Dear OF fellowmen, in my noob enthusiasm I fear that I have acted too fast on some fleaBay offer. To be precise, I have made an impulsive (noob) offer last week at 80% of the asking price and got a fast but positive response. So after paying and swiftly receiving the watch, the hard reality kicked in. Please have a look at the pictures and let me know what you discover, with the vast experience present here on this forum, next to my own findings:
- the minute hand has some tritium damage;
- the commemorative coin and the patch do not match the 20th anniversary but strangely enough the 40th anniversary version;
- this is supposed to be a 1989 watch but there is some service description from 89 in the case back (hardly visible in the pictures, sorry) which is rather suspicious. It also reads 145.022 while I thought this watch is a 145.0022 model. Or even a 345.0022 model (because of the bracelet present). Maybe the case back is not the original either?
- when winding the watch, I noticed that it went a little light. I have the watch for one week now and did not notice any visible time deviation (not really measured, just visible impression). Today I have taken the watch in for a full service at a local Omega repair center. They told me the movement was very dry and needed servicing and a new crown was needed as well.

Don't be shy to comment on anything else you may see, it's now in my possession and I will bear the consequences of my own mistakes. I also studied the pics from the watch that @kov sold somewhere in 2016.
My watch came with the original special wooden box but I wonder if this box was supposed to be inserted in an even larger box? Where else was the patch and pin supposed to be stored? Was there a coin as well for the 20th anniversary?
The watch came on the original 1450 bracelet (beautiful!) with correct 808 links but not sure if a velcro strap was part of the original set as well?
As far as I know, this is a European version which was produced in a quantity of 4000 pieces. There was no certificate with production number included so not even sure if the movement matches the engraved case.

If I mispresent some things here, or use the wrong terminology (no native English speaker), feel free to comment and ask for more details. Any input is much appreciated, I'm here to learn!

Some pics are mine, others are from the seller when he posted the watch.

Now, don't be shy and hit me with your comments!

 

Guess it depends on how much you spent on it! The watch, to my eye is from 1989. That's when the 1450 bracelet was around too. The medallion looks like something the seller tossed in to be nice, as it's 20 years newer than the watch. A 1450 on it's own goes for $1500, so its' nice to have with the watch, but this model doesn't usually sell for a premium otherwise if I recall correctly.

 

I would say what belongs to the set are :

- white outer box
- wooden box
- patch
- moon cal 861 booklet
- watch (indeed Rest of World 20th Anniversary of Apollo XI, 4000 pces)
- bracelet, a rather nice and desirable 1450/808

Are missing :

- certificate with the LE number (only mentioned there)
- Velcro strap

The other items do not belong to the original package and are from different period too.

Your caseback looks correct and it can well have been at the watchmaker in 89 for whatever reason. That marking doesn’t mean a thing to me, maybe it’s even not related to the year but something else...

Depending on how much you paid it still can be a rather nice daily wearer

 

I would never assume what you see marked inside the case is a date - it can be some code the watchmaker used, invoice number, job number, etc.

 

I have a wooden box that fits into a white outer box with golden text. It looks correct to me. But where would the rest including velcro strap be stored then?

 

Guess I was misled by the coincidence of that number 89 maybe.
Any comments on the state of the case or the movement?

 

Firstly, it’s a cool watch - it is, I think, the first proper consumer market limited edition Speedy which Omega made (apart from 2 solid gold ones).
For the age, the dial, case look nice, sharp and unpolished to me. Also bear in mind a “plain normal Speedy from the late 80s/early 90s is around £3k.

Agree with @kov - the Velcro and certificate are missing, the Velcro strap should be ok to replace, they turn up here and on eBay. The coin is from a later LE - I would sell it to offset the cost, I sold a spare one last year for around £200...The certificate is harder to replace though, and so may “cap” interest from future buyers.

As you point out, it needs a service, but I always assume any vintage watch does. Do be careful specifying what you do and don’t want Omega to do!!!

So, depends on how much you paid, but overall it looks like a nice set to me...

 

On top of the wooden box, in the white box. They didn’t bother making a special place for the accessories. There’s just enough space to pile up the wood, papers and Velcro in that white box

 

As I mentioned, I got carried away by the moment. Asking price was £6500, my offer that got accepted was £5500. I believe the one that @kov sold in 2016 went for $4600. Even with the past few years steep price increases for Speedmasters, it looks like I paid $1k too much. Plus the upcoming service costs.

 

I think indeed you’ve overpaid, probably even more than 1k$, BUT you didn’t buy a dog.

You still can sell some of the accessories that don’t belong to that watch to get some money back, if you don't need them.

I think it will be a good lesson learned with only a little harm, if any, at the end. Take your time in this vintage world. One of my golden rules I can share here is "There will always be another one". Especially when considering something else than a real unicorn.

Enjoy your watch, have it serviced and wear the hell out of it!

 

Bear in mind the U.K. is generally more expensive than the US for vintage watches (though not oddly for new ones), I’ve found that a watch for $5k in the US will be about £5k in the U.K. - hence most of my purchases have been from US/$ prices...Plus a quick search on eBay or Chrono24 the only other one is around £6800 and doesn’t have anything else apart from the bracelet...

And anyway if things do go Speedy crazy next year, then you might well make made the difference up!

 

Although 4000 of these Euro versions were produced, therefore less scarce than the US version, you don’t see them offered a lot of times. Hence my impulsive purchase.

 

From my personal standpoint and a very large number of Speedmaster overhauled, this version should be considered one of the best ever produced. It comes with the excellent 1450/808 bracelet and the mid-eighties copper colored 861, in my opinion the top Speedmaster caliber for reliability, smoothness and accuracy. Be happy with it.

 

Happy with it I am!

 

I think you have bought a nice speedmaster with a nice and rare speedmaster bracelet! ....the coin doesn't belong to a speedmaster LE. These coins are sold on Ebay for less money.. if you search for "Apollo XI medallion" ...

 

Thank you for the compliments. I think you are right about that coin, it looks to be available for a mere $25 at many places...