Why Did rolex miss the (Space) Boat?

[breitlings]

Originally Posted by tyler1980

AFAIK those were government property and thus not privately owned. The only watch that actually went to the moon that has ever been sold was a Bulova.

I suppose those speedys would be more valuable but since they are not really in the market to begin with its hard to place any actual value on them.

a moon rolex gmt was sold for 131k

http://www.rolexmagazine.com/2009/10...auctioned.html

[tyler1980]

Originally Posted by breitlings

not true. a moon rolex gmt was sold for 131k

http://www.rolexmagazine.com/2009/10...auctioned.html

the Bulova sold for 1.6 million in 2015

https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/mo...or-%241million

[breitlings]

Originally Posted by tyler1980

the Bulova sold for 1.6 million in 2015

https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/mo...or-%241million

i will look into that it seems interesting but i was suggesting the bulova wasnt the only moon watch sold.

[tyler1980]

Originally Posted by breitlings

i will look into that it seems interesting but i was suggesting the bulova wasnt the only moon watch sold.

that rolex, i don't know the story so i have no idea. The astronaut it apparently belonged to was the lunar module pilot and didn't personally go to the moon himself. So it would be weird for him to ask one of the other two guys to bring it to the surface of the moon for him. I would have thought they had more pressing issues at the time.

[breitlings]

Originally Posted by tyler1980

that rolex, i don't know the story so i have no idea. The astronaut it apparently belonged to was the lunar module pilot and didn't personally go to the moon himself. So it would be weird for him to ask one of the other two guys to bring it to the surface of the moon for him. I would have thought they had more pressing issues at the time.

the provenance both engraved on the watch and in letter is that he did ask the watch to be worn on the moon. please read the article which is linked which clearly says that. but if you are disputing rhe article i have linked then i cannot comment further.

i disnt know any bulovas were taken. 1.6 million seems like an insane price. were any other bulovas taken to space?

[tyler1980]

Originally Posted by breitlings

the provenance both engraved on the watch and in letter is that he did ask the watch to be worn on the moon. please read the article which is linked which clearly says that. but if you are disputing rhe article i have linked then i cannot comment further.

i disnt know any bulovas were taken. 1.6 million seems like an insane price. were any other bulovas taken to space?

the selling price is why i thought i seemed odd. If it was me i would rather have a Rolex from the moon than a Bulova.

The Rolex auction was 6 years earlier but still that is a huge difference.

[Dirt]

Originally Posted by tyler1980

that rolex, i don't know the story so i have no idea. The astronaut it apparently belonged to was the lunar module pilot and didn't personally go to the moon himself. So it would be weird for him to ask one of the other two guys to bring it to the surface of the moon for him. I would have thought they had more pressing issues at the time.

The task would've been inconsequential in the grand scheme of things and nothing a fellow team member wouldn't have done for another as a favour, especially seeing as he will never ever have the opportunity to actually walk on the moon himself.
Even more so given the fact they all knew it was going to be the very last mission to the moon.
Who knows.
Maybe he wanted a special memento of the experience of having his very own personal watch go to the moon surface.
He may have been particularly savvy and thought it would be worth a few bob one day long after it had all faded into history and out of most peoples memory.

Entirely plausible I say.

Besides, I would've done the exact same for you if you asked me and we had trained side by side for months on end, every detail of our tasks associated exclusively for the very last mission.
You wouldn't even have to ask me nicely. I would just make it happen for you

[CRM114]

Originally Posted by tyler1980

the selling price is why i thought i seemed odd. If it was me i would rather have a Rolex from the moon than a Bulova.

The Rolex auction was 6 years earlier but still that is a huge difference.

What makes the Apollo 15 Bulova unique is that it wasn't merely a personal watch taken into space or taken down the the lunar surface in the LEM like a few GMTs. That particular Bulova is the only watch besides the various Speedmasters ever worn on the lunar surface outside the LEM and outside the suit during lunar EVAs, exposed to the elements just as the Speedmasters were. The reason David Scott wore it was because after his 1st EVA he noticed his Speedmaster had popped it's crystal, so during the next 2 he used his personal watch. These EVAs included excursions on the Lunar Rover. Apparently, Scott never cleaned the watch after the mission and when it went up for sale it still had lunar dust adhering to it and the strap.

So until someone starts going to the moon again, since all Apollo mission Speedmasters were/are government issue/owned, Scott's Bulova (being a personal item), is the only watch that will ever be for sale to the public that was worn on the moon during an EVA outside a pressurized suit. No GMT ever was. That's the reason for the huge difference in auction price. With historical value-provenance like that the brand of the watch (Bulova vs. Rolex) is an insignificant consideration. A Timex or Mickey Mouse watch would have still fetched over 1.5 million more than the Rolex and that particular watch will at some point be put up for auction/sale again and will certainly command a much higher price. There is no other one-of-a-kind watch like it.

Astronauts since the Mercury program were always bringing small items of personal effects into space and bringing them back (coins, postage stamps, photographs etc) or leaving them on the moon beginning with Armstrong, who left his college fraternity pin.

[Rolex fan 61]

Bulova made a chronograph for the moon missions too.

[GMT Aviator]

The Bulova Dave Scott wore on the moon was a Prototype. It was put into his personal effects carried on board by a friend related to Bulova, who were keen to see an American made watch worn on the moon instead of a Swiss one.
It's ironic that this fact only came to light a few years ago when Dave Scott put it up for auction.
It also means that the countless Speedmaster pros with the inscription "The First and Only watch worn on the moon' engraved into the case back, are incorrect.
I own a Bulova like Dave Scotts and its a beautiful watch and they can be had for a steal right now. It uses a high frequency Quartz movement and after six months, its still accurate to the second! The original Bulova Moon watch, was a mechanical movement.
Bulova supplied the Apollo programme with chronometers that were used as back ups in the LEM. They were, I think, essentially large pocket watches.

[grimps]

Originally Posted by breitlings

Breitling Cosmonaut I believe may have been one of the first watches worn into space: http://forums.watchuseek.com/f39/bre...gend-4034.html IIRC the Russians also used it on one of their first missions but I am having trouble referencing that.

I was going to say .... Surely the Russians had watches in space first ?
it would be interesting to know what they was wearing

[faz]

Originally Posted by AzHadEnuf

When I was a little kid in the sixties my dad always wore a Speedmaster. After the moon landing he would say he had the same watch that went to the moon. A year or so later , after the lunar landing, the watch was lost or stolen on a family vacation. My dad tried to replace it but at the time everyone wanted and was buying the Moon Watch. With none available he finally walked into a Rolex AD and bought a 6263, with a big discount, they couldn't sell them. Had Rolex made it to the moon I'd be wearing a Speedmaster today instead of a 6263. Happy they failed the test.

Funny and cool story!

[hugs]

Possibly because Rolex originated in Britain