Quick answer
A replica of the Speedmaster Apollo 17 40th Anniversary copies a 42 mm hand-wound chronograph. The real watch is a 1,972-piece limited edition that Omega released in 2012. Replicas fail on four points: movement type, bezel insert, caseback engraving, and case thickness. Check those four before you pay.
replica speedmaster apollo 17 watch
The original watch
Omega built the Speedmaster Professional Apollo 17 40th Anniversary in 2012. The run was 1,972 pieces. The number matches the mission year.
Apollo 17 launched on Dec 7, 1972. The lunar module landed in the Taurus-Littrow valley. Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt walked on the surface. Ronald Evans stayed in the command module. The crew splashed down on Dec 19, 1972. Cernan was the last person to leave the Moon.
Specs to compare against:
- Case: stainless steel, 42 mm across, about 14 mm tall
- Lug width: 20 mm
- Movement: caliber 1861, hand-wound, 48-hour power reserve
- Bezel: black ceramic insert with a gold tachymeter scale. Omega calls the insert Ceragold.
- Caseback: sapphire, with the Apollo 17 mission patch and a piece number out of 1,972
- Water resistance: 50 m
Point 1: the movement
The caliber 1861 is hand-wound. Wind the crown and you feel the mainspring load. There is no rotor. Look through the caseback on a replica and check for a rotor. A rotor means an automatic movement, not a copy of the 1861. Quartz is a larger mismatch: the seconds hand jumps in one-second steps.
Point 2: the bezel insert
The original insert is black ceramic with gold numerals. Replicas use aluminum, painted steel, or a printed ceramic disc. Run a finger across the scale. Gold sits in the ceramic. Paint sits on the surface and wears at the edges.
Point 3: the caseback
The real caseback is sapphire with the Apollo 17 patch, and the edition number is engraved around the rim. Replicas use a steel plate with a printed patch, or leave the number blank. Ask for a photo of the engraving taken at an angle. Engraving has depth. Printing does not.
Point 4: case and dial
Measure the case. The original is 42 mm across, 20 mm between the lugs, and about 14 mm tall. Replica cases run wider or thicker. Check the subdials. A Speedmaster Professional carries three counters: running seconds at 9 o'clock, 30-minute at 3 o'clock, 12-hour at 6 o'clock. Subdial spacing follows the movement, so a swapped movement shifts the counters off center.
Before you buy
- Get the movement type in writing: hand-wound, 1861 or a copy.
- Get caliper photos: width, thickness, lug gap.
- Get a caseback photo at an angle.
- Get a bezel close-up. Look for depth in the numerals.
- Run the chronograph and reset it to zero. A weak movement loses hand alignment.
Legal note
US law bans the sale of goods that carry a counterfeit trademark. Omega owns the Speedmaster name and the Omega logo. A watch with that logo and no license is a trademark problem for the seller, even when the listing says replica.