hello all, I’m a newbie with ZERO Omegas and looking for my first. I like the Speedmaster Pros and FOIS and am not sure which one. My wrists are 6.75 inches so I believe that the FOIS would ‘fit’ better? I’ve read that some think the Pro is too thick. How does the FIOS thickness compare? Being rarer would the FOIS cost more to service?

Thank you all

 

I faced the same decision two months ago, FOIS vs Pro, and I also had no previous Omegas. We won't be able to tell you which is right for you, the best thread I found with detailed descriptions of the differences was https://omegaforums.net/threads/fois-and-3570.30298/

With 6.75 inch wrists, both of these should look fine on you. Keep in mind the Pro comes in two flavors, sapphire and hesalite.

The best advice I can give you is to do what I did, and find a dealer that has both in stock, and inspect them yourself. For me, the lugs and hands were different enough to give off two distinct impressions.

 

As a first speedy I’d go with the speedy pro on leather

The leather oem I find amazing. Brilliant depoloyment and the heselite option is a must.

It’s one of my fav watches and I own the FOIS too which I very much love too. But the lack of heselite and the straight lugs from the CK era do give it a different feel and I do think with this in mind with sapphire just makes it feel like it’s not quite there... I do prefer the pro case / size and heselite.

It’s a very VERY good / solid watch, especially as a first omega.

My fav straight lugged smaller (39.7mm) speedy is the LE speedy 57 broad arrow. Just gorgeous with heselite too.

 

Honestly they wear very similar in size. The bezel and width with crown are identical. The Fios does use a slightly smaller strap which can make it appear larger on some people. The lug differences will depend on wrist proportions.

 

I have a 6.5" wrist and had the same thoughts as you when I was looking for an Omega. I went to a local jeweler and tried on an FOIS and speedmaster pro, and just liked the way the FOIS felt/looked on my wrist a little better. The FOIS felt a more compact/light on my wrist, but the speedy pro was also great. I also really liked the tapered leather band on the FOIS, its a little more casual for the type of work I'm in. It really comes down to which feels/looks best on your wrist. We could have the exact same wrist size and like different things! See if you can find a store with both and try them on. Or just buy both...my next watch will probably be a speedy pro

 

This is what I’m afraid of. There are people who love both and I’m never going to get to 100% on either. Thanks all. I’ll try to try on both

 

Best to get both. They wear the same to me. Tried to do a side view, the ck2998 slightly thicker.

 

As alluded to in the amazing picture above, you may want to look at Limited Editions in both Professional and CK2998 (FOIS) form factors as further input into your decision.

 

Watches wear differently depending on dial color, strap, thickness, lugs and wrist size. You cannot base your decision on diameter. Get to a dealer and try them on, let your eyes guide you.

 

Also not all 7.25 wrists are the same. Just like watches. I’ve got 2 40mm chronos one wears larger then a 42mm Speedy Pro , the other looks tiny. Speedy date and Sinn903

 

at 6.75 inches, I think both watches would fit you well. Try them on and see for yourself. As a FOIS owner, I will say though that another factor to take into consideration is whether you will ever want to wear it on a bracelet. There are no official bracelets available for the FOIS but there are 2 general accepted Omega bracelet/end links combos that will work on it. But these will be an added expense and a bit of a hassle. The moonwatch is available with a bracelet out of the box. Besides bracelets, also give some thought to strap options as well. There is a much larger availability of 20mm straps (moonwatch) vs 19mm (FOIS).

 

Is wearing after market steel bracelets from Amazon (on rare occasions) a faux pas?

 

Absolutely not. At least not to me. I bought a Speidel Twist O Flex that I wore for about three months and loved it. But the wear on the inner side of the lugs is worrying so I'm back to looking for a alternative bracelet. Let me know if you find a good one. Otherwise, I might be off to the Omega Boutique to enquire about the compatible bracelets.

 

I had no idea that the FOIS is that much thicker than a moonwatch!

 

The FOIS isn't 'rarer,' as such... it's a numbered, but unlimited edition. Its 1861 movement is identical to that of the Pro so servicing shouldn't cost any more.

FWIW I tried one on a while ago and found its leather strap far too small - the sales guy had to do it up for me.

 

The FOIS measures 14.0 mm thick. I don’t have a measurement for the Speedmaster Pro.