November 4, 2011
In anticipation of the 2011 World Series of Poker Main Event Championship, Christophe Claret has partnered with one of the final nine poker players, Badih "Bob" Bounahra. 6,865 players started Day 1 of the WSOP Main Event 2011 and they all played eight long days until only nine players remained - The November Nine.
May 23, 2011
I. Breitling Montbrillant Navitimer
The Breitling Montbrillant Navitimer Caliber 01 is a vintage inspired timepiece that looks like a chronograph from the 1940s or 1950s. The case is downsized 40 mm case, for a more vintage feel. It has the old Breilting "B" logo on the dial. Breitling has fitted this special timepiece with their in-house column-wheel chronograph movement, the Caliber 01.
Retail from $8,540, Breitling
April 26, 2011
(Click image for slideshow- 4 photos)
One of the most innovative haute horology pieces introduced this year at Baselworld was the Christophe Claret Blackjack 21. It comes in a titanium, white gold or pink gold case and has a 40-jewel automatic winding movement that runs at 4Hz and has a 72-hour power reserve. Functions include hour and minutes, as well as three highly addictive casino games built-in. The first game, Blackjack, takes place on the dial and is controlled via pushers. The cards shuffle behind the transparent smoked dial and appear through apertures when cards are dealt. The second game, dice, is on the side of the case in a clear compartment that has mini dice, allowing you to basically shake the watch and play dice on your wrist. The third game is roulette, just flip the watch over and the rotor acts as a working roulette wheel, by just flipping your wrist with the watch in your hand.
Retail $170,000
Source: Christophe Claret
March 20, 2011
Christophe Claret Press Release
A fabulous demonstration of the expertise of the Christophe Claret movement manufactory, the DualTow watch introduced in 2009 set the crowning touch to 20 years of passion and innovation in the service of the most prestigious brands. Since then, recognised as a creator of complete watches and no longer just movements, Christophe Claret has definitively earned a place among haute horlogerie brands. Witness the 21 Blackjack, a timepiece combining the world of gaming with extreme horological complexity, a field in which it has forged its reputation. Limited series of 21 watches per version.
January 28, 2011
(Click image for gallery - 4 photos)
After introducing the Dual Tow in 2009, under his own brand name, haute horology watch manufacture Christophe Claret has created another complicated limited edition timepiece, the Adagio. Christophe Claret runs an independent watch manufacture that develops and manufactures ultra high-end timepieces for clients such as DeWitt, Harry Winston and many others, but ever since 2009, he has also utilized a portion of his production capacity, to create ultra limited edition haute horology timepieces bearing the Christophe Claret designation.
The Adagio features a number of complications, including a minute repeater, dual time zone with hours and minutes (with a day/night indication). It also features a large date at 6 o'clock. The minute repeater strikes the hours, quarters and minutes on demand. The cathedral gongs of the striking mechanism are fitted with a patented device preventing them from knocking against each other when they vibrate.
The Adagio is available in three versions: rose gold, white gold or platinum. The case is 44 mm in diameter, which is much more modest in size than the large rectangular case of the Dual Tow. Pushers at 2 and 4 o'clock adjust the large date and dual time zone displays. A slide-piece at 9 o'clock controls the minute repeater's striking mechanism.
The dial comes in three different variations: guilloché gold, gemstones or rhodium anthracite gold base with stamped dial for 3D effect. All timepieces come with an alligator leather strap. Water resistance is 30 meters. Eight pieces are available per dial and case.
Christophe Claret Press Release
Adagio, the second model from the Christophe Claret brand
"Following the DualTow introduced in 2009, the Adagio definitively establishes Christophe Claret among the most prestigious names in Swiss watchmaking. A compendium of the skills cultivated by the Manufacture Christophe Claret - a famous movement-maker under the same name - this minute repeater, large date and GMT model also heralds further surprises to be unveiled at Baselworld 2011!
An exceptional demonstration of the know-how of the Christophe Claret movement manufacturer, the DualTow watch released in 2009 set the crowning touch to twenty years of passion and innovation in the service of the most prestigious brands. Created as an anniversary model - in a range of 68 different and thus unique models - this single-pusher planetary-gear chronograph with striking mechanism and tourbillon was to experience a swift change of destiny. By revealing his watchmaking talents to the public at large, Christophe Claret was unexpectedly propelled to the centre of the watch industry stage. Hailed by collectors and connoisseurs the world over who recognised his distinctive "signature", this model generated a desire for more, which is the driving force behind any new creations. "Some of them already owned watches equipped with a Claret movement without realising it", explains the watchmaker. "The DualTow enabled them to discover my work."
Now firmly in the spotlight and acknowledged as a creator of complete watches and not only watch movements, Christophe Claret simultaneously triggered a phenomenon with which virtuosos are well acquainted but which he had not anticipated: the hope to see him "play it again". Faced with the eager anticipation expressed by his admirers, the decision to officially establish the Christophe Claret brand was the obvious next step. The DualTow thus switched status from "anniversary creation" to founding model.
Like a builder pursuing a single-minded mission, firmly establishing its name among the ranks of fine watchmaking brands, Christophe Claret is now presenting its second collection, named Adagio. A classic model giving pride of place to watchmaking traditions in terms of both its mechanism and its exterior, this exceptional watch is equipped with Calibre SLB88, naturally created entirely in house and composed of 455 parts. The Adagio features central hour and minute hands, small seconds at 9 o'clock in a window or subdial, depending on the versions; along with a large date at 6 o'clock and a dual time-zone (hours and minutes) display complete with day/night indication in a subdial at 2 o'clock.
In tribute to his Manufacture's first calibre introduced over 20 years ago, Christophe Claret wanted to equip this timepiece with a minute repeater, a particularly intricate fine watchmaking complication that has become one of the great specialities of the Manufacture. Striking the hours, quarters and minutes on demand, the "cathedral gongs" of the striking mechanism are fitted with a patented device preventing them from knocking against each other when they vibrate under the hammer blows. The equally patented large date display features an unprecedented construction. This 34 mm-diameter movement is adorned with finely decorated bridges and endowed with a 48-hour power reserve. The crown is also equipped with a security system: when the mainspring is fully wound, a mechanism disconnects the winding stem so as to avoid any potential damage due to excessive tension.
Such a mechanical gem naturally deserved the perfect stage-setting. Available in three colours - rose gold, white gold or platinum - the 44 mm case is water-resistant to 30 metres. It is fitted with two pushers at 2 and 4 o'clock to adjust the large date and dual time-zone displays, as well as a slide-piece controlling the striking mechanism at 9 o'clock. Meanwhile, the dial comes in a choice of three versions. The first highlights the ancestral art of guilloché- work or engine-turning on gold - white gold in this particular case - elegantly enhanced by the blued hour, minute, seconds, and dual time-zone hands. The second is adorned with gemstones such as black onyx, ruby, jade, opal or lapis lazuli. And finally, the third features a rhodiumed anthracite gold base punctuated by stamped dials, creating a three-dimensional effect. All models are supplied with an alligator leather strap and issued in limited edition of eight per dial and case version.
This newly unveiled timepiece heralds others still to come, and Christophe Claret is promising a major surprise that will be revealed from March 24th to 31st at the brand's P905 booth in the Palace Hall of the Baselworld 2011 World Watch and Jewellery Show.
An historical reminder
Christophe Claret hails from Lyon and studied watchmaking in Geneva before beginning his career by restoring antique watches. At the Basel Show in 1987, the owner of a major Swiss watch company requested that Mr. Claret develop an exclusive minute repeater movement. To meet this order, he founded a company in 1989 along with two other talented watchmakers, Giulio Papi and Dominique Renaud. In 1992, however, Christophe Claret felt the need to be independent and bought up his partners' shares, renaming the company Christophe Claret SA.
The following decade brought growing recognition and a number of high-end customers. In 1999, he acquired an historical manor house named the Soleil d'Or and located on the heights above Le Locle. This marked the start of a new era: within just two years, his client roster grew dramatically and his workforce rocketed from 17 to 62. The Manufacture Christophe Claret soon needed more space and a first 500 sq.m. annex was built in 2002, followed by another of the same size in 2004. Equipped with a large array of state-of-the-art machinery, the company currently employs 90 people and makes almost all its movement components, as well as many exterior watch parts."
Retail $283,500 (rose/white gold), $336,500 (platinum)
Source: Christophe Claret
April 1, 2010
The Dream Factory was a four brand exhibition space located in the Palace Hall, during Baselworld last month (floorplan). The four brands that exhibited in the Dream Factory were Christophe Claret, Urwerk, MB&F and Speake Marin. All four companies offer high-end, ultra limited quantity timepieces that are more about being unique and artistic, than they are about making complications. Still, the difficulty in creating timepieces of this level is extremely high, even if most of these pieces are not considered to be "complicated" timepieces by traditional definitions. For example, when MB&F makes a watch with a 6mm thick sapphire crystal that acts as the case, it is not considered a complicated watch. However, it is undoubtedly complicated to produce.
March 17, 2010
A jewel of a watch complication, the DualTow is an amalgam of Christophe Claret innovation, savoir-faire and excellence. Launched in 2009 to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Manufacture, it has made a deep and permanent impression, as much for its powerful design as for its technical inventiveness. This year, the DualTow has returned in an all black version that is more bewitching than ever. Elegant and very subtle, its face is designed in such a way that the remarkable movement can be admired more fully. Its slim silhouette with its angular tinted horns and sapphire bridges reveals a single-pusher planetary-gear chronograph with a striking mechanism and tourbillon. Its name: NightEagle. The DualTow collection will eventually comprise 68 unique models.
March 5, 2010
Christophe Claret's Dual Tow timepiece is one of my favorite ultra complicated watches. It has so many unique features and is just so fun to look at, as it performs its many timekeeping functions. Check out this 3D Dual-Tow video which he released last year.
Christophe Claret will be exhibiting at Baselworld this year, and I will be getting some close-up images of one or more of the new DualTow watches. And my friend Bastien Roger will be getting some HD video of the DualTow for inclusion in a short film, sponsored by ProfessionalWatches.com, that he is producing during Baselworld 2010 (expected to be released near the end of March).
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