I got mine in March 2025, and it immediately became my favorite watch. Sure, I love wearing my 3861 Speedy Pro on various leather straps and marvel at the hesalite dome. I also love my white dial 3861 on its bracelet for its elegance, but the Ed White is truly next level. As many others said, if I had to sell all my watches and I could only keep 1 watch, it would be my Ed White.
Thank you ! I went in and spent a while looking at it closely today. I took my 3861 in for a direct comparison . Despite the dials being at first glance very similar, closer inspection showed they are in fact quite different. Hard for me to explain exactly how, but the 321 disl looks a bit cleaner,more balanced if that’s the right word. It wears better too on my wrist/ I have 16.5 cm wrist and the speedy pro is at the limit of my comfort zone. Like you, I have a variety of straps I wear with the pro. But the 321 screams bracelet , to me anyway. A stunning piece overall.
Give it some time. My tastes changed. I had to have a straight lug but now find the twisted more refined.
And my daily
Once you see the differences they are hard to unsee. While worth owning both they very different.
To me, the 321 is classic and a symbol of great things past. It should always/only be worn on the OG flat-link bracelet.
The 3861, and other modern variants, are nicely inspired by the original and can be worn with many strap and bracelet options.
Maybe sort of like wearing a suit vs blazer and slacks...?
No one has mentioned the difference in size (39mm vs 42mm). The modern versions are at the outer limits of size for me.
YMMV.
With the recent release of FOIS the gap between 321 and regular line has become very small, where beside the movement, the wearability is almost the same (case design and bracelet). Personally, I do not think the 321 movement should cost that much (double the cost).
On secondary market, the watch hardly retain value and sometimes for a mint condition it can be below MSRP which tells you something.
Thank you ! I went in and spent a while looking at it closely today. I took my 3861 in for a direct comparison . Despite the dials being at first glance very similar, closer inspection showed they are in fact quite different. Hard for me to explain exactly how, but the 321 disl looks a bit cleaner,more balanced if that’s the right word. It wears better too on my wrist/ I have 16.5 cm wrist and the speedy pro is at the limit of my comfort zone. Like you, I have a variety of straps I wear with the pro. But the 321 screams bracelet , to me anyway. A stunning piece overall.
Most of the size difference is "fake", as it includes the crown guards which don't really add anything to the size. Dial/bezel are basically identical size. They don't wear any differently imo.
The modern versions are more than inspired by, they are faithful descendents.
So you've never told us whether you bought the 321 or not. Yes, no, maybe?
The Ed White is a watch you really need to feel in the metal to decide. Given its price tag, the watch doesn't make much sense on paper unless you care a lot about the 321 movement (whether for mechanical reason or the moon landing historical association), at least that was the case for me personally.
The standard moonwatch wears a bit better with it's slightly shorter lug-to-lug distance, thinner case and the additional crown guard actually makes it more balanced on the wrist. The Ed White wears taller, the movement is technically inferior to the 3861 and I personally prefer the Nixon bracelet with smaller links and on-the-fly adjustment clasp on the 3861 moonwatch.
However once I've tried on the 321 Ed White, all the above went out of the window. The Ed White is finished to a noticeably higher standard than the 3861/1861 moonwatch. The fit and finish of the case is top notch, the galvanized dial is sharp and clean, the long indices with slight patina shade superluminova is executed to the goldilock spot between vintage and modern, the lume works better in the dark. I had doubts about the ceramic bezel at first but the rich and crisp feel of the enamal lettering matches the high end finishing of the case very well. I put a FOIS bracelet on the watch so it has quick adjustment mechanism that comes in handy during summer.
The movement looks great mechanically, the finishing is good but not stunning (coming from JLC and Lange). The accuracy is so-so but the tactile feel of the pushers is definitely elevated from the 3861 and right up there with the top players. This is by no means a knock on 3861 as I think 3861 probably has the best pusher feel among cam chrono watches (even better than some column wheel chronos from major brands).
I seldomly wear my black 3861 Hesalite anymore after acquiring the 321, and the Ed White is now in a happy rotation with a white 3861. The 321 is like a sleeper watch, like a RS4/RS6 in the car world, it doesn't scream for attention but those in the know will know. If you want the ultmate modern Speedmaster in steel, this is it. Aside from accuracy, it does everything a modern 3861 speedmaster does, only better and more refined in every little detail. That said, I don't think owning both is redundant, the black 3861 retains more toolish vibe and can handle more beatings technically, which makes it a great life companion that carries the true spirit of a Speedmaster since 1957.
The doctor says OMEGA-3 is good for my health
