Hands-on With My Favouriate Breguet Marine 5817ST Replica Watch

On its launch in 2004, the ‘New’ Marine reference 5817ST represented a radical departure from its predecessor. The old 5800 and 3800 Marine replica watches had been created as a testament to Breguet’s position as chronometer maker to the French navy, or ‘Horologer de la Marine’.

Given the dominance of the British at sea – following Harrison’s solution to the Longitude problem and the increased navigational capability it imbued – the supply of precision clocks became an serious issue for all maritime nations. The award of this position was recognition, not only of the accuracy of Breguet’s clocks, but also their robust construction. In a similar way, the Marine family took the style of a classic Breguet Marine copy wristwatch and placed it into a heavier case with crown guards and increased the water resistance to 50m.

The ‘New’ Marine took these developments and pushed them to a new level. The case was changed to stainless steel, creating the first ever Breguet replica watch to combine steel case with guilloche dial. The crown and crown guards were beefed up and the strap was made available in rubber, increasing the water resistance to 100m. Even the Breguet hands were enhanced with the addition of luminous material into the circles at their tip.

As with all Swiss Breguet replica watches, the dial is the hero. Back in 1786, Breguet began fitting his replica Breguet Marine 5817ST watches with guilloche dials. Despite their obvious beauty, these had a practical purpose; the matt finish of the dial reduced the reflective glare, while the defined zones of decoration could highlight areas of the dial making the time or date easier to read.

The process of manufacture crosses the boundaries of art and engineering with the engine-turning machine being set and controlled entirely by hand. 18ct gold is used for the baseplate, as this is the only metal soft enough to be cut by the rose-engine without any distortion of the lines. The pattern is carefully built up stage by stage, each pass of a pattern having to be completed in one go so as to maintain a consistency of pressure. Once completed, finely powdered silver is brushed into the surface, the motion being varied from sweeps to stippling, depending on the effect to be achieved. Finally, the dial is sealed with lacquer for protection.

The dial of a Breguet replica watch is a thing of beauty and it is only right that the owner would want to carry it with them everywhere. With this replica watch they can, even if that is while indulging in sport or diving.

This pictured example will be offered for sale at Fellows’ auction of Replica Watches on Thursday 20th November as Lot 151, with an estimate of £3,500 – £4,500. To view the full auction catalogue, please visit our website.