SP One
Overview
After 20 years of wild creativity, what if MB&F created an elegant 38mm watch? First introduced in 2025, the SP One was the answer to that question. A year later, MB&F reveals a diamond-set version with the SP One Pavée.
Encased in a 38mm pebble-like shell, the SP One melds a smooth, tactile feel with a bezel-free design and delicately detached lugs. As MB&F’s slimmest and smallest watch, it nonetheless remains true to the brand’s signature three-dimensional architecture and boundary-pushing spirit. Somewhere between MB&F’s radical Horological Machines and more classic Legacy Machines, the SP One inaugurates a new, undefinable “Special Projects” collection, now in a delicate and sophisticated Pavée edition.
Another facet for the SP One
In 2026, the SP One Pavée explores another expression of elegance and boundary-pushing. Now crafted in 18K white gold, rather than altering the watch's architecture, the delicate diamond setting follows the curves of the amphitheatre, case, crown and buckle, enhancing their smooth, sculptural presence with light, framing the floating movement. The tilted hour dial trades the black finish of the previous versions for dark blue. Far from overwhelming the design, the 255 diamonds simply reveal another facet of the SP One: one that is more precious, yet just as restrained, preserving the quiet elegance and sense of balance that define the collection.
What's so special about this machine?
The MB&F SP One, initially dubbed "Three Circles", showcases a trinity of floating elements – the barrel, balance wheel, and dial – defying gravity on your wrist. These components appear to hover mysteriously at the centre of an amphitheatre, all visible through invisible sapphire domes, with the balance wheel performing a mid-air dance and the tilted dial highlighting MB&F’s clever conical gearing. The SP One is a mechanical marvel that turns your wrist into a stage for a captivating, gravity-defying performance.
NOTHING CLASSIC ABOUT A CLASSIC
“We asked ourselves: what if we did what no one expected – an elegant, classical watch?” remembers Max. Like all MB&F projects, it started with a sketch – but the essence of the design and specificity of the project were already there. These early sketches were all about crafting a watch that whispered sophistication instead of shouting for attention. It needed to be subtly elegant, with a classic flair that set it apart from the usual MB&F boldness while keeping the brand’s roots alive. In other words, a hard-to-reach equilibrium.
ARTISANAL CRAFTSMANSHIP
Flip the SP One over, and you'll uncover the other side of its arena, showcasing the meticulous hand finishing and overall attention to detail typical of MB&F – one of the rare watchmakers today perpetuating traditional hand finishing and artisanal craftsmanship.
The MB&F touch is unmistakably present in the SP One. Beyond the desire to surprise and take risks, it's the meticulous attention to the movement that reveals the family ties. The complexity lies in maintaining finesse and elegance while preserving classic codes. All wheels are hand-angled, with prominent chatons, and the finish balance is subtle between satin, polished, and micro-blasted surfaces.
A SATISFYING PEBBLE
Beyond the unconventional construction of the movement and traditional hand-finishing, the pebble case design further sets the SP One apart. Despite being thin, this watch paradoxically boasts a three-dimensional presence. Its 38mm case, sleek like a spaceship and bezel-free, features sapphire glass that seamlessly blends front and back with the case. Overall, the SP One is as smooth to the touch as it looks, inviting you to run your fingers over its curves.
LEVITATING IN A CIRCLE
Initially code-named "Three Circles," the SP One movement is crafted around the three key elements of any mechanical watch: the barrel, the balance wheel, and the dial. Thanks to the sapphire glass on both the front and back, these elements appear to defy gravity. However, it’s the thoughtful architecture of the movement that truly enhances this captivating levitation effect, creating a striking visual experience.
Machine in action
A trinity of levitating elements in an elegant pebble-shaped case.
THE MACHINE
SP One is available in three editions: platinum with a sky-blue bevelled flange, rose gold with an anthracite bevelled flange, and 18K white gold with a diamond-set case, crown and buckle, complemented by a diamond-set rhodium-plated bevelled flange.
- Material: platinum 950, 18K rose gold or 18K white gold with diamonds
- Dimensions: diameter 38mm x height 12mm
- Lug-to-lug: 41.9mm
- Number of components: 19
- Water resistance: 30m / 3ATM / 100 feet
- Sapphire crystals on top and display back treated with anti-reflective coating
- SP One movement developed in-house by MB&F, featuring signature balance wheel and inclined time dial.
- Manual winding mainspring barrel
- 72 hours power reserve
- Superlative hand finishing; bevel angles highlighting handcraft; polished bevels; hand-made engravings, bridges with ruthenium finish (or rhodium finish for the SP One Pavée).
- Inclined dial in black DLC (or dark blue PVD for the SP One Pavée).
- Balance frequency: 2.5Hz (18,000 vph)
- Number of components: 189
- Number of jewels: 31
- Hours and minutes on inclined dial at 6 o’clock
Calfskin strap with platinum, rose gold or 18K diamond-set white gold pin buckle.
Lug width: 18mm
Case: 165 diamonds
Flange: 55 diamonds
Crown: 14 diamonds
Buckle: 21 diamonds
Total (case, flange, crown and buckle): 255 diamonds - 1.608 carats
Discover the models available for this collection
Inspiration
Over the last two decades, MB&F has generated next to its Horological and Legacy Machines a number of dormant projects, sketched over the years, seemingly senseless at the time – flashes of unrealised intuitions. As MB&F approached its 20thAnniversary, the team was reminded of the brand’s spirit, which according to any management book epitomizes doing everything wrong: no business plan, no market research, just a will to create the unexpected and go against the grain.
So why not plunge into that basket of dormant projects and create a new collection of undefinable timepieces? It was a treasure trove of creativity: MB&F reached into the basket and picked out one project that best embodied the spirit of these special ventures. This project, simply code-named Special Project One (SP One), was the chosen one.
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