S.O. / Colt GMT - and skydiving

[brabzzz]

Hiya! (long time lurker coming out of the closet...)

I'm looking to get a first 'good watch' - either a Omega PO/SMP or a Breitling Colt GMT/SuperOcean. The choice as to which exactly is going to be a very long one as they're all stunning bit of gear. :-)

I'm just a little concerned (perhaps irrationally) about what effect a descent rate of 10,000 ft/min and the opening 'deceleration' of 120mph to near-zero in 500ft (but with a higher 'peak' force during the initial stages) might have on an automatic movement.

Does anyone know/have any experience of what effect this has on (automatic) watches. I didn't give a damn with my old £100 quartz, but this is another matter! ;-) Given I do a few hundred jumps a year and it's a big part of me/what i enjoy, so i'm somewhat unwilling to have to take it off every time!

So...any input regarding either which watch to pick ;-) or the effect jumping with it will have (hopefully very little!) would be much appreciated. I'd just be kind of deflated and 'anticlimaxed' if Bonds own watch, or a S.O.-SteelFish, water resistant to 2000m, would be less than happy in freefall!

Cheers,
Mike

sorry about the crossposting - i'm hoping that someone with first hand experience stumbles across this and can throw some light on it.

[Broker]

Sorry, but it just doesn't seem prudent to dive out of a plane. Especially wearing a Breitling. But in all reality, I leave the watch at home for "strange events"

Todd

[SnapIT]

Sorry, but it just doesn't seem prudent to dive out of a plane. Especially wearing a Breitling. But in all reality, I leave the watch at home for "strange events"

Todd


Hello Mike & Todd,

I don't think jumping out of a perfectly good aircraft is so bad its just the last 5 meters of the event that count. Its the same when playing golf. The last 5 cm of the stroke really count. If its a good contact and the head swings through there isn't too much shock transmitted to the watch through the shaft via the hands. Hit a rock/root/branch on the way through with the club head at near full acceleration and you have a whole other world of pain and as a result transmitted shock of which the pain is the evidence!! If you experience sever pain when landing from a jump no doubt the watch will too!
Et al land safely and the watch will. Given, that Breitling routinely flies its watches with the Breitling Jets Acrobatic Team, I have the impression that they aren't too worried about the 'Gs' a human being can survive in the normal course of aviation activities. Its the ones that exceed these limits that might have more worrying consequences. And if you really break it, the limits of performance and recovery, it usually doesn't really matter. The need to tell the time has passed from your daily grind. If I have been glib, I appologise in advance.

[capricorn36]

Hiya! (long time lurker coming out of the closet...)

I'm looking to get a first 'good watch' - either a Omega PO/SMP or a Breitling Colt GMT/SuperOcean. The choice as to which exactly is going to be a very long one as they're all stunning bit of gear. :-)

I'm just a little concerned (perhaps irrationally) about what effect a descent rate of 10,000 ft/min and the opening 'deceleration' of 120mph to near-zero in 500ft (but with a higher 'peak' force during the initial stages) might have on an automatic movement.

Does anyone know/have any experience of what effect this has on (automatic) watches. I didn't give a damn with my old £100 quartz, but this is another matter! ;-) Given I do a few hundred jumps a year and it's a big part of me/what i enjoy, so i'm somewhat unwilling to have to take it off every time!

So...any input regarding either which watch to pick ;-) or the effect jumping with it will have (hopefully very little!) would be much appreciated. I'd just be kind of deflated and 'anticlimaxed' if Bonds own watch, or a S.O.-SteelFish, water resistant to 2000m, would be less than happy in freefall!

Cheers,
Mike

sorry about the crossposting - i'm hoping that someone with first hand experience stumbles across this and can throw some light on it.

I wouldn't worry about your watch when skydiving. The air pressure increase in sky diving is nothing compared to the high pressure of diving under water. Also if the watch was to leak it would only leak air which does not have the damaging effect of leaking water! All Breitlings are COSC compliant which means they have to be tested to endure shocks of a certain number of G's. Mechanical watches (Breitlings and Omegas) have also been used in space with no gravity. Hence the only way you will likely damage your watch will be if your chute does not open and even then it will have a higher chance of surviving than you will. :-)

So enjoy!

Cheers,

Andrew

[googoo]

Hiya! (long time lurker coming out of the closet...)

I'm looking to get a first 'good watch' - either a Omega PO/SMP or a Breitling Colt GMT/SuperOcean. The choice as to which exactly is going to be a very long one as they're all stunning bit of gear. :-)

I'm just a little concerned (perhaps irrationally) about what effect a descent rate of 10,000 ft/min and the opening 'deceleration' of 120mph to near-zero in 500ft (but with a higher 'peak' force during the initial stages) might have on an automatic movement.

Does anyone know/have any experience of what effect this has on (automatic) watches. I didn't give a damn with my old £100 quartz, but this is another matter! ;-) Given I do a few hundred jumps a year and it's a big part of me/what i enjoy, so i'm somewhat unwilling to have to take it off every time!

So...any input regarding either which watch to pick ;-) or the effect jumping with it will have (hopefully very little!) would be much appreciated. I'd just be kind of deflated and 'anticlimaxed' if Bonds own watch, or a S.O.-SteelFish, water resistant to 2000m, would be less than happy in freefall!

Cheers,
Mike

sorry about the crossposting - i'm hoping that someone with first hand experience stumbles across this and can throw some light on it.


no issues. i've done it with omega SMP and breitling SOC and other automatics.