Details

Brand

Omega

Model

Speedmaster Professional

Reference

145.022

Movement

Manually Wound cal. 861

Case

42 mm

Metal

Stainless Steel

Circa

1970

Dial

Black

Bezel

Black Aluminium Tachymetre

Condition

Good

Box/Papers

Watch Only

About this watch

Band: Steel Clasp: Steel Deployant Glass: Plexi glass Water Resistant: Splash Proof The Speedmaster needs little introduction. NASA flight-qualified it in 1965, and four years later it went to the Moon on the wrist of Buzz Aldrin during Apollo 11. The reference 145.022 arrived in 1968 alongside a new movement, the calibre 861. This pairing became the backbone of the Moonwatch for close to three decades. Examples from this period have a caseback engraved with the Hippocampus and the words "Flight-Qualified by NASA for all Manned Space Missions" and "The First Watch Worn on the Moon". This example dates to 1970. The stainless steel case measures 42mm in diameter, with a lug-to-lug of 47.5mm and a lug width of 20mm. It measures around 13.5mm deep. The case has the twisted, or lyre, lugs that define the Speedmaster profile. The Speedmaster is rated to 5 bar (50 metres). As with most vintage watches (especially chronographs) we recommend keeping it away from water beyond the occasional splash. The black dial has three recessed sub-registers. There is running seconds at nine, a 30-minute chronograph counter at three, and a 12-hour counter at six. The slim baton hour markers and the hour and minute hands are filled with tritium lume. Over four decades it has aged to a lovely warm latte tone. The colour is even across the markers and hands, and it stands out beautifully against the black dial. A long central seconds hand runs the chronograph, read against the minute track around the dial's edge. A domed Hesalite crystal sits over the dial. It is an acrylic crystal, so light surface scratches can be buffed out. The fixed bezel has a black aluminium insert with a tachymeter scale. Paired with the chronograph, it lets the wearer calculate speed…