<![if
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chronograph world isn’t what it used to be. Due to escalating
manufacturing cost, the Swiss industry has gravitated toward fewer
popular calibres. An example of one such basic and functional calibre
is the Lemania 5100. Manufactured since 1978, it was recently rescued
from an untimely demise. <![if
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year ago, Nouvelle Lemania was planning to cease production of the
5100, a particularly rugged but accurate calibre used mostly in
military and space applications. There were two reasons for
Lemania’s decision. Foremost was that the simplistic design of
the 5100 no longer fitted the manufacturer’s product line and
philosophy. As well, the tools for the movement, being 20 years old,
were outdated and in need of restoration. However, the needed
investment couldn’t be justified by the calibre’s limited
sales to its three main customers: Fortis, Sinn, and Tutima. (Paul
Picot and Alain Silberstein also use the calibre but only in very
limited fashion unlike the other three.) At the very least, Lemania
would not be able to maintain the calibre’s price. <![if
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Fortis, Sinn, and Tutima insisted on the continuation of production
because the 5100 is the only calibre that met their military
requirements. The 5100, due to its construction, is the only
chronograph movement that can withstand large shocks without its
chronograph seconds hand stopping. This is because its chronograph
mechanism is driven directly unlike most other chronographs which use
an intermediate wheel. The calibre easily withstands acceleration in
excess of 7G without appreciable loss of accuracy. Its ruggedness is
legendary; the calibre easily absorbs shocks and blows. The calibre
also maintains its accuracy over long periods without servicing.
Service intervals from four to seven years have shown to be
sufficient. <![if
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the other hand, the 5100’s weakness, at least from a
watchmaker’s perspective, is its simple, even anachronistic
construction. Like a cheap old mechanical wristwatch or a mechanical
alarm clock, it uses a pillar construction. That is, the cock and
bridges are attached to the main plate by thin pillars. In a more
conventional design, the cock and bridges are terrace-like and mount
directly onto the main plate. Pillar construction reduces
manufacturing cost since parts can be stamped as opposed to being
milled. But that’s not all. The designers even dared to use some
nylon parts in the movement. The choice of nylon not only lowered
production costs but was also deemed, at the time, to be progressive.
After all, this was during the time of the Tissot Research 2001, a
watch with a movement made entirely of nylon and fiberglass. The day
and date wheels of the 5100 and their cams are also nylon. On the
periphery of the movement are two gray nylon half-moons that support
the rotor and absorb shocks from the rotor in case of hard blows.
This nylon “ring” around the movement hides much of the
pillar construction from the casual viewer. <![if
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Lemania did not cease production of the 5100. However, the wholesale
price of the movement nearly doubled from 230 SFR to about 400 SFR to
reflect the cost of the new machines and toolings. <![if
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brief glance over the 30 years history of the automatic chronograph
shows that the golden age of the chronograph&emdash;when a large
number and variety of calibres flourished&emdash;is largely over now.
<![if
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only a few integrated (as opposed to modular) automatic chronographs
remain on the market. Nearly all of these are at least 20 years old. <![if
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started with Zenith’s El Primero in 1969. The El Primero’s
strongest rival was the calibre 11/12 from Breitling, Heuer, Hamilton
and Buren that was released the same year. However, the El Primero is
today, 20 years after the production of the calibre 11/12 ended,
still in production. <![if
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1972, Lemania released the calibre 1340 that lives on today, albeit
after a long hiatus, as the 1350. <![if
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ubiquitous ETA-Valjoux 7750
was released in 1973. Five years later, the 5100, the simplified
successor to the 1340 and the focus of this article, was released. <![if
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1978, the market for mechanical chronograph was shrinking rapidly.
Cheap Japanese LCD quartz watches with stopwatch function flooded the
market. However, the Swiss manufacturers did not want to give up the
chronograph market. They needed a simple calibre that was cheap to
manufacture. Lemania was at the time part of the SSIH whose flagship
brand, Omega, still sold a wide variety of automatic chronographs. <![if
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calibre 1040 in the Speedmaster III and IV was derived from the
Lemania 1340 so it was fitting to use the new calibre 5100 (as the
Omega 1045) in the Speedmaster Automatic. Like the 1340, the 5100 has
a central chronograph minute counter that was easy-to-read, unlike
chronographs which utilized subdials. Omega had added to the Lemania
1340 a 24-hour indicator on top of the continuous second subdial at 9
o’clock to arrived at their Omega 1040. This 24-hour indicator
now became a standard feature on the Lemania 5100 and is even more
useful because it was moved to the 12 o’clock position. As well,
if you compare the dial of the 1340 with the 5100, you’ll also
note that the 5100 adds a day-of-the-week indicator. In sum, the 5100
provides more functionality with a more legible layout. <![if
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Lemania 5100 demonstrates other unusual constructions. The
navette-type chronograph mechanism is fitted not as usually between
the base plate and the automatic winding system but between the dial
and the base plate instead. The rotor winds in one direction only
over the reduction gear and runs in a hard iron bearing instead of
jewels. The ratchet wheel under the rotor transfers the rotation of
the rotor to a reduced wheel. The yoke spring on the rotor doubles as
a click. The above clearly shows that the Lemania 5100’s
antiquated construction, while simple, is nonetheless reliable and
functional. The clutch wheel is also made out of nylon, another
tribute to rational production. The large mainspring barrel continues
the rugged design philosophy of the movement. The balance is also
quite large for a high beat movement running at 28’800A/h. The
calibre uses the reliable and space-saving Triovis regulator.
Kif-Flector shock absorber was chosen instead of the more usual
Incabloc shock absorber seen in ETA calibre. At 8.2mm, the 5100 is
0.3mm taller than the ETA-Valjoux 7750. This makes the 5100 the
tallest of today’s chronograph calibre. <![if
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the Lemania 5100 is built for tool watches with an instrument
appearance, the height of the calibre is not very important. Sinn was
the first to see the potential of this underdog. <![if
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released the Sinn 142 in 1980, roughly at the same time as
Omega’s release of their second edition of the Speedmaster Mark
IV. The Sinn 142 is a large tool-watch with a highly functional dial.
<![if
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Porsche Design chronograph in the early 1980s was another functional
(and minimalist design) that used the Lemania 5100. <![if
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military chronograph was released in 1985 and was chosen shortly
after as the official watch for German air-force pilots. <![if
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1994, Fortis replaced their unpopular Stratoliner model with the very
well-made Official Cosmonaut chronograph. The calibre remained the
Lemania 5100. <![if
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Alain Silberstein used the 5100, changing the color of some of the
nylon parts in his provocative “Krono Bauhaus”. <![if
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Sinn released their EZM1 (Einsatz-Zeitmesser 1), a novel chronograph
design using the 5100 that moves the crowns and pushers to the left
side of the case (in addition to removing all subdials and the
day/date functions). <![if
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movement, self-winding with chronograph mechanism between the dial
and base plate. Centrally mounted, unidirectional winding rotor. The
inner face of the rotor contains a bent-spring click. A ratchet wheel
translates motion to a reduced wheel (the wheel with the drilled
holes visible in some photos). <![if
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chronograph mechanism is a space and cost efficient navette-type.
Despite the relatively high beat rate of 28’800A/h, the calibre
has a large Glucydur balance. Nivarox 1 flat hairspring, Triovis
regulator, Kif-Flector shock absorber. A large barrel for the
Nivaflex mainspring. Large nylon day and dates wheels. The automatic
winding mechanism’s reduction gear is also made of nylon. <![if
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calibre’s bridges, plates and balance cock are built as a pillar
construction. Two nylon half-moons on the periphery of the movement.
Movement height 8.2mm, diameter 31mm, weight 21g. Introduced in 1978. <![if
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calibre 5100 is used in chronographs from Omega (in the past), Sinn,
Fortis, Tutima, Alain Silberstein, Paul Picot, Orfina Porsche Design
(in the past), Tissot (in the past). Sinn offers the 5100 (for an
additional fee) with a COSC certificate. <![if
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traits of the Lemania 5100: the central minute-counter, 24h indicator
and 12-hour counter sub-dial. <![if
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5100
“Not
beautiful but Rare”
“Twenty Years”
“Antiquated but
Reliable”
“Effective, Precise, and
Reliable&emdash;In short: Unbeatable”
“Technical Specification of the
Lemania 5100”
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