Well, it’s only January and already Omega fans and Speedmaster lovers have something to get excited about: Omega is re-launching the much-beloved Speedmaster Professional Mark II.

The Speedmaster Mark II was first introduced in 1969, with the same movement as the existing Speedmaster, and was, like the original Speedmaster, marked “Professional.”  It used the same movement as the then-current Speedmaster –the manually wound, laterally coupled calibre 861 –and had exactly the same functionality, but in a stainless  steel cushion case.  Eventually it was produced in a wide range of models, on both a strap and bracelet; one of the most popular vintage models is the so-called “racing dial” Speedmaster Mark II, with orange indices and chronograph seconds hand.

They’re good looking, tough watches that continue to appeal to day; Omega’s new offerings, however, don’t use the Moonwatch movement, instead opting for Omega’s co-axial calibre 3330 –self-winding, column wheel controlled, and with a date guichet; both the grey-and-orange dialed “racing” version and the standard version come with stainless steel bracelets, and are water resistant to 10 bar.

No word yet on pricing but we’ll bring you updates as more info becomes available from Omega.  We’re delighted to see the Speedy II back in action, and though there’s a part of us that’s still holding out hope for a reboot of the original with the cal. 1861, we think Omega’s co-axial movements are interesting enough to more than make up for it.