New reveals about the NASA Space program watch choice

padders

The data on that list for the Schirra Gemini 6 watch is certainly not right, no 321 had a 29m serial AFAIK, certainly not a -64 Ed White. Maybe it got mixed up with a later watch, or the movement was later swapped. It wouldn't make sense for his Apollo 7 watch either. There are other major anomalies too, like several 145.012s on 20.5m serials. A lot of it doesn't add up.

padders

The data on that list for the Schirra Gemini 6 watch is certainly not right, no 321 had a 29m serial AFAIK, certainly not a -64 Ed White. Maybe it got mixed up with a later watch, or the movement was later swapped. It wouldn't make sense for his Apollo 7 watch either. There are other major anomalies too, like several 145.012s on 20.5m serials. A lot of it doesn't add up.

padders

So those later 70s mission watches are Frankens then, with 1963 movements and 1968 cases? I would love a closer look at that movement to check the number. Unless Omega sent NASA a box of 1963 movements along with the original straight lug watches which were then used for running repairs by NASA themselves, I can't see how that makes sense. I guess these were tool watches in the most literal sense and parts were swapped and changed as necessary without much regard to originality.

cvalue13

Forgive me, in that I’m not so agile with the details of the NASA/OMEGA history to fully read through your subtlety here.

Am I correct to infer that you are politely questioning whether Flight Qualification in fact took place in 1965, or is that instead a concretely agreed fact?

SpeedyPhill

Interesting remark, my notes had following figures:
Between November 1964 and November 1968, Omega delivered 97 Speedmasters to NASA ( 20 each 105.003 and 77 each 105.012 )
Former NASA-engineer James Ragan mentioned 98 Speedmasters, so it's interesting to find out exactly how much Omega Speedmasters NASA received in November 1964 to be tested ( 3 or 4 ) ? And was only one tested so the rest could be worn during Gemini III 👎
☕
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Agree on the total of 98 Speedmasters delivered to NASA by Omega, but then the question is ... why the highest NASA S /N reported by NASM is S /N 82, including the four CF55033 (S /N 10, 19, 27, 28) which almost certainly belong to the first batch of 8, maybe 9 (3 or 4 + 5) Speedmasters received in November 1964 ?

There are at least 16 Speedmasters missing, what happened to them?

Ciao, Gino

SpeedyPhill

@ginobi
Interesting question on the subject... but we have to know how the Speedmasters were distributed between the 20 Gemini astronauts, both backup and prime crews.
For those, like myself, trying to make a full list of the whereabouts of the 1960s NASA Speedmasters, we have to take into account that some astronauts recieved more than one Speedmaster, could keep these for a long time and unfortunately also take a look at the post-1965 T-38 jet accidents in which astronauts died !
(February 28, 1966 = Bassett & See ... October 5, 1967 = Clifton Williams)[/QUOTE

...and this would explain the fact that when the Flown Speedmasters were collected and sent to NASM and they did the inventory there were several holes in the list (a total of 17 Speedmasters almost all under the S /N 32 and most likely all 105.003) a clear sign that they had been destroyed in an accident or lost.
But it does not explain the fact that there are no (in the NASM inventory) S /N higher than S /N 82 and also that from S /N 76 onwards the references on the backs are 145.012 while the serial numbers of the movements are 20.552 .. and what's more, all consecutive

Ciao, Gino

ginobi

Agree on 20.5mil serials, but...

i.e. S/N 76 Stafford ASTP






credit by NASM

Ciao, Gino