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Speedy help

R
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Hey all. The inevitable has happened and I’ve decided to jump into the market for a speedy pro. I’m just starting out with my search and I don’t have a big budget so I have been focusing mostly on post 145.022-78 variants. Are there any online resources that focus on the differences in these newer versions?

I don’t have a long list of requirements other that I want a tritium dial and hands, solid caseback, and period correct ( if not original) parts.

For example I cam across this one on eBay-
FE0A5179-F516-42F4-A141-A0190CAFB749.jpeg


https://www.ebay.ca/itm/Omega-Speed...rentrq:27201ab91720aada5949cf7cffa8582c|iid:1


Serial is 48329xxx... Watch looks pretty nice to my eye. I’m Just not sure if the modern bezel is correct... and not sure how to find out. The info I’ve managed to come across says the modern bezel starts in the ‘mid 90s’ and the lunaroyster.com serial reference would date this to 1996.

any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
 
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abrod520
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I'd run the serial number by the Swatch Group customer service email in your territory - they'll gladly respond with which reference it corresponds to. The parts are correct for each other, but I'm not sure if maybe they were added after production of the watch. The bracelet is the only thing making me wonder - that's a late-'80s or early '90s bracelet, but the dial and bezel are from a couple years later. It could be that the watch is original though, so it really depends on the reference. Could be an early 3590.50 with the bracelet from a late 145.022.

I think it's priced just a tad high for what it is though
 
R
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abrod520 abrod520
I'd run the serial number by the Swatch Group customer service email in your territory - they'll gladly respond with which reference it corresponds to. The parts are correct for each other, but I'm not sure if maybe they were added after production of the watch. The bracelet is the only thing making me wonder - that's a late-'80s or early '90s bracelet, but the dial and bezel are from a couple years later. It could be that the watch is original though, so it really depends on the reference. Could be an early 3590.50 with the bracelet from a late 145.022.

I think it's priced just a tad high for what it is though

thanks for the advice. I’m more in the learning stage and less in the purchasing stage right now. This is a big part of the enjoyment in watches for me. I’m just using that particular watch as an example because it comes in right around the time when the modern bezel started appearing. How do you know the bracelet is late 80s early 90s? I’m having a hard time finding a lot of info online that differentiates these 80s and 90s versions.
 
Foo2rama
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R raider44
Thanks but I’m looking more for info on watches that came after the -78...
1980-1999 are all fairly interchangeable. Some small production change that only collectors notice. Look for a legit seller and a good price on an attractive watch.
 
abrod520
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R raider44
How do you know the bracelet is late 80s early 90s?

That bracelet model was only on watches around that time period.

Foo2rama Foo2rama
1980-1999 are all fairly interchangeable.

^ he means 1980-1989. The watch didn't change a whole lot between then
 
Foo2rama
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abrod520 abrod520
That bracelet model was only on watches around that time period.



^ he means 1980-1989. The watch didn't change a whole lot between then
I stand with 80 through the last Tritium in 99.

there is no feature that makes any of them more or less desirable then any other year. It comes down to the look of the tritium.
I don’t think in the future these will really be seen as anything but a 19 year run. The 1861 is not really any different then the 861. The last 861’s had the extra jewel.
 
K
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as stated, parts do look correct for late 80's to mid 90s but with a later bracelet
 
machamp6650
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R raider44
I’m Just not sure if the modern bezel is correct... and not sure how to find out

Not sure how much this will help OP, but my understanding is that a correct 3590.50 with a 1479 bracelet (as per your example) should have a bezel without the serif over tachymetre. I'm not sure when this changed (I personally thought it was when the 3570.50 was transitioned in) but more based on my own impressions when buying a 3590.50 earlier this year.

It's a really important thing to get right though, if you want period correct. The bezel with serif in your example is pretty much the current service bezel, easy to obtain. With the last generation (without the serif), even the 90s versions are starting to command several hundred...
 
machamp6650
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R raider44
How do you know the bracelet is late 80s early 90s? I’m having a hard time finding a lot of info online that differentiates these 80s and 90s versions.

A lot of it is personal observation, plus those helpful people who systematically collate such information. The 1479 bracelet is correct throughout the 3590.50 models - awesome bracelet too. I dug this up from another post:

omega-speedmaster-bracelet-history-png.154102

Reference: https://omegaforums.net/threads/speedmaster-professional-bracelets-1171-1479-1498.84715/
 
abrod520
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Foo2rama Foo2rama
I stand with 80 through the last Tritium in 99.

there is no feature that makes any of them more or less desirable then any other year. It comes down to the look of the tritium.
I don’t think in the future these will really be seen as anything but a 19 year run. The 1861 is not really any different then the 861. The last 861’s had the extra jewel.

Oh value-wise for sure. I meant dial and bezel iterations - they changed after 89 from the long S to the short S, and the DNN went to the non-serif version and then to the dot-below-70.

machamp6650 machamp6650
Not sure how much this will help OP, but my understanding is that a correct 3590.50 with a 1479 bracelet (as per your example) should have a bezel without the serif over tachymetre. I'm not sure when this changed (I personally thought it was when the 3570.50 was transitioned in) but more based on my own impressions when buying a 3590.50 earlier this year.

It's a really important thing to get right though, if you want period correct. The bezel with serif in your example is pretty much the current service bezel, easy to obtain. With the last generation (without the serif), even the 90s versions are starting to command several hundred...

I dunno much about the 1479 showing up on later models, but if so it would definitely overlap with the modern bezel - those showed up sometime around 1995 or so, so for 2 or 3 years would have been fitted to tritium models.
 
R
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Just an update... with a limited budget I was focusing on 80s and 90s tritium speedmasters for my first moonwatch. I stumbled on this one on eBay. The seller (closer0924) had it listed as a 3590.50 though the case back was clearly marked 145.022 78 and the serial number (4481xxxx) falls in the correct range for the 78 case back. It was a couple hundred more than I wanted to spend but I like the look of the dial and 1171 bracelet and took the plunge. Hope I did OK. I'll update the thread with some pics once I receive the watch. Thanks for everyone for the helpful advice!

here is the listing-

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/OMEGA-Speedmaster-3590-50-Fall-R-cal-861-Hand-Winding-Mens-Watch-524343/254565394002?ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

s-l1600.jpg
 
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apsm100
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R raider44
Just an update... with a limited budget I was focusing on 80s and 90s tritium speedmasters for my first moonwatch. I stumbled on this one on eBay. The seller (closer0924) had it listed as a 3590.50 though the case back was clearly marked 145.022 78 and the serial number (4481xxxx) falls in the correct range for the 78 case back. It was a couple hundred more than I wanted to spend but I like the look of the dial and 1171 bracelet and took the plunge. Hope I did OK. I'll update the thread with some pics once I receive the watch. Thanks for everyone for the helpful advice!

here is the listing-

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/OMEGA-Speedmaster-3590-50-Fall-R-cal-861-Hand-Winding-Mens-Watch-524343/254565394002?ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

s-l1600.jpg

Case has been polished but dial and hands look nice with greenish indices.
For the price I think its nice! 👍
 
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R
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Case has been polished but dial and hands look nice with greenish indices.
For the price I think its nice! 👍

whew! glad to hear i didn't miss something obvious. I figured the case had been polished... but it looked sharper than many of the others I had looked at so I was OK with it.
 
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