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Breitling out, Oris in.

5K views 31 replies 28 participants last post by  mos78 
#1 ·
Hi all

I purchased my Breitling Colt A73380 in 2007. Back then I immediately fell in love. I wore it for about 6 years and after it had to go in for two overly expensive services, I packed it away in disgust.

Fast forward to 2019 and my watch collection is limited to beater watches (except the Breitling of course)

  • Breitling Colt Chronograph - A73380
  • Seiko Sea Urchin - SNZF17
  • Seiko SSC031
  • G-Shock Mudmaster

As much as I love the Breitling still, my style has completely moved in a different direction. I'm not looking to invest in multiple mid to high end watches so I have decided that if I am to replace the Breitling, I would probably get an Oris Aquis and call it a day. Beautiful, more than decent every day watch.

I think I can only get about $1300 for the Breitling. The Oris if purchased grey can be had for about that amount.

So, would you do it?
 

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#2 ·
Yes - your head n heart is no longer with the Breitling - its had a good run for its money - let someone else have and enjoy n you flip to get what you fancy
 
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#7 ·
Hhmmmm. I’ve been there with my Breitling and thank the watch gods I didn’t pull the trigger. I’ve even been so far into selling my Breitling as to have staged photos for eBay. In the end, I packed it away, wore some of my other watches, and found how much I love the Breitling again. Distance makes the heart grow fonder they say. Now it is on my weekend rotation. I just know if you loved it once you will love it again and have the regret of loss. It’s damn nice looking watch! You don’t see many in that color scheme.


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#8 ·
Yes, absolutely. If you’re willing to buy used, you can even find them below $1,000 on the forum, so you’d have money to spare. Also, if you’re going to buy gray, you might as well go to an AD. I bought mine from an AD for less than the gray prices being offered. Aquis gray prices for whatever reason are not significantly less. I’d be surprised if your AD couldn’t match it or even give you a better price.
 
#11 ·
I had a Colt for a year, but couldn’t bond with it and sold it. (I bought it used and sold it at about the same price.) Replaced it with an Oris Diver 65. Something about Breitling’s overall design language just doesn’t work for me. Oris makes nice products!
 
#12 ·
I own Breitling Steelfish & Oris Small Sec (previous gen of Aquis). To me both brands are epitome of tool watches. Your Colt is a beautiful piece. Personally, my taste, I would not sell Colt for Aquis. However, you do sound like you are done with Breitling so...
 
#13 ·
You state that you "love the Breitling still" so I'm not sure what that means going forward. But I have a 40mm Aquis (previous gen) and it gets a lot of wrist time. I keep mine on the rubber strap (w/deployant clasp) but have the bracelet in the box.

OP, only You can decide this one.
 
#15 ·
I'd say do it. The Aquis is the complet package and is one of the comfiest divers I've ever had. If you want one that feels a little more "special", you can't go wrong with one of the special edition Aquises (Aqui?) Clipperton has one of craziest blue dials I've ever seen. And don't let anyone try and scare you with the "nonstandard lug" thing. The Aquis bracelet and rubber strap are second to none, definitely snag both.

Watch Analog watch Watch accessory Fashion accessory Blue
 
#18 ·
I'd say do it. The Aquis is the complet package and is one of the comfiest divers I've ever had. If you want one that feels a little more "special", you can't go wrong with one of the special edition Aquises (Aqui?) Clipperton has one of craziest blue dials I've ever seen. And don't let anyone try and scare you with the "nonstandard lug" thing. The Aquis bracelet and rubber strap are second to none, definitely snag both.

View attachment 14106295
The Clipperton dial is second to none. Oris never fails when it comes to color combinations.

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#16 ·
When in doubt, flip it out. Personally I wouldn’t but maybe the great memories with the Colt can be easily dismissed for a lesser brand like the Oris in your opinion. I’ve only owned one Oris, the Maldives and I promptly flipped it mainly due to proprietary rubber strap and its wrist presence which was more than I was comfortable with. Best wishes to you on your best decision once you’ve truly contemplated the outcome of flipping the Colt.
 
#20 ·
Don't do it. I think you'll regret it. It was your daily wear for 6 whole years, probably lots of memories associated with the watch, probably a lot of people who associated you with the watch.

I also got a bit annoyed with my Breguet Type XX after I had to service it twice within a 3 year period. I was annoyed that it broke down so quickly after the first service, and to a lesser extent, also not over the moon of the cost of the service. I resolved to sell it after the 2nd service and had already contacted a few pre-owned shops. In the end, I didn't sell it, and I'm glad I didn't. It was my grail watch, it's beautiful, from a fairly top brand and I have quite a few memories with it. Also, I wasn't going to get anywhere near what I had spent for it.

When I told my mrs that I wanted to get rid of the Breguet she bit her lip and didn't say anything, then later when I decided I'll keep it she was relieved, saying that she was sure I would have regretted selling it, as I was (still am really) always very proud about the watch.

Another minor thing to consider is that Breitling is generally a better known and big brand. Would be good to keep a 'famous 5' brand watch in your collection.
 
#25 ·
Agree with many... go with your gut here. I've been bouncing between a few divers and just plunked down for a new Aquis. I don't think you can go wrong here. The Clipperton is a beauty and also check out the dials on the new Clean Ocean and Great Barrier Reef LEs coming out this summer - unsure what availability will be like grey market, however.
 
#27 ·
Good luck with the sale of your Breitling.
And have fun on the Oris bandwagon. Oris is getting all the love from WUS these days, like Seiko used to get on WUS years ago. I'm a little slow to drink the WUS Oris potion, but I agree if Breitling is not making you as pleased as it once did, bump it for the watch that will please you.
 
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