Even when temperatures reached -50 degrees Celcius, the replica IWC 9270-20 watch Speedmaster kept ticking.When Plaisted's team finally made it to the North Pole, the US Air Force team in charge of monitoring them radio'd down with the words "Gentlemen, from where you stand, everywhere is South." We actually found one of the Speedmasters used in this expedition for sale not too long ago.So, even if the Speedmaster hadn't made it to the moon, it would've been known as a great explorer's watch.
Better yet, it's in "new old stock" condition, with tags and replica IWC Portuguese Automatic watch stickers intact and in its original box.One of the claims to fame of the 1970s watch was its selection by Israel's Special Forces to issue to its commandos.The issued versions, with engraved stock numbers on the caseback are particularly prized, and lo and behold, today's example appears to have been marked for issue.Judging by its condition, no doubt it never made its way out of the quartermaster's lockup.Eterna is one of those watch companies that flies under the radar with a lot of collectors yet has a long and impressive history.
However, it did, and it one of the few watches that has transcended into popular culture because of that.The actual watch worn to the moon was replica IWC 3719-28 watch Speedmaster Professional reference 145.012-67.The 67 on the end of course means it was manufactured in 1967, a full two years prior to the moon landing.This confuses many people and often times those looking for a real "Moon Watch" end up buying a Speedmaster from 1969.The problem with this is that by then, Omega had changed the movements inside the Speedmaster from a .321 Caliber to a .861.So, the Speedmasters made around the time of the Moon Landing were not actually the same ones used by NASA.
