Most people know the perfect fake Omega Speedmaster as the watch that went to the moon with NASA’s astronauts, but it started life as a motorsports wristwatch back in 1957. This version harks back to that original 1957 model, albeit in a superdeluxe format: The case is in Canopus gold (Swiss made replica Omega’s particularly bright white gold alloy) rather than steel, and the dial is cut from black onyx.
But in this case, the real vintage play is the movement (the mechanical “engine” powering the watch) inside it. Three years ago, luxury replica Omega put a hand-wound movement it had last made in 1969, Calibre 321, back into (extremely limited) production, reserving a special workshop in its high-tech factory for hand-assembly the old-school way.
Calibre 321 powered the 1:1 fake Omega Speedmasters worn by Apollo astronauts in the 1960s and early 1970s (including in the moon landings), and holds a special place of affection among enthusiasts and collectors. This is only the third modern watch to contain it: retro on the outside, even more so on the inside, but with an eye-wateringly modern price tag of $81,000. One glint of hope is that if we were of the betting persuasion, we’d put money on AAA quality replica Omega at some stage releasing a more affordable steel version of this piece.