DEPLOYANT – Luxury watch reviews & horological lifestyles – Luxury watch reviews & horological lifestyles
Watches have come a long way since their inception in the 16th century. From pocket watches to wristwatches, simple time-only pieces to grand complications, there have been any number of paradigm shifts over the centuries. Today, we look at a Singaporean watch brand called Movas.
A case being given the finishing touches at moVas
The wristwatch in particular, as we know it, was first invented in the 19th century by Louis Breguet, and was popularised by its usage in military campaigns and wars. Tracking its use and form over the centuries, the wristwatch has adopted many forms and functions, each bringing its own dose of charm, elegance and appeal. Divers, pilot watches, chronographs, calendars, tourbillons, grand complications – every watch had a different function, and assimilated a different form as needed. Apart from the art deco-inspired pieces, mainly created with the aesthetic in mind and largely used circular movements despite tonneau or rectangular cases, the majority of watches assumed a circular case and bezel likely because other shapes did not serve to increase the overall functionality of the watch. Necessity was indeed the mother of invention.
As late as the mid-20th century, watches were only produced by large-scale companies, usually based in Switzerland or Germany. The resources needed to make a watch, from conception to production, were simply beyond the reach of most aspiring watchmakers who sought to do make watches outside of the factory setting. Even so, a large majority of these companies used ebauche movements. An ebauche movement is one that is made by another company which specialises in making movements and outsources it. Examples that come to mind include the 1963 First Series Heuer Carrera and Mark 1 Rolex Daytona which use the same Valjoux 72 movement, albeit with modifications. In fact, both these iconic watches also use dials produced by Singer, as do the Omega Speedmasters of that era.
Parts are assembled and individually finished by hand at moVas
Back then, the concept of in-house manufacturing was not used as a measure of the quality of a watch. Today, watch lovers are still divided on whether in-house movements are superior to ebauches such as ETA, even if it is the COSC-certified grade. A noticeable, game-changing difference in the watch world these days is the accessibility of resources to aforementioned aspiring watchmakers: infinitely easier international communication with production factories, advent of design software and technology and open access to information. These factors, coupled with unbridled enthusiasm of watch lovers everywhere, have arguably led to the swift proliferation of independent brands that we see in the watch world today.
A vintage pocket watch movement modified by Sean alongside the unfinished movements
Enter Sean Wai, an architect by training, bona fide watchmaker and self-professed non-lover of watches. While he does not appreciate watches as you and I might, he views them as expressions of design philosophies and principles. Each time he views a watch he immediately wonders if he can recreate it, not a typical reaction most of us have when beholding a timepiece. […]
The post How a Watch is Made at moVas: Part 1 appeared first on DEPLOYANT – Luxury watch reviews & horological lifestyles.
Article from: DEPLOYANT – Luxury watch reviews & horological lifestyles, by Ryan Teoh and Khong Jin Sun
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