Breitling Superocean Heritage Chronographe and Limited Edition
Breitling is a famous name in Swiss Chronometers. The Breitling watch factory was established by Leon Breitling at Saint-Imier in Switzerland in 1884. The enterprise was such a success that Leon moved the factory to the prosperous watch making town of La Chaux-de-Fonds in 1892. It has been a great success story since then. The company is now owned by the Schneider family but the name of Breitling goes on carried forward by the professional craftsmen who create Chronometers certified by COSC (Controle Officiel des Chronometers).
The Breitling Superocean Heritage Chronographe and Limited Edition watches are really not only a general celebration of one hundred and twenty five years of excellence in the manufacture of Chronographs but also the specific appreciation of the Superocean series launched in 1957. The Superocean has ruled the waves since then. The outstanding amongst these is of course the Breitling Superocean Heritage Chronographe Green Edition. Only a thousand of these ‘instruments for professionals’ (the Breitling trade mark slogan) were made. The Green Edition is so called because of the green Bezel of these limited edition chronometers. This is an outstanding watch in a single block steel case with a diameter of 46mm. The dial is black and is quaintly called volcano black. It has the perfect match in the steel mesh bracelet which is called the Ocean Classic. The other choice in bracelet is the rubber Ocean Racer.
The movement is the unique mechanical self winding Caliber Breitling 13. This gives it a power reserve of a minimum of 42 hours. The three sub dials of the chronograph have the accuracy of ¼ second, 30 minutes, and 12 hours. The watch is watertight till a depth of 200 meters or 660 feet. The green Bezel is ratcheted and unidirectional. It has 28,800 vibrations per hour. The watch runs on smooth frictionless 25 jewels. The thickness of the watch is a good 16.40mm. It weighs 147.40g and the interhorn width 24/20.
Besides the limited green bezel edition there are the Heritage Chronographe in colours of Black, Blue and Bronze. The dial is only black. It has an aperture for the date at three o’clock. The choice in straps is extensive. Besides the Ocean Classic and the Ocean Racer, the straps are available in impractical but fashionable leather. The colours for the leather straps are Brown, Gold, Black, Blue and Green.
There are choices in the rubber Ocean Racer itself and they are Black, Blue and Bronze. There are two more classes of straps and they are Diver Pro and Diver Pro II. The colours available in these are Black, Bronze and Blue. The buckles have two options and they are the Tang type and the folding clasp.
The dial has the Breitling signature and there is an eighteen carat stylised B placed near the three o’clock date window. The perfect reminder of the fifty years that have elapsed since the first Superocean chronometer is the oversized triangular trade mark hour hand which is also luminescent. This limited edition is a collector’s and connoisseurs delight no matter what the colour of the Bezel
