Seamaster Cosmic Club – Pics, Info & Buyer’s Guide

Welcome to the Seamaster Cosmic Club!



Cosmic is one my favorites from the Seamaster line and I know many OF associates also appreciate these C-cased beauties, so let’s make a devoted thread for the members of the Cosmic Club. C-curious folks are also very much welcomed!

Let’s keep Cosmic 2000 out of this thread, thank you.

Some background info
The Seamaster Cosmic was introduced in 1967 and produced into early 1970s. Omega was “getting with the times” and Cosmic represented a radically different design philosophy compared to the traditional looking 50/60s Seamasters. The results speak for themselves.


Finnish advertisement from 1969. It states that Cosmic is made for an “active man” and compares the monocoque case to a shell of a tortoise which the ad calls “a masterpiece of nature” because it has “no unnecessary gaps” and therefore offers great protection. Stealing a bit of Certina’s thunder there eh? As you can see, in 1969 a manual wind Cosmic set you back 199 Finnish marks. That translates to about 330 USD today. Note the price difference compared to a Speedmaster (500 Mk or 850 USD in 2022)

Cosmic features a funky monocoque case (which often keeps the movement in pristine shape, so the old ad was not bullshitting) and many interesting dial variants with no-date/date/day-date options. There are even gold-plated cases for a real period look, but I don’t think anyone’s going to pull off wearing one today 😉 C-case appears bigger on the wrist than the 35mm diameter suggests. Lug width 19mm. Surprisingly, the beveled caseback makes the watch really comfortable to wear. Tried and tested calibers 601, 611, 613, 552, 562 and 752 – Cosmic is a real bang for your buck watch.

References for the classic C-cased Cosmic are as follows:
135.017 – Cal. 601, manual winding
136.017 – Cal. 611 / 613, manual winding, date
165.026 – Cal. 552, automatic
166.023 – Cal. 562 / 565, automatic, date
166.036 – Cal. 752, automatic, day-date
Note: Omega also produced other Cosmic models but they are ugly compared to the references listed above.

I don’t know much about Omega’s bracelets, but I believe BoR (1037, 1068, 8270) would have been the most common bracelet for this reference in the late 60s. Endlinks 528 fit. I’m sure there are many more options, so please share your bracelet wisdom!
More bracelet options, credit to @tdn-dk


For potential buyers
I highly recommend Cosmic as a first vintage Omega watch. Here are some tips to help you find a nice specimen.

First, read this thread to gain basic knowledge: Learn how to fish

Second, try to avoid examples with cracked/badly damaged crystals because Cosmic uses a special crystal which can be hard to source. I’ve also heard that crowns can be difficult to find.

As the Cosmic is a front-loader watch, meaning to gain access to the movement the crystal must be taken off using a watchmaker’s tool, most sellers will not be able to provide movement photos. Consequently, you will just have to take a chance and buy without seeing the condition of the movement. Luckily if the dial is in good shape (i.e. no visible water damage), it’s a good indicator that the movement could be in ok condition too, thanks to the monocoque case which offers better water resistance compared to a normal case.

As always, redials are out there, although not that widespread of a problem compared to many other references. As is tradition, black is in vogue in “refurbishment” workshops. I’ve also seen quite a few colorful redials in green, red and blue, some of which are well printed. Often these originate from South Korea and American dealers love to peddle them. Generally speaking, Cosmic redials are easy to spot. Pay attention to texture (sunburst being the most common one), fonts and luminous tritium. In this thread you’ll find useful pics of correct text and texture for comparison. For example, my black dial Cosmic has granular texture, sharp white text & crosshair and tritium blobs at applied markers 12-3-6-9, rest are painted with tritium. Old tritium almost always looks tan/brown/dark, not pure white.
Pics of texture and tritium:


In my opinion, bigger issue than redials is the prevalence of polished cases. Some watches can handle a little polishing but with Cosmic a sharp case is a must. Cosmic has an attractive sunburst brushing which is easily polished away, royally hurting the overall aesthetic. Sometimes the sunburst pattern is hard to distinguish if the seller’s pics aren’t that great, but a mirror finish is a sure sign that the original finishing is gone as the sunburst gives an impression of a steel grey tone in low quality pics. The caseback should have vertical brushing. If said feature is missing or the lines are horizontal, it means the case has been polished or refinished.
Pics of original case finishing, reference 136.017:


As for prices, I can say that I own three Cosmics and I paid on average 600 USD per watch. Finding a nice example for much cheaper than that takes patience and some luck. As always, Chrono24 etc. is full of overpriced junk. The most expensive, collectable and imo attractive variant is the one with a black dial and a crosshair. One of those will cost considerably more, easily getting close to 1000 USD.

In conclusion, Cosmic is a fun watch to collect and great for everyday use.

My trio
White/champagne dial with date, ref. 136.017
Grey dial, crosshair with date, ref. 136.017
Black dial with crosshair, ref. 135.017


Further reading:
I fell in love with Seamaster Cosmic

Oh, and by the way, this is the official anthem of the Cosmic Club!

I think that’s all I have to say, so let’s see your Cosmic!

You! I blame your private sales listings for brainwashing me and forcing me to find a black Cosmic. It's a lovely watch... so... thanks, I guess.

any manual wind cosmic?

All three of mine. Calibers 601 & 613 (quickset date) are manual wind.

I was just going to comment on that, I believe handwind ones are particularly beautiful, you don't immediately notice but the handwind case is slimmer and endlinks are also lower in profile

I'm suprised you didn't grab any bracelet yet, may I interest you in a 1118/017 friend 😉

my only manualwind cosmic. i love it.

😉

Obligatory wrist shots 😀

@Walrus visiting our Cosmic club 😁



You have a good looking variant 👍 No wonder your friend wants to buy it.

One of the first watches I purchased when I got into Omegas. $300 and I was off t the races.

Ok, one from me, but this one is gone 😀

Unfortunately no snacks, discounts, or a clubhouse. Our club’s financial situation is so bad that at the moment we are more of a secret society. Cool nicknames, sure! Hmm… What could be your nickname… Something to do with your selling then buying back habit… How about Flip-Flop?

the one I bought last summer for only 300€. I gave it to a friend who was new to vintage watch hunting.
my watchmaker had the crown in stock for €27, so I can't say it was hard to find.
the magnifying glass is original.
I loved its iridescent blue dial, which was brighter than that of my 2016 De Ville Prestige. It took on so many different shades depending on the light.

it is a light and elegant watch, very pleasant to wear.
I found it a bit too small for my wrist. I got too used to diameters of 38 to 41mm.

in my opinion it is the best choice to start a collection, on a par with the Chronostop.
it's robust, precise, easy to maintain, discreetly remarkable

Amazing blue dial and at 300€ a fantastic deal 👍 I have a blue dial Genève from 1970 and like you say, the color is extremely vibrant.

As for Cosmic crowns, my watchmaker got one for a few euros no problem, but another WM said a crown would be difficult to find. Both are independent. So shopping around helps.

my WM worked for a long time at Omega in Bienne. he has access to Omega's NOS. there are still glasses of Cosmic with the magnifying glass of dates 😉

Patches! We definitely need patches for the SM Cosmic Club like @Walrus suggested. Sometimes it’s hard to know who’s a member and who’s not and it can lead to strange interactions. Let me tell you what happened to me last night…

So I was at a local bar having a few beers, minding my own business. Then I notice a man next to me is wearing a watch. Naturally I was intrigued. It was hard to tell what he was wearing as the place was dimly lit. He becomes aware that I am eying his watch and takes a quick glance at my black dial Cosmic, how could he not, right? I thought that maybe he is a member of our club! He was a big dude, rough looking, beard and all. He was wearing a leather vest with a Confederate flag and a patch that said “The South Will Rise Again” – yikes! But our club is apolitical (motto: Cosmic Above All Earthly) so I decided to approach the man.

“Hey there”, I said.
The man looks at me, nods and says “What’s up?”
“Are you a member?” I asked the man.
“Huh?”
“Or are you just C-curious?”
“What the hell are you talking about?!” For some reason the man was getting agitated.
I lean closer and whisper “Do you like, you know, S M…”

I didn’t even get to finish my sentence before the man popped up, yelled whatyoujustsay and tried to punch my teeth in. Luckily, I have good reflexes so I was able to dodge the punch. He started chasing me around the bar and I was just running, blocking and dodging strikes. But as a diehard Cosmic collector and our club’s apostle I was still trying to convince him of the joys of vintage Omega. I evaded attacks and shouted “Wait! Stop! Just heard me out!” but he flung a beer bottle at me. I kept trying to convert him: “Cosmic is lovely! Funky looks!” – evaded a strike – “Great bang for your buck!” – blocked a kick – “You will like a monocoque case!” – Nonetheless the man wasn’t having any of it. Instead, he shouted all sorts of profanities and even “I don’t want your homocock!” How rude!

Finally, the security catches him and throws him out of the bar. I went back to my table, still a little confused and kept drinking beer. A stylish looking man approached me and asked to sit at my table.
“That guy is an idiot, don’t worry about him”, he said.
“I guess he was not a member. I think he’s an Invicta fanboy”, I replied.
“Definitely not a member! I overheard you say you are great bang for your buck”, the stylish man said. “How much?”
I was surprised and delighted to have finally found a potential SM Cosmic club member!
“On average 600 bucks”, I answered.
“Six hundred bucks? That sounds like a lot.”
“It’s good value, trust me. Still undervalued in my opinion. If you want a nice SM…”
“Oh, S & M! That makes more sense. In fact, I was just in the mood for some S & M action”, the man winked at me and grabbed my wrist, “Let’s get out of here. I live just down the street.”

I’ve never met a man so eager to show me his watch collection! He must have quite the collection, I thought as we walked to his place and kept fantasizing about all the rarities hidden inside his watch box. But as we got to his apartment, I was soon disappointed; he did not have much of a collection at all. In fact, he was a total newbie and had just an Apple watch and his uncle’s old Genève. He didn’t even know the lingo! Instead of “funky” he kept describing things as “kinky”. One time I asked him what type of numerals he liked, Roman or Arabic? He lifted his left eyebrow, pursed his lips and said “Caucasians. Big caucasians.” Lol, what a noob! He definitely needs to spend more time on OmegaForums and learn some basic stuff!

Nevertheless, we had a fun night together 😀 Such a polite and energetic young man!

P.S. I was just doing laundry and in my jeans’ back pocket I found 600 bucks and a note saying “Let’s do this again, call me anytime”. I think we got a new member to our club! And I’m going to spend the 600 USD to expand my Cosmic collection. Lucky day!

P.P.S. When I got into watch collecting years ago, the old-timers used to tell me that “the best part of the hobby are the people you meet”. After last night, I think I finally understand what they meant.