Contact [email protected] for pricing and availability; Either I have it, or I can get it! Omega vs. Rolex is an eternal struggle, but this contest between the 2016 Rolex Cosmograph Daytona 116500 and Omega’s 2015 Speedmaster Professional Moonwatch Apollo XIII Anniversary is a recent development. In fact, the two luxury chronographs only reached price parity on the pre-owned market in the last six months. An Omega Speedmaster originally priced at $7,350 U.S. dollars and a Rolex Daytona that sells for $12,400 when new somehow met at a pre-owned market value of roughly $26,000. As of June 2018, watch collectors are waiting in line at new and pre-owned vendors of Rolex and scouring online sales listings for the Omega. Demand is real, the watches are scarce, and it’s time to decide which of these steel/ceramic offers the greatest thrill for the [roughly identical] money.

Omega’s Speedmaster Moonwatch 311.32.42.30.04.003, better known as the “Omega Silver Snoopy 2,” is one of the most memorable of the innumerable Speedmaster limited editions. A ceramic bezel with full luminova filling, a white dial with “Snoopy” at 9, a famous movie phrase at 12, and 14 comic-style frames provides unforgettable visuals. On the caseback, Omega offers a rarity in the world of mass-produced watches; true fired blue enamel and hand-engraved sterling silver (of Snoopy, naturally). Inside the 42mm steel case, an Omega caliber 1861 based on the Lemania 1873 ebauche keeps the beat at 21,600 VpH. Unlike the true NASA-issued Omega Moonwatch, Snoopy enjoys the scratch-resistant luxury of a sapphire crystal above the dial.

Rolex counters with its tried-and-true 40mm steel case – now supercharged with the addition of a Rolex Cerachrom bezel in black. The Rolex Cosmograph Daytona offers both black and white dials in its steel iteration, but today’s subject watch features white for the sake of direct comparison. Rolex offers a tougher set of screw-down crowns that give today’s Daytona a 50-meter water resistance rating over the 50-meter Omega. Inside the case, Rolex fits its manufacture caliber 4130, a 70-hour automatic chronograph movement. The movement is tough; it features a vertical clutch for smooth action, a column wheel for crisp actuation feel, and a tough balance bridge with free-sprung Rolex balance. Microstella balance bolts and a Breguet overcoil hairspring in Rolex Parachorm Blue alloy permit precise regulation, resistance to positional timing error, and anti-magnetic resilience. Rolex fits a tank-tough Oyster Bracelet with an Oyster Clasp that puts rivals to shame, and the Rolex Easylink 5mm quick-adjustment offers a measure of tool-free flexibility.

Today, Cape Canaveral trades blows with Daytona Beach in an Omega vs. Rolex showdown of today’s two hottest sports chronographs!