Every once in a while, we see comments and questions on the Speedmaster that need to be addressed. One of them is about the water resistance of the Speedmaster. It’s often mocked for the lack of water resistance, but what many don’t seem to know is that, according to replica watches UK, it’s safe to swim while wearing the current Speedmaster Professional with caliber 3861.
We’ve covered the iconic Speedmaster nearly every (Speedy) Tuesday since 2012. But Fratello goes back to July 2004, and between then and 2012, the Speedmaster was a recurring topic as well. This resulted in receiving a lot of questions about the Moonwatch and all of its variations. For this article, we have selected the most frequently asked Speedmaster questions and will answer them to the best of our knowledge.
As you might imagine, we receive several messages from our readers with Speedmaster questions. We get everything from the most common “What model should I start with?” to more in-depth questions regarding the type of bracelets, movement iterations, and dial versions. If you’re a die-hard Speedmaster fan, you might not find the following answers surprising. However, I do hope you will still pick up a fact or two that you didn’t know before.
1. What Speedmaster should I buy?
The most common question we receive is about what Speedmaster you should buy. That’s a difficult one to answer without knowing who you are. My first Speedmaster Professional was a vintage reference 145.012-67 from 1968. I purchased it in 1999 and still have it in my collection today. At that time, there wasn’t as much information on the Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch as today. Honestly, I was more interested in a more modern Speedy Pro with caliber 861 or 1861, but those were pricier than a vintage one. Such a thing is unthinkable in today’s market.
In hindsight, I am very happy that I went for the 145.012-67 with caliber 321. Or rather, I’m glad I had to go for caliber 321 because my budget didn’t give me any other choice. In general, I suggest always going for the perfect fake Omega watches with a hand-wound movement. Whether that’s a new Speedmaster Professional Master Chronometer or one of the previous references is less relevant. However, there are many more Speedmasters to choose from.
Collecting theme
Try to find out what you are after when building up a collection. Is it the Moonwatch only? Or do you want to go after the quirky stuff, like a Speedmaster Speedsonic f300hz, Speedmaster LCD, or X-33? What about a Mark III or Mark V? Do you want to go vintage or only modern? These are things that I can’t answer for you; you have to discover them yourself. What makes your heart beat faster? You will eventually find out by reading extensively about Speedmasters. Also, make sure to try on some different models.
2. How much should I pay for an Omega Speedmaster?
For a while now, Omega has shown the prices of its watches on the official website. Depending on the country you are in, you can see the actual retail price of your watch. That’s also the price you can expect to pay at Omega boutiques. Besides these boutiques, you will also find Omega watches for sale at authorized dealers worldwide. Unlike Omega boutiques, you may be given a discount on a Speedmaster at one of the authorized dealers. It also depends on the model, your relationship with the authorized dealer, and whether you purchased things there in the past. Don’t expect miracles on the Speedmaster Professional, though.
For pre-owned Omega Speedmasters, prices are a different ballgame. It heavily depends on the model or reference and the demand and supply of these models. For pre-owned and vintage Speedmasters, the condition of the watch is incredibly important. A vintage 1970s Speedmaster Professional can be found for about €5,000, but it would also not be unheard of to find one for more than twice that amount. It all depends on the watch’s condition. Always do your homework and use Chrono24 to indicate prices, or use the price chart from Speedmaster101 to get an easy overview per reference number. Speedmaster101 also updates its Speedmaster price chart regularly.
And what about a vintage Speedmaster?
My tip for buying pre-owned or vintage is this: buy the best you can afford with your budget! I would rather overpay for a perfect 105.012 or 145.012 than buy the cheapest 105.003 in poor condition. A vintage Speedmaster in good condition also increases your pleasure in wearing and owning the cheap Omega copy watches.
Are you starting with pre-owned Speedmasters? Try a Moonwatch 3590.50 or 3592.50 from the early 1990s with a tritium dial and hands, a reference 1479 bracelet, and a box and papers. They look amazing with their beautiful yellowish patina, use one of the best bracelets Omega ever made for the Speedmaster, and are relatively easy to find with boxes and papers.
3. How often should a Speedmaster be serviced?
Normally, I would recommend a seven-year interval for having a Speedmaster Professional serviced, whether a vintage reference or the latest model with the Master Chronometer movement. If you wear the same watch daily, you might want to have it serviced more often. If it is part of a collection and not an everyday watch, you can increase the service interval slightly.
Perhaps more interesting is how much a Speedmaster service will cost you and where you should have it serviced. Omega has several service centers (including at its HQ in Bienne), and the brand will charge €950 for a full service of a Speedmaster in steel.
A complete service on a gold or platinum Speedmaster will cost €1,150. This includes disassembling the entire watch and cleaning all components. It also includes replacing or overhauling all worn parts in the movement. For vintage top replica Omega watches, ask for the special service form at the boutique. On it, you can indicate what you want to have done and, more importantly, what should be left untouched.
You can argue that this is a lot of money. However, not only is the service done to Omega’s high standards, but all worn-out parts will also be replaced. This includes the crown, tubes, pushers, gears, Hesalite crystal, hands (if necessary), etc.
4. Can you take your Speedmaster swimming?
It would seem that this is quite a recurring question and topic of discussion for many of you. It is also a popular subject for countless Speedmaster memes out there. Most of the time, people assume it isn’t water-resistant at all. Since 1957, Omega’s Speedmaster has had the Hippocampus logo (which we explained here) on the case back. Although it indicated water resistance in the past, today’s standards are quite different.
Though it may be clear that the Speedmaster is not suitable for diving purposes, it is often not so clear that you can take your new Speedmaster for a swim. The Speedmaster Professional Moonwatch has a 50m water resistance rating, which is suitable for use in water. Take note, however, that you shouldn’t operate the pushers or crown underwater. We’ve checked this officially with Omega, and the brand also informed us that the 1:1 Omega fake watches are tested for water resistance with a substantial margin (+10%). All Master Chronometer watches are water tested, including the hand-wound Moonwatch models.
Also — and this is very important — only do this if you are confident that the gaskets are still in good shape. If you use the Speedmaster in the water, replace the gaskets every 12 months. Some Speedmasters have more excellent water resistance, such as the Speedmaster Co-Axial Master Chronometer Moonphase models. These are water resistant to 100 meters.
I wouldn’t recommend swimming with the older/vintage Speedmaster models with only a 30m rating. Even if they are pristine and have been recently serviced, you’re better off keeping them out of the water.
