Breguet Classique Quantième Perpétuel Ref. 5327BR/1E/9V6 Reviewed by Tim Mosso


by Tim Mosso

Breguet – the brand – needs your love. Despite excellent products, a rich history, significant investment, and financial stability, the company bearing this industry’s most illustrious name often ranks among the most anonymous in the space.

Besieged by establishment powerhouses like Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet, overshadowed by hip independents, and undermined by excessive availability, the modern Breguet brand can build a marvel like the Classique Quantième Perpétuel 5327 and receive essentially no credit for its work.

That needs to change.

Breguet Classique Quantième Perpétuel Ref. 5327BR/1E/9V6

Among watch collectors, there’s a general perception that major groups are toxic to quality and soul. Judging by the 5327, the general perception is dead wrong.

Breguet Classique Quantième Perpétuel Ref. 5327BR/1E/9V6

If this machine had emerged from the atelier of Grönefeld, J.N. Shapiro, or Roger W. Smith, I’m sure the collective would fawn over the thing while gearing up to blow six-figure holes in the checking accounts of fortunate souls.

Breguet Classique Quantième Perpétuel Ref. 5327BR/1E/9V6

But while the merits are real, used prices linger thousands below steel Rolex Daytona money. Marketing mistakes explain the disparity, but the quality speaks for itself.

Now that we’re past the perfunctory acknowledgement of Breguet’s marketplace morass we can speak solely to the virtues at hand. And a great deal of the credit for this Breguet belongs to a man whose name is nowhere to be seen on the dial: Daniel Roth.

Ols School: Daniel Roth designs everything on paper

Roth joined the modern-era Breguet company in the early 1970s following the Chaumet takeover of the dying French institution. Relocation to Switzerland’s Vallée de Joux and a new focus on luxe wristwatches revitalized the old marque and set it on a long-term collision course with the future Swatch Group.

But from 1973 to the Chaumet brothers’ scandal-fueled 1987 demise, Roth was a creative powerhouse helping to craft the modern aesthetic of the Breguet brand.

Breguet Perpetual calendar Ref. 3310 developed under Daniel Roth

Perpetual calendar 3310 arrived as Roth departed to launch his eponymous brand in 1987 (now owned by Bulgari), and its basic look remained unchanged even as it morphed into the larger 5327 in 2004.

Breguet Classique Quantième Perpétuel Ref. 5327BR/1E/9V6

At 39mm, the 5327 is larger than its 36mm predecessor, but the size remains a throwback to a kinder and gentler era of dress watches. From the outside working inward, Breguet equips a case with cold-rolled and hand-finished coining; final cleanup of the case flanks was performed in special jig.

Lugs, crown and caseband of the Breguet Classique Quantième Perpétuel Ref. 5327

The lugs are welded into place in the time-honored tradition of manual case-craft, and the hand-filed seams between lugs and flanks are arrow-straight. And because spring bars can become a liability over time or when poorly seated, Breguet employed screws, bars, and set screws to keep the Classique Quantième Perpétuel (QPC) firmly anchored to its owner.

Breguet Classique Quantième Perpétuel Ref. 5327BR/1E/9V6

Dial side, the CQP is the opposite of minimalist. As with historic Breguet pocket watches, a multiplicity of subdials litter the watch face while embracing calculated asymmetry.

There’s no shortage of information, but the sheer visual stimulus masks the two finest qualities of the dial; it’s made of solid 18-karat gold, and the guilloché is hand-turned on manual lathes.

Breguet secret signature engraved on the dial of the Breguet Classique Quantième Perpétuel Ref. 5327BR/1E/9V6

 Several different guilloché patterns enhance the decadence of an already rich dish. The “secret signature” flanking numeral XII is less of a secret and more of a branding exercise these days, but the pantograph-etched script still adds a welcome human touch to the steely silver dial.

Elegantly engraved curves on the moonphase disk of the Breguet Classique Quantième Perpétuel Ref. 5327

Additional graces include a moon with physiognomies and fired blue steel hands.

Mechanically, the Breguet caliber 502 DRP1 is based on a high-grade Frédéric Piguet P-71 automatic. Like most machines coined during the Chaumet/Roth era – and later Roth’s personal brand – the 3310 and 5327 sourced base calibers from high quality suppliers and elaborated as necessary.

This elaborately engraved Breguet caliber 502 DRP1 is based on a high-grade Frédéric Piguet P-71 automatic

And judging by the elaboration, invention was the mother of necessity. All surfaces of the bridges are freehand engraved, beveled at the edges, and, in the case of the rotor, skeletonized as well.

If Stefan Kudoke, Jochen Benzinger, Hannelore Lass, or the late Armin Strom had engraved this watch, we’d marvel and laud the genius of the independent creator.

Instead, this is the product of a group-owned corporate brand, so the marketplace and collector collective struggle to process the virtuosity at hand.

It’s Schrödinger’s cat for watch critics – both common and uncommon in the view of uncommitted buyers.

Open minds are necessary to make headway against the current of popular opinion. Great things still happen within the corridors of group-owned brands, and watches like the Breguet 5327 force jaded brand snobs to choose between quality and crowd consensus.

Make no mistake, this density of features on a Patek Philippe would supercharge a six-figure price tag and likely entail client approval by a guy who spells his name with an “S.” But as a used Breguet, the 5327 is available for less than the MSRP of a basic Calatrava.

While this Classique isn’t billed as a “piece unique,” the simple fact of burin-cut scrolling results in variations between examples. No two collectors can own identical 5327s.

Intricately engraved gold rotor of the Breguet caliber 502 DRP1

The scrolling largely takes the form of floral motifs, and the ultimate example is the “flower” cut around the fixing screw of the winding rotor.

Characters on the periphery of the base plate are engraved manually with a lovely cursive motif reminiscent of the finest calligraphy.

Attention to detail is superb; note the roughed satin brushing of the bridges and rotor to dull the flat planes and allow the engraved hollows to shine.

Escapement shock protected jewel (left) and hand engraved bridge

Marvel at the engraved escapement bridge below the balance; that wouldn’t look out of place on something made by a one-man-brand of the Dufour variety. But plenty of boutique independents would have overlooked this charming detail.

And below that bridge, there’s a mirror-polished anchor.

Perfect.

Or not.

Debris on the mainspring visible at 9-10 o’clock on the mainspring of the

There are a few signs that fallible human beings were involved. The open barrel architecture of the ultra-thin P-71 base caliber inevitably leads to visible evidence of debris and aged lubricants accumulating on the exposed mainspring.

Breguet caliber 502 DRP1

Elsewhere, anglage is attractive but not as evenly applied as on the best examples from Patek, Vacheron, Lange, and certain independents. Several interior-angle bevels on the skeletonized winding rotor are less cleanly expressed than others.

Hand engraved serial number and drill-cut “38 Jewels Swiss” on the baseplate

Also, the juxtaposition of the hand engraved serial number and drill-cut “38 Jewels Swiss” on the baseplate exposes the compromises inherent in an outsourced ebauche.

Speaking of the ebauche, it’s an age-old design that traces its lineage to the 1970 F. Piguet P-70. Like the JLC 920 and Patek Philippe 240 of the same era, the movement’s quest for thinness resulted in some quirks like the open barrel and three-quarter rotor design.

At only 9.1 mm high, the Breguet Classique Quantième Perpétuel Ref. 5327 is relatively slim for an automatic watch with a perpetual calendar

The payoff was a 2.4mm thickness that made the P-70 and its 1980s upgrade, the P-71, among the thinnest tractor calibers available. Breguet improves this one with a free sprung regulator, the self-evident decoration, and a perpetual calendar module with power reserve indicator.

Breguet Classique Quantième Perpétuel Ref. 5327BR/1E/9V6

I would be crass and daft to declare a luxury bauble priced at $30,000+ as “cheap.” It is not. Rather, value is the focus of this survey. Used Breguet timepieces of the modern era offer extraordinary value.

Part of that is the quality you receive. Part of that is the certainty of obtaining parts and service indefinitely. As a salesman, I have a Roger W. Smith Series 4 simple triple calendar and moonphase that I’d love to sell you for nearly a million dollars.

But writing as a collector and advocate for the watch community, I’d like to highlight an incredible opportunity for open minded enthusiasts – regardless of where you buy your hardware. And I think you know what I mean.

Breguet Classique Quantième Perpétuel Ref. 5327

For more information on the new version, the Ref. 7327, please visit www.breguet.com/en/watches/classique/classique-quantieme-perpetuel-7327/7327bb119vu

Quick Facts: Breguet Classique Quantième Perpétuel (Perpetual Calendar)
Reference Code: 5327BR/1E/9V6
Edition: Launched in 2004; discontinued 2023
Functions: Hours; minutes; power reserve indicator; moonphase; perpetual calendar with leap year, day, date, month
Case: Rose gold; 39mm diameter; 9.1mm thick; 47.6 lug-to-lug; 20mm lug spacing; welded lugs with screw-fixed strap bars; 30 meters of water resistance; push down crown; cold rolled case coining along flanks
Strap: Brown alligator leather strap
Clasp: Rose gold snap-locked single-folding clasp fixed by screw and bar
Dial: 18K gold base; lathe guilloche; silvered; Breguet “secret signature” flanking numeral “XII”; blued steel hands
Movement: 502 DRP1; F. Piguet P-71 base; automatic winding; 45-hour power reserve; 3Hz; free-sprung balance; fully engraved; 38 jewels; 27.4mm x 4.7mm; flat hairspring
2023 New Price: $82,300
2024 Preowned Price: $32,500-$35,000

* Tim Mosso is the media director and watch specialist at The 1916 Company. You can check out their very comprehensive YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/@the1916company.

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