Storm clouds gather

 Rainy week here in Le Locle, dark skies and thunders fill our evenings. Signs of the end of summer. Soon the days will get shorter and the nights colder. In our workshop Caio and Gui have started work on the hour wheel. A fun project were we learn how to cut teeth on the lathe using the milling attachment and teeth cutters. The process is not too long, most the time is concentrated on centering the teeth cutters with a microscope.

Caio’s first hour wheel.

Joan took his hairspring exam this week and successfully passed it, congratulations!

Nick over here is getting a lesson on the Agathon. A grinding machine used to sharper hard metal gravers.

Nick at work

While Chris, Gary, Phillip and Jaewon are still going through the theory of the escapement, the beating heart of the watch. Taking their time to learn all the different methods to restore and fix a damaged pallet fork. Here Gary is doing a guard pin replacement. A rare skill, where nowadays most would just get a new pallet fork.

Here we see a neat little tool made by Chris. Is a brass anvil to be used with the Horia pusher for guard pin replacement.

Crafty

That’s it for this week!

Until next time.

Time to learn

 The students at workshop two have started the escapement course. A lengthy course which teaches the full theory of how the Swiss lever works and why it works. Along with the theory we learn how to restore and diagnose an escapement, as well as adjust the escapement.

Changing the pallet staff

Examining English lever

David the new student is here for his second week. Still working on filing, the basis of all watchmaking.

Many of us have also taken this week to melt our tin to make polishing plates. We melt the tin by a touch then pour the molten tin into a mold. This is then turned on the lathe to mark a smooth surface. 

Until next time!

We’re back baby

Everyone is back from the summer break, some never left. But we go straight into it, Michael is teaching us all some new decoration techniques. We’re all learning polishing counter sinks and bevels, different nailing methods on ratchet wheels, as well as Geneva stripes and frosting. Everyone is going out and trying their own individual way. Let’s see what they’ve done!

Starting off strong with a ratchet wheels by Jaewon. Using the milling attachment with a brass bar attached with some diamond paste. Choosing the speed for the lathe and the milling attachment will drastically affect the final look. Then afterwards he heated the wheel to a straw yellow.

Here is a practice piece for the counter sink and bevel polishing, with the surface frosted. After which it was plated with white rhodium.

Let’s follow Guillerme as he decorates this movement. Here setting it up for Geneva stripes 

Lovely done Geneva stripes. Came out look very nice.

 Finally he finished it off by electro plating it in white rhodium.

Trying some double snailing, a classic finish. How does it compare to single snailing?

We will have more next week! 

Until then

Finishing Techniques Course

 The first one week finishing course just ended and it was a really great experience! with six students participating we covered many of the classical finishing techniques such as frosting, straight graining, black polishing, various different types of snailing, polishing of counter sinks etc.

Summer is here

 Always hectic towards the end, especially when it’s this hot! We’re ending it all off with a lovely dinner.

Another eventful week in Le Locle, we had Sens graduation and a hefty two days of cleaning. Got the workshop looking sharp. 

We are all very proud of Sens for completing his degree! He can start his summer on a great note.

Sens and Henrik

Last thing before the break is always a deep clean. Always oddly satisfying seeing all the surfaces and benches looking brand new. No corner is left untouched.

Gary is making more progress on his case! Here he made a prototype out of aluminum, looking very nice.

What are you doing outside Nick?

Well that’s it’s for now, by the end of the weekend most of us will have left to return home.

Hope you all have a lovely summer!

Until next time!

Count down begins

 With just one week left, everyone is busy. Time is passing by faster than expected, but that’s always the case. I have started working on my school watch, making the bridges out of German silver. Having drilled the through holes for the bridge screws on the jig borer. Then on the lathe, using the base plate to spot center the jewel holes and attaching the bridge to then drill. The George Daniel’s method.

Used a ball mill to make the slots for the winding stem and a mill for the winding pinion slot. Some fun lathe work.

Michael and Henrik are doing some demonstration of ratchet wheel decorations. Amazing how many different ways there are to decorate a single wheel. Here we can see the classic triple snailing along with the method made by an old student Ivan.

Mesmerizing 

Along with these, they are also showing prime examples of Geneva stripes, a very traditional and classy finishing technique, done on the mill. 

Up close

Sharp yet curvy 

Philip and Gary took their gear train exam today! Congratulations to them both. Caio and Gui have started working on the balance staff, a daunting yet rewarding trial.

Jaewon completed another pivot, can only be seen under the microscope.

 Meanwhile Joan is working on hairsprings, the most unforgiving part of watchmaking, one slip and it’s all over.

That’s it for this week! Until next time!

Exams!

 Here we can spot a wild watchmaker in his natural habitat. 

Gui is speeding through the technician course, yesterday he took his pivot gauge exam just a few weeks into learning them. Meanwhile in the other workshop Jae won and Chris took their gear train exam. The first exam for the technician course. An exciting exam including a full barrel service, bending wheels, adjusting end-shake and divisions. 

Nick is machining his way through his brass tools, here you can see his diamond pallet fork holder. 

Jae won, still working on an ancient memovox. Been neglected for many years until Jae won came along to bring it back to life. Life to that baby pur.

This is a special weekend in Le Locle, it’s the annual festival when thousands of people come and fill our empty streets. Hopefully we’ll see you there.

Until next time!