Breitling Crosswind Racing

Sporty, functional, and striking: These three words best describe the Crosswind Racing chronograph. This timepiece's main feature is its bezel rider tabs at 3, 6, 9, and 12 o'clock. These four tabs protect the sapphire crystal and make operating the bezel easy, even when wearing pilot's gloves. Thanks to its moderate, 43-mm diameter, it looks good on many different wrists. In terms of case material, you can choose from 18-karat white or yellow gold, stainless steel, or a combination of gold and stainless steel.

The Crosswind Racing, Crosswind, and Crosswind Special are all part of the larger Windrider collection. Breitling no longer offers these models in their current catalog. This means the market is made up almost entirely of pre-owned pieces. Never-worn models are extremely rare today, as the Crosswind Racing only had a production run of a few years. This has had a positive effect on the model's value retention and could even lead to rising prices in the coming years, as already demonstrated by the ref. A13355.

Breitling outfitted these timepieces with the caliber B13, which has subdials at 6, 9, and 12 o'clock. This movement is actually a lightly modified ETA Valjoux 7750. Standard Crosswind models use the caliber B44, which is based on the ETA 2892 and has subdials at 3, 6, and 9 o'clock.

You can purchase a stainless steel Breitling Crosswind ref. A13355 for about 3,500 USD. This model combines a stainless steel case with a silver dial and bar indices. Most timepieces at this price point have a five-piece link steel Pilot bracelet. The same watch on a leather strap costs a few hundred dollars less.

The standard Crosswind is also available in a two-tone combination of stainless steel and gold. One example is the ref. B13055 with a blue dial and gold applied Roman numerals. Its pushers, crown, and bezel rider tabs are gold, while the rest of the watch is stainless steel. Plan to spend around 3,300 USD for this model on a matching two-tone bracelet.

A majority of Crosswind Special models fall into the same price range. The caliber B44 powers these timepieces and provides this watch with an oversized date display at 12 o'clock and a 3-6-9 subdial layout. The ref. A44355 features a silver dial and applied line indices. This particular model sells for about 3,500 USD on a stainless steel bracelet.

Limited to a run of 1,000 pieces, the Crosswind Special Limited Edition ref. B44356 is slightly more expensive at roughly 4,700 USD. You can recognize this 44-mm two-tone watch by its white dial with gold applied Arabic numerals. Unlike its sister models, this special edition has only two subdials located at 3 and 9 o'clock.

Unlike the Breitling Crosswind, the Racing version has a Chronomat dial. This is why it uses baton indices instead of Roman numerals for the hour markers. Its satin-brushed case also distinguishes the Crosswind Racing from its sister model. The subdial hands at 3, 6, and 9 o'clock lack luminous material, while those on the standard Crosswind glow in the dark. The watches both feature onion-shaped crowns, onion-shaped push-pieces, and the Breitling Caliber 13.

The Breitling Caliber 13 is based on the ETA Valjoux 7750 — one of the most prolific automatic chronograph movements ever. Its balance vibrates at a frequency of 28,800 vibrations per hour (vph), allowing it to accurately measure to within one-eighth of a second. The 12-hour counter sits at 6 o'clock, the small seconds at 9, and the 30-minute counter at 12. You can read the date from a window at 3 o'clock. The caliber also boasts a 42-hour power reserve. You can determine whether your watch is a chronometer by looking at the number in the fourth position of its reference number: If there's a 3, you have a COSC-certified caliber. If there's a 0, the caliber has not been certified as a chronometer.

About the Caliber B44

The Breitling caliber B44 is a modified version of the ETA 2892. One of this movement's special features is its oversized date at 12 o'clock. Like the B13, its balance has a frequency of 28,800 vph, and it comes with a 42-hour power reserve. Beyond the Crosswind Special, Breitling uses this movement in the Chronomat Blackbird and standard Chronomat. The manufacturer also outfits the Crosswind Special Limited Edition with the caliber B42 but leaves off the subdial at 6 o'clock.