Breguet Type XXII

Breguet Type XXII Review

Breguet released the Type XXII Collection to mark the 50^th anniversary. Breguet made their first collection for the French naval air force. The Breguet Type XXII Collection is commonly known as Type XXII Flyback Chronograph GMT 3880 ST. They feature some of their marvelous inventions in this collection, including the Breguet chronograph, the self-winding feature, the silicon lever, and the escape wheel.

The watch has very cool features, both technically and visually. Fine materials have been used to highlight the uniqueness of the watch. With an operation of 72,000 vibrations per hour, the watch has a very high beat movement. With the 72,000 vph  (10 hertz), the Type XXII Flyback Chronograph GMT 3880 ST can be used to measure small fractions of a second. According to Breguet, this model can measure time with “twice the precision.” The Type XXII Collection can measure 1/20 of a second.  The watch comes in four variations, with the main differences being the type of cases and straps. The main options are either stainless steel silver color or the rose gold color, and for straps, it’s either the brown leather strap or the stainless steel bracelet. You can purchase the various variations of the Breguet Type XXII Flyback Chronograph GMT 3880 ST at Exquisite Timepieces.

Dial

The dial of the Breguet Type XXII Collection has excellent aesthetics. The dial has different levels, and users can easily read the numerals. The watch has a brown dial which is signed Breguet. The dial has luminous hands and hour markers. Arabic numerals and chapter ring are visible on the dial. At the center of the dial, there is a red chronograph’s seconds hand on the half a minute basis. At 3 o’clock, there is a 24-hour indicator and a 30-second totalizer at the center. With luminous Arabic numerals, the second time zone is located at the 6 o’clock marker, and at 9 o’clock, there is a 30-second basis with a small second. This sub-dial shows running seconds, which make a full rotation in 30 seconds. The date is on the aperture, just on the 6 o’clock marker. The model’s brown dial contrasts uniquely with the red flyback indications.

Movement

The Breguet Type XXII Collection uses impressive functionality. The watch has an automatic Breguet 589F movement. The functionality of the watch includes the time, a 60-minute chronograph, GMT hand, and date. The GMT hand is synchronized with the 24-hour hand. At 6 o’clock, the watch's lower sub-dial contains a big 12 hour hand; this is the GMT hand for the second time zone. The synchronized 24-hour hand is located at the 3 o’clock marker. The hand allows the wearer to check if it's PM or AM in the second time zone.  The number of components in the Breguet Type XXII Collection is 363, and the oscillating weight is made of heavy metal.

The Breguet Chronograph movement housed in the watch has a flat balance spring and silicon escapement.  The silicon escapement is high frequency, 10 Hertz or 72,000 vibrations per hour. The silicon escapement brings about the watch's lightweight nature while also reducing lubrication problems usually associated with watches that have a high frequency. The silicon escapement is the Swiss straight-line lever model.

 The high frequency has endowed the watch with an exceptionally high regulating power. A complete rotation is completed in 30 seconds, thanks to the chronograph’s second hand. The watch’s chronograph features a unique flyback function, which allows the totalizer to return to zero while being restarted in the same operation.  Breguet has signed and numbered the self-winding chronograph (Breguet. Cal. 589F). The watch has a power reserve of 40 hours and 27 jewels. Breguet also included a balance-wheel with regulating screws in the Breguet Type XXII Collection. The timepiece can be adjusted in five positions.

Case

The Breguet Type XXII Collection model comes in a round case, which has a fluted case band. The case has a diameter of 44 mm and is 18-carat rose gold. The horns on the case are round-headed, and the model has a two-way rotating bezel with a 60-minute scale. The water resistance level of the Type XXII Flyback Chronograph GMT 3880 ST is 10 bar (100 m). The watch's case is available in both stainless steel, which is silver, and in a rose gold color. The case of the watch doesn’t have a skeleton. The 44 mm case of the Type XXII Flyback Chronograph GMT 3880 ST model has a case thickness of 18.05 mm.

The two-position crown resets the second time zone indicator found on the dial. This is done by moving the central hour hand without interfering with the second hand. The crown's location allows the date calendar to follow the timing of the main time zone displayed at the center. The crown is also a screw-locked down crown.

Straps

The Breguet Type XXII Collection model offers two attractive options for the Breguet watch enthusiast. You can pick the model that comes with the integrated brown leather straps or the stainless steel bracelet design. There are four variations of the watch and can be found in either of the two strap options, stainless steel or leather straps. The brown leather straps have fine white and red stitching that contrasts nicely with both the stainless steel silver case and the rose gold case.