zOwie Omega Discussion Forum

: Im going to add a speedmaster to my collection,
: can someone advise me as to the different
: models? I've seen some manual wind and
: others automatic? Is one or other more
: authentic (collectable)? I know the original
: space mission models were manaul, do the
: autos command a higher price?

: The sort of thing I am leaning towards is 0-10
: years old, manual, blackface, leather band,
: not any special ed etc.

: Any thoughts?

: Thanks

The Speedmasters come in so many variations it's difficult to know where to begin. However, based on your preferences, it sounds to me like a regular Speedmaster Professional on a leather strap would suit you well. It is model 3870.50.31. I've provided a link below from Omega's website, but you may need to choose the leather and the steel if gold comes up by default.

Basically, the Speedmaster Professional is the "Moon Watch" and is engraved on the back as being the only watch worn on the moon. It has a black face, has an excellent manual wind Lemania chronograph movement, and can be had on the standard stainless steel bracelet or a black strap. This watch does have a plastic (hesalite) crystal that scratches easily (but can be easily polished). A version with a sapphire crystal is still available.

As far as the automatics go, you could look at the Broad Arrow with the black dial on a strap. This watch retails for $4595 vs. $2895 for the Moon Watch, so it is quite a bit more expensive. On the other hand, the Speedmaster Reduced is essentially the Moon Watch with an automatic movement, but any "purist" will tell you that only the manual wind version with the hesalite crystal is the true "Moon Watch".

If you have a certain price range you are considering, this would help. You can also look for used Speedmasters on various watch sales corners like the ChronoTrader forum here, the sales corner at timezone.com, the watchuseek.com sales and trade corner, and the watchnet.com trading post. If you want to buy new, send me an e-mail for a referral to my authorized dealer. He'll give you 33% off of MSRP on any watch you choose.

I hope this helps, if even a little bit.

-John