Hello Folks, I'm getting the very 1st Omega for me pretty soon, and have narrowed down to Speedmaster Pro. I have question for anyone here who has these 2 particular models 311.30.42.30.01.006 or 311.30.42.30.01.005. I'd probably will get from one of the reputable seller here. Do you guys think the extra $ worth getting the sapphire instead of hesalite model? Thanks much for any advice! I couldn't wait to get myself an Omega!
I've been noodling that too for awhile now. I'm leaning Sapphire as the clear case back is cool and I'm not excited about all the scratches I hear about with Hesalite.
Hesalite all the way. It just flat out looks better. It is, of course, a purely personal, aesthetic choice. Best thing you can do is go down to a boutique or AD and try them both on. If you really want the exhibition caseback there is a discontinued version that can still be had relatively easily on the used market that came with a Hesalite top and sapphire caseback. They come up for sale fairly frequently on the dealer sales forum on this site.
Yes, I would have to go to AD or boutique this weekend. Also another model in mind is 311.30.44.51.01.002 which is coaxial movement (automatic?) but this will jump up the price but size wise should be better on my wrist.
How big is your wrist? The Speedy Pro wears nicely on a variety of wrists. The automatic Speedy's are awesome, so I'd definitely encourage you to try them on, but the Pro is the original and is a great first Omega to buy.
You will need to see in person to decide. Don't let scratches on hesalite scare you. You can polish them out with a $5 tube of polywatch. And should you ever need a replacement crystal, it's $30. I had the speediorite and that one has a sapphire. I did not care for the look so I sold it. My CK2998 has the sapphire and it works well for me.
With a 7" wrist, I think 42 will wear just about perfect on you. That said, you never really know till you try it on. Note also that the watch wears larger on the bracelet, because the endlinks extend pass the lugs. It's a very versatile watch for a variety of wrist sizes. The auto versions are noticeably larger, but still wearable. It all comes down to personal preference. Have fun visiting the store!
Big fan of hesalite here....I don't particular mind sapphire but I think hesalite is superior for certain reasons (I'll reiterate some ideas Taddy has mentioned): 1) I think in general it's more durable than sapphire. Sure it picks up scratches easier and is softer, but it's also extremely easy to polish these kind of scratches with a cheap tube of polytube/2 minutes of your time with a towel. I also believe it takes a far larger impact to shatter/break hesalite as well versus sapphire. If you do scratch the sapphire crystal (it's possible, trust me), you can bet there's almost no way to polish the thing...diamond paste or not. 2) In the case you do break the hesalite/crack it....it's less than $50 for a replacement whereas the sapphire will cost over $200. 3) Not to mention sapphire crystals on Speedies have that milky ring where the hesalite has the almost vintage like clear dome thing going that's very attractive. 4) It's cool to have a see through caseback...but honestly very few people will keep looking at the see through caseback at the movement and just wear the watch. I actually prefer watches that have a steel caseback and thinner in design. Bottom line, I don't think it's worth the extra for the sapphire, I'd go with the original design NASA signed off on and get the pro with the hesalite. But no losers either way, it's a crackin' Speedmaster after all.
Aside from above question, any advise of buying from reputable seller here compare to online store like watchmaxx/jomashop, etc?
You've got to see them in person. The open caseback is a lovely feature but the watch feels completely different with a domed hessalite crystal to the flat sapphire crystal, and you just won't be able to tell which you prefer until you see them in the flesh. I was dead set on the sapphire sandwich when I viewed it online, however when viewing in person I realised I was a hessalite guy all the way.
The main issue here is that that most recent Hesa/sapphire sandwich model was sold in 2003 so you are looking at a much older watch if you go down that route. I have both sapphire and Hesa Speedmaster models and to be honest the broad arrow auto with sapphire and date gets much more wear as am less worried about bashing the crystal than the Hesa which scratches up as soon as you look at it. Yes Polywatch is cheap and easy but the fact is the Hesa crystal does scratch very easily. That said, I wouldn't want the bill for a sapphire crystal replacement!
$600 is what Omega wanted for my modern Ploprof crystal. It has a supper small scratch that can only be seen at a certain angle (I think it might be the AR coating). There is also third party case crystals. For those that want to see the movement. I have one for my Ed White. It works just as well as the stock one on my 3572.
