Re: 40 years ago...
I do love Speedies. If I didn't collect Carreras, it's probably the model I would have turned to. And your examples are all fine watches, as is Stew's recent posting of the white/black dial moon landing version.
But, and there was always a but coming there, I find them very confusing. With the Carreras, I felt if I chipped away long enough, I was always going to get the variations nailed. I'm not sure the same would be true of the Speedies.
Some of the special editions I find a bit silly or ultimately lacking in taste too - Snoopy? Moon to Mars legibility? Though I have to confess having to consider long and hard whether or not to get an Alaska project!
Probably in part, I'm worried that buying one Speedmaster would open a whole can of worms for a vertical collector like me! Maybe it's something for when I consider the Carrera collection complete, if that time ever comes...