Watches - another OCD problem
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Omega have announced that they're remaking the Calibre 321, which was used in the original Speedmasters that went to the Moon.
Given we're coming up on the fiftieth anniversary of Neil Armstrong's jaunt, I suspect that we'll be seeing this in the inevitable limited commemorative edition Speedmaster, which will sell like crack filled hotcakes.
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And will be obscenely priced…
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Fratello indicates the movement will not be in the 50th anniversary models. There is to be a gold one allegedly (which sounds disgusting).
The backstory about how they had to do a CT scan and have a multidisciplinary team reverse engineer the movement makes no sense to me, since the Swatch group never stopped making it and presumably has all the schematics.
Good news for Speedy nerds but agree with Chris the pricing will be outrageous based on the single workshop and painstaking 2 year reverse eingineering project described.
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I was just saying that to Jody last night re: the scan they had to do to reverse engineer it…
Is it that the specs for the movement were destroyed in a fire?!?
Or is watchmaking a haphazard process where people are making shit up as they go along, and every 321 movement is really the specific to Joe Dirt and Sunshine Lou?
Or is Omega full of shit?
You'd think making a specific movement has standards and specifications...
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I'm going "full of shit."
The entire backstory to me seems designed to justify a high price.
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Or is Omega full of shit?
Yes.
The idea that they couldn't follow the original specs and instead had to go to extreme lengths to recreate the movement is absurd. It's not an illuminated manuscript from the dark ages. There are probably still a couple of employees at Omega that assembled the originals. It wasn't that long ago.
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They are also doing sedna gold PVD in lieu of the original copper in order to preserve the look of copper in the movement. With gold. That is not a typo
But gold doesn't tarnish so that may be a legitimate aim. It seems odd to take such pains to replicate the original and then switch up materials though.
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Omega also used a CT scanner to replicate the case of the limited edition Railmaster. It could be that it's a quick and dirty way of acquiring a 3D model, or that with components being hand made back in the sixties, there was some deviation from their specifications.
Marketing has no doubt picked up on this and oversold it.
I suspect that there's been a bit of subtle modernisation of the movement. The Wrist Chronograph has a few subtle upgrades. That might have been what took the time.
https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/first-omega-wrist-chronograph-limited-edition-1918-introducing
FP Journe uses gold movements too. It's probably a way of charging a lot more.
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It's an easy way to get a 3D model, but you know what's easier and more accurate and doesn't include worn gears and the like?
Entering the measurements from the blueprints into your CAD system or tooling equipment.
It is unquestionably just a bunch of bullshit hype.
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I know a little bit about manufacturing being a knife and gun enthusiast, and what a scan won't tell you is the +/- of tolerances. It just tells you what things are right now. Every individual part has over and under tolerances that are not the same across all parts. Having a series of parts that are +/- in series results in tolerance stacking, ultimately affecting the reliability.
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It's also possible that the design documents for the Calibre 321 weren't complete. There's an article at Ars Technica about the recreation of the F-1 engine used by the Saturn V, which was designed in the sixties, and goes into the problems facing resurrecting old technology.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2013/04/how-nasa-brought-the-monstrous-f-1-moon-rocket-back-to-life/
Incidentally, there was serious consideration of reusing this for NASA's heavy lift system.
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Again though, the problem with all of that is that the movement never went out of production within entities that ultimately became the parent company of Omega.
A certified Omega watchmaker on the Omega forums called it bollocks too.
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That is the claim, or at least that they are outsizing the CT and other efforts described to recreate a movement that never went out of production.
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I was wondering - is there something like a defintive maker of Nato straps worth checking out?
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Anyone else following SIHH?
Vacheron Constantin have unveiled a very trick perpetual calendar with a standby mode that stretches the power reserve out to 65 days. It slows the movement down from 5 Hz to 1.25 Hz. Oh, and if you want one it's €210K.
Audemars Piguet launched the CODE 11.59 range, which has way too much marketing speak in its branding. None of the watch nerds seem to like them, but sales copy aside, I think that they're attractive. And the aventine dial on their perpetual calendar looks fantastic.
Fortunately they also brought along a few new Royal Oak models. The basic model has been refreshed, and looks pretty sharp.
Then there's the A. Lange & Söhne Richard Lange Jumping Seconds…
Ulysse Nardin are doing a sawn-off Freak at a lower price point.
And Hermès have produced a fantastic moon-phase. The subdials rotate, covering the fixed moons.
Lastly, IWC have added to their pilot watches. There are new four ceramic models in their Top Gun range, including a 39 mm piece that's similar to a Mark XVIII, but with an in-house movement. The Spitfire collection is all retro steel and bronze.
