ETA · Unitas
6497-1
A large hand-wound Unitas calibre that makes traditional movement construction easy to appreciate.
At a glance
- Type
- Hand-wound mechanical
- Display / complication
- Small seconds
- Architecture
- Manual winding, small seconds, 2.5 Hz balance
- Timebase
- 18,000 vph / 2.5 Hz
- Power reserve
- 52 h typical
- Movement height
- 4.50 mm
- Jewels
- 17
Reference sources reviewed 7 November 2026. Published specifications, not independent measurements. Versions and complete-watch specifications can differ; fields without a verified figure are omitted or identified.
What distinguishes it
Look beyond the reference.
Its 36.60 mm diameter is substantially larger than many wristwatch automatics. With no rotor covering the mechanism, the winding train and broad bridges become prominent visual features in a display-back watch.
For the enthusiast
ETA describes a Lépine layout with the crown at 12 in its pocket-watch orientation. Rotate the movement into a wristwatch case and the seconds position changes relative to the dial. Keep the -1 suffix: the 6497-2 is a different execution and its specifications should not be substituted.