11 Jul Is There A Pawn Shops Who Buys Breitling Watches and Sells Them?
Understanding Why A Collectible Watch is “A Thing” will help you understand why people buy Breitling watches.
Investment:
Luxury watches hold their value. Breitling, Hamilton, Citizen, Omega, Invicta, and other watches have value, but they may depreciate quickly. Collectible watches like the Navitimer, Rolex, or other brands mentioned, will hold their value as long as their condition is maintained. Providing the watch owner is taking care when they are wearing their watch and storing it safely when they don’t, the watch will hold its value nicely.
To Wear and Then Sell A Watch as a Pre-Owned Watch
These days there are many paths to selling your pre-owned watches. You can list it on one of the many online services that allow users to buy and sell goods or take them to a broker. Some watch stores deal in buying and selling used watches.
Many people aren’t aware that most pawnbrokers are willing to buy items outright instead of making collateral loans on those items. The vast majority of pawnbrokers offer this service, and they are pretty easy to vet for honesty and reliability.
The reality is if you walk into their shop and see that they deal in collectible watches, you should be good. Pawn shops are typically interested in precision timepieces and pre-owned watches like pre-owned Breitling.
Just know up front that they are in business to make a profit, and you may not get the total market value when you walk out the door. Depending on the stores and whether or not you’ve established a relationship with that store, rates will vary.
Getting 90% of the value out of your luxury watch is not unheard of, but it’s much more common than you will see between 70-80%.
If the broker offers you less than 60%, you are better off taking a collateral loan on the item instead of selling it. Remember you will be dealing with a large sum of cash and so be safe by negotiating with the pawnbroker and seeing what they have to offer to buy your pre-owned Breitling outright or use it as collateral on a pawn loan. This information will give you the facts you need to make an informed decision.
Negotiating with a pawn shop is fun and easy.
Rule number 1 you need to understand that it is a negotiation. It’s okay to push back a bit on their numbers, and don’t be afraid to leave with your Navitimer or any other luxury watch you brought in, especially if time is on your side with your finances.
You have some power as a seller; the business desires your watch to sell it. They will work with you to make a fair deal for everyone. You get to sell your watch safely and efficiently; they get to make a reasonable profit by assuming the risk of finding a buyer for it.
Also, be aware that a good deal of trading occurs between collectors, and it is not impossible to parlay your watch into a different watch that you’ll enjoy as well. Make sure you have done some homework and understand what your pre-owned Breitling watch is worth.
Let’s talk Breitling Watches
In 1952, Willy Breitling was asked to make a new official watch for aviators by the US Aircraft Owners and Pilot’s Association (AOPA). In response, Breitling introduced the Navitimer. Having already adapted the original logarithmic slide rule for aviation, Breitling put it onto a circular bezel and integrated it into the now-iconic watch.
The Chronomat was a forerunner to the Navitimer. It had a circular slide rule. The Navitimer, with its slide rule recognizable to the public as the pilot watch company.
Initially, the watch was only available to AOPA members, but in 1956 Breitling released it to the general public. Now a Breitling watch is known to the watch industry as a fun new watch or affordable pre-owned Breitling watch.
Early examples of the watch are rare, with some years in the ’50s and 60’s seeing only 100-200 units released for public sale.
The Navitimer name was a name created from navigation and timer.
The Breitling Navitimer was a large watch with a case diameter of 41 millimeters and significant for the time. Other luxury watches didn’t have such a large face. Still, for the Breitling Navitimer, the watch was large enough to ensure that all the necessary information would be visible to pilots with just a glance and a true example of form following function.
No one wanted a pilot trying to squint at the different pilot’s watches that were available while trying to fly a plane. The Navitimer is a true icon amount pilot watches.
Panda Dial
To help with visibility, many iterations of the Navitimer dial are known as a “panda dial” or a black dial adorned with white numerals. Panda dials are still very much in style today and are one of the most sought-after dial styles in the industry.
The original Panda dials have the 3-6-9 registered arranged and create what looks like two panda eyes staring at the watch enthusiasts. The Panda dial became increasingly popular when chronograph watches grew in demand.
The high-contrast style was meant to give the dial easier readability, with the sub-dials and index hour markers arranged neatly and with standout colors.
Breitling Chronograph
The Breitling Navitimer Today
Today the Breitling Navitimer continues to be iconic, and watch enthusiasts seek the watch both old and new with the latest technology. Breitling’s flagship model is at the top of the list regarding collectible watches bearing the Breitling name. The slide rule bezel today closely matches the original Navitimer bezel. Make no mistake; this slide rule bezel is still a favorite among pilots and aviation adjacent watch users and collectors.
The Breitling Navitimer continues to be an actual pilot’s watch, and it is stylish and functional.
While the material used to make the bands of the classic Navitimer have varied over the years, today, the stainless steel bracelet is a favorite. This mirrors other brand trends where stainless-steel watches and bracelets continue to rule the roost as the chase items for collectors.
Where features like a panda dial, a white dial, hour markers, and date function have appeared on many watches through the ages, the Breitling Navitimer was groundbreaking in introducing many of these features and popularizing others.
When Leon Breitling passed away, his son Gaston took over the company and made quick advancements during WWI. He introduced the chronograph function, which was quickly adopted by the military, the United States Army, and police forces because of its excellent quality.
The brand continues to develop new iterations to celebrate its rich history and to uphold Leon Breitling’s mission to produce the finest precision watch in the market.
What does an Iconic Breitling cost these days?
If you want to purchase a new Breitling at retail, it’s likely to cost you between $5,000 and 10,000 dollars, depending on the features and materials you are interested in selecting. While the first Navitimer edition was reasonably simple by today’s standards, Breitling now offers these timepieces with various complications (functions or any feature beyond just telling time). Depending on what you choose, your price will vary.
Modern Movement and Features
The early Breitling Navitimer came with a Venus 178 movement. Later, in 1954, Breitling evolved these watches to run on a Valjoux 72 movement. In the late 1960’s Breitling settled on a Valjoux 7740 movement for the Navitimer and made several changes in the following years.
Today, the watches are made with a proprietary Breitling self-winding movement that allows for all the complications and features modern customers demand without any drawbacks of the older styles of movement.
Breitling watches are nearly all stainless-steel cased, though some popular variants are adorned with features like rose gold or mother of pearl to add to the aesthetic of the classic timepiece. Many feature a chronograph, and Breitling offers several styles of chronographs in the Navitimer collection, including the famous B01 chronograph.
The b01 chronograph is arguably Breitling’s most popular chronograph and offers a clean look and precision. If you have a tool on your wrist, and a watch is, in many ways, just that, it may as well be an instrument of precision, style, and beauty.
Breitling’s line offers over 200 variations of one of the most popular models ever to hit the industry.
Those variations include a black leather strap, alligator leather straps, chronographs, variants with two and three subdials, white subdials, green subdials, date display, and many more. All variations come with sapphire crystal for durability and scratch resistance.
The watches are water-resistant from 1-3 bars, with the manufacturer understanding the importance of water resistance in a modern timepiece.
Pre-Owned Breitling Watches and Other Luxury Watches at Barry’s Pawn and Jewelry
Pre-owned Breitling watches are an option for collectors who desire a Breitling watch but don’t want to pay the price of a new watch with a chronograph movement and innovative features.
Pawn shops like Barry’s Pawn and Jewelry offer resale luxury watches. Barry’s Pawn is the leading expert of luxury watches like Rolex, Audemars Piguet, Patek Phillipe, and Vacheron Constantin in Boca Raton, Florida, and has been for over 35 years. You can buy, sell, or pawn your luxury watch with them.
The qualified team of experts will inspect, authenticate and appraise your luxury watch and provide you with an offer based on the pre-owned market value.
You don’t need to be a pilot to appreciate the subtle contrast and beauty in a pilot’s watch, and it’s simply a beautiful watch with a classic look. Breitling watches are typically free of complications like a chronograph. The Breitling Navitimer represents the company’s flagship watch and one of the only models it offers that is sought after in the collectible sense.
Stop by the store or visit Barry’s Pawn and Jewelry if you are looking for a pre-owned Breitling watch or other luxury brand watch. You can visit them at: https://pawnandjewelry.com/
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