Which "space +" speedmaster

While the speedmaster is always a space themed watch I've been giving more thought to taking the concept one step further. I love my c.2000 hesalite Speedie but am considering adding one of the following watches. In my mind at least, both have the "space" theme but add a little to the regular speedmaster narrative.

Soyuz meteorite dial

Regular Speedie dimensions
Meterorite dial (real space history)
Dated/classic looks? (vs ceramic options which are more contemporary...)


Aventurine ceramic

Larger size but ceramic case
Blue case might age badly vs more classic Speedie?
Amazing starlight sky dial and rose gold highlights
Modern movement
Cheaper than the soyuz

Any thoughts? Opinions? Criticisms? I passed on a soyuz Speedie about 7 years ago from a shop window at £3.5k and still regret it to this day. If I wanted to fix that, and maybe I do, it's going to cost me £8k to get a good Soyuz. I could make excuses and justify it... but whenever I get budget creep like this I always think about what other options look like and that aventurine dial is beautiful...

If you can afford, get the Soyuz Meterorite Dial... we all have regrets.

Here's what Fratello Magazine had to say in 2013...

"Meteorite Dial
The coolest feature on this limited edition (to 1975 pieces) Speedmaster Professional Apollo-Soyuz is the meteorite dial of course. This, together with the special engraved caseback are the major differences with a normal ref. 3573.50 Speedmaster Professional. Of course, as you can see on the pictures, the hands are also slightly different. Not a single dial will be the same, as the structure of the dark colored stone varied per cut.

At some point, the list price of this Speedy Meteorite was just over 6000 Euro. This and the fact that there were only 1975 of them, make it quite an exclusive appearance. In the pre-owned market, I’ve seen them on Chrono24 starting at approx 5000 Euro / 6300 USD.

Is it worth the extra money compared to a ‘standard’ Speedmaster Professional with sapphire crystal? In my opinion certainly, as this will be a (future) collectors item without a doubt. Especially since the dials are unique for each timepiece, it is certainly something special. So if you have one, keep on to them."


Source: https://www.fratellowatches.com/spe...sional-apollo-soyuz-with-meteorite-dial/#gref
Original Review 2010:
https://www.fratellowatches.com/the...professional-apollo-soyuz-meteorite-reviewed/

If anyone has a lead on a soyuz meteorite in good condition let me know 😀

Agreed...Soyuz Meteorite hits exactly what you are looking for. Also, it's just a beautiful and well executed piece!

Decision made, I just need to find one now! I was thinking there may be some comments along the lines of "3x the price for a meteorite dial vs a regular Speedie?! Are you mad?! Go for a modern ceramic coaxial... " which has crossed my mind... but sometimes logic just doesn't apply!

Thank you. I had seen that but by the time I've imported it into the UK it would be expensive. Nice to have the warranty but I guess it needs a service after 10 years sat in a dealers.

Grey Side of the Moon Meteorite this one is going up FS soon