ETA 1218

Description

In 1950 the era of automatic movements began at ETA. For men’s watches the caliber series ETA 1256 was launched, and for women’s watches the no less exciting series of calibers ETA 1216 to ETA 1218.

The ETA 1218 was the version with the smallest diameter.
It was just 8 1/4 lines, corresponding to 18.3mm. Assumingly, it was a small sensation at the time being and also not very cheap, therefor, the production numbers of only 150.000 units for the whole series, are quite small.

The base plate, which bases on the caliber 1170 is quite unspectacular and of the quality that one expects from ETA.

The contemporarily classical, but also high building construction uses a direcly driven center minute wheel.

Third wheel, the directly driven center seconds wheel and the escape wheel complete the somewhat chubby gear train.

The swiss pallet lever escapement is controlled by a two-arm screw balance, which is already beared in two Incabloc shock protections, and beats slowly with 18000 A/h.

Its exact frequency can be adjusted via a long regulator arm.

To detach the crown wheel on automatic winding, it is mounted in a moveable way.

As long as the automatic module has not yet been installed, only the bearing next to the ratchet wheel, the movable crown wheel and the pawl, which acts on the crown reminds of a selfwinding movement. Nevertheless, its execution still seems a little semi-professional.

The selfwinding module is attached with two screws.

Here you can see how the axle-bearing rotor is attached with a screw, which at the same time regulates the height clearance.

The oscillating wheel acts on a ratchet changer wheel that ensures that the two subsequent reduction gears are always turn in the same direction, no matter which way the rotor turns.

The dial side offers the familiar picture that one known from other ETA movements: Clutch winding, Incabloc shock protection and auxiliary minute track, with which the movement can be adjusted also in the uninstalled state, without dial.

In the lab

Timegrapher result