I've the chance to buy a NOS Speedmaster Schumacher legend this week, but I'd like to hear what peoples thoughts on this series and in particular if a modern Speedy bracelet (screws not pins and adjustable clasp) would fit the watch or not.

 

That date window is an abomination.

 

I still hope that Michael will get better soon.

 

True, but as my eyesight is getting worse I can overlook the day position.

 

The first one is a beauty.
Not a fan of the red dial.

So sad what has happened to Micheal S. He's been hidden away in his castle in Switzerland.

 

Great looking watches! The series was released in three dial versions, the two shown plus a black panda dial. I've had the black dial and red dial in the past, but sold them to get something else. Only issue with them as I remember was the cal 3301 (F. Piguet 1285 based) had problems with the chronograph which were rectified through some updates, as I recall. As the one you are considering is NOS, it may not have the updates.

 

I like the first one a lot.

 

I'm hoping that the Omega AD will sell the watch with the full warranty so if anything does happen it should be covered. Do you know what the issues were for this chrono?

 

I’ve got the panda dial version. It came with a 1998 (pin) bracelet, which fit well. But I decided to buy the broad arrow bracelet, which is the reference correct one. The broad arrow bracelet is kind of the Speedmaster equivalent of a Planet Ocean bracelet in look and fit, and I think it really works well for the watch and gives it some additional distinction from the Speedmaster Professional line.

 

Fully agree. It just kills the dial.

 

Your's is actually a different model from the series of three above. It is a limited edition of 6,000 and came out prior to the non LE models mentioned above.

 

Chronometer chronograph.

 

There were a myriad of issues, from chrono hands not resetting to complete movement failure (watch stopped). The non coaxial version, cal 3301 and 3303 were phased out but the coaxial versions, cal 3313 etc. continued production.

 

Design of the cream dial one seems to be a bit of a Paul Newman Daytona wannabe?

 

Agree! but my personal preference is the abomination date window over the abomination of a sub dial with an engraving of an astronaut figure climbing down the Apollo lunar module

 

Is there not an option for "none of the above"?

 

If its NOS its 10+ years old. Have dealer pay for a service.

 

I like my speedy like my whiskey...straight up. That means SS, manual winding and no complications.

 

Speedmasters and cars.... Manual or nothing.

 

There were several parts that were upgraded over the life of this movement.

1 - Screw for hammer-lever banking bridge - screw strengthened due to the head snapping off on earlier versions.

2 - Column wheel operating lever - stronger version to prevent bending of the lever, which would make the chronograph inoperative.

3 - Minute counter jumper - modified to prevent the jumper from breaking off, rendering the minute counter inoperative.

4 - Hammer operating lever - first iteration would bend, the second iteration was made stronger, but resulted in too strong of a reset of the chronograph (hands would shoot past zero too far and not be centered). The third one is the Goldilocks version - not too weak and not too strong.

5 - Rocking bar - new version prevents potential bending of the setting lever.

These are all of the upgrades to the swiss lever escapement versions of the movement. The co-axial watches had other upgrades related to the co-axial design, but are not relevant for the watch in question.

Note that all of these chronograph upgrades were completed in models produced after the middle of 2008, so if the watch was produced after that, all these upgrades should already be done. These are considered mandatory upgrades by Omega, so if the watch went back for servicing at Omega or at a qualified independent watchmaker, the upgrades would have been done at the time of the last service (I have done these upgrades on many of these movements over the years).

I have serviced quite a number of these movements, both co-axial and Swiss lever versions, and there has only been one that has crossed my bench that actually displayed a problem related to the parts that are upgraded. This is that movement:



If you look at the hook that grabs the column wheel to turn it, the one on the left is just slightly further away from the column wheel teeth than it is on the right. This is the column wheel operating lever, and the one on the left came into my shop bent. The new version was installed and it worked fine after that. Here is a video showing the operation of the column wheel after the part was changed:

It should be noted that over the years there has been a concerted effort by one individual on forums (he's a member here also, but not very active) to paint this movement in a negative light and as being particularly problematic, when that really is not the case. I can't say for sure how many I've serviced, but it's a good number, and only one has ever had any problem related to the upgraded parts. Omega changing these parts is a sign of them being proactive more than anything else.

Hope this helps.

Cheers, Al