At Baselworld 2013, Christophe Claret shared with me images of a new version of the X-Trem-1 called the Pinball. The first of which will be a piece unique to be sold at the Only Watch 2013 charity watch auction event. After the auction, there may be some other color variations of the X-Trem-1 Pinball that will be offered to select Christophe Claret clients but that hans’t yet been confirmed. Why “Pinball?” Well if you’ve noticed, Christophe himself loves gaming. There was the Blackjack 21 watch that later evolved into the Baccarat watch, with more to come in the future. The Pinball falls along those lines. So what is different about it compared to the original X-Trem-1 aside from the flashy colors? Notably the new “cages” to secure the small metal balls that tell the time.

The front sapphire crystal of the watch is no longer smoked and offers a clearer view of the gears, that have now been “circus colored” in blue and orange. Cheeky! Also, the Only Watch auction is about supporting children, which ties into the fun gaming theme of the piece. Children who love $300,000 watches that is. On the sides of the watch are two metal cages with a ball that moves up and down (magnetically) along a lume painted strip to indicate the hours (on the left) and the minutes (on the right). The balls can be jerked free, only to reattach to their magnetic points. The original X-Trem-1 watches contained the balls in small sapphire tubes. Creating a magnetic environment that did not affect the movement itself was challenging for sure.

The X-Trem-1 one also features a tourbillon displayed toward the bottom of the case, and all winding and adjustments are performed via fold-out crowns on the rear of the case. If you click on the link to our original Christophe Claret X-Trem-1 article above, you can view a video animation on how the watch works, but we’ve also included a video with Mr. Claret himself on the X-Trem-1. This one-of-a-kind Pinball version of the X-Trem-1 will be sold in September in Monaco, and after that it is possible that this theme may be continued with more X-Trem-1 Pinball style pieces. Retail Price will be around $300,000 and we can only guess for what this piece unique will go for at auction. christopheclaret.com   onlywatch.com