Omega Speedmaster Alternatives

A Strela model with the Poljot 3017 column-wheel chronograph movement was introduced in the 1970s and was used in space by Russian cosmonaut Alexey Alexandrovich Gubarev during the Soyuz-28 mission. Gubarev and his colleague Vladimir Remek – the first non-Soviet, non-American to travel to space – were launched aboard Soyuz-28 on March 2, 1978. To put things into context, this is after the American's moon landing (1969) and Leonov's Spacewalk (1965). The crew docked with the orbiting Salyut-6 space station. On Gubarev’s wrist, a black STRELA (labeled SEKONDA). Established in 1966, Sekonda started out as a British brand offering a collection of mechanical watches originally manufactured in Russia.

• Ref: Strela Sekonda Chronograph
• Diameter: 36.00 mm
• Thickness: 14.00 mm
• Lug width: 18.00 mm
• Caliber: Poljot 3017

The original Strela Sekonda was worn by Soviet/Russian cosmonaut Alexei Leonov who became the first human to walk in space during the Voskhod 2 mission in 1965. The first Strela chronograph model was introduced around 1959 and at first, it was only available to the Soviet Air Forces and a few higher-ranking officials. Leonov was wearing Strela chronographs during mission preparation, flight training, and missions.

The now famous Russian space watch is housing the hand-wound column-wheel chronograph caliber 3017 - based on the Swiss Venus 150 / 152 calibers. The 3017 movement was later replaced by the 3133 manual wind chronograph movement made by Poljot (formerly First Moscow Watch Factory).

• Ref: Original Strela СТРЕЛА Chronograph
• Diameter: 36.00 mm
• Thickness: 14.00 mm
• Lug width: 18.00 mm
• Caliber: Poljot 3017

The historic Strela chronograph model has been reissued by the Strela company now based in Munich (Germany). The owners of the Strela company are of Russian origin and the company prides itself to be closely tied to Russian watchmaking, using Russian movements from Poljot/MakTime. However, some models have been introduced with Seagull ST19 Chinese mechanical movements. Strela CO38CYB-S models are equipped with a Poljot 3133 hand-winding movement (system Valjoux 7734) featuring a date function and a 48h power reserve.

• Ref: Strela CO38CYB-S
• Diameter: 38.00 mm
• Thickness: 14.00 mm
• Lug width: 20.00 mm
• Caliber: Poljot 3133

Those modern Strela editions have a sapphire crystal, a 20mm lug width (instead of 19mm) and a diameter of 38mm. Moreover, they provide a water resistance of 50m (5ATM). CO40LAB models have a diameter of 40mm and no date with a manual wind Seagull ST19 caliber inside. The CO42 models are for bigger wrists with a 42mm diameter, reference CO42CYB being a good example of that. These Strela Cosmos models definitely keep the same spirit as their ancestors from the 1960s and offer great mechanical timepieces for the price. The black dial model can be considered as a cheaper (and Russian) Omega Speedmaster alternative. Retailing at around $700, those mechanical chronographs are worth considering!

• Ref: Strela CO40CYW, CO40LAW, CO40LAB, CO40CYB
• Diameter: 40.00 mm
• Thickness: 14.00 mm
• Lug width: 20.00 mm
• Caliber: Seagull ST19

The first automatic chronograph in space is the 6139 from Seiko, which was worn in 1973 by the American astronaut William R. Pogue, the pilot of Skylab 4. Pogue spent 84 days on the Skylab Orbital workshop and returned in February 1974.

While training, Pogue needed a chronograph, but the Omega Speedmasters would be provided only near the date of the launch, so he bought himself a Seiko 6139-6002 in order time his exercises and tests.

• Ref: 6139-002
• Diameter: 40.00 mm
• Thickness: 10.00 mm
• Lug width: 19.00 mm
• Caliber: Seiko 6139

The Seiko 6139 Pogue also features a yellow inner bezel, which can be adjusted via the crown at 3 o'clock. The white hour and minute hands are rather simple looking and are lumed. The central sweep second hand and the smaller 30-minute register hand are both bright red. They are easy to spot and complement well the yellow and “Pepsi” colors.

The dial has applied lumed hour indices and the frame around the day-date window integrates very well with them. Above the 30-minute register, you can notice the “Suwa” factory logo, and just above it, the marking “17J.”. The dial and hands are protected by a crystal made of hardlex instead of acrylic, which was the most commonly used material in that era.

In November 2006, Pogue replied to a question from David Bruno (watch enthusiast) about his Seiko, and explained: "I did not wear the Seiko on an EVA (spacewalk). I can't remember if I wore the NASA Omega on my EVA's but we did have an extra-long black watch band that wrapped around the sleeve of the spacesuit. .... We wore the watch like this for launch (suited). I put the Seiko in a suit leg pocket after we got suited for launch and when we got into orbit we got unsuited and changed into flight clothing (shirtsleeves and trousers). I put the Omega on my right wrist at this time, and the Seiko on my left wrist. I did not get NASA approval to carry the Seiko watch on the mission but we weren't given the Omegas until late in our training. I had been using the Seiko for well over six months (perhaps a year) and had found it very handy for timing engine burns in the simulator, using the bezel as reported earlier. ...".

The case of the Seiko 6139 Pogue has a shape similar to the other watch cases used in the 1970s. It has a diameter of 40mm and a lug width of 19mm. The case features quite a few facets, if you look at the side you will see that it plays nicely with the light. The screw-down case back looks rather classic yet of quality.

The Bulova “Moon watch” is one of those timepieces that have been flying under the radar for decades before being recognized as a true historically relevant watch. It was worn on the Moon by astronaut David Scott during the Apollo 15 mission on his third moonwalk. This is the reason why this particular Bulova chronograph is also often called the “other Moon watch”.

Scott used his personal Bulova Chronograph because the crystal of his Omega Speedmaster got detached and was lost during his previous moonwalks. This chronograph was not explicitly approved by NASA, only the Omega Speedmaster was.

• Ref: 96B258, 96B251, 96A225
• Diameter: 45.00 mm
• Thickness: 13.50 mm
• Lug width: 19.00 mm
• Caliber: 262kHz quartz

In 2015, Bulova reissued this historic model, followed by another edition in 2017 with a few refinements: the Bulova Lunar Pilot Chronograph. The 2017 Bulova Lunar Pilot Chronograph has relatively large dimensions: 45mm diameter, 52mm lug to lug, 13.5mm thick.

However, on the wrist it wears more like a 43mm, due to the black coating of its stainless steel case, which makes it look smaller. The proportions of the markers and registers are also appropriate to the size of the dial, giving the watch a harmonious look despite its large dimensions. The lug width of the Lunar Pilot is a standard 20mm. The case is well finished, with matte black steel. The pushers are polished, creating a welcome break from the matte surface of the case.

• Ref: 98A186 (No date)
• Diameter: 45.00 mm
• Thickness: 13.50 mm
• Lug width: 19.00 mm
• Caliber: 262kHz quartz

The case looks very clean overall and complements well the dial, which is protected by a scratch-resistant flat sapphire crystal. This crystal is covering the tachymeter ring, it is protruding a little, adding depth to this watch and giving it a vintage feel.

Along the hour markers runs a ring on which a 1/5th seconds scale is placed. This scale is on the same depth level as the three sub-registers, which feature a concentric pattern of grooves. The sub-dial on the left is a 60 minute counter, the one on the right is a 1/10th of a second, whereas the one at the bottom shows the running seconds. The applied rectangular hour markers are easy to spot, providing very good legibility.

On the Lunar Pilot 2017 edition, the date window that was present at 4:30 in the earlier 2015 version has been removed. This removal improves the visual balance of the watch. The old Bulova logo is used on the dial of this watch, making it look closer to the historical Moon watch model. The 2017 Lunar Pilot chronograph comes with a mil-strap made of 2 individual parts and a leather back, which is of good quality.

The Seiko 7A28 is an iconic watch because it represents the first quartz powered analog chronograph ever produced. The 7A28 was introduced in 1983 and can be found in 42 different variations of which some were produced for the army (South African Air Force and UK's MoD).

In the 1980s, the Swiss industry was suffering from the quartz crisis. On the other hand Seiko was being very successful during that period and raised the bar very high by issuing this model. The 7A28 movement is not like today's cheap modular and plastic quartz movement, it is a well-engineered, good looking 15 jewel metal caliber that was built to be serviced like a normal mechanical movement.

• Ref: Seiko 7A28-7120, 7A28-7020
• Diameter: 37.00 mm
• Thickness: 10.20 mm
• Lug width: 22.00 mm
• Caliber: Quartz 7A28

The stepper motors used for the chronograph functions of the 7A28 are carefully protected by individual metallic plates.

As mentioned earlier, the Seiko 7A28-7120 was issued to the UK's MoD in 1984 to equip their RAF/RN aircrew. The first contract saw 11,000 timepieces issued. This watch is a holy grail for watch Seiko watch collectors as it's getting quite rare, and therefore commands high prices in the $1000 range.

The 7A28 was also featured in a few movies:

• In the movie Aliens (this chronograph is often called “the Ripley” because it was worn by the character Ellen Ripley, played by Sigourney Weaver).

• It was worn by Roger Moore in the James Bond film “A View To A Kill” (ref 7A28-7020).

• Ref: Seiko 7A28-7039 “Speedy/Synchro Timer”, 7A28-6000 “Bishop”, 7A28-7000 “Ripley”, 7A28-7049
• Diameter: 40.00 mm
• Thickness: 10.00 mm
• Lug width: 22.00 mm
• Caliber: Quartz 7A28

Fortis has been involved with developing timepieces for space travel for over forty years. As early as 1962, the Fortis Spacematic was selected for use by several of the original Mercury astronauts. As the space race continued, Fortis developed new ties with the Russian space program and created a timepiece specifically for use on manned space missions. The Fortis Official Cosmonauts Chronograph is often seen as a great alternative to the Omega Speedmaster Professional.

Our favorite is the model 630.22.141 with the tachymeter bezel, which was worn by the cinema actor Harrison Ford playing Colonel Gaff in the movie “Ender’s Game”. This timepiece has a diameter of 38mm and is 14mm thick. The Fortis Cosmonauts Chronograph is powered by a reliable Valjoux 7750 Swiss automatic movement which provides a plethora of features such as chronograph, hour, minute, permanent small second, 12-hour and 30-minute counter, day/date indication.

The proportions of this watch are ideal for most wrists, making it very comfortable to wear. The lug width is 18mm and it comes with a stainless steel oyster style bracelet.

• Ref: Fortis Cosmonauts Chronograph 630.22.141
• Diameter: 38.00 mm
• Thickness: 14.00 mm
• Lug width: 18.00 mm
• Caliber: Valjoux 7750

The Sinn 140/142 & 141S chronographs have been worn during several space missions since 1985, when German astronaut Reinhard Furrer wore a black PVD Sinn 141S automatic chronograph during the space mission Spacelab D1 (STS-61-A). Spacelab D1 became more significant later on as the Space Shuttle Challenger sadly got destroyed in its next mission.

• Ref: 141S
• Diameter: 43.00 mm
• Thickness: 15.00 mm
• Lug width: 22.00 mm
• Caliber: Lemania 5012

Interestingly for a long time watch enthusiasts thought that the 140S was the first automatic chronograph was in space. Until 2007 to be precise, when it was finally discovered that it was Colonel William Pogue's personal Seiko 6139 that was the first automatic chronograph in space in 1974. Nevertheless the Sinn 140/142 automatic chronograph has stolen the hearts of many collectors interested in watches used in space and is highly sought after. 

• Ref: 140/142
• Diameter: 43.00 mm
• Thickness: 15.00 mm
• Lug width: 22.00 mm
• Caliber: Lemania 5100

Moreover, Sinn 140/142s were used in during other space missions later on: they were worn on Space Station Mir in 1992 and during Spacelab D2 in 1993 aboard Columbia. It's been reported that those automatic chronographs performed flawlessly even in harsh environments. This historical significance and reliability means that the Sinn 140/142 can be seen as a great Omega Speedmaster alternative.

• Ref: 140b (GMT)
• Diameter: 43.00 mm
• Thickness: 15.00 mm
• Lug width: 22.00 mm
• Caliber: Lemania 1341