When the quartz watch hit the market by end of the 60s, most watch companies embraced it with a vengeance. It was cheap, light, durable, super accurate. The advantages over all other mechanical types were beyond question. It seemed too good to be true and it was.
The shortcomings of the quartz watch didn't manifest themselves for two decades and by that time most watch companies and the ebauche industry had been dramatically downsized.
Audemars Piguet was beaten to moribund until savior Gerald Genta created the Legendary Royal Oak Jumbo to save the company from being Bankruptcy.
Omega stopped making their in house movements because it seemed that they wouldn't compete against the new Electronics Quartz technology. Movado did the same. Many Ebauche companies were devastated. AS and ETA were already the big players so they stayed in business.
The rejection of quartz by consumers of high end watches was settled fairly quickly as HK$10,000 premium watches began dying. Old established companies like Patek Philippe, Rolex and JLC wisely kept their mechanicals coming and benefitted greatly. Omega at one point discovered a supply of old manual wind movements put aside years before because they wouldn't sell as manual winds.
They did casing them into retro solid gold cases and got over HK$10,000 each for the lot. At this point in the game Omega and virtually all the other brands use the ETA 2824, 2892, and 7750 or a derivative thereof. Rolex still makes the Rolex, Patek Philippe still makes PP and JLC dabbles in new technology of their own design but stays with their automatics.
Why do we prefer the old in house movements? They were beautiful and unique. Omega won many timekeeping awards with their in house products. I am still thinking that the best Omega is still the Constellation in the 50s and 60s.
They are the best even built in house Omega Movement that once captured numerous people hearts, and Omega was more expensive than Rolex at that time… but sooner they lost to Rolex in the 90s’ due to lack of versatility and newer model to defect Rolex.
However in fact some of the Patek Philippe and Vacheron movements are based on "Lemania", and many of the Blancpain movements based on "Piquet"... Rolex used El Primero on their Daytona.
Most of the big brands use "in-house" movements but many of them use also movements from other manufacturers. IWC and Panerai have some nice in-house calibers but working also with ETA movements.
So If I categorize this way since the beginning of the Watch making , no other non-in-house watch movement have been used, Who else can claim they use 100% in house Movement!?
I think only Roger Dubuis, A Lang & Sohne, JLC , Seiko and someone mentioned Vulcain?
The Last one yet to be verified!?
Someone mentioned Seiko had been working Casio to build movement, So Can I remove Seiko form the list!?
Confirmed 100% In house Movement- JLC, Roger Dubuis, A Lang & Sohne.
To be further verified; Vulcain, Seiko?
Sham Shui Po Snob
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