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My X-33 on a green kevlar strap (original Omega)

  1. Robert-Jan #SpeedyTuesday Mar 14, 2014

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    I bought this X-33 end of last year from a fellow Speedmaster collector in Germany (I drove 2x 4.5 hours to get it ;)) as he offered it to me for a great price and complete with box, manual and with both the titanium bracelet as the black kevlar (or is it carbon) strap. I didn't think I would wear this watch much, as it is made out of titanium, digital (quartz) movement and is not the prettiest. However, I find myself wearing it more often than I could have imagined. It is a great light weight watch with some useful features (especially the alarm that I use as a notifier for some medication I take or just to use as an alarm clock in the morning), the chronograph is useful as well as the possibility to use the second time zone indicator.

    When flipping through the Journey Through Time book (from Omega), I noticed that there was also a version on a green kevlar strap. The green kevlar strap looks similar to the red and black strap that was used for the 2nd Gen X-33 model (I have the 1st Gen model) but was only used for a limited run (not numbered I think) for the Japanese market in 2002. I really was wondering about this strap and also found out it is in the (European) dealer catalogue of 2002/2003.

    A friend of mine who also has a X-33 ordered it for me as he has an account with Omega to order parts and last week he had the two straps and buckles coming in after a short 2 week delivery period. I never realized the buckle is made out of stainless steel, but it is. No titanium buckle. Also my other original black strap has a stainless steel buckle. However, it is brushed and could be easily be mistaken for being a titanium buckle.

    For those interested, the number on the inside of the strap is 98000070, 20mm between the lugs and 18mm at the buckle. The strap is incredibly stiff, so first thing I did is bend it a bit with force (using the edge of my desk in the office), which you can see on the lower picture.

    The strap is quite short, I am using the 2nd and (if I didn't eat too much) the 3rd hole from the end. So I'd suggest ordering a large version of this strap if you have decent mens wrists.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
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  2. dsio Ash @ ΩF Staff Member Mar 14, 2014

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    Does look very sharp on green, I hadn't realised these even existed as an OEM option until you mentioned it
     
  3. cicindela Steve @ ΩF Staff Member Mar 14, 2014

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    Looks great in green R-J . These are available from Otto Frei here too, as well as in red and black.


    ome98000070.jpg
    OME-98000070

    ome98000071.jpg
    OME-98000071
    ome98000069.jpg
    OME-98000069
     
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  4. cicindela Steve @ ΩF Staff Member Mar 14, 2014

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    One answer to the issue of the lack of an Omega Titanium buckle is to use one of the Omega Titanium Deployants. They are available in both 18 and 20mm. Here is mine on my Gen II X-33
    Ti3.jpg
     
    XT.jpg
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  5. Robert-Jan #SpeedyTuesday Mar 14, 2014

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    Thanks cicindela! I know about Ofrei (although the price I got them for is better) but if you live overseas than Ofrei is almost no option. Ridicilous shipping costs and they ship with FedEx, FedEx has a deal with the Dutch tax authority that they already pre-register all goods for them, so I can add 21% VAT + administration fee on top of the price of the item + over the shipping costs. And Dutch customs calculates USD = Euro. I ended up paying 150 Euro in total in the end for 45USD worth of Speedy hands. When Ofrei is able to get their act together regarding international shipping I think they would be able to sell a lot more.
     
  6. stockae92 Mar 18, 2014

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    Lovely, really like the X33
     
  7. STANDY schizophrenic pizza orderer and watch collector Mar 18, 2014

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    There was a Olympic Omega that came with 5 straps all the colours of the Olympic rings. (I think)
     
  8. dsio Ash @ ΩF Staff Member Mar 18, 2014

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    Indeed, I actually mentioned that to RJ when I saw this asking if it was one of those, its limited edition Lillehammer Winter Olympics edition, and the five straps are made of shark-skin rather than the kevlar of this Japan LE Speedmaster X-33, very few people even know about that Lillehammer Seamaster.
     
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  9. DLT222 Double D @ ΩF Staff Member Mar 19, 2014

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    love it RJ
     
  10. pharmer0103 Mar 24, 2014

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    Robert your X-33 looks great on that green strap.

    I have mine on the black double-rib "carbon fiber" Omega strap. I have not yet gone down the rabbit hole of strap and deployant clasp options, but I can see myself doing that very soon. The titanium deployant in cicindela's photos is really sexy.
     
  11. simon.pearl May 3, 2017

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    Great looking Omega
     
  12. stockae92 May 3, 2017

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    Well, this thread is back, might as well ... :D

    I wear my gen 1 quite a bit and it shows :D
    [​IMG]

    My gen 2 is in much better condition :)
    [​IMG]
     
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  13. McJamesT May 3, 2017

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    These look great! Wasn't really that familiar with them before this. Guess it's time to go down another rabbit hole.
     
  14. ras47 May 3, 2017

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    Man, I HATED the model for the longest time. But it started to grow on me, and now I'm at the point where I think I NEED an X-33 Skywalker. Maybe the Solar Impulse LE model. The versatility is awesome.

    So word is that Buzz Aldrin is working with Omega to design a Mars Speedmaster. https://gearpatrol.com/2016/08/15/buzz-aldrin-mars-watch-for-omega/ Makes me curious as to the design. My first thought was that it would be a redesigned mechanical Speedmaster. 24-hour day for Mars, but each hour would be 61.54 minutes. A simple tweaking of the mechanism and an even simpler dial redesign would take care of that. But now I'm thinking a redesigned X-33 would be a more logical choice. The only rub would be the 24-month battery life.

    What does everybody think think the Mars watch will look like vis-a-vis the X-33?
     
    Edited May 3, 2017
  15. tyrantlizardrex May 3, 2017

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    The x-33 is the mars watch...
     
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  16. ras47 May 3, 2017

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    I thought Buzz was still working on it.
     
  17. tyrantlizardrex May 3, 2017

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    The year is 1998... the X-33 is the Mars Watch... ;)
     
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  18. cicindela Steve @ ΩF Staff Member Jul 31, 2017

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    Here they are:
    upload_2017-7-31_9-39-14.jpeg
     
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  19. Robert-Jan #SpeedyTuesday Jul 31, 2017

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    Awesome!
     
  20. 105012 Apr 9, 2018

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    I think these look good on a fabric strap. This BOB strap is leather lined, designed for the Omega deployant and I have the Omega Titanium deployant fitted:

    IMG_1687.jpg
     
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