Konstantin Chaykin’s ThinKing outside the box
Following the 2024 debut of his record-setting 1.65 mm prototype, watchmaker Konstantin Chaykin has transitioned the concept from a one-off engineering feat into a commercial reality.
The Russian manufacture has officially announced the launch of the ThinKing Mystery, an exclusive 12-piece limited edition that marries ultra-thin construction with transparent time displays.
When it comes to ultra-thin watchmaking, engineering tolerances are measured in thousandths of a millimetre. To move the initial concept into repeatable serial production, Konstantin Chaykin developed strict internal production protocols, with the case alone navigating roughly 40 routing checkpoints — a workflow more akin to aerospace engineering.
The 41 mm case is machined from a high-precision, fully non-magnetic alloy optimised for extreme rigidity and corrosion resistance to protect the movement against torsional bending.
The in-house manual-wind Calibre K.23-3.1 is directly integrated into the caseback, which pulls double duty as the movement mainplate. It features a unique dual-balance assembly layout where two toothed wheels interlock in a single plane.
The design remains firmly rooted in Chaykin’s iconic Wristmons (Joker) design language, but updates the trademark regulator dials with a historical twist. Inspired by Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin’s 19th-century mystery clocks, the new watch features completely transparent ‘eyes’ with floating indicators and no visible crossbars.
To eliminate axial and radial runout at this small scale, the lateral drive mechanism turns solid sapphire discs guided by three surrounding micro-rollers, which simultaneously cuts down friction and energy loss from the mainspring.
Despite its razor-thin profile, Chaykin has revised the architecture to bolster daily wearability. The single, lidless mainspring barrel has been reinforced with stiffening ribs and a tungsten carbide ball-bearing overrunning clutch, extending the power reserve from 32 to 38 hours.
The patented leather strap incorporates internal titanium stiffeners and elastic inserts to absorb pulling forces, preventing external stress from warping the ultra-thin case.
To preserve the clean silhouette, setting and winding are managed via two included auxiliary tools featuring built-in safety clutches to prevent overwinding: a compact 30g carbon winding box and an elongated stainless steel key.
The bridges and mainplate feature straight graining and perlage, the wheels sport circular graining, and all bevels are hand-cut and mirror-polished under demanding conditions where a micron-level error could compromise the entire assembly.
The case measures 41 mm in diameter and 1.65 mm in thickness, and the whole thing is limited to just 12 pieces worldwide.
