John,
I belong to an e-mail group with about 200 other watchmakers worldwide, and the subject of Omega watches was recently discussed there. The following is an excerpt from an opinion given by a gentleman in the United Kingdom:
"I am having a lot of trouble with a modern Omega quartz, it has an ETA 210, 011 mm. Someone had fitted a 341 battery which will run it for a while. Assuming that this was the correct cell I started looking for other problems. After a lot of grief I discovered that it needs a Renata 44 lithium cell, Cousins supplied me with a dud one (cost £6.05!)* and I am waiting for a replacement.
So, guys - learn by my mistake and check before you replace a cell in one of these 'exotic' watches. Or better still - have nothing to do with them!
This gets me on to my current hobbyhorse. The fact that Omega and other exclusive watch manufacturers are ripping their customers off by selling high priced watches with tarted up ETA movements. ETA (who are part of the same group as Omega) are producing a slightly different range to their bog standard models and are charging exorbitant prices for a product which is little better than those a tenth of the price. To keep them 'exclusive' they tweak the electronics so that it needs a special cell which costs twenty times the normal price!
Having been trained in an Omega agency in the 60's, it really saddens me the way a once fine manufacturer has lowered its standards (but not its advertising budget!) so far. The once rightly prized Constellation - I am very fond of my 1960's model - now contains a very ordinary ETA auto movement which probably costs them about £30.* How they have the brass neck to charge upwards of £1400* beats me! How long they can trade on a once great name before the public gets wise remains to be seen.
I always advise customers and friends looking for something decent to avoid new Omegas like the plague and find a nice second hand one. I can sell a fully restored 1960's model, in new condition with a two year guarantee, for less than half the price of the new ones and I am convinced that they will far outlast the current models."
* £ 1 (1 British Pound) is currently equal to approximately $1.43 USD.
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Sadly enough, I'm afraid that I must generally concur with this fellow's opinion. If you're going to buy an Omega, you'd be much better advised to buy a nice vintage one from the 1950s or 1960s.
I have a 1961 Constellation (not for sale) that will keep time to within less than 30 seconds per month in daily wear. It has a 24 jewel, chronometer grade, calibre 551 automatic movement, which in my opinion, was one of the best movements Omega ever produced.
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Steve Maddox
VP, NAWCC Chapter #62
North Little Rock, Arkansas
