Omega Watches for Sale in London
From the Moon to the seabed. Speedmaster and Seamaster references, held in stock at our London dealership.
Omega is the value argument in Swiss watchmaking, and the Speedmaster is the reason most people arrive at it. It is the watch NASA qualified for spaceflight in 1965 after testing it to destruction alongside its competitors, and the only one worn on the surface of the Moon. It is also, unusually for a watch with that history, still made and still affordable. What matters when buying one is the detail: two Speedmasters that look identical across a counter can differ by a crystal, a calibre and a great deal of money.
The Omega model families
- Speedmaster Moonwatch
- The hand-wound chronograph, and the one with the history. The single most important thing to establish is the calibre: the long-running 1861 was replaced in 2021 by the 3861, which brought the co-axial escapement, a full METAS Master Chronometer certification and a subtly revised case and dial. Both are excellent and they are different watches to a buyer. The second thing is the crystal — Hesalite, the acrylic NASA specified, or sapphire. Hesalite is the historically correct one and scratches easily but polishes out with a fingertip; sapphire looks sharper and costs more.
- Seamaster
- Four separate markets under one name. The Diver 300M is the modern everyday dive watch and the one with the Bond association; the Planet Ocean is larger, deeper-rated and more serious; the Aqua Terra is the dress-leaning one with the vertically ribbed dial; and the vintage Seamaster 300 is a collector's watch priced on dial originality. Decide which of the four you are actually shopping for before comparing prices, because they overlap on the search results page and nowhere else.
- Constellation and De Ville
- The dress side. The modern Constellation with its griffe claws at three and nine is a distinctive, well-made and consistently undervalued watch; the vintage pie-pan Constellation is a different and more careful purchase, priced almost entirely on whether the dial is original. De Ville covers the rest of the dress range, often in gold, where the metal sets a floor and the calibre sets everything above it.
What to check on a pre-owned Omega
Establish the calibre before the price
On a Speedmaster this is the whole conversation. A 1861 and a 3861 sit in a similar case with a similar dial and are valued differently, and the caseback and the paperwork are where you confirm it rather than the seller's description. If a listing does not state the calibre, that is the first question.
Hesalite or sapphire, and which you actually want
The Hesalite version is the one flight-qualified by NASA and has a solid caseback with the seahorse. The sapphire version has a display back showing the movement. Neither is better; they are different watches with different prices, and buying the one you did not mean to is a common and avoidable mistake.
Redials, on anything vintage
A refinished dial can be very hard to spot and takes a serious bite out of the value of a vintage Omega. Look at the printing under magnification — sharp, slightly raised text on an original, softer and flatter on a reprint — and at whether the lume plots match the hands in tone. On anything pre-1980 this is worth having checked by somebody who does it often.
The Reduced is not a Moonwatch
The Speedmaster Reduced is smaller, automatic and built on a different movement. It is a perfectly good watch and it is not the Moonwatch, and the two are confused often enough that it is worth checking the case size and the winding before agreeing a price.
FAQS
We hold Speedmaster references at our Hatton Garden showroom and source specific ones to order. Tell us whether you want the Hesalite or the sapphire crystal and whether you are after the 1861 or the current 3861 calibre, and we will tell you what is available and what it should cost. Every piece is authenticated in-house before it is offered.
The 3861 replaced the 1861 in 2021. It uses Omega's co-axial escapement, carries full METAS Master Chronometer certification for accuracy and magnetic resistance, and came with a lightly revised case and a stepped dial. The 1861 is the movement that ran for decades and is simpler to service. Both are hand-wound, both are excellent, and they are priced differently — so the calibre is the first thing to establish on any Speedmaster.
Hesalite is the acrylic crystal NASA specified, it comes with a solid caseback, and it is the historically correct choice. It scratches easily, but light scratches polish out by hand in a minute. Sapphire is far harder to scratch, comes with a display caseback showing the movement, and costs more. Most people who care about the Apollo history choose Hesalite; most people who want to see the movement choose sapphire.
On the pre-owned market, generally yes, if value means watchmaking per pound. Omega's co-axial movements and METAS certification are genuinely excellent and the watches cost meaningfully less than the Rolex equivalents. Rolex holds its price better and is easier to sell quickly. Which matters more depends on whether you are buying a watch to wear or an asset to move on.
Selling a Omega instead?
We buy Omega outright and take Omega in part-exchange at our counter in Hatton Garden — send the reference number, the year and a few photographs and you will have a no-obligation figure back the same day. Sell your Omega in London sets out what moves the number, which references the desk is asked after and what the paperwork is actually worth.