Horological Meandering

One movement, two distinct personalities

 

I am a big fan of the humble Unitas (now ETA) 6498.  In my, admittedly, limited experience (I have two watches with the movement) I have found it to be a robust and reliable timekeeper.  The two watches I own that contain 6498s perform well within COSC specs (neither are certified chronometers).  There is quite a bit of information about the movement online, but the aspect I found interesting was that the large movement (16.5 ligne) was originally created for pocket watches.  With the emergence of the large watch trend, which I suspect will be more like a seachange than a trend (I don't think 40mm and larger watches are going away anytime soon.), the Unitas 6498 found usefulness as a wristwatch movement.  The standard 6498 movement if set with the crown at 3 o'clock will support a subsidiary seconds at the 6.  Although, the movement is quite ubiquitous, I do think they lend themselves well to being modified.  I suspect the large size of the movement makes working with them a bit easier for a watchmaker.  Perhaps, one of our watchmaking brethren can talk about the ease (or not) of working with the 6498. 

A brief pictorial of my two watches containing the Unitas 6498 follows.  Despite the fact that both the Archer Reference 1440 and the Stowa Marine Original are powered by the same movement, they present a very different feel on the wrist, as well as distinct aesthetic personas.  The Reference 1440 channels the spirit of elegant watches of yesteryear, albeit in a larger 42mm size.  It shares certain styling cues with watches like the Breguet Classique manual wind.  The Marine Original on the other hand, hearkens back to the understated beauty of shipboard marine observation clocks. 

The two subjects of my photo essay side-by-side.

...and from the back.

See the differences between the lugs, case, and crown?  The Archer is more structured, and the onion crown adds volume that gives the watch a wrist presence beyond its 42mm size.  The 41mm Stowa has a less formal lug design, and the simple fluted crown is functional and nicely stamped with the Stowa logo, but it certainly doesn't carry as much inherent pizazz as the Archer's onion crown.

The classical elegance of the Archer Reference 1440 vs...

...the subtle good looks of the Stowa Marine Original.

Here's how Archer interprets the Unitas 6498.

Another photo of the 6498 in the Archer.

The Unitas 6498 in the Stowa.  Notice how the Cotes de Geneve on this iteration is running horizontally, whereas on the Archer the watchmaker has chosen to obliquely angle the same decoration.  Both patterns are equally successful IMO.

The Stowa's interpretation of the 6498 from another angle.  Stowa has chosen a swan-neck regulator. 

Perhaps, this simple workhorse movement is only of interest to proletariats like myself, but I thought it deserved its day in the sun!  I like the Unitas 6498, and appreciate its no-muss, no-fuss timekeeping capabilities.  For more reading on this movement I found an interesting article at the following site: Unitas Reference.

Does anyone have pictures of, and/or thoughts about, watches in their collection that house a Unitas/ETA 6498?  It would be interesting to see a variety of differently modified 6498s.

Cheers,
Daos
This message has been edited by dxboon on 2009-06-23 05:54:38