Help deciding between a Breitling SOH II and Tudor BBH II!

[jlg210]

I have a feeling this has been discussed many a time... but anyway hear me out.

I had my eye on a Breitling SOH II 46 on the mesh bracelet for a while and was planning on getting one duty free when I next head O/S. I'd only seen them in pictures and not in the flesh.
I pretty much had my mind made up, my only concern was that 46 would be too big for my 7.1in wrist so I headed to the dealer to try on the 42 as well. In the meantime I had been reading about the Tudor BBH and found the whole shared quasi-in-house movement story pretty interesting.

So I show up to try them on, I'm relieved that the SOH 46 looks really good on my wrist size wise but was really surprised by how bling-y it is in the flesh! I don't know if it was the showroom lights or the plastic still on it but I wasn't expecting it to look so extravagant where all the written reviews had framed it as a restrained, vintage throwback. I guess they meant in reference to other Breitling models.

I was attracted to the Tudor much more than I thought I'd be. It looks comparatively restrained and understated. I think the Breitling is the kind of thing anyone on the street would notice and comment on, which is good if you're into that sort of thing, but the Tudor is something only another watch guy is likely to notice, which I think I would probably prefer.

In addition to the above, I was hoping to have something I could use every day. I'm an Intensive Care Doctor so I get my hands dirty quite a bit. The watch has to come off and go into the pocket or bag several times a day. Whilst I'm sure the Breitling is adequately bombproof, its high polish strikes me as not something not suited to taking a beating like the Tudor at least appears to (I know its got an aluminium bezel vs the ceramic on the breitling etc.). I guess my concern is that the Breitling perhaps isn't as versatile as the written reviews might suggest, at least in my context. This is probably more true for those who wear a suit to work every day.

Also another point which isn't discussed all that much is the price difference, in which the Breitling commands nearly a $2000 AUD premium over the Tudor, which has essentially the same movement.

Included are wrist shots for the SOH 46 and 42 as well as the Tudor BBH in Burgundy (Didn't get to try the black or the blue).

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated!
SOH 46

SOH 42

BBH Burgundy

[Kells]

After reading your entire post, neither watch would work. You need a watch with a ceramic bezel and no shiny surfaces. I would suggest an Omega Planet Ocean 8500 on a rubber strap.

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[MadMrB]

I think that the SOH 42 looks better on you than the 46, and then the BBR looks even better still (but I am biased). In my experience the Black Bay bezels are pretty resilient none of mine have picked up any marks, but I would recommend you get a travel watch pouch for any watch to reduce the potential for damage when in your bag or pocket.

Also have you considered the Black Bay Steel with the steel bezel?

[Rivarama]

The SOH 42 is the easy choice. It should hold up quite well. If you had a three link bracelet that was high polish I would be more concerned about scratches but not with steel mesh.

It is interesting that new SO don't seem to go down as far as they used to. I have the standard "queen of seas" model from 14 years ago and it goes down 1,500 meters.

[sticky]

The Tudor gods may well smite me down but I’d go for the SOH 42.

[ajbutler13]

I prefer the SOH. I think it looks great on the mesh (and would buy it that way), but you could always pick up some brown and/or blue leather straps to tone it down.

However...if you are truly torn between the two, why on earth would you spend the extra $2000?

[wschofield3]

Looks wise, the SOH 42, however, endurance wise, the BB.

IMHO, get the SOH42 and get a G-Shock or Seiko auto diver for work.

[TruthBalance]

SOH 42. The blue color on the SOH is exceptional and the 42 size looks better on your wrist then the 46. I have 7.5 inch wrists and find 45mm is my maximum size. Of course, I've been eying up the same SOH 42 with the mesh band for awhile now so I'm a bit partial.

[obomomomo]

SOH 42.

What the Tudor has going for it is the nice bracelet, I'm not a fan of mesh but I'd probably swap either for a strap anyway.
If you're concerned about the Breitling being too blingy, avoid the 46 (bigger=more blingy) and the blingy blue sunburst dial, instead get the 42 in flat black and switch the bracelet for either rubber or leather.

Just my opinion.

[Tonystix]

SOH 42 with blue dial hits the sweet spot in color and size.