Omega Speedmaster Reduced

Middlander · Feb 19, 2025

I'm thinking that I might be in a position to buy a Reduced and complete the 'poor (or small) mans trilogy' before too long ... unless an irresistible, black dial Carrera 35mm re-edition pops up before then.

I've already seen a couple that I like but when I asked they'd been polished. Although my '120', which was resurrected from the scrap heap, has been polished, it was done lightly and by Omega. So I sort of feel comfortable with that because I know who did the job, the watch carries it and it looks sharp.

Without putting on people too much, can anyone please share some thoughts:

Pre / post 2006? I prefer pre-2006 but not fixed on that.
Am I likely to find unpolished examples?
Aside from the Auction Houses and the likes of Chron24 etc, are there any specific sellers that I should consider?
Is the Reduced widely faked?

Thanks in advance.

padders · Feb 19, 2025

Do an Advanced Search here on Reduced (use the drop down arrow next to the Forums button) and you will find dozens of threads discussing them. They have their fans but not all posts will be positive, yes they have pitfalls. Many will be in poor shape since the cost of servicing is proportionally higher with these (and a little more complicated) than with more expensive pieces. The earliest examples of these are nearly 30 years old now so proof of a recent service, ideally by the factory is a must. Many get dumped when they need work, don't take a sellers word for it with servicing: they lie and many Indy watchmakers only do half a job with these.

Not many were made post 2006. Those have sapphire crystals and a simpler dial layout so generally cost more. Those made before late 1997 will have tritium lume which can fade nicely to beige but will no longer glow. Any after this will have functional lume. Watch for mismatched parts on earlier ones.

A factory polish wouldn't worry me. This is a relatively modern watch and it looks better tidy than tatty

No the Reduced is not widely faked. The fakers have some standards 😉

watch_my_six · Feb 19, 2025

Vote for a tritium one

Middlander · Feb 19, 2025

watch_my_six
Vote for a tritium one

That's why I fancy one. Spot on.

watch_my_six · Feb 19, 2025

Can also swap in a Marui dial for luminova, then you have the best of both worlds (including panda) ; )

Middlander · Feb 19, 2025

padders
Do an Advanced Search here on Reduced (use the drop down arrow next to the Forums button) and you will find dozens of threads discussing them. They have their fans but not all posts will be positive, yes they have pitfalls. Many will be in poor shape since the cost of servicing is proportionally higher with these (and a little more complicated) than with more expensive pieces. The earliest examples of these are nearly 30 years old now so proof of a recent service, ideally by the factory is a must. Many get dumped when they need work, don't take a sellers word for it with servicing: they lie and many Indy watchmakers only do half a job with these.

Not many were made post 2006. Those have sapphire crystals and a simpler dial layout so generally cost more. Those made before late 1997 will have tritium lume which can fade nicely to beige but will no longer glow. Any after this will have functional lume. Watch for mismatched parts on earlier ones.

A factory polish wouldn't worry me. This is a relatively modern watch and it looks better tidy than tatty

No the Reduced is not widely faked. The fakers have some standards 😉

Thanks for that, padders. Exactly the sort of reply I was hoping for.

I think, for me, the older, the better. My rebuilt 120 has nicely 'yellowed' with age and looks all the better for it.

Since I have every intention to keep the three watches together, getting the 'new' Reduced serviced isn't an issue (aside from OMEGA I know of another excellent set-up) ... however finding a watch that's in decent unpolished condition might be.

Good news 🙄 that the fakers aren't so much of an issue, though.

Middlander · Feb 19, 2025

watch_my_six
Marui

Looks fab, but I think I'll most likely stay with the standard dial. It'll tie the three together and I very much like the tool watch vibe with high contrast silver hands on a black dial.

padders · Feb 19, 2025

M AgoMe
Thanks for that, padders. Exactly the sort of reply I was hoping for.

I think, for me, the older, the better. My rebuilt 120 has nicely 'yellowed' with age and looks all the better for it.

Since I have every intention to keep the three watches together, getting the 'new' Reduced serviced isn't an issue (aside from OMEGA I know of another excellent set-up) ... however finding a watch that's in decent unpolished condition might be.

Good news 🙄 that the fakers aren't so much of an issue, though.

Regardless of how excellent your other servicing option is, even if they have a parts account they may struggle with these since omega themselves swap the chrono module and AFAIK won’t release those units to anyone at all. You just can’t get chrono parts in the wild so some failures can be a big problem.
Very few Indy’s do a full job with these, some just say no in fact or don’t touch the chrono parts. I do know a couple in the UK I’d trust to do it properly but don’t assume you will find a good solution outside the factory network without checking first. I could get a 321 serviced much easier than a Reduced chrono module.

Enough pessimism! What are your other 2 trilogy choices? I presume the SM120 you refer to is another component?

Archer · Feb 19, 2025

padders
Regardless of how excellent your other servicing option is, even if they have a parts account they may struggle with these since omega themselves swap the chrono module and AFAIK won’t release those units to anyone at all. You just can’t get chrono parts in the wild so some failures can be a big problem.
Very few Indy’s do a full job with these, some just say no in fact or don’t touch the chrono parts. I do know a couple in the UK I’d trust to do it properly but don’t assume you will find a good solution outside the factory network without checking first. I could get a 321 serviced much easier than a Reduced chrono module.

Enough pessimism! What are your other 2 trilogy choices? I presume the SM120 you refer to is another component?

Omega swaps the entire movement.

dsio · Feb 19, 2025

Archer
Omega swaps the entire movement.

This is why I only think they’re worth it for the really interesting ones like the gold panda dials, gold variants, some of the ladies mother of pearl models etc. Pretty much every option other than the movement swap that’s cheaper tends to be a service the base movement, oil the piggyback a little and send it type approach which isn’t that much of a saving when there’s no warranty or real full service happening.

As an alternative to the regular reduced automatics, I’d rather a Speedmaster Date, MK40, Cal 3330 variant or really anything with a 775x base as they’re easy to get service for and tend to be rock solid.

dougwhiz · Feb 19, 2025

I also think the Mk40 is worth a look. I really enjoy mine with working lume, but the tritium ones look great too. You might enjoy this:

https://omegaforums.net/threads/mk40-my-first-speedmaster.156844/

Thread 'Mk40 - My First Speedmaster' ·

I've been looking for some time and it took some consolidating, but finally picked up my first Speedmaster!! I know it's not a Professional but the budget isn't currently there for one. And I'm...

dougwhiz · Mar 3, 2023

Archer · Feb 19, 2025

dougwhiz
I also think the Mk40 is worth a look. I really enjoy mine with working lume, but the tritium ones look great too. You might enjoy this:

https://omegaforums.net/threads/mk40-my-first-speedmaster.156844/

Thread 'Mk40 - My First Speedmaster' ·
I've been looking for some time and it took some consolidating, but finally picked up my first Speedmaster!! I know it's not a Professional but the budget isn't currently there for one. And I'm...

dougwhiz · Mar 3, 2023

The 7750 based watches would be my preference…

Middlander · Feb 20, 2025

padders
Regardless of how excellent your other servicing option is, even if they have a parts account they may struggle with these since omega themselves swap the chrono module and AFAIK won’t release those units to anyone at all. You just can’t get chrono parts in the wild so some failures can be a big problem.
Very few Indy’s do a full job with these, some just say no in fact or don’t touch the chrono parts. I do know a couple in the UK I’d trust to do it properly but don’t assume you will find a good solution outside the factory network without checking first. I could get a 321 serviced much easier than a Reduced chrono module.

Enough pessimism! What are your other 2 trilogy choices? I presume the SM120 you refer to is another component?

Morning,

The other watch is a 36mm Railmaster 36mm Ref 2804.52.00.

Also relevant being that it was serviced, before I got it, by Duncan Potter / Genesis Watchmaking who I used to fix a Zenith El Primero purchased during Lockdown! that I owned for a short time. It was Genesis I thought would be able service a Reduced for me.

Thing is this place is not at all 'negative', the fund of knowledge is tremendous and whilst it might not always be what you want to hear, I always find it well intentioned.

I very much like the Reduced for it's well laid out dial, lug to lug measurement and slim profile. And whilst I don't want to be precious about my watches (I want to wear them), I don't want to buy something that isn't sound and poor value.

The watch I was thinking of getting comes up for auction next week. And the Auctioneers think that it has already been polished, so even at the lower end of it's estimate, whilst I'd be willing to even pay for an Omega service, if its case has already been spoilt, it'd be money wasted.

Time to put the thinking cap on, I reckon. 😀

Middlander · Feb 20, 2025

Archer
Omega swaps the entire movement.

Yes. I had a word with them. And if I understood correctly, it's standard practice when serviced.

Middlander · Feb 20, 2025

Archer
The 7750 based watches would be my preference…

Thanks, I understand the suggestion and will have another look at them. Because of my build, I like watches with a slim profile. And for that reason the Reduced's 11.5mm to 12mm profile, along with the clear, no date dial and lug to lug measurement add to it's appeal.

Canuck · Feb 20, 2025

I like my Speedmaster reduced, a lot!

bsowers34 · Feb 20, 2025

I like this one if it counts as a “Reduced “. 3523.80. Still my favorite omega of my seven, even though it’s not all that special.

Archer · Feb 20, 2025

bsowers34
I like this one if it counts as a “Reduced “. 3523.80. Still my favorite omega of my seven, even though it’s not all that special.

No - that's one of the 7750 based models.

bsowers34 · Feb 20, 2025

Archer
No - that's one of the 7750 based models.

I know. But it is a smaller size, and easy to get serviced.

KaiseRRuby · Feb 20, 2025

Don't forget that there are a LOT of different versions of the reduced. See this guide for more information. I have a normal one, but i think about swapping dial, bezel and hands for the 3510.82.00 version. That would create something like this (pic stolen from Reddit):

I bought the Reduced as my first 'real' watch, and will never let it go. So i dont care about worth of the watch.

Omega Speedmaster Reduced - Now Purchased

Middlander

padders

watch_my_six

Middlander

watch_my_six

Middlander

Middlander

padders

Archer

dsio

dougwhiz

Archer

Middlander

Middlander

Middlander

Canuck

bsowers34

Archer

bsowers34

KaiseRRuby

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