P51 wrote:
Hi mandyf,
Welcome and enjoy your stay here.
I am struggling to be a little more authoritive on Breitling, therefore I could be well out of line here, so please pardon me if I am in error. There are also some extremely authorative members here who might be able to fill in where I might be wrong.
My quick reference on your watch would suggest the serial number on the back is from 1946 for non-chronograph watches. There are similar watches in Benno Richter’s book on Breitling as well. The book does not cover all models but there are some similarities with ones that it does cover, especially with the arrowhead batons (replacing the numbers on the watch face). That particular book also shows some wristwatches with the words Breitling Geneve from 1942 & 1948, so maybe this one is a genuine Breitling. The only thing that bothers me is the lack of a signed bridge in the watch mechanism. It usually says Breitling somewhere in the gubbins, which I can't see in this case, from the pics you have supplied. Its not a named watch as far as I can see, so it is just called a Breitling Wristwatch. It would certainly fool me if it were proved not to be a Breitling, and you never know these days. Hope this helps.
Nice looking watch anyway and I hope your Husband likes wearing it.
Regards
Jim
It is categorically
not a genuine Breitling. Please don't rely on Richter as a sole source for validation. Breitling did not move to Geneva until 1952 so no legitimate Breitling can carry Geneve on the dial with a pre 1952 serial number.
Caseback styling and stamping is also wrong.