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watchstick_81
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Since last week, I’ve been the very proud owner of a beautiful Omega Speedmaster BA345.0802 (42mm diameter and 13.7mm thickness) from the 80s. This is the second-generation 18K gold Apollo 11 tribute Moonwatch, released after NASA requalified the Omega Speedmaster for the upcoming Space Shuttle missions in 1978.
Omega released the BA345.0802 (as well as the white gold BC345.0802) in the winter of 1980 and it is still shrouded in a bit of mystery, as some facts remain unknown. While searching for the perfect example, I gathered a lot of information, spoke with many collectors, writers, and did the obvious vintage thing: the process of elimination through observation.
So this is my personal journey, and I hope this post will help other collectors! All photos are mine unless stated otherwise.
But first, a shout-out to Aludic, also known as Speedybirthyear on Instagram. He was the one who pointed out the perfect example to me. It was a German advertisement I had somehow missed. He’s a great guy and is always happy to help you find your birth-year Speedy. I was actually looking for one myself, but I ended up going with the year 1980, as it has more emotional value to me (personal story I'm not going to share publicly) than my actual birth year. My new acquisition was produced on 17 December 1980 - less than one month away from my birthday! So it's actually a double win!
Okay, let’s dive into the details:
Summary:
1) Mystery 1: the dial
2) Mystery 2: production numbers
3) Mystery 3: leather strap version
4) Not a mystery, but a lot of fun firsts!
5) Two gold case stamps
6) German watch box
Mystery 1: the dial
Mk1 dials
There are three known dial versions: one with “Swiss made” underneath the minute track and a shorter S and R in “Speedmaster.” Let’s call this the Mk1 dial.
Mk2 dial
Then there’s a version with a longer S and R and “Swiss made” above the minute track, as also shown in Moonwatch Only: the Mk2 dial. Mk1 and Mk2 are not official Moonwatch Only details by the way.
From my observations of all the catalogs, sales ads, auctions and magazine advertisements from 1980/1981, they all feature the Mk1 dial. From 1982 onward, we also start to see the Mk2 dial.
This has also been confirmed by Grégoire Rossier, the writer of Moonwatch Only and he has been doing additional research. The Mk2 dials are very rare and I’m fairly certain they were actually prototype dials! These were probably produced first in a very small batch to see how it looked. A small change was made during the ongoing design process, to more closely match the BA145.022 dial (the first gold Apollo 11 Speedmaster released in 1969). On the BA145.022 dial, “Swiss made” and the S and R are very similar to the Mk1 dial.
I think later on Omega used the Mk2 dial in the main production simply because they already had them available. You could argue that the prototype dial should be called the Mk1, but it was not used in the first batch.
All 345.0802 dials are not solid gold and do not have onyx markers, unlike the BA145.022 dial. There is no 'OM' printed on the 345.0802 dial, and it is still available as a service dial (Mk3; see below) for approximately €310 (exchange only). So it clearly isn’t solid gold, in case anyone was still wondering.
Mk3 dial
The Mk3 dial is currently still available as the service dial and has a long S and R, “Swiss made” underneath the minute track, no accent lines around the subdials and the “30” and “60” are horizontally aligned. On the vintage dial, the “60” sits above the accent line. It's therefore easy to spot a service dial and the white gold version (Rhodium plated) can often be seen in mods.
Mystery 2: production numbers
In Moonwatch Only and all watch vlogs you read that “approximately 300 pieces” were made. The main reason for this is that Omega did not register all case numbers in the archives. Each 345.0802 has a number on the caseback and Grégoire found that some are missing in the archives. Errors were made back then, as delivery invoices were typed on a typewriter and only added to the archives days later. Some serial numbers were even matched to the same case number, so it’s a bit of a mess to get a definitive answer.
I believe exactly 300 were made, because I came across a Hong Kong Phillips auction featuring number A300. No higher number has been found and this seems too neat to be a coincidence. About half of them were shipped to Germany in 1980 and the rest were delivered world wide from the end of 1981 onward (most likely most on order).
Pinpointing a specific production year in the 1980s is nearly impossible without an Omega Extract, as serial numbers were only linked to the movements and the watches were then randomly distributed.
This means a lower serial number can actually be years older than a higher serial number, according to extensive research done by Aludic. Another issue with the Omega Extracts is that they do not show the actual production date, but rather the date the watch left the Omega manufacture for the distributor plus a few days before it was entered into the archives. I have seen an authentic Omega delivery invoice with 20 serials and an Omega extract showed that the “production date” of one of those serials as being five days later. So don’t be fooled into thinking that the “production date” is anywhere near the date the watch was actually assembled.
Mystery 3: leather strap version
It took Omega eight years to sell all 300 yellow gold BA345.0802s. Exactly why is unknown, but during the 1980s there was a major economic downturn following the second oil crisis, the gold prices plummeted and quartz watches were in high demand . So I think that, with its hefty price tag (around €23,000 in today’s money), it simply didn’t sell well compared to the regular Moonwatch (roughly €1,000 adjusted).
The BA345.0802 only appeared in the 1982 international Omega catalog because of the worldwide release. It was probably only available by special order as most were made in 1980 and Extract show it left the factory years later (again: production date is when it's shipped to the distributor). It was also advertised in the 1987 international catalog, but only available on a leather strap, reference 145.0039. This also happens to be the case reference, just to make things more confusing. Only a dozen were sold and no Omega extracts are known to exist after 1988.
Let’s assume Omega produced all 300 in one go, then realized after several years that they weren’t selling well enough and decided to offer a more affordable leather strap version. Since this wasn’t an additional production batch, did Omega swap some of the gold bracelets for leather straps? If so, did those bracelets become service parts or were they melted down and the gold reused?
4) Not a mystery, but a lot of fun firsts!
The 345.0802 was the first Speedmaster Moonwatch with a display caseback (snap-fit) and the only Speedmaster with the rhodium-plated 861L movement, featuring anglage decoration and 19 instead of 17 jewels. The very rare Omega Tridor series also has the 861L movement.
Bracelet
The 345.0802 bracelet is the first gold one to have removable screw pins, making it very easy to remove or add links. Nice engineering that was lost again on the later bracelets in the 1980s! This full-length bracelet has 25 links (26 if you count the one connected to the clasp cover with the Omega logo) and has 6 removable links.
The end links have support rods, that also hold the springbar in place. This way the end link keeps its shape and doesn’t move when mounted.
5) Two gold case stamps
The case with it's sexy 80s lugs has two stamps on the lugs. One is easy: the “750” hallmark stands for Au750 or 18-carat gold. The other one was definitely more challenging. I had a fun discussion with some gold experts and only a few of them knew what these meant. Collector @wouter van wijk mentioned it's the Swiss 18K hallmark, featuring the head of Helvetia, while the “t” stands for Tramelan, approximately 24 kilometers from the Omega manufacture in Bienne. In Tramelan, a federal institute tested the 18 carat gold and upon approval stamped the hallmarks into the watch case.
The tarnish on the yellow gold is clearly visible and gives this already beautiful watch a unique, personal touch. This result of oxidation forms because the silver and copper in the 18K alloy react with oxygen, moisture, and chemicals. Over time this leads to discoloration of the surface. It is easy to polish out, but no need for that!
The full length bracelet weighs 72 grams and the complete watch with bracelet weighs 144 grams. It’s still unclear how much gold there is in total. Maybe a watchmaker can give me that number someday when the watch is being serviced.
6) German watch box
The approximately 150 pieces that were shipped to Germany all came with a very specific black box with an aluminum plate on it. This plate features the Omega Speedmaster Professional print and a 3D bronze-colored caseback-lookalike emblem. The set included a numbered certificate with a photo of the watch on it. I only got the box, and it’s clearly showing its age, as the thin faux-leather lining is almost gone. It still looks cool, though! Other countries received a different or generic watch box (see the Phillips auction above).
Some more photos and observations:
Thanks for reading!
Edited:
