The Rare 1994 Platinum Omega Speedmaster Skeleton By Armin Strom

Of course, you are familiar with Omega and, most probably, Armin Strom as well. But did you know that Armin Strom, founder of the eponymous brand, was once the artisan doing all the skeleton work for Omega in the 1990s?

Skeleton watches

The art of movement skeletonization is old, and we still see it today in various watches. Not all skeleton watches are the same, though, as some just remove part of the dial to allow a glimpse of the movement. Others have no almost dial left and show you the entire movement. But looking at a basic movement, especially from the dial side, is often not very fun (or interesting). Therefore, a good skeletonization job requires work on both sides of the movement.

First, the artisans cut away as many unnecessary parts and surfaces from the caliber as possible to show the movement’s inner workings. Then, the remainder can be finished and engraved to the highest level. That’s what often sets these watches apart. You can buy a simple skeletonized mechanical watch that has very basic decoration and finishing, but you can also go all out to buy something engraved and finished by hand.

Armin Strom (1938 – 2024)

Master Skeletonizer Armin Strom

Armin Strom (who passed away last December at age 86) founded his company in 1967. His work consisted of skeletonizing, decorating, and engraving movements from existing watches, all by hand, until 1984. That year, he presented his very own collection of Armin Strom watches. Strom, regarded as Master Skeletonizer, sold his company in 2006 but was involved until 2011. The Armin Strom brand today continues to keep its founder’s values alive. That’s why also modern Armin Strom watches always showcase their movements.

Platinum Omega Speedmaster Professional Skeleton 3097.30

In the 1990s, Armin Strom still also performed skeletonization work for others. In this case, it was for the Omega watch company located in the same village of Biel/Bienne, Switzerland. You can find Omega Seamaster 300M models with skeletonized movements from the 1990s, but there’s also this rare 1994 platinum Speedmaster Professional ref. 3097.30 for the 25th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission. During this mission, NASA astronaut Buzz Aldrin set foot on the Moon with the Omega Speedmaster Professional ref. 105.012 on his wrist. In 1992, Armin Strom skeletonized a yellow gold Speedmaster Professional commemorating the 27 CHRO C12 movement.

1992 Omega Speedmaster Gold Skeleton 3696.50.81. Image via CoinWatch

“It was a series of 50 watches,” says Claude Greisler, the trained watchmaker at Armin Strom, “that were produced to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the 27 CHRO C12 project. The success took Omega and Armin Strom by surprise. Soon after the fair opened, the phone rang at Armin Strom’s house. It was someone from Omega who, he instantly thought, was calling to tell him the project was a complete flop and no one was interested in an open-worked, very costly Speedmaster in precious metal. He was wrong. The watch was an immediate hit, and more Omega assignments followed.”

Omega did several different Apollo 11 limited editions in 1994, including ones in steel, white gold, platinum, and platinum set with baguettes. Armin Strom worked on both the platinum (50 pieces) and baguette-set platinum (10 pieces) versions.

Caliber 867

Caliber 867

Strom skeletonized, engraved, and decorated Omega’s caliber 861. Omega dubbed the result caliber 867. It is the same movement inside the 1992 Speedmaster Professional (3696.50) in yellow gold, but Strom used different engravings and plated the movement with rhodium. This 1994 Speedmaster Professional in platinum was available with a leather strap (ref. 3097.30) and platinum bracelet (ref. 3096.30). It is unknown how many of them were made individually.

Brown book box

Omega engraved this watch’s case band with the text “1969 – 1994 Apollo XI” to commemorate that specific mission. You will also find this engraving on the other 1994 Apollo 11 limited editions. As mentioned, these limited editions were available in steel, white gold, and platinum.

A full-set

Just like the white gold edition, Omega delivered the 3097.30 and 3096.30 in a brown book-shaped box. While I mention white gold, look at the crown and pushers; Omega made them out of 18K white gold for this platinum watch.

A very rare Speedmaster

Omega only made 50 pieces of the platinum skeletonized Speedmaster Professional, so coming across one for sale or auction is rare. The renowned vintage watch dealer Davidoff Brothers is now offering this number 16 of 50 in New Old Stock condition at the company’s boutique in Geneva. This Speedmaster 3097.30 comes with all the boxes and paperwork and even has the blue protective paint on the case back. Click here for the listing.

Would it work today?

What I find interesting about this watch is that, in the 1990s, Omega collaborated outside the Swatch Group in watchmaking. Today, we almost only see these collaborations between (smaller) independent watchmaking companies. How awesome would it be if Omega were to come up with a new skeletonized Speedmaster Professional in collaboration with today’s Armin Strom company or another Master Skeletonizer?

*A big thank you to Roy Davidoff for providing the images of this Speedmaster 3097.30 from 1994.