'Variations on a Theme': OMEGA debuts its latest Moonwatch, now with the calibre 3861
What happens when the pivot to 'neo-vintage' goes mainstream.
There comes a point in every watch writer’s life when you reach what I like to call “peak excitement fatigue”. As a gormless young twenty-something navigating through the wilderness of adulthood, I simply can’t muster the energy to wild out every single time a brand announces new dial colours or some iterative change to the size of a popular sports watch. But that apparent lack of enthusiasm isn’t a rebuke: in fact, I tend to temper such shoulder shrugging with an acknowledgment that whatever the new release/news in question, it’s bound to excite somebody within the broader community. Paging the new(?) and improved ‘Moonwatch’ from OMEGA.
Made to supersede the cal. 1861 Speedy Pro introduced in 1997, OMEGA’s latest is, at its core, a variation on a classic aimed squarely at contemporary audiences. With reference to tastes of the watch-buying public in 2021 — and I certainly don’t mean you cheeky lot, with ya forums, Discord chats, and subscriptions to newsletters — this latest Moonwatch ticks a multitude of boxes. Notably: neo-vintage looks and an improved movement, made possible through OMEGA’s investment in mechanical innovation.
Needless to say, I anticipate this doing extremely well — on the day that I stopped by, OMEGA’s Hong Kong office had already exhausted its allocation of Canopus and Sedna gold models — with the caveat that the commercial impact is going to be most keenly felt by those new to Speedy collecting (or indeed, watches in general). For everybody else, I suspect this will register as a solid bit of iterative watchmaking: commendable, but by no means indispensable.
Points of distinction (mostly for the enthusiast)
By now the story of the Speedy Pro’s transformation into mythic Moonman aid has been recounted ad nauseam1. Rather than blunting the whole point of this write-up (i.e. musings about a new release) with yet more unnecessary exposition, I think it’s best to consider where this entry broadly falls within the Moonwatch lineage, by virtue of the changes OMEGA has seen fit to introduce:
‘1st generation’ case, inspired by the reference 105.012. Lug profile appears more tapered than that of the preceding 7th generation case.
Dot over 90 (‘DON’) tachymetre, a staple of Speedy bezels manufactured prior to 1970.
Stepped dial configuration, most noticeable when viewing the domed minute and chronograph seconds hand.
Fully brushed bracelet, as first seen on the ‘50th Anniversary’ reference in Moonshine gold2.
3-hash divisions per second, displayed on the minute track in order to reflect the watch’s operating rate (21,600 vph).
Calibre 3861 movement with METAS certification, denoting inter alia the presence of a free-sprung adjustable mass; silicon balance spring; and magnetic shielding resistant to 15,000 gauss.
At a glance, nearly all these revisions are informed by some preexisting practice in the OMEGA manufacture. Even the chronograph movement (seemingly a flashpoint of recent media coverage) isn’t really all that novel: having first appeared two years prior, in models commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Apollo XI landing. That all amounts to good news for orthodox worshippers in the temple of speed; and even on the revised bracelet — to my thinking, the most successful revision OMEGA has introduced — there’s a distinctly evolutive feeling to the watch.
As you can see in the wristshot above, everything about the re-design feels just an inch or two ‘Speedier’ than in the previous iteration: a clarification of the Moonwatch’s major themes, if you will. The stepped construction emphasises the contoured surfaces that have made the Speedy dial such a darling of macro photography; the case and bracelet call to mind snugger, flatter proportions from the 60s; and unless you’re one of those sociopaths who carries around a loupe (not entirely out of the question if you’re reading this) the improved movement shall appear very nearly identical to the outgoing calibre 1861. Though mind you, to date, only one of these has actually survived a return trip from space.
The new ‘Master Chronomter’ Speedmaster Moonwatch Professional is priced at HK$52,200. To learn more, visit OMEGA online.
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For a comprehensive summary of the various Speedmaster references which have played a role in NASA’s manned expeditions to the Moon, see Robert Jan-Broer’s article on the subject at Fratello.
Additionally, OMEGA historians may note that the clasp is a direct replica of the locking mechanism found in the original solid gold Speedy — the BA 145.022.