So a few years ago I was lucky enough to pick up a lovely 145.012 that happily also ended up being a birth year model when I pulled the extract. While it came on a 1039 bracelet that was also in great shape, I was never a fan of that particular style of bracelet so always wore the watch on nylon (Nato's, a GasGasBones Velcro band, an Omega branded Nato etcetera).

While I was not a fan of the original vintage bracelet, I was interested in the JB Champion bracelets with their connection to the space program, so had been keeping an eye out for a straight end model to go with this Speedmaster, however prices had always been a bit crazy.

Prices are still crazy, but having come into some spare cash, when I saw a nice example pop up from a reliable seller I bit the bullet and am now now very happy with my astronaut ready speedmaster