Owner’s Review: The Speedmaster Moonphase Co-Axial Master Chronometer with Blue Dial

Aug 22

Speedmaster Moonphase Co-Axial Master Chronometer I

It’s been many years of collecting now. I have had the chance to own watches that are more collectible, arguably more desirable, and yes, significantly more expensive. Yet I can write with very little trepidation that this Speedmaster is one of my favourite watches, if not the favourite. It is the kind of watch that comes to mind when I ask myself the dreaded watch-collecting hypothetical: what if I could only keep one?

To continue in that tone of grandiloquence, I submit that (leaving aside the Platinum 321) this blue-dial Speedmaster may be the coolest contemporary Speedmaster Omega has made in a long time. I remember reading the release announcement on Hodinkee and thinking: I’ve got to have this thing. I did hesitate for a while because of the size, the biggest quarrel many people have with contemporary Speedies. After all, it is a rather chunky 44.2mm watch and I have a puny wrist. Ultimately, though, I picked it up at a relative bargain in 2018 in Schiphol, at the watch shop just before the electric escalators that led to passport control. By the way, Schiphol used to be a great place to buy watches around that time, but that’s another story.

Let’s start with the obvious: the blue hue of that sunburst dial is so beautifully elegant that it is hard to describe with words. Purists may argue that a great Speedmaster must have a black dial, but this kind of blue is perfect because it is not so formal that you can’t wear it with your favourite pair of shorts, and not so overtly sporty that you can’t wear it with a sports jacket — hell, even with a beautiful blue two-piece suit. It elevates the Speedmaster to its rightful place: the iconic sports chronograph you are proud to wear even in formal settings. It is a small masterclass in versatility, whether you wear it on the amazingly silky and elegant croc strap Omega ships it with or pair it with the bracelet.

One of the Speedmaster purist clichés I tend to agree with is the one pertaining to dial layout. I own the very cool Dark Side of the Moon, for example, but when I look at it, I occasionally miss the three-sub-dial layout of the iconic Moonwatch design. This contemporary Speedmaster Moonphase caters to that nostalgia by placing the moonphase aperture at 6 o’clock. The design choice brings a balance to the dial that I miss on the two-subcounter Speedmaster models and feels closer to the venerable design language of the original Speedy.

What this layout choice means in practice is that, unlike the non-moonphase references, the contemporary Speedy Moonphase tells the date from the sub-dial at 9 o’clock by means of a half-moon hand. The tip of the hand is shaped like a small, concave crescent moon that frames the date numeral from underneath instead of simply pointing at it. I absolutely love this old-world reference, and I think it’s brilliant that Omega presents it in a red accent that matches the Speedmaster logo and the first day of the month indication on the same sub-dial. This subtle use of red is one of my favourite things in contemporary Speedies, including the Dark Side of the Moon.

The chronograph sub-dial is located at 3 o’clock. It is one of my favourite chronograph displays in the whole world of horology: a two-hand, 12-hour display with a small hand for elapsed hours and a longer hand for elapsed minutes. You can read the elapsed time as easily as you read the time of day. It can’t get much easier or more useful. Some people even set it up in a way that allows them to keep track of a second time zone.

The main feature on the dial is probably the moonphase, of course. I confess that I felt rather betrayed by the silly gimmick of printing a tiny footprint on the face of the moon, with no respect for proportions whatsoever. But I forgive the gimmick every time I look at that photorealistic moon. It is, hands down, one of the coolest and most ingenious moonphase indications in the watch world, and it serves the double purpose of bringing the dial layout closer to the design language of the original Moonwatch while offering a clear nod to the Speedmaster’s lunar and space-exploration heritage.

The hour markers in the main dial are sharply applied in beautiful white gold, as if making the point that Speedmaster aesthetics are all about precision and balance. As if pushing the boundaries just enough without betraying the Speedmaster design language. I hope that at this point I was able to make the point that this dial is insane. It’s one of my favorite dials in any watch, at any price point, period.

Speedmaster Moonphase Co-Axial Master Chronometer Caseback 1

If you turn the watch around, you will find a sapphire caseback that displays the Omega Master Co-Axial Caliber 9904. I am not well versed about movement decoration, but I will say that I have always been impressed by Omega’s movement finishing, especially when I compare it with the finishing of movements from other brands at a similar price point, like the more austere Caliber 899A/1 in my JLC polaris. We are talking about intricate Côtes de Genève in arabesque radiating across the bridges and rotor, exposed synthetic rubies set in polished sinks, and crisp red lacquered engravings. I kind of love it for an automatic watch with a big rotor, and I would challenge anyone to show me better finishing at this price point.

Caliber 9904 is an automatic Co-Axial movement with a 60-hour power reserve, METAS certification, and a column-wheel chronograph. In other words, it is the movement for the Speedmaster of nowadays: the kind of caliber all Speedmasters might have if Omega were more committed to the gradual-improvement philosophy Rolex has embraced for the Daytona, and less distracted by Limited Editions and Snoopy gimmicks. It is used only in the contemporary Co-Axial Speedies with a moonphase, so it is probably not as mass-produced as other Omega calibers.

Speedmaster Moonphase Co-Axial Master Chronometer Caseback II

And so, lo and behold: the Moonwatch for grown-ups. The one that die-hard fans who grew up adoring the original might want to have in the 2010s. For me, it ticks every box on the wish list: the aesthetics have been significantly improved — purists will find me sacrilegious here, but look at that blue sunburst dial, please — the movement is a Co-Axial Master Chronometer column-wheel chronograph caliber that keeps amazing time and looks insane from the caseback, the case is very respectful of Speedmaster heritage, and it comes with a virtually unscratchable Liquidmetal ceramic bezel. I will say it again: this is one of my favorite watches ever. Give me one of these instead of any stainless steel Daytona any day of the week.

Finally, there is also something to say about the collectibility of this watch. I have no data to prove it, but I think it is what some would call a sleeper. I have only seen the black-dial versions in the wild (probably twice since 2018) so I don’t think Omega has sold many of these. And so, this apparent lack of commercial success, together with the fact that it is the first Master Chronometer-certified Speedmaster in history and the first Speedmaster with a Liquidmetal tachymeter bezel in ceramic, might just make it a very interesting piece for Speedmaster collectors with the passing of time. Mine will remain in my collection forever.

Pros:

The amazing sunburst blue dial. It is one of the most elegant and versatile blue hues in the market.
The moonphase aperture at 6 o’clock makes for a beautifully balanced dial that harks back to the three-subcounter layout of the iconic Moonwatch. In many ways, this dial layout is more respectful of Speedmaster design language than the two-subcounter versions found in other contemporary Speedies.
The movement. A METAS-certified Co-Axial column-wheel chronograph with a 60-hour power reserve. What else do you need?
The photorealistic moon is one of the coolest moonphase indications available at any price point, even despite the tiny footprint gimmick.
The virtually unscratchable Liquidmetal ceramic bezel. Incredibly enough, many Speedmasters still come with aluminum bezels.
The little red accents in the logo and the date sub-dial.

Cons:

Size. At 44.2mm in diameter and 16.8mm thick, it is definitely a chunky watch and not the best fit for people who prefer smaller watches.
Date legibility. While I love the half-moon indicator, the sheer size of the date numerals makes the date harder to read than it should be.