Breitling Emergency - who buys these??

[James.uk]

I'll google him. Don't know who he is.

Wish I hadn't.

[adesmith]

Imagine surfacing after a dive to see the dive boat disappearing over the horizon....

It'd be the best watch ever at that point!

They are not that water resistant though are they? Probably be knackered after its been on you dive. Wonder if the attend being opened in water affects the watch?

[Selym]

People who frequent these forums are watch enthusiasts. There is no logic to it. It's a bit of fun, nothing more.

[Tinker]

mindforge Forgive my ignorance but what happens if you actually set the thing off? E. G. In a pub...

M

I really laughed out loud.

Thank you.

[RJM25R]

Mine is a beater really and has been worn in some slightly dodgy places. The transmitter is still monitored and quite a few service personnel still use them as a extra beacon. Met a chap once who wore one on his ankle on a NATO as well as a regular watch on his wrist. ( he may have been in the sun too long)

I have a pal who's an ex para. He recently retired after 18 years in and tours in afghan and Iraq, and he wears an emergency. Having a chat about it in the pub one night he said that when on patrol, they had an MOD issued transponder but he liked the idea of having a secondary, and that it was a small price to pay if it prevented him being caught and ending up on YouTube with a breadknife at his throat like ken bigley.

A dark-humoured lot these para's!

[adesmith]

Is the transponder frequency still being monitored? I thought it was replaced with a new frequency.

I like these watches and would love a yellow one but it would just be a redundant novelty if true about the frequency monitoring being retired.

[awo]

I guess the servicing bill for this model is quite ££????????

I think the first service is free (to be confirmed in a few years ;-) )...

I have one, not for the transponder but for the look

[The Hack]

Fair enough then! :)

However, given the main selling point of this watch, the lack of water resistance does seem like a rather stupid omission! I would hate to be shipwrecked on a desert island and then be unable to signal for help coz my watch is buggered!

[JFW]

I hope they are water resistant. I swim regularly in mine.

[adesmith]

I hope they are water resistant. I swim regularly in mine.

I just checked an old post on here - its WR to 30M so not sure it would be a dive watch.

[The Hack]

If it's only WR to 30m, then it's definitely a risk swimming with it! :(

I just checked an old post on here - its WR to 30M so not sure it would be a dive watch.

[seikopath]

It's a dedicated aviation tool, the use emergency of distress beacon is restricted to aviation emergencies only eg downed plane etc.

[snowman]

You could make a film about a story like that

Indeed, and if it happens someone needs a good kicking...

M.

[Omegamanic]

I just checked an old post on here - its WR to 30M so not sure it would be a dive watch.

Although low WR there is plenty of film evidence of survivalists jump in water wearing theirs during filming - that said I have a crazy desire for watches with 100m or more, even though I've never been anywhere, or have any intention of trying.

I really liked the watch, and it is a bit of watch history now.

[RobDad]

I find aviation themed watches a bit strange generally - I like a Dive watch because that tends to imply easy legibility, genuinely useful functions like the dive bezel (which I use daily for cooking, parking meters etc) - and the ability to get worn in the pool or sea on holiday so it won't get nicked from the locker at the gym or whatever, you just wear it 24/7. I don't think anyone sees a dive watch and assumes you are in the SBS or own a dive boat.
Aviation watches fall into the same realm as the 'Ferrari By Panerai' brands for me - ie a bit Walter Mitty unless you own a Ferrari or indeed an Aeroplane (as suggested by Breitling ads featuring John Travolta wearing a Velcro wig and a huge shiny chrono, smirking in front of his 747) - and the Breitling Emergency has to be the top of this particular Walter Mitty tree doesn't it? (Notwithstanding real pilots, soldiers and men of action who actually might need one)
I've read lots of threads in regard to the recent citizen Royal Marines tough watch, all saying they won't be seen dead wearing something with a tiny logo on the dial whereas the Breitling Emergency pretty much shouts 'look at me I'm Indiana Jones/bear grylls/buzz light year or whatever!!!!!' (Or ' I'm worried about getting lost')!
I can't help thinking of those little wrist bands they give kids on school trips now along the lines of 'if I'm lost you can call my mummy on 07......' !!! ;-)

[seikopath]

I find aviation themed watches a bit strange generally - I like a Dive watch because that tends to imply easy legibility, genuinely useful functions like the dive bezel (which I use daily for cooking, parking meters etc) - and the ability to get worn in the pool or sea on holiday so it won't get nicked from the locker at the gym or whatever, you just wear it 24/7. I don't think anyone sees a dive watch and assumes you are in the SBS or own a dive boat.
Aviation watches fall into the same realm as the 'Ferrari By Panerai' brands for me - ie a bit Walter Mitty unless you own a Ferrari or indeed an Aeroplane (as suggested by Breitling ads featuring John Travolta wearing a Velcro wig and a huge shiny chrono, smirking in front of his 747) - and the Breitling Emergency has to be the top of this particular Walter Mitty tree doesn't it? (Notwithstanding real pilots, soldiers and men of action who actually might need one)
I've read lots of threads in regard to the recent citizen Royal Marines tough watch, all saying they won't be seen dead wearing something with a tiny logo on the dial whereas the Breitling Emergency pretty much shouts 'look at me I'm Indiana Jones/bear grylls/buzz light year or whatever!!!!!' (Or ' I'm worried about getting lost')!
I can't help thinking of those little wrist bands they give kids on school trips now along the lines of 'if I'm lost you can call my mummy on 07......' !!! ;-)

I usually go for dive watches because I find the 60 min timing bezel function very handy, but if I had to choose 'just one watch' it would probably be the SB3 because it is such a great all rounder , and that is arguably an aviation inspired timepiece

[RobDad]

I usually go for dive watches because I find the 60 min timing bezel function very handy, but if I had to choose 'just one watch' it would probably be the SB3 because it is such a great all rounder , and that is arguably an aviation inspired timepiece

I think the Sb3 looks great actually - it may be aviation inspired but is supremely legible and I don't think it hints at jet ownership!

[Eoin]

Maybe there is no difference between this and an over-specced diver / GMT / whatever, but I'd find it a bit annoying to have a big chunky button for a feature that I'm specifically not allowed to use; rather than unlikely to.

Definitely not a watch I could wear while having a few pints.

[The Hack]

I think you ARE allowed to use the function but it's supposed to be a real emergency - so missing the last night bus home after going on a bender probably wouldn't qualify. :)

Maybe there is no difference between this and an over-specced diver / GMT / whatever, but I'd find it a bit annoying to have a big chunky button for a feature that I'm specifically not allowed to use; rather than unlikely to.

Definitely not a watch I could wear while having a few pints.

[Eoin]

I think you ARE allowed to use the function but it's supposed to be a real emergency - so missing the last night bus home after going on a bender probably wouldn't qualify. :)

Ha ha, yeah - that's what I meant!

[ArcofZen]

They are not that water resistant though are they? Probably be knackered after its been on you dive. Wonder if the attend being opened in water affects the watch?

Only WR to 30m, what a shame! No good for scuba diving then and the scenario I dread. I wonder if the new model will be improved.

[PDE]

I've had mine for over 15 years now & it's never let me down.
It's been all around the world with me & I've never had a problem taking it into the sea & swimming with it.

It's the only watch I own that I would never part with & no, I've never been tempted to activate it!




Dan

[notenoughwrists]

There is a decent review and spot of history on it here:
http://www.andrewmichaels.co.uk/amj/blog/

[w2w]

Fair enough then! :)

However, given the main selling point of this watch, the lack of water resistance does seem like a rather stupid omission! I would hate to be shipwrecked on a desert island and then be unable to signal for help coz my watch is buggered!

You obviously haven't seen the earlier Bear Grylls programmes?

He gives both his yellow and blue Emergencies a lot of stick and is always diving in some white water somewhere. I got to admit now, that was the reason I got my first one as I thought "if he can give that watch so much stick, then a dip in the Med on holiday is hardly going to be worth worrying about"

[RobDad]

You obviously haven't seen the earlier Bear Grylls programmes?

He gives both his yellow and blue Emergencies a lot of stick and is always diving in some white water somewhere. I got to admit now, that was the reason I got my first one as I thought "if he can give that watch so much stick, then a dip in the Med on holiday is hardly going to be worth worrying about"

The trouble with tv worn watches is you never know what happens behind the scenes. As in 'Hello Bear, I'm Mr Breitling. Please wear this watch on your television program and I will give you £x.
'Oh dear Mr Breitling, it's full of water since I fell in that puddle'
'Sorry Bear they are a bit rubbish aren't they? How about one with a yellow dial instead? - put that g shock back in your rucksack there's a good chap.......

[w2w]

The trouble with tv worn watches is you never know what happens behind the scenes. As in 'Hello Bear, I'm Mr Breitling. Please wear this watch on your television program and I will give you £x.
'Oh dear Mr Breitling, it's full of water since I fell in that puddle'
'Sorry Bear they are a bit rubbish aren't they? How about one with a yellow dial instead? - put that g shock back in your rucksack there's a good chap.......

A bit cynical there Rob

I'm on my 3rd Emergency now and worn all of them whilst swimming. Granted I wasn't wresting crocodiles or smashing up and down white water rapids whilst doing it, but none of them have ever given a hint of water getting in. Whilst the last SD 16660 I had [before the one I have now] that was supposed to be WR to 1220M, leaked like a sieve after falling into a sink of water 3 inches deep

OK all watches need the seals replacing after a while, I know, but one of these Emergencies I had was well over 10 years old and had only had a battery change and not a full service since new from it's first owner

[RobDad]

All very tongue in cheek you understand! But 20 years working in and around advertising and marketing can lead to cynicism ;-)

[w2w]

All very tongue in cheek you understand! But 20 years working in and around advertising and marketing can lead to cynicism ;-)

I know mate

I wish this forum had smilies as standard to add to posts instead of having to search for a winking/smiling/tongue out smilie when the need arises

[sheepsteeth]

Not true. You have to sign the paperwork to transfer ownership.

according to who?

i received the paperwork for my emergency after the previous owner sold me his watch and forwarded my details to brietling. it requests that i sign a certificate/contract and as yet i havent. no one has got in touch to make me do anything and as far as i can tell, no one can make me sign anything or take back the object i bought with my own money.

im happy to be enlightened if i am wrong but as far as i know, there is nowt anyone can do about it in the case of second hand owners. i would imagine stores can refuse to sell it in the first place if the purchaser refuses to sign the cert. if someone from breitling threatens to take the watch from me unless i sign the papers, i will sign them, but seeing as i dont have to, i may or may not get round to it at some point.

reference pulling the pin in your local pub, no rescue service worth their salt (and our RAF types are very much worth their salt) would ever respond to a distress beacon in apub which isnt burning down or being picked up by a spaceship tractor beam. even in those cases, the most that would happen is a phone call to a more suitable rescue service like the police or the men in black.

the beacon frequency is still monitored when aircraft are carrying out a search and may well trigger an emergency response but typically, that signal is only going to be searched forduring a search which has been triggered post aviation incident as the flight will either be tracked by radar or monitored via radio transmissions and should an emergency occur, the pilot can send a message or the transponder in the plane will fall off of the radar.

i had a response from BUK who said they would replace my watch for free if i used it in an emergency but didnt specify in their response that this would only be the case in an aviation emergency and they didnt mention that i needed to have signed any contracts. the contract in question though definately specifies that the watch will only be replaced for free in an aviation incident and id imagine that is the criteria they would follow.

[Nono]

Love that watch, one of my all time favorite Breitling models. I know the PLB is a gimmick with 99% of the wearers wont even touch properly, but it makes the watch so much cool!

[ditchvisitor]

I have a pal who's an ex para. He recently retired after 18 years in and tours in afghan and Iraq, and he wears an emergency. Having a chat about it in the pub one night he said that when on patrol, they had an MOD issued transponder but he liked the idea of having a secondary, and that it was a small price to pay if it prevented him being caught and ending up on YouTube with a breadknife at his throat like ken bigley.

A dark-humoured lot these para's!

Indeed,it's one extra safety net. My rationale was if I ever needed it I would really be in the dwang! If the beacon in the cab and the one I'm carrying weren't available I would probably be on the run so having one on my wrist would be pretty useful! In the same vein I always carried 10 magazines for my rifle, if I needed one I would probably need all ten and it would be rather infuriating to have not bothered loading them!

[dingo69]

I may sound a b it arrogant, but have couple of friends who are in "search & rescue" Business, so they prefer "Marathon" watches. Personally, I also do not like very much those "Breitlings" you are talking about...

[Martinh]

Not usually a Breitling fan but after this thread I could quite fancy an Emergency. Completely out of my price range though.

[James.uk]

They do come up at reasonable money but be quick.. Old ones are seemingly going up again.

[andrew]

I may sound a b it arrogant, but have couple of friends who are in "search & rescue" Business, so they prefer "Marathon" watches. Personally, I also do not like very much those "Breitlings" you are talking about...

That's not "arrogance", that's "preference".

The number of people who work in SAR around the world is much higher than the production of Breitling Emergencies, so it stands to reason that some SAR professionals will not wear a Breitling Emergency. Actually very few of them will, as Emergencies are most often sold to civilians in large cities.

[erchie84]

I work offshore and wear mine and yep all signed up with breitling....if the chopper ever went down its another location tool

[tz-uk73]

Good to see there is some love for the yellow emergency. Mine says hi.... Well actually A temporary goodbye as it now spends the next 8 weeks at brietling uk.

[beechcustom]

I watched entertaining 'lost at sea' post Jaws horror 'The Reef' last night. All the way through I was thinking, you'd really want to be wearing a fully functional Breitling Emergency in this situation :-)

EDIT: PS I think they look great watches!!

[w2w]

Even though I did withdraw my 2012 Emergency from sale in SC. I have been offered a somewhat grail of mine at a decent price, so it may well have to go. Not made my mind up yet but if anyone's seriously interested then I could re-list [just as long as the one I'm after is still available]

[Dent99]

Great bits of kit but not the best looking watch by a long way. In terms of who buys them, I'd be even more interested to see who thinks the new versions pushing in at 50mm look good on the wrist!

[Fas]

Great bits of kit but not the best looking watch by a long way. In terms of who buys them, I'd be even more interested to see who thinks the new versions pushing in at 50mm look good on the wrist!

That'll be me for one. Waiting to see one in the flesh before buying / placing an order, but from the pics and various youtube videos, I think they're superb. Having said that, I'm larger than the average bear and should be able to pull it off.

[andrew]

The SAR professionals don't need to wear a breitling emergency , they do the rescuing LOL

Well, a couple of them lost contact rescuing someone else in 2004 or so (Breitling occasionally published reports of actual use) so I guess it happens. But of those who have relied on it, it's mostly explorers and military - compared to the numbers sold to rich men on civvy street, though... it's all practically nothing.

The new one is 51mm. It's not going to look good on anyone, certainly not in any kind of proportion unless you're eight feet tall, and frankly no-one's that big.

[seadog1408]

The new one is 51mm. It's not going to look good on anyone, certainly not in any kind of proportion unless you're eight feet tall, and frankly no-one's that big.

http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/...est-man-living

[marcus fenix]

Goes great with a suit


All new Breitling Emergency BLACK TITANIUM. 51mm diameter and 121,5 MHz! Reference V7632522/BC46 and retails at €16.270! Soon at AceJewelers.com :) #BaselWorld #Basel2013 #Breitling #Emergency #watches #womw #watchnerd #Titanium #BlackTitanium #CultObject by alonbj, on Flickr


NEWEST CULT OBJECT! All new Breitling Emergency. 51mm diameter and 121,5 MHz! Reference E7632522/BC02 and retails at €14.320! Soon at AceJewelers.com :) #BaselWorld #Basel2013 #Breitling #Emergency #watches #womw #watchnerd #Titanium #CultObject #Cult #Be by alonbj, on Flickr

[sheepsteeth]

tat new emergency is great looking. its size i going to be an issue for some but i reckon (if i wasnt so poor) i could get away with that, but i am a bit of a whopper so it would look fairly proportional on me!

[The Hack]

Ummm....not really!

But to each their own, I suppose. :)

Goes great with a suit


All new Breitling Emergency BLACK TITANIUM. 51mm diameter and 121,5 MHz! Reference V7632522/BC46 and retails at €16.270! Soon at AceJewelers.com :) #BaselWorld #Basel2013 #Breitling #Emergency #watches #womw #watchnerd #Titanium #BlackTitanium #CultObject by alonbj, on Flickr


NEWEST CULT OBJECT! All new Breitling Emergency. 51mm diameter and 121,5 MHz! Reference E7632522/BC02 and retails at €14.320! Soon at AceJewelers.com :) #BaselWorld #Basel2013 #Breitling #Emergency #watches #womw #watchnerd #Titanium #CultObject #Cult #Be by alonbj, on Flickr

[andrew]

http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/...est-man-living

Ah, is he on here? My mistake ;).



It's often said that the increase in size of the average male since the 1950s is the reason for bigger watches. If an average male was 5'7" in 1957 and wore a 35mm watch, that watch should be 38mm today (or 36mm if you use dial area). Not 44mm!

[SimonK]

Well I doubt they bought them, but there is documentary on the telly at the mo' about the French air force aerobatic team and each jockey is wearing one.

[fraggle42]

Lone pilots in single engined planes?

I doubt their transmitter will have much of a range, so don't know exactly how much help it would be.

[rob-vicar]

Goes great with a suit


All new Breitling Emergency BLACK TITANIUM. 51mm diameter and 121,5 MHz! Reference V7632522/BC46 and retails at €16.270! Soon at AceJewelers.com :) #BaselWorld #Basel2013 #Breitling #Emergency #watches #womw #watchnerd #Titanium #BlackTitanium #CultObject by alonbj, on Flickr


NEWEST CULT OBJECT! All new Breitling Emergency. 51mm diameter and 121,5 MHz! Reference E7632522/BC02 and retails at €14.320! Soon at AceJewelers.com :) #BaselWorld #Basel2013 #Breitling #Emergency #watches #womw #watchnerd #Titanium #CultObject #Cult #Be by alonbj, on Flickr

I really like the way, it doesn't fit under a shirt cuff, or your wrist, 'great' look over all. Did I say great? I meant stupid