LogFAQs > #975675011

Fluttershy posted...

not gonna lie kinda curious what the differences between the movements are. i can kinda picture what you mean when you say 'better finishing' like shit is just snappy.

Well basically, ETA and Sellita are so similar that it's extremely hard to tell them apart. This is because ETA, who designed, developed, patented and created their movements lost their patents after X amount of years, and were therewith not allowed to call these movements their own anymore. Sellita, another Swiss movement manufacturer essentially copied these movements and are now selling them to all kinds of watch companies. The Swatch Group chairman Nick Hayek Jr. has stated numerous times that he intends to stop supplying other watch companies with the Swatch Group's ETA movements which made companies like Sellita grow incredibly fast inside the last decade.

The movements are practically indiscernible because you can order the same movements with different grades of finishing. A time only ETA 2824 and Sellita's SW200 are the same movement. But if you see an ETA 2824 with worse finishing than a SW200, that doesn't mean Sellita's is better (and vice versa). If anyone claims one is better than the other, that's a great way of knowing said person doesn't know what their talking about. The answer is: It depends which level of finishing the respective watch company has ordered. Also worthy of note, a watch company can order an unfinished movement, and do the finishing themselves. This means they buy a movement for around $100 and invest 30-40 hours per movement, which obviously drives the price up substantially.

Kenissi on the other hand is a movement manufacturer created by Tudor, Rolex's sister company. They (unsurprisingly) make movements for Tudor watches, but have also began supplying other watch brands as of recent. Norqain, Breitling, Oris and others. I've heard that Chanel has purchased a stake as well, but this is something I don't know much about. Kenissi movements are known to be very robust, but in my humble opinion are not pleasing to look at. I find them quite boring looking and the finishing really isn't anything to write home about. I'm not criticizing Kenissi, they are purposely not finishing the movements to a high standard to be as affordable / accessible as possible. All 3 movement manufacturers create great and reliable movements, but ETA and Sellita have the advantage that they can be serviced by any competent watchmaker.

What I mean by better finishing is really how pleasing a movement is to the eye. Yes beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but if we're talking about bevelling, cote de Geneve, perlage, and various other kinds of finishing, these are reserved for more high end movements. If you've seen a Tudor movement before, which use Kenissi, there is barely any finishing on the components (clearly reflective of their relatively low prices). If you get a higher grade Sellita or ETA, you will notice the finishing has a 3 dimensional look to it, with polished edges and bevels having a beautiful mirror finishing without or with barely any inconsistencies.