I have this weird obsession with finding really early examples of watches. My first really great watch was an “A-Series” Royal Oak 5402 from 1972, and finding that special watch from such an early time period (it is one of the first 200 Royal Oaks ever made) really gave me a disease. I told you about the first generation Rolex Cosmograph Daytona in this piece, and today I’ll give you an abridged look at another of the absolute icons in wrist chronographs �C the http://www.speedroc.com/replica-omega-speedmaster-broad-arrow-gmt.html Speedmaster.
I found this particular watch in my own pursuit for an early Speedmaster. This is a reference 2915, and most importantly for the discussion of today, it is a reference 2915-1. That means it’s the first, or one of the very first, Speedmasters ever made. There are 2915-2 and 2915-3’s that share similar looks and traits, but this particular replica omega Seamaster 300m is a 2915-1, and that’s pretty damn cool itself.
The first thing most people notice about super early Speedmasters is the broad-arrow hands. replica omega Speedmaster Broad Arrow has used them on re-editions (though strangely not on the ’57 Speedmaster I spoke about here). People argue about whether or not they’re more functional or aesthetically pleasing than later hands, but none of that matters. All that matters is, if you’re buying a Speedmaster 2915-1, it’s got to have these hands.
Next, you’ll see that the 2915 has a stainless steel tachymetere bezel graduated to 300, with a base of 1000. The later 2915-3 Speedies could indeed feature a black aluminum bezel similar to what you’d find on a 2998 Speedmaster (because that was really a transitional model), but 2915-1 and 2915-2s need this steel bezel. Again, most prefer the black bezel of the later watches in the looks department, but it’s hard enough to find a 2915-1, let alone one with the original steel bezel. This, of course, still has it.
There are quite a few tells on the dials of the early Speedmasters to indicate that they are original to the 1950s watches and not later 60s replacements, but we’ll get to those another time. This dial on this 2915-1 is indeed original, and turning an incredible shade of brown that, depending on how it catches the light, appears a little different each time you look. Remember, it started out jet black.
Inside the caseback is, of course, an inner-caseback holding the Lemania 2310 caliber, commonly known as the Caliber 321 in Omega’s terminology. It’s one of the absolute best chronographs ever made, and though finishing in the Omega form doesn’t come close to what you’d see in Patek or Vacheron, the simple architecture of it is just outstanding.
Omega Speedmaster reference 2915s are exceedingly rare. Seriously. Try to find one for sale. You can’t (at least one that’s in all original condition �C no, this is not even close to being an original example). They are, in my opinion, one of the most important chronographs you can buy, and much more rare than something like a Paul Newman Daytona. I would venture to say they may even be rarer than the amazing Double-Swiss Underline Cosmographs. They’ll cost you about the same, too.
Of course, the X-factor with this particular example is the brown, tropical dial. Some people love these, some people hate them. For me, it’s case-by-case. I think some tropical dials �C like this one �C are simply gorgeous. Others �C like this one �C are just crazy. This particular Speedmaster, in my very humble opinion, doesn’t fit either of those categories. The brown is incredibly even, as if the dial was produced brown. To me, it’s just one more selling point on an already amazingly cool watch. The brown just doesn’t happen to be to my taste, but that’s not to say it shouldn’t be to yours.So, while my pursuit of an early Omega Speedmaster continues, I just wanted to share this very cool example that I found along the way. It happens to belong to Andrew Shear of ShearTime, and I do believe he would be willing to sell it if you contacted him.