Never considered it really. By modern I surmise you mean a big diving style watch? If so, do they even make a model that's not huge? unfortunately I don't have the largest wrists (read skinny
Anything modern is usually water resistant, the Aqua Terra 37mm Skyfall that Dennis wears for example is an excellent modern Omega that's 150M water resistant, completely safe for swimming, diving, and anything of that nature.
+1 on SM Aqua Terra. The 38.5 mm would be perfect. 36mm SM300 mid size is not shabby either...... or if you want to continue Connie tradition, then early 2000s Connie at 36mm is also a good candidate.
I see what you mean. Pretty wide range of choices and price ranges. Seems more research is required. Any particular models to avoid or pursue? thanks for the input!
Certainly 8500 to go. But Cal 2500 is also very nice (slightly thinner,too). Make sure it is 2500 C or D version (I think Al could help check by the movement serial number)
Did they make the 2500 & 8500 at the same time or were the early ones 2500's? do they generally say on the watch or in a description which version they are?
If it's a sunburst dial, it's a caliber 2500. If it's a teak dial, it's an 8500. I don't think there was any overlap in production.
Like Dennis I too prefer the AT8500 for the dial - the teak lines and other design features really make the dial pop in real life especially on cloudy days in diffuse sunlight. The 8500 also has a bigger PR (60h). The 2500 dials seems a little 'flatter' visually. There is a 2500 that I think is very nice though - the blue on white combo (2503.33) which is 39mm. I almost bought a pre-owned one as my first Omega before a friend convinced me to get the 8500.
Ref 1502.40.00 . Produced from 1995 to 2005. Water resistance 50 m. Enough for rainy day and shower, but not for diving. http://www.omegawatches.com/collection/constellation/95/15024000
I believe the 2500 calibre was an ETA movement modified by Omega to be co-axial. I think the 8500 was the next iteration of their co-axial movement, manufactured entirely in-house. The 8500 delivers on many of the promises of the co-axial escapement offering longer power reserves (60 hours) and extended service intervals (8-10 years I think). I believe the 8500 may also beat slower (7 beats per second) so the second hand sweep might not be quite as smooth. Beyond the different movements the 8500 is a bit thicker at 13mm and comes in slightly different case diameters 38.5mm and 41.5mm. There are additional cosmetic differences: - "teak" dial rather than sunburst - single 12 o'clock hour marker - lume on the hour markers rather than a dot behind them. - minutes indicated behind the hour markers (where the lume dots used to be). - date window surround (on the automatic models) - different colour options.