The Breitling Watch Source Forums

Hello everyone. I decided to add a matching twin jet tang-buckle to my Cosmonaute.

Wouldn't be original but looks nice. The only person I know selling gilded versions is Bill Shaine and they're plated over stainless steel. Good luck with that lasting.

I have been seing those twinplanes buckles for years , and used 6 or 7 steel and 1 gilded on some of my 70's Breitling watches as they are - imho - a nice addition to a leather or Tropic 22-16 strap ...
They are all stamped " acier inox déposé swiss " inside the buckle .
Does somebody here know the origin of these buckles ? Period correct accessory from a dealer or country distributor ? Complete further creation?

About ten or fifteen years ago there were sellers in Hong Kong and Australia that were selling hundreds of these buckles. I had never seen them before. I've never seen an authentic, vintage, Breitling ad with these buckles. I've used them before on some Navitimers because it's a good look but I haven't seen any proof they were ever offered by Breitling. I asked Craig (Chronodeco) years ago if he could plate a couple of them for me to use with some plated Nav's and he said he doesn't do that because the stainless steel doesn't hold the gold plating well and it will rub or chip off. Doesn't mean it can't be done, just means he doesn't recommend it. Here's the Shaine link.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/NOS-VINTAGE-GOLD-BREITLING-BUCKLE-ONLY-NO-STRAP-16MM-NO-STRAP-I-/251841676004?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3aa2ef02e4

I have, Paul - had several original straps w/ those buckles in a parts stock lot I bought from an Ex-AD for Breitling in Germany, stock was lying untouched since the mid-1980s.

i also think, that they look really good with the 22/16 straps, that i prefere also

I bought some whenever i had the oportunity and after buying the third one
i noticed, that there is a quality difference - look at the pictures





so for me these "not so good quality" ones from italien ebay seller for me
definatly are wrong, but i don't know, if/when these double planes generelly had been used
and i never saw a document, that shows them.

regards

Stephan

That's interesting. Still have one untouched? Are they marked the same under the buckle? I think there's a possibility these were done later than the watches, maybe in the 1980's, but I want to see an original, documented, Navitimer or Cosmonaute with this buckle on the strap. Maybe Kurt has one?

Me too in 2002 I got a NOS original Breitling strap with a twin plane buckle from a swiss dealer , together with a NOS Breitling mesh/ deployant clasp . It was at the very beginning of my Breitling hunts and this dealer was not selling anything on ebay . Not a proof of anything ,I know ... The other buckles, I bought 2 or 3 from watchcoaustralia and more recently 2 from a Singapore dealer. For the gilded one I guess I had it silver + gold plated from my local shop , for sure it was not going from Bill Shaine.

These twin jet buckles have really existed! I know somebdy who owns some pieces since 40 years. But they weren't mounted on a strap, so it could be, they were sold as accessoire.

This Italian seller mostly sells fakes. You can see the difference. The right hand, faked one is "polished", the characters are "blurred".

Cal_11

PS: The faked one has also the same base as a Heuer-buckle (pointed).

and these faked ones look a little bid like polished silver
(i can not show this effect in the picture)

Stephan

My apologies for the delay; I been digging out of the snow here.

I'm not sure if these ever accompanied the watches but I found this buckle on a Breitling branded strap. But it wasn't a 22/16 strap.
So here is a closer picture, do you think it's by chance an original or the better quality?
Thanks

check my comparsion picture, specially the back side, than you will find out.

The two different ones you see in the comparsion showing the generelly
differences. All these italien fakes looks like "overpolished", bad engraving
and also the form is different.

Stephan

I have always considered them all fakes.....

Kurt B http://www.kurt-b.com

so at least we can decide to buy the fake or the italien faked fake.



I prefere the fake, but also accept the italien faked fake
(it depends on the price i have to pay for).

anyway they are good looking buckles



if anyone will give another explanation, that will bring these better
quality version more near to original, i also would like to hear this.


Stephan