collecting wristwatches as long as we have.\u003c\/span\u003e But a few really hit it out of the park. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThis isn't one of them.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt is, however, a \u003cem\u003elot\u003c\/em\u003e of watch for the money. And we mean that quite literally.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis ETA-powered Breitling chronograph checks in at 49mm in diameter with an overall weight of 140 grams. Featuring an oversized bi-directionally rotating timing bezel with knurled steel decoration, cartoonishly small barrel pushers, and an enormous dial with triple subsidiary registers and a date haphazardly placed at 4:30, the only thing more absurd about the way this watch looks is the minuscule size of the automatic movement inside its cavernous steel assembly.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJoking aside, its not all bad - the copper brown sunburst dial coloration is lovely and the engine-turned bezel assembly are nice touches, and the Bentley Motors branding is subtle and relatively unobtrusive, which is more than we can say about most car brand\/watch brand collabs.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis design language is very much of the era - early 2000s - and comes with a scale and style that Breitling has been seeking to distance itself from (along with former spokesman John Travolta). With all that said, if you're looking for a sub-$3K nouveau-riche statement piece that screams from the wrist with a Swiss chronograph movement that brings you back to those carefee pre-Financiapocalypse days, you've found it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAnd how could you miss it? Its freakin' \u003cem\u003eyuuuuge\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"line-height: 18.0pt; background: white; margin: 0in 0in 18.75pt 0in;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; color: #212121;\"\u003eThe Breitling Story\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBreitling was founded in 1892, and while still around today, the company is no longer in the hands of the Breitling family.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe late 1970s was a turbulent time for the Swiss watch industry, and many storied houses were swept away by the Quartz Crisis. By 1978, Breitling was in trouble due to the illness of its leader, Willy Breitling, and the steep decline in sales that had cut through the entire industry. Unable to keep operations going, the Breitling company was liquidated, and parts, toolings and naming rights were sold off. One of the best aviation watch companies was no more, but they left behind a large range of incredible watches.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBreitling has been surprisingly slow to catch fire with vintage collectors, especially since the history of the brand and their ties to aviation are unimpeachable. Sure, many of their watches have polarizing designs and complicated dial aesthetics (hell, we don't know how to use the slide rule feature on the Navitimer 806 any better than you do), but their cleaner designs embody the best of 1960s and 1970s chronograph design and shouldn’t be overlooked.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIf we had our druthers, Breitling would be one of the top dogs in the world of vintage watches, and given a strong new direction for the company today, we’re confident that in time, they will be.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"line-height: 18.0pt; background: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; widows: 2; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial; word-spacing: 0px; margin: 0in 0in 18.75pt 0in;\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Breitling","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":39351210377303,"sku":"40940006","price":2900.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0809\/1255\/products\/AS04398_40940006_BREITLING_BREITLINGFORBENTLEYCHRONOGRAPH_A25362-7.jpg?v=1626790591","url":"https:\/\/www.analogshift.com\/products\/breitling-for-bentley-motors-chronograph-special-edition-as04398","provider":"Analog:Shift","version":"1.0","type":"link"}