I've been eying one of these for a long time now, I've always promised myself I'd buy a Speedmaster, but since its a historic watch, it always made more sense to me to get the one that really did fly to the moon.

My understanding is the 105.xx and 145.xx between 66 and 67 are the ones that were actually used on the moon landings, and have the characteristic silver applied Omega logo on the dial as well.

My three questions:

1: Is the Cal 321 going to be a liability in terms of parts and servicing at this stage
2: What sort of price range should I be looking at for a speedmaster / pro
3: What references are the best value (not necessarily cheapest, but most significant and ideal for the price with a moon connection)

 

I realize I said I wasn't buying more watches for a while, but this isn't a watch as much as it is an investment.

That I'll wear.

 

Wasn't the cal321 common enough that there's still parts? I have no idea, just curious to hear. You'd think there would be enough people hanging on to (and wearing) these pieces.

 

It was a Lemania base calibre iirc, and that base was also used in the Patek 5070



The fact that the 321 was basically the same as a Patek 5070 admittedly is a small part of why I like the idea of owning one. Sort of like having a Lancia and knowing it has a Ferrari engine in it.

I'm really not sure about parts availability though.

 

I just noticed Watchco says "Limited Stocks" on the 321.

 

I tried bidding on this bad-boy up to 2.5K (sniped at the last minute) but it was already over that when I hit bid.

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Omega-Speedm...=AU_Watches&hash=item564340a20b#ht_867wt_1141Purchases made through these links may earn this site a commission from the eBay Partner Network

Still for $2.9K that's a seriously sweet vintage speedy

 

Shame its so hard to find an original Cal 321, this is about the 10th '67 Speedmaster with a non-applied Omega logo on the dial being sold as a completely original example. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=150648433616Purchases made through these links may earn this site a commission from the eBay Partner Network

 

I've actually got one of those 1039 bracelets from ages ago when I thought I had secured a 145.022-67 until the owner reneged, and while the one I bought was about good to very good condition, its still a terrible bracelet, I have no idea what they were thinking when they made that cheap tinny piece of crap, its no wonder the astronauts wore them on velcro.

The 1450 or 1479 would be my pick as a balance between vintage looks and wear-ability, I honestly don't know how some guys put up with the tin-foil period correct bracelets of that era like the Rolex 9315 and riveted models.

 

Rishi that's such a beautiful example of my dream Speedmaster, if you ever get hit by a bus, tell your wife to send me an email and we'll talk price

 

This just my speculation, so don't consider it blue-book value or anything, but private sale or ebay, in its condition, freshly services and maintained in the exact method that a vintage collector would appreciate (which is exactly what you've done and it looks good) I would put it at no less than $2500USD, no more than $3500 purely depending on how keen people were, Cal 321 Speedmasters tend to encourage bidding wars at times.

In a retail setting, a watch dealer with a bricks and mortar store might price it at anywhere from $4000 to $6,500+ though they might still take under $4k for it.

The most I've seen is a dealer in Sydney with a model identical to yours listed for $12k, but in his case it was likely priced at that because he wanted to keep it, I doubt he was anywhere near serious.

Its worth a lot more now than your dad paid that's for sure, and now that its been taken care of, you're clearly not going to let it degrade.

 

As a general rule, getting it for free from your father is definitely the best way to get a Cal 321 speedmaster, and by far the most cost effective.

 

Just passed on a relumed model, numbers didn't quite work for what it was but still looking...

Don't spose you've gotten bored of yours yet Rishi?