Cows are back

 You know spring is properly here when the cows return. 

Unfortunately it’s a rainy day for them. As for us, hard at work. Hair springs are still taking up all of my time and the other senior students. Our skills have greatly improved since we started, after many weeks bending springs under the microscope we are feeling much more confident using tweezers to manipulate the spring.

Gary made a new case prototype out of brass for a 7001, it’s looking sharp!

Some more good news, Jaewon do his wining stem exam  this week and passed! He’ll be moving on the pivot gauges.

That’s it for this week, until next time.

Fire and fury

This week we all just spent laboring away, the senior students are still working with hairsprings, almost understanding the secrets the coils hold. Preparing for their exam. Guilherme and Caio are understanding the frustration of hardening the winding stem and learning of the fickle nature of steel under high temperatures and cold water. 

Over in the other workshop, Chris, Gary and Phillip are making their way through the pivot gauges. A task which at the start seemed almost impossible, but now burnishing is coming naturally. As for Nick, still fresh off learning the drill, still got plenty to learn from the machines. 

Jaewon ever on his experiments, is trying hardening on winding stems of different materials and with different techniques. Results are inconclusive.

Hardening 

Until next time!

Watched and wondered

 Last Friday until Sunday, most of us stayed in Geneva to marvel at some lovely watches. We started off by stopping over at Time to Watches, a micro brand watch event with some very unique pieces. 

Keaton

After a nice lunch in Geneva old town, we hopped over to AHCI, the independents watch event. Here is were the real horology lies, and where you get the opportunity to meet the master minds behind the master works. 

Lederer 

Moving on, still on the same day by the way, we went for a gander at Cronipolis, yet another watch event. Some more lovely watches that you don’t get to see very often.

Sexy time with penguins

Now, us being pretty exhausted from watches, needing a break, we hit the streets for a good evening. Filled ourselves with a Brazilian barbecue, nectar of the Gods. 

The boys 

The night didn’t stop there, but unfortunately that will remain off the blog, anyways I digress.

Now on Saturday, we hit up the big boy, and go visit Watches and Wonders. Way saw way too many watches to talk about here. So I will just mention what stood out the most. We were lucky enough to get a meeting with Armin Strom in the press room. They unveiled to us their new 12:59 any time watch. An unequalled marvel, containing a minute repeater with the Westminster chime and double balance in resonance. All put into a lovely sized titanium case.

Voila

Now back to school, been a long week here for us. At workshop 1, myself, Bernd, Joan and Louis are making progress on the hairsprings, but those coils are really testing our patience. 

Gary is making some good headway on the production of lovely little case for a 7001.

At the start

Where he’s at now

The new student Nick has now started to learn the machines, as always starting with the drilling press.

That’s it for this week, until next time!

Watches & Wonders Inbound

 We’ll start off the coolest stuff. Our friendly neighborhood Craig is making amazing progress on his school watch. Although he has graduated, he has rented a bench to carry on his research into the mystical arts of horology. 

Curvy

All you see is designed and made by Craig, here using a sandwich method for the bridges, giving it a truly unique look. Not only that but also making curved Geneva stripes, putting the waves into waves of Geneva.

As for myself, I have been trying my hand at black polishing larger surfaces. Here I am attempting it at the regulator of a Zenith pocket watch. Black polishing and frosting.

Before 

After

Meanwhile, in my workshop, Caio and Guillerme have started learning the process of making the winding stem, a complicated part which required many steps to complete. Jae won has also been making progress with this task, here showing his hardened and tempered stem.

Gary has started to work on a case, looking forward to seeing the finished product.

Tomorrow we will be heading to Geneva for a weekend in watches, we are all super excited and we will catch you up next week.

New student!

 Hello everyone, this week we welcome a new student to our school! Nick has joined us from England and will be staying in Le Locle for the next two years. 

Welcome Nick

On some other exciting news, our school is getting some tool upgrades! We have some new lapping machines, installed this week. It’s now up to our professors to master its use, then to teach us these new skills. 

The big guns

Onto the students, Jaewon ever on his side quests is pursuing the perfect burgundy, or maroon, or Bordeaux. So he’s been has success on screws, but still working on bigger pieces.

Slick

Gary has plated some hands on his vintage Tissot and relumed. Also found a perfect crystal replacement. Looking lovely now.

Before 

Voila

Meanwhile Chris, is doing some science experiments, a screw head broke with the screw in the watch. Unable to remove the screw Chris decided to melt it out. He dipped the bridge in warm sulphuric acid to dissolve the screw, it was successful. 

That’s it for this week, see you in watches and wonders!

Happy Easter

 Starting off with the most important event this week. Craig’s graduation!! We threw a little party in the workshop in honour of our new graduate, speeches drinks and diplomas were given.  

Happy teacher and happy student 

Congratulations Craig! We’re all excited to see the watches you will make. He is our 41st fullskills graduate!

Craig’s family joining us

This now making Bernd, Louis, Joan and Cesar the senior students. We are still making our way through the hairsprings, definitely the most patience testing part of the course. One slip and hours of work are gone. A lot of time is spent flattening and centering the hair spring around the collet, a crucial step in order to get good timing out of a watch later down the line.

This is not a happy sight

But we are persevering and making progress. Trying not to lose ourselves in the spirals of the spring. 

Chris in the meanwhile found himself a little hidden treasure. A pocket watch belonging to a priest with a very nice Moser calibre. 

Bearing the Moser stamp

Closer up

Now we break off of a long weekend to enjoy the Easter break and ponder what rabbits and eggs have to do with the resurrection of Christ.

Happy Easter !

Daddy’s home

 Michael has returned! Much missed by his class, the whole gang is back together. Heavy snow fall followed Michael back to Le Locle for this never ending winter.

A busy week for myself, have been working on a balance staff replacement for an old Russian watch. My first restoration of this kind, and a difficult one. With the guidance of Michael it’s all done by Friday afternoon. Beating happily away.

Alongside, Caio and Gui have now learnt how to operate every machine in the school and are now moving on the watchmaker lathe. 

While Chris, Gary and Phillip are learning how to properly service said lathe.

Short blog this week, but until next time!