watchtinker
·I would date my Omega example to 1943. Therefore it is conceivable that in 1945/46 a new balance had been adopted.
I would date my Omega example to 1943. Therefore it is conceivable that in 1945/46 a new balance had been adopted.
As the listing with a nickel balance dates from 1944 I tend to disagree.
I would rather assume that they made versions with either type of balance?
Was Omega more conservative? Requesting an old school type balance fitted?
This was during WW2, so access to metal alloys may also have been restricted?
Actually never seen a Lemania CH27 with a bi-metallic balance.
The base caliber for the 27CH, the S27 was never supplied with a compensated balance according to my parts lists.
And the “1930s” caliber 13CH was available with both options.
As such Lemania had obviously started using nickel/ balances in the 1930s/early 1940s.
Omega held on to compensated balances on their 30mm movements until 1949/1950.
Was this an Omega “standard”?
Lemania would easily adopt their design to requests from big bro Omega.
Is this a case of Omega being bigger and slower to adopt?
Actually, also Omega chronometers appear to have been late in adopting new balances. With respect to technical reasons, they might have been several and in order to shed some light it would be interesting to have access to the documents related to the concours international de chronométrie in the late Forties.
Absolutely!
I do not know enough about the development and marketing of pre-war Omega movements.
However I get this feeling that well made compensated balances could have been something they had been promoting as a "Omega sign of quality" in the past, and the "new" style nickel balances took some time to accept.
The milestone Omega caliber 330, introduced in 1943, seems to have been equipped with a nickel balance, so it was obviously a thing coming at that time.
Omega was an extremely conservative and risk averse company.
My thoughts leaps to the development of the worlds first automatic wrist chronograph, the Lemania 27CH-c12-A, completed in 1947.
As an article by Gregory Pons states it:
"Almost a quarter of a century before Zenith and Dubois Dépraz, the Lémania manufacture was working on the development of an automatic rotor chronograph, based on the famous CH 27 caliber. A pioneering chronograph that will be rejected by Omega in 1948, for fear that customers do not like the mechanical rattling of the thrust rotor (bumper!). Like what commercial conformity is a terrible handicap for brands that do not like to take risks." (Translated from an original article in french published in "Le quotidien de l'horlogerie, 23/02/2014).
Full article: https://businessmontres.com/article...hronographe-mecanique-a-remontage-automatique
Lemania never made another bumper movement, but went straight for a full rotor automatic with their cal 36xx introduced in 1951.
I tend to agree. My experience with Omega has been that of a middle-of-the-road company, at least from the late Seventies to the late Nineties. However, in order to depict a full picture of the development of movements, an historian should make reference to internal drawings and documents which, I suspect, might not be available any more.
I'd be willing to bet that such documents are just sequestered in the warehouses of the brands in question. They just never get looked through and digitized as not many care as much as we do about small details like this.
As such I would maintain that my example Lemania is a very early one.
Earliest Lemania from my photo archive is serial #337. Tissot serial dates it to 1942.
Earliest Lemania from my photo archive is serial #337. Tissot serial dates it to 1942.
I think someone should grab it fast....
Unfortunately some parts have been improperly fixed and the movement does not look in good conditions.
True! It does appear to have been exposed to an "Italian Job".
Not entirely hopeless to get back into shape I presume, but not a mint example for sure.
The early serial does however make it interesting, and they are open for offers....
At least the balance is of nickel type.
Yes, it can be restored, even of it is not a cheap job. However, for historical reasons a cut balance wheel would preferable. It would costituite a true example of first generation 27CH!
Not sure we fully agree 😉.
I am trying to find a Lemania CH27 (and not an Omega badged) movement, using a "cut balance wheel". No luck so far.
As discussed earlier I suspect that the old style "cut balance wheel" was perhaps an "Omega version only" thing?
Pity the Tissot, referenced earlier in this thread, could not be verified as to what type of balance it has.
I suspect it will have a nickel one as well.
Comparing the above, you will see that both my Lemania, and the Hausmann, has got nickel balance wheels.
I have several, relative early, CH27 in my collection, but none as low in serial as the above.
I would appreciate if you find any information that contradicts my theory.
😀
Thank you. Unfortunately the balance wheel is spinning and the type cannot be assessed.
The serial numbers on early Tissot cal 27CH movements are actually Lemania serial numbers.