hanski 40 Posted November 29, 2019 Somewhere along the lines I stumbled across a picture of a Wakmann Regate Chronograph. Since that fateful day I’ve been what they define in the DSM as obsessed. There was something about the enormous gold watch with a vividly colorful dial that captures my attention. It was the history and craft that took over from there. Post WWII the United States cracked down on imports, very specifically Swiss watch imports. Due to the high tariffs, Wakmann (a New York based company) collaborated with Breitling to import “Breitling” watches into the US. They did this by importing mostly finished Breitling watches to the US as parts and Wakmann completes the watches, including marking them with their own logo. In this case the Regate was a model specifically designed and produced by Breitling for Wakmann. You won’t find a Breitling variation of it. Couple that horological history with a well made, unique watch and you have my attention. The Regate features a Lemania 1341 movement. Why is this cool? It’s one of the first ground up automatic chronograph movements AND utilized as central, big hand minute tracker. I find this latter feature to be really attractive. Not only is it highly legible but frees up dial space for logo and open space. As a side bar, consider looking into the history of this vs the 7750. Due to the mass production of the 7750 the big hand minute tracker was abandoned - a case of capitalism at its finest. Additionally, this watch features a monthly day/date calculator (utilizing an internal rotating bezel), date, tachymetre, and regatta countdown. Like I mentioned earlier, the gold aesthetic with colorful graphics really make this watch for me. Quite the unique piece that I’m psyched to add to my collection. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
semperfi55 4,707 Posted November 29, 2019 11 hours ago, hanski said: Additionally, this watch features a monthly day/date calculator (utilizing an internal rotating bezel), date, tachymetre, and regatta countdown. 11 hours ago, hanski said: colorful graphics Love that aesthetic. Some are so garish that only vintage watches can get away with it. This reminds me of a Heuer regatta or chrono GMT with similar aesthetic but too expensive for me. Great watch! Thanks for sharing! That's a bit of Breitling history and US brand that I didn't know of! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hanski 40 Posted November 30, 2019 Some better pics: Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
semperfi55 4,707 Posted November 30, 2019 @hanski did you swap the crystal? It looks completely different! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hanski 40 Posted November 30, 2019 7 hours ago, semperfi55 said: @hanski did you swap the crystal? It looks completely different! No, I cleaned it with polywatch. Hahahaha! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
semperfi55 4,707 Posted November 30, 2019 58 minutes ago, hanski said: No, I cleaned it with polywatch. Hahahaha! Nice to see that it actually is effective. Clearly I’m not using enough elbow grease! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
