Hi all,

Trying to decide on my first 'nice' watch and hoping I could get some opinions.

I've narrowed it down to a FOIS or a new 3861 sapphire sandwich. The FOIS I would get second hand for about £3.5k. The Pro would be the sapphire sandwich on leather for about £4.9k.

I think overall I like the look of the FOIS more (straight lugs, alpha hands etc - a bit dressier), but just wondering if that is a worse buy than the Pro at the price I've been offered. Also, I use a MacBook and iPad often, and am around MRI scanners at work, so a little worried about frequently magnetising the FOIS if I went for that.

What would you suggest going for?

Thanks!
Tim

 

Honestly, I wouldn’t worry too much about magnetising. I’ve worn watches like the FOIS when working and it’s never happened to me.

price aside, it’s how they feel on the wrist that matters. The pro has a larger footprint. Personally of the 2 I favour the FOIS but best route is to see if you can try them on and decide then.

either are great.

 

FOIS. It's a nicer watch*.

*YMMV obv

 

I would choose FOIS too.

 

Fois all the way....

 

Thanks for the input. The FOIS does look super nice. Glad to hear magnetising isn't a massive issue.

Does it matter that the 3861 is objectively a 'better'/newer movement?

That bracelet is really nice. Which one is it?

 

Have a FOIS which I love. However, I can appreciate that each watch has it's strengths and weaknesses. Which one you pick depends on what characteristics you consider more important in a watch. If you prefer the vintage look and a dressier watch, go for the FOIS. If you want better legibility in low light conditions and a more accurate movement with hacking seconds, go for the Speedy Pro 3861. No need to worry too much about magnetism. My FOIS got magnetised once but I could fix it in seconds with a cheap $25 demagnetiser off Ebay.

 

The FOIS is actually pretty good in low light, though you do lose the chrono hand lume of the Pro. The dial plots are much bigger than those on the Pro and the hand lume while skinny does its job rather well. I always found the lume on the Pro to be very poor so I wasn't expecting much but the FOIS ain't bad at all really. I will stick my neck out and say that the lume is better than the Pro, but neither hold a candle to a 2254 SMP. I even prefer the shiny hands which I know some think are less legible than the white painted versions.

 

Forstner flat link.

 

I have them both 1861 anf 3861.
3861 is supposed to be better, but is a new movement. Some issues with the chronograph function have been discribed, and I find mine harder to wind than 1861.
Latest versions of a proven caliber vs first ones of the new one...

 

Sounds like there's 3 important parts of your equation: (a) how the watch makes you feel, (b) magnetism, and (c) which is a better buy at those prices.

Having owned a FOIS and a standard 1861 Speedy Pro, my vote is for the case shape of the standard Pro. It's a personal preference, but I've always liked Omega's lyre lugs. Between both a FOIS and a 60th anniversary Seamaster 300, I found straight lugs boring. The unprotected crown on the FOIS is so, so, sooo nice to wind though!

For magnetism: my FOIS never got magnetized, but I've had other watches with more delicate watch movements get magnetized frequently. A few different OB's have told me 1861 Speedmasters are the most common watches they see come in for de-magnetization, but wouldn't worry about it in any modern Speedmaster though. Even if it does get magnetized, it's a quick trip to an AD or boutique and they'll de-mag it in a minute or 2.

Accuracy-wise, both of my 1861's run about 10+ seconds every single day. This is my primary reason for wanting to upgrade to a 3861. For a luxury watch in these price ranges, I don't want to put up with the user experience of having to set my minute hand back 1 minute every few days. People will say "get it regulated".... but I'm of the school that prefers a product to work optimally out-of-the-box, than have to take something in for tuning as soon as I buy it. If I'm an equipment/procurement manager at NASA back in the 60's, I'd order the watch rated to keep chronometer specs out of the box, than a watch I'd have to test on every delivery, and then go through the chore of pulling watches out of each batch to a local watchmaker to regulate just so it doesn't gain a minute every few days.

Price-wise, I think that's a terrible price proposition for a pre-owned FOIS. These were going for 3,200 USD (2,300 GPB), brand new, out of the box when I got mine ~3 years ago. I'm sure you can find some forum members who are happily willing to part with theirs for less than the price you're being quoted.

 

Thanks. That's a really useful reply.

Agreed, the potential to have to get it regulated is annoying, but I will have to see how it goes. Hopefully mine will be super accurate. Regarding the lugs, I actually sort of prefer the straight ones as I see them as a bit more dressy. Having said that, I do like that the lyre lugs appear chunkier. Basically, I like them both!

Price I agree isn't great. It seems to have rocketed since they became discontinued. Standard UK price is now £4080 new for what very very few places have them in stock. eBay's a bit all over the shop but seems about £3.6k used. Chrono24 is anyone's guess but new seems to be about £4.5k. I actually just managed to persuade a jewellers to drop the price by 10% for their last one so I've got a brand new FOIS ordered for £3.6k. And a not-insignificant saving of £1.5k over the sapphire sandwich I was otherwise considering. Can't wait!

Now on to bracelet/strap choices! Forstner flat link looks like an absolute must! I'm also going to get an official Deployant clasp. Any thoughts as to which works better with the 19mm lugs? 16mm or 18mm?
Thanks again all for the input! Super excited to own my first Omega

 

Congratulations! Glad you found a new one for a good price.

That OEM strap on the FOIS darkens with age, and I think you'll enjoy it all the more once it's worn in. For deployant clasps, I'm not sure you'll find any that taper from 19 to 18. 16 will look fine on a dressier chronograph like this, with its fully polished lugs and a sapphire crystal.

 

Plenty of custom strap makers that will make a 19 x 18mm strap to your specific needs if you want to go that route. Genteel Handmade is a good one.

Bespoke Watch Straps & Other Leather Goods | Genteel Handmade (genteel-handmade.com)

 

I have squeezed a 20mm Barenia deployant strap onto my FOIS with an 18mm original clasp. That worked well but as noted above, you may be limited in finding a 19/18mm strap. Last time I looked Omega didn't offer a 19mm deployant strap of any kind (online at least) so you may have to go aftermarket.

 

I had a similar dilemma to you with FOIS v Speedy Pro. I went with FOIS just as it was discontinued, but also because it felt much more “right” on the wrist when I tried them both on. The Forstner flatlink is a dream pairing and I love the slightly dressier nature of the FOIS. It suits my smart casual style and looks great with a suit for work. I also feel it is a major strap monster!

 

Agree. Having owned both the FOIS and Speedy Pro, I think the FOIS shines a bit more fully and lasts a bit longer, though none of the Pros are lume champs. Can't really speak to the choice between 3861 sapphire, since I don't own that one, although I have now handled it and it's a very nice piece and a respectful evolution of the model. I didn't find the stepped dial to be too far off the FOIS in terms of perceived depth and still prefer the straighter-lugged case to the asymmetrical variant.

The main knock on the new model, for me in Canada, is that the MSRP is 2x that of the FOIS -- I don't see the value there, but that's much worse that the 1400.00 GBP you're looking at, and the SS is a very fine watch, with an excellent movement by all reports. Can't really go wrong, but the FOIS is a terrific watch, and likely to always be in demand now. So maybe a case of heart over head, at this point.

FWIW, I've worn the hell out of mine, and changed straps constantly, and it still runs and looks like new, so it doesn't seem any less rugged than the Pro.

 

Love your different strap combos. Thanks for posting. It's one of the things about the FOIS that appeals to me, just how versatile it is. Agree with the Forstner flat link, it's a must have. I love mine. Looks great and so comfy to wear.

 

Between these two FOIS would be my choice - looks much more "luxury" to me. The only flow is lower legibility of the polished hands, at some light angles they disappear on the black dial. But as many already said - you don't use your wristwatch to tell the time

What I did with mine was adding display caseback - well I am crazy about watching the movements, I know some will hate my mod.

 

Interesting mod. Where did you get the display caseback from and did it have the engraving already on it?