Rolex BLNR vs Omega Speedmaster - No Contest!

[Brettvarner]

Couple pics for those who are interested. (Please ignore the mismatching time/dates!)

[Richmor]

Originally Posted by Bluside

I have...and love them both. No wrong answers here.

I too have them both. My Speedy is the CK2998; very different from the BLNR but a true pleasure to wear. The GMT is awesome. Buy and wear the watches that make you feel good and enjoy seeing on your wrist.

[WJGESQ]

Very different purposes. Very different watches.

[Justinmg]

I don't think you understand the speedy I would definitely take the speedy, there is a reason it's been unchanged for so many years, in my opinion it can hold its own up against any watch!

[jeffgo888]

I have the Speedy Pro ( with PLASTIC), yes..:)
its the ORIG Moon Watch, STILL NASA Certified to this date.

Its one on my collection that I will never sell.
BLNR is difft, but in fairness, the legacy of the Speedy pro is flawless...:)
Armstrong, Aldrin, need I say more?

[Portland]

Of course the BLNR is a fantastic watch, there is no doubt there. It's a modern sports Rolex, of course it's going to be rock solid.

But so is the Speedy.
The difference is that the Speedy almost without fail shows up on every top 5 or top 10 list as one of the most iconic, timeless, and historic timepieces of all time. It's up there for more reasons than just Omega's deep advertising budget. Maybe I'm blind but I never see an advertisement for the classic Speedmaster. It's almost alway the Planet Ocean or the Dark Side of the Moon or one of the most recent flavors of "limited editions". Yet the Speedy still stands strong some 60 years later.

Love it or hate it, gotta respect it.

[helson]

I love how the Speedy looks but the small second while the chorono second hand is slacking off, and the high inaccuracy tolerance, -1/+11 spd keep me away from the Speedy.

[Portland]

Originally Posted by helson

I love how the Speedy looks but the small second while the chorono second hand is slacking off, and the high inaccuracy tolerance, -1/+11 spd keep me away from the Speedy.

I can't speak for everyone, but my Speedy does considerably better than that straight out of the box.

[Maximus84]

Originally Posted by Portland

I can't speak for everyone, but my Speedy does considerably better than that straight out of the box.

I get similar accuracy from my 2.5 year old Speedy Pro.

[Maverick686]

I have a Speedmaster Sapphire Sandwich. Found one new in box in Japan. I paid $3000 for it, and I wouldn't sell it for less than $4000. It's not a GMT Master, but damn this watch has grown on me. It's beautiful.

In no way should you pay $9000 for a Speedmaster SS.

The silver snoopy on the other hand...

[Dimitris76]

It might sound herretic but my first "real" watch was a Speedmaster automatic which I bought with my first own money back in 2001. I had it on my wrist with no issues since then.
Yes it is not THE moonwatch but I
I do not care to manually wind my watches and being "reduced" at 39mm it wears as nice as my GMT II on my wrist.

/Dimi

[Wahlberg]

I truly hope you are new to watches. Just start reading and hopefully you will learn to appreciate the speedmaster. Or not, which isn't a problem either.

Originally Posted by ilovewatchestoo

I really wonder what the speedmaster would be, or not be, if it was never used by NASA.

Good question, but looking at the current market and what certain UG chrono's are going for I think Omega would be a similar watch/brand. The only problem is, there are no pre-moon watches. So which one/year would be the most coveted.

[mikelcch]

Congrats on your new purchase OP!

I used to ignore the Speedy Professional Moonwatch but over time I was made aware of its history and how it accompanied mankind on our journey to the moon. I was intrigued but never got around buying it. Until a couple of months back, had an opportunity too good to pass up.

Now I wear it more than any of my watches, even the BLNR has taken a back seat. It feels like I have found my destined wife, the rest are just flings.

[Racerdj]

For me the BLNR is a winner and looks great anytime anywhere!

[Brettvarner]

Let me try this again. Some pics:

[Batman1]

I am biased towards BLNR


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[varkom]

they aren't even close price wise

[Water Wonderland]

There ya go. Glad you saw the light. Speedy pro and Sub C are as solid a pair as you're gonna get. You can always ad the BLNR at some point as it's sufficiently different.

[Mitch105]

Originally Posted by Tonneau1

Agree 100%. No offense to the OP, but it doesn't sound like you're the kind of buyer for a Speedy Pro, as you don't know its history and 'get' it. The watch is a true icon, and designed that way for a reason.

By the way, comparing the Sub to the Speedy is truly 'apples-to-oranges', especially when calling the Speedy 'inferior'. One is an incredibly durable chronograph that passed all of NASA's test with flying colors, went to the moon and back, and all around space, and still found home on the wrists of Astronauts (including Neil and Buzz) LONG after they retired. The Sub is a tool watch of a different color, a diving watch with a long history of durability as well, that has been turned into more a desk-diver IMO by addition of the ceramic bezel. Comparing the two and calling one inferior is not an accurate comparison, as both have their purposes (which are different) and strong lineage.

And the blnr is a pilot watch not a chronograph with a legendary and virtually identical wind up lamonia movement from the first speedy that even patek has modified and used in their esteemed history. Look it up.

The hesilite speedy is incredible value. I bought mine new from ad in Canada for well under 5kCDN.

Try to find a chronograph of this movement and heritage quality and you won't. Even the Daytona is not a better chronograph and triple the price. And I find that Daytona a cliche whenever I see it. The speedy remains the king of cool.
(I like Daytona btw, have owned one)

[madmax21]

Well my best opinion is always Rolex between Omega and Rolex I just don't see any comparison however you really need to buy what you like best. I would definitely go with the moon watch with the acrylic Crystal that's the classic Speedmaster to me however given a choice between those two I would go with the Rolex blnr.. if I may offer my own twist on it I would go with an 116710LN that's the watch I went with as my GMT master anyway enjoy shopping.

[fskywalker]

Originally Posted by Brettvarner

I've been shopping for a second watch (current is Sub C date 116610LN) and have been split between a Rolex BLNR and an Omega Speedmaster. After checking out some Speedys today I think I've resolutely ended my internal debate. Wanted to share my thoughts and get the group's feedback.

Brief background: I've worn my Sub religiously since I got it a few years ago; love everything about it. The BLNR is only a slight variant from the Sub so - while I know I'd love it - it isn't much different than my current watch.

That said, I thought I'd explore some models that looked different from my black-faced Sub. I quickly ruled out a YM (don't like the softer lugs/bezel) a blue faced YG sub (too flashy for my style) and any DJ II (little too formal for me). After ruling out IWCs (considered a Spitfire but just didn't 'sing' to me), I was left with only one competitor to the BLNR: a Speedy Pro.

I liked that the Speedy was markedly different than my Sub, and that it looked great with a number of different bands (nato, and just about any leather color you can find!), so I went to my AD to check one out.

The 42" Moonwatch Pro Chrono retailed at $5,200 - not bad.

- Found out watch is manual - bummer, but no deal killer. I imagine many appreciate the fact that the original Moonwatch is manual, just not me.

- Found out the 'crystal' is hesalite (read: PLASTIC) - wow. Couldn't fathom paying $5K for a plastic case.

- Pulled a Speedy with a sapphire crystal and I was up to $6,200. If I wanted to buy an OEM leather strap I'd be approaching a retail of $7K.

- I believe the Speedy sapphire sandwich (which includes a date) retails for ~$9K. Too much for any Omega IMO so I never considered.

The Speedy seems to be inferior to the Sub, but is only ~$2K less. Am I the only one surprised by this? I can appreciate that $2K isn't chump change, but relative to the base pries, the gap seems too narrow.

To the group (holding all of your Rolex biases at bay, and recognizing that my opinions are totally subjective), what am I missing? Am I not appreciating the history or movement of the Omega? Am I inappropriately comparing price to quality?

You can do better than the prices you are mentioning on Speedmasters for sure.

[mtgjr]

Originally Posted by douglasf13

I'm committed to being a one watch guy, so I need better waterproofing, but, if it wasn't for that, I'd pick a Moonwatch over anything Rolex currently makes.

Ok, this is getting really spooky but.....my sentiments exactly.

[douglasf13]

Originally Posted by mtgjr

Ok, this is getting really spooky but.....my sentiments exactly.

What year were you born???

[Seaswirl]

Originally Posted by Mitch105

And the blnr is a pilot watch not a chronograph with a legendary and virtually identical wind up lamonia movement from the first speedy that even patek has modified and used in their esteemed history. Look it up.

The hesilite speedy is incredible value. I bought mine new from ad in Canada for well under 5kCDN.

Try to find a chronograph of this movement and heritage quality and you won't. Even the Daytona is not a better chronograph and triple the price. And I find that Daytona a cliche whenever I see it. The speedy remains the king of cool.
(I like Daytona btw, have owned one)

Well, this isn't really accurate. The original Speedies had a Lemania 321 which was a column wheel chronograph. This was changed to a Lemania 1861 which is a cam actuated chronograph mechanism and cheaper to manufacture. Almost all top quality chronographs use a column wheel design. The Speedy's pushers are a bit stiffer as a result and there is a resulting stutter of the seconds hand upon activation. I can certainly see someone saying that they like the Speedy Pro more than other chronographs, but I think it would be a stretch to say the Lemania 1861 is a better movement than the 4130 or the F. Piguet chrono used in the AP and previous VCO.

[mtgjr]

Originally Posted by douglasf13

what year were you born???

69

[tfjordan]

My first question is: with all the great sellers on WUS, what in the world are you doing in a AD considering those prices? You could get both of those watches new in box for a tad more than retail for one. That's just me.

I own a 1970 Omega Speedmaster Mk II racing dial (Lemania-based hand wind movement), several Valjouxs, and winding them is rather enjoyable. Kinda like a little watch ritual. Rolex for quality, but Omega for fun to own.


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[douglasf13]

Originally Posted by mtgjr

69

'77. Just making sure I wasn't having a multiple personalities problem!

[john wilsong]

Love them both.

[Brettvarner]

Originally Posted by john wilsong

Love them both.

Wow.