Omega...Or Not ???

[Tools]

Back around 1930, the Omega/Tissot watch company was formed (or merged to become) the SSIH Company. This company went on to include, amongst others, Lemania and Lanco.

Omega was the working mans watch and Tissot and Lanco were sold in the up-scale luxury department stores such as Macy', etc.

This marriage lasted until 1985 when SSIH merged with SMH (Longines/Rado), re-organized and became The Swatch Company.

During the period 1930 to 1985, this Lanco was the upscale sister Chronograph to the Omega Chronographs of the day. Possibly the great success and popularity of the Speedmaster introduced in 1957 was the driver that caused Swatch to drop great names and watches such as this.

This one is 45 years old, runs flawlessly, and resides in the Omega box with it's more famous brothers and sisters..

[Widows Son]

Wow!!! she's a beauty. Thanks for sharing.

[el-piloto]

Larry!

Beautifull Lanco you have there!!!
Just gorgeous!!!

-------

Would I be allowed to hop in with a few more historical
details and possibly some corrections? I hope you do
not mind...

Well, as for Omega and Tissot, they were not purchased by
the SSIH.

It goes a bit like this:

Tissot's main market was the East of Europe, including
Russia. After the October Revolution in 1917 in Russia,
Tissot loses its most important market. Business goes
"down"... and Tissot needs new markets and business-
partners. In the year 1925 Omega appoints Paul Tissot as
their commercial director. The companies bond together.

In 1929 they decide to merge the two companies, and the
merger is completed by 1930 when they form the "Societe
Suisse pour l'indostrie Horologere", the "SSIH"!

So in merging (and retaining their identities), Omega & Tissot
form/create the SSIH!

The newly created SSIH does not include Lemania or Lanco yet.

Within the SSIH Tissot covered the so-called "mid-price"
segment of the group's models and Omega covers the upper-
segment.

In 1932 the Lemania company is acquired and merged within
the SSIH, though it too retains its name & identity.
Lemania keeps producing watches (from simple watches to
their famous chronographs and other slightly complicated
watches) and supplies chronograph movements (its specialty)
to the SSIH.

(It is of ironic interest to see that the SSIH - weakend
by the "quarz shock" - sold Lemania to other investors.
Then, from 1992 till 1999 the company is called "Nouvelle
Lemania" and belongs to Breguet. And the irony is that
Breguet now belongs to the Swatch Group - itself a very
distant relative of the old SSIH! - and thus Lemania
almost came back "home"...)

Now Lanco is a different story alltogether.

"Lanco" is (was?) a trademark or brand name of the
"Langendorf Uhrenfabrik SA" located in Langendorf Switzerland.

It was founded in the early 1840s by the Kottmann
family. Appart from a brief reign of an other gentleman,
the company was in the hands of the Kottmanns!

The company started using the name "Lanco" much much later.
If memory serves, it was not before the late 1950s that
the name "Lanco" graced the watch dials of the company.

In the 1960's Lanco released a very famous watch with an
alarm function, the manual-wound "Lanco-Fon"!

Edited (at 20:28 GMT):

I just checked many sources, including the rather authoritative
book "Omega Saga" by the great Marco Richon, and the date
of Lanco's acquisition by the SSIH is 1964 (and not 1970 as I
originally wrote here)!
The SSIH wanted the brand Lanco (freely translated from French
out of the "Omega Saga"), in order to increase the range of
watches offered by the SSIH but at the same time being able
to offer a quality brand at a "cheaper" price than the main brands
within the SSIH.

By 1973 or 1974 (again, if memory serves right) production
at Lanco was terminated, and was relegated to another company
within the SSIH, the Aetos Watch Company (also just edited after
checking with data from the book "Omega Saga").

Langendorf/Lanco used many movements from other suppliers
for their chronographs, the most famous calibers used
stemmed from the great Angelus company! Valjoux movements
were also used.

The SSIH sold Lanco (or the name of it) in 1981
(also added after checking with the time-table within the book "Omega Saga").

Lanco has been "re-born" recently, but I have no details
about the "new" Lanco at all...

But given the history behind Lanco and its takeover from the
SSIH by 1964, I don't think one could really say that

<<During the period 1930 to 1985, this Lanco was the upscale
sister Chronograph to the Omega Chronographs of the day>>

as you've put it... (ok... I'll go duck and cover now... )
For even though it was a very good quality brand/company,
both during the time Langendorf/Lanco was independent and then
during its brief time within the SSIH, it was never a "top" brand...

--------------

Well... the history behind the SSIH that later became the
ASUAG-SSIH and by 1985 (after Nicolas Hayek's investment
into it) became known as the SMH ("Societe Suisse de
Microelectronique et d'Horlogerie") and after its first
years of "re-born" success then became the "Swatch Group" by
1998 is a very long and complicated story... but surely
an interesting one!!

---------------

So Larry, I hope you do not mind my little historical exercise
above... Just thought it might be interesting to put things
into perspective...

In any way, your Lanco chronograph is marvelous & has been
wonderfully taken care of... and you should be proud of it!

& all the best

Petros

[SPACE-DWELLER]

Superb looking Lanco!

Thanks for sharing, Larry!

[J. Martin Tensuan]

I always enjoy reading your posts, Gentlemen! Thanks for sharing!

Beautiful Lanco, Larry, and well-kept, too.

[mickeydainish]

thanx for the Pics Larry.... very nice Lanco.....:-)

[elgatonegro]

What can I say? A Beautiful LANCO! Thanks for sharing Larry.

[wolfwinter]

Hello all,
I was browsing to get some information on my Lanco Chronograph and came across your posting. There is not a lot information about the Lanco Crono's available on the Internet. I think mine is from around 1962 and has a Valjoux 92 movement.

Wolf

[RW16610]

That is a very nice watch.

[haakon59]

Cool watch, thanks for sharing the story and photos.

[DARK_KNIGHT]

Spectacular.

[Sugarcubed]

Hi Larry, In researching my lanco, I came across your post with images of your beautiful gold Lanco chrono. I have the same watch but in stainless. Unfortunately my face isnt nearly as flawless as yours but the age on my face does give it character. I was wondering if you could forward me any info you may have specifically regarding year produced & movement details. Thanks so much in advance
Mark

[dysondiver]

love the hour markers , nice watch.

[bridgs]

That is the first Lanco I have seen. What a nice watch.

[Mephist]

Nice watch, interesting information too.

[dsio]

Show us the movement? I'm curious now as it should be an Omega Cal 320 / Lemania CH27 if it were made in the same family

[Submarino]

Petros and Larry, thanks for sharing such great historical info.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk. Watches are the new currency!

[How]

That's a nice piece of history right there.

Such a gorgeous piece. Thanks for the history lessons! I learned a lot in this post