Replica Breitling Navitimer: The First Smart Watch

In 1959, naval officer, astronaut, and test pilot Scott Carpenter wanted a version of the Navitimer dialed and geared to read 24 hours – the Cosmonaute. In 1962, he took part in the second manned American orbital flight in history, orbiting the Earth three times wearing his Breitling Navitimer Cosmonaute 809. The 24-hour display was necessary to help him keep track of the true passage of time.

The above picture shows three distinct Cosmonaute references: Ref. 809, 806, and the whopping 47.5mm 819 from 1968. All three feature three subdials and a 24-hour dial. The Ref. 806 and 819 feature the Venus Cal. 178 column-wheel actuated chronograph caliber luxury replica watches; the Ref. 809 shown above is a rare example that has been outfitted with a Breitling-branded Valjoux Cal. 7736 cam-actuated chronograph caliber.

In another example of an uncommon Navitimer reference, we have the Ref. 7806 (pictures below). So what makes the 1970s Ref. 7806 Navitimer so special? As opposed to most other early Navitimer references, the Ref. 7806 has the distinction of being outfitted with the seldom-seen Valjoux 7740, a manual-wind caliber that is essentially a Breitling / Hamilton / Heuer Cal. 11/12 without the rotor assembly. The 7740 doesn’t only modify the movement by adding a sub-seconds register, it replaces the entire base movement under the chronograph module, using a faster beat (28,800 vph) manual movement equipped with sub-seconds at 6 to drive the normal Cal 11/12 module. The 41mm case is complemented by handsome red accents and a date window unobtrusively positioned at 4:30. It also features a date function.

Speedmaster, Cosmograph Daytona, El Primero, Monaco: most watch aficionados can likely rattle of a similar list of iconic sports chronographs, but what if you were to ask them about the first “Smart best replica watches”? I can guarantee you that practically no one would mention the name Navitimer.

In the early 20th century, Breitling was a pioneer of the chronograph complication, giving the world the first chronograph with a mono-pusher at 2:00 in 1915, followed by a chronograph with the classic dual-pushers (at 2:00 and 4:00) in 1933. Willy Breitling (grandson of Breitling SA founder Leon Breitling) wanted to create a chronograph for scientists, engineers and mathematicians, so in 1940, in the midst of the Second World War, Breitling applied for a patent (patent no. 217012) for the design of a rotating best replica watches bezel with an outer slide rule scale incorporated beneath the crystal. Enter the 1941 Chronomat Ref. 769 and Ref. 786: the Chronograph for Mathematicians, which had a logarithmic slide rule incorporated in its internal rotating bezel, allowing complex calculations to be made with the turn of your fingers instead of taps as is common today.

In 1952, 10 years after commercial sales of the Chronomat began, Breitling adopted the technology of the Chronomat specifically to the needs of pilots. The Navigation Timer, the Navitimer, was born. The first Navitimers were adorned with the double-wing logo of the “Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association” (AOPA) and by 1960, a real cooperation with the AOPA began. The first-generation Navitimer Ref. 806 came featured Arabic numerals and a black dial and subdials, and were outfitted with the manual-wind Venus Cal. 178. This was a legendary high-grade 17-jewel, tri-compax layout chronograph caliber with a 38-hour power reserve and a 18,000 vph beat rate. What makes it special is its column wheel function selector – the crenellated column wheel remains to this day more difficult to manufacture and is the traditional technology used in chronograph calibers omega replica watches. It also produces a far crisper and more satisfying engagement action than the cam-actuated technology that many brands later switched to (as a means of reducing costs and creating a more durable caliber).