zOwie Omega Discussion Forum

: Would it not be "fair" to say (all
: else being equal) that the 3135, with its
: Breguet hairspring and balance bridge,is
: technically a better movement?

Probably. I have the 3135 in my DateJust and a 1120 in my SMP. Frankly, it takes a highly critical examination or trusting the opinion of experts to even begin to understand the differences.

: I mean its also "in house", ok thats
: no guarantee but somehow it seems it has the

In-house means nothing to me. What constitutes 'in house' gets pretty ambigious when you are dealing on the scale of companies as large as Rolex and Omega. In such large corporations, design, manufacturing and assembly are broken across numerous departments, divisions, affiliates and sub-contractors. There ceases to be a clear or meaningful distinction that can be boiled down into a simple 'it is an in-house movment so it is better' valuation that some watch enthusiasts like to carry as a banner for their team.

What means more to me is exclusivity. And both the 1120 and 3135 have that. Rolex makes the 3135 for themselves, Omega makes the 1120 by specially customizing a movement made by division of their parent company.

The great strength that BOTH these movements have is that they are made in sufficiently large quantities that the makers get excellent economies of scale on quality assurance and testing. Flaws or quirks that come about in manufacturing and assembly are more quickly identified and resolved than they would be at small 'in house' movement makers.