Omega Baselworld 2017 – Our Vision of What COULD Be The Speedmaster 60th Anniversary

This year will be a very important year for Omega, as it will be the 60th anniversary of the iconic Speedmaster (1957 – 2017) – you know, the Moonwatch, the watch that went on the Moon and that is flight qualified by NASA… As you can imagine, the question won’t be if Omega will launch or not some dedicated watches, to commemorate this jubilee. They will, no debate! The big question is: what will they launch at Baselworld 2017? What could be the Speedmaster 60th Anniversary? We, at Monochrome, couldn’t let such an opportunity to make predictions without an answer. And here is our vision for the possible Omega Speedmaster 60th Anniversary… 

Note: this article is based on photoshop mockups, nothing comes officially from Omega. This is a prediction, based on our imagination and expectations.

The original, the ONE… The 1957 Omega Speedmaster CK2915

The Original 1957 Omega Speedmaster CK2915

The story behind what is today one of the 5 most iconic watches ever created started in 1957, with the reference CK2915, the ultimate grail for every collector of Speedmasters. This watch was part of a collection of 3 pieces, the iconic 1957 trilogy: CK2913 Omega Seamaster 300, CK2914 Omega Railmaster and CK2915 Omega Speedmaster. The name ‘Speed’ was chosen because of the tachymeter ring that encircles the dial (this was actually a world-premiere, as the Speedmaster was the very first chronograph to take the tachymeter away from the dial and to have it on a bezel, outside the crystal). The rest of the name follows Omega’s convention: ‘Master’ was used for professionally oriented watches. Yet, don’t call this watch Moonwatch, as it’s only in 1969 that it gained this title. Neither it should be named Professional, as it came on the dial only in 1963 (with the ST105.012). For more of such details, please take a look at our in-depth history of the Speed…

The 1957 Omega Speedmaster CK2915 is characterized by many details, the main one being the metallic bezel with engraved tachymeter scale (later models will show a bezel with black aluminum inlay and white printed scale). Then, you’ll find the typical straight lugs (that can be found on all early models, from 1957 to 1963), with no crown or pushers protection, with a case measuring 39mm. Then, the dial is pure, meaning that it only shows “Omega” and “Speedmaster” as well as the applied Ω at 12. The dial is flat (not stepped) and shows the usual 3 counters. For the hands, the first Speedmaster came with the iconic Broad Arrow hands (only found on this early model), a straight metallic second hand and 3 white Alpha hands for the sub-counters.

To summarize the CK2915:

• steel bezel with engraved tachymeter scale
• straight lugs, no crown protection
• smaller diameter
• clean dial with “Omega Speedmaster” only
• metallic Broad Arrow hands and white Alpha hands in sub-counters

That’s exactly what we’d like to see in the upcoming Speedmaster 60th Anniversary (and, believe it or not, that’s what we’ll bring to you…)

Our Vision of What could Be The Speedmaster 60th Anniversary

For Baselworld 2017, we expect (and wish…) Omega to be as faithful as possible to the original 1957 Speedmaster CK2915. In fact, it could very well be the case, looking at the previous watches the brand showed, all based on historical models. Remember in 2012, Omega launched a vintage-oriented edition named the First Omega in Space. This watch was actually based on the CK2998 that Walter ‘Wally’ Schirra was wearing on the 3rd of October 1962, during the ‘Sigma 7’ mission of the Mercury Programme. This watch, property of the astronaut, was the first Omega to reach Space.

The 2012 Speedmaster FOIS showed impressive evolution compared to the classical Moonwatch: a smaller diameter (39.7mm), straight lugs, no crown protection, specific Alpha hands, applied Ω logo and a dial with minimal inscriptions. This numbered edition (non-limited and still in the catalogue) opened the door to upcoming historically-based models. Later, in 2015, Omega introduced a gold panda version and finally, at Baselworld 2016, they came with the CK2998, again a vintage-inspired piece with the same 39.7mm case, based on old “lollipop” watches, yet with a modern blue dial and bezel (in ceramic).

What about our prediction? For the Speedmaster 60th Anniversary, we expect Omega to use this same vintage “straight” case, yet with a more faithful interpretation. Thus, we find back the 39.7mm steel case, with straight and beveled lugs, protruding pushers and crown, polished flat surfaces and brushed casebands. What’s new is the use (of course) of Broad Arrow hands for the hours and minutes, a metallic second hand, white Alpha hands for the 3 sub-counters, the minimalistic logo and inscriptions and a matte dial (which of course won’t be stepped). Just for the occasion, a “1957-2017” inscription could be added. Now on the outside, we’d like this possible Speedmaster 60th Anniversary to feature the same bezel as the original 1957 Speedmaster CK2915, meaning a brushed steel bezel with engraved and black painted tachymeter scale (with “tachymètre base 1000” as the original).

What could be our main dream about the Speedmaster 60th Anniversary? There’s something that will certainly never happen, but that could be simply beyond cool: the re-introduction of the column-wheel calibre 321 (Lemania-based). This will certainly remain a dream, as the Speedmaster didn’t use this movement since the end of the 1960s (when the brand introduced the 145.022 with the cam-operated calibre 861). As all editions based on this 39.7mm, our possible Speedmaster 60th Anniversary could simply be fitted with the 1861 manually-wound movement… But who knows, we’re all allowed to dream a bit.

All images are under license of Monochrome-Watches and should not be used without agreement or copyright (©Monochrome-Watches, 2017).

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