Introduced by Breitling in 2014, the Colt A17388 was one of the last in-production members of its utilitarian-focused collection before its eventual discontinuation towards the end of the decade. While now discontinued, the watch nonetheless embodied the longtime, widely-praised signatures of its 1980s-launched collection, namely featuring a no-nonsense, understated, and efficient style that directly speaks to its military-designed origins.

Featuring a sturdy 44mm by 12mm steel construction and dive-ready 200m water resistance, the watch is from its case inward is a capable tool watch with some distinct Breitling flare. Angled edges on its thick lugs and protective crown guards distinguish the watch from its catalogue peers, while Breitling’s signature, ratcheted, unidirectional bezel with its four projecting “rider tabs” tops the steel wearer and places it firmly within the distinct design history of the brand.

Continuing its utilitarian streak, the Colt on its dial opts for a highly legible style via its use of large, contrasting hour indices, each complemented with a smaller inner numeral ranging from 13 to 24 for quick 24-hour timekeeping. A small date window breaks up the style at the 3 o’clock position and adds to the watch’s day-to-day usefulness, while a field watch inspired railroad track minute ring and curved outer 1/100th seconds ring provides some dimensionality to the aesthetic. A Breitling caliber 17 powers the watch’s tapered handset and arrow-pointer seconds counter. The automatic mechanism is based upon the ETA 2824-2 and shares its renowned reliability.

The Backstory

Born in the 1980s during a mass evolution of the Breitling’s catalogue, the classic Colt collection, like many of the brand’s watches, finds its origins in the armed forces. Specially developed for military use, and as such featuring a no-nonsense, highly durable form and supremely legibly style, the Colt quickly found fans far outside servicemen and women in a broad consumer base looking for a sturdy watch that was ready for anything.  

Over the years, the Colt and its many iterations found itself as the entry-level point for the Breitling catalogue, with it developing esteemed renown for its understated looks and incredible reliability. Over this period, the Colt has helped introduce generations of enthusiasts to the watchmaker’s famed and iconic designs, many of which without the help of the Colt may never have even heard of iconic styles like the Navitimer, Chronomat, or SuperOcean.

The Colt collection saw its last update in 2018 before falling out of production shortly after, but is today remembered as one of the more interesting wristwatch design families to arise from the brand in its over 130 year history.

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