The Speedmaster everyone has forgotten about (even Omega) ...
What's the problem with Reference 323.30.40.40.04.001 ?
The sparsity and at times contradicting information about this watch is interesting to me. Out of production yes, but it’s not particularly rare - although Chrono24, a global online watch marketplace - only lists 8 as I am writing this, it was not a limited edition, and it has a standard Omega movement. However, in the context of the massive amounts of information available about Omega’s Speedmaster line, this one stands out for almost a complete lack of it. Maybe people did not like it, that’s possible. However, the watch did have some notoriety otherwise it wouldn’t have a nickname. Plus it has a number of very interesting design details that are generally well appreciated by watch aficionados. Maybe it simply drowned in the global marketing noise during its short production run. Let’s have a closer look at the Omega Speedmaster Date “Panda”, model reference 323.30.40.40.04.001.
Specs and Production
Let’s start with what we do know. The Omega website still has the relevant information available so we can at least be sure about the specifications. But this is more or less where all the ‘facts’ about this watch end.
We also know this was not a limited edition. The production run probably started some time late 2009, early 2010 and probably ended about 2-3 years later. Information about this is sketchy so I base my end date estimate on the ‘Year of Production’ listed in online ads and you never see anything past 2012, never. The start date I base on the fact that the movement in this particular model was released in November 2009. With this movement the date has to be set with a small push button, flush fitted into the case, at the 10 o’clock position. This watch never had a different date setting feature, hence my assertion that the production start date must have been very close to the movement’s release date.
The amount of watches produced during its production run is not easily traceable either. One online source in Singapore mentions a run of 2000 which seems certainly feasible. Perhaps a better guess is somewhere between 2000 and 4000. In any case, not a lot by global standards. [Disclaimer; all the above are my guesstimates]
“Yemen”
Some watches get nicknames, check out this article from Hodinkee and this one from Fratello, both excellent online watch magazines (and more). Btw, Fratello is one of the few ‘zines that did a short article about this Omega, be it waayyyy back in 2013.
What about that nickname. The story goes that in 2010 one of the watch journalists from ablogtowatch, Ariel Adams, gave this watch its nickname, the Yemen, due to the black, white and red color combination which can be found on the Yemeni national flag. People in the watch community have been using this nickname ever since. Of course, nothing is straightforward with this watch and some people claim that there are two “Yemen’ Omega’s, but I am pretty sure this one is ‘the Yemen’.
The Valjoux wobble - but which Valjoux :-) ?
The movement is a COSC certified mechanical Omega caliber 3304 which is based on the famous and widely used ETA/Valjoux 7753. We know this is COSC certified because it says ‘chronometer’ on the dial - a chronometer is a watch whose movement has obtained an official rate certificate from the COSC (Official Swiss Chronometer Testing Institute or in French, the Contrôle Officiel Suisse des Chronomètres).
As is typical for the story surrounding this watch, there are sites that list Valjoux 7750 as the base caliber instead. I’ll use Strapcode’s comprehensive article about Omega’s movements as the authoritative source and they mention the 7753. This is further corroborated by a detailed explanation on Watch Wiki as well as that 2013 Fratello article I mentioned above. Therefore it is safe to assume that the Omega Caliber 3304 is based on an ETA/Valjoux 7753.
The Valjoux has a rotor for the automatic winding of the movement. When you move your wrist the force of the rotation makes the watch vibrate or wobble (I have one and can testify to this fact). The reason behind this is because the rotor only winds the watch when it rotates clockwise. When it moves the other way, it is freewheeling and the lack of friction creates a wobble. This trademark wobble gives the watch some character. So there. You won’t get that in your average Rolex or MoonsSwatch. (disclaimer, I like Rolex and MoonSwatch :-).
That’s it.
Everything I could find on this wonderful version of the Omega Speedmaster. Hope you enjoyed the story…
Omega caliber 3304
Dial detail - white face, black subdials (the so-called Panda dial) and red accents.
Another feature which is generally well appreciated in the watch community is the applied logo (as opposed to a printed logo).
The applied markers and the texture and depth on the subdials give contrast to the dial and make it more interesting. Note that the subdials have two levels.
Subdail detail - also note the red tips on the small indices
These watches look best on a strap in my opinion.
Note: none of the pics above are mine, all are publicly available photo’s, the below one is