Spring Update

So much has changed and progressed since my last update it is somewhat daunting to even begin writing it out.

Here is a list of the things that have happened since February:

• I passed both the written and practical portions of my SAWTA 1 test
• I made a fairly decent amount of progress on my Escape Meter project (pictures below)
• I started making the bridges for my student-made watch (based on the first watch we all worked on here: the 6497)
• I messed up on every project I have worked on in some way, and learned from each mistake
  • One of those mistakes ended in me having to make a reamer that can ream out 1.89mm exactly–there are none like that at the school to my knowledge, so I had to make it
  • Another mistake led me to make my first bushing (a plug of sorts to both fill in a hole that is to big and replace it with a smaller diameter hole–very useful knowledge for vintage repairs)
• We were introduced to quartz theory (for battery powered watches) and have begun servicing medium grade quartz movements
• I have made a seemingly unending supply of hairsprings in preparation for the SAWTA 2 test, which will test us on servicing a 6497 as well as adjusting the pallet stones and (obviously) making a hairspring from scratch
  • I cannot accurately express how tedious and frustrating creating hairsprings is. It’s like open heart surgery but the only life on the line is the life of my career. It’s especially frustrating to see some of my peers fly through it so effortlessly, but we all struggle with different things
• I have sat through potential new students interviewing at the school just like I did a little over a year ago, and even got to talk and have lunch with a few of them

And on the personal side of things:

• I got a visit from my dear parents who drove all the way up here from Tennessee just to hang out with me for a weekend
  • We had a great time touring around, eating everywhere, and that’s it because the area really doesn’t have a lot to offer
  • I was lucky enough to even get them in the school for the last half hour of the day, so they’re some of the few people who don’t work in the building to have seen the inside of it
• I also got a brief but wonderful visit from Chris and Becca (my best friend and his wife) who were touring the Northeast and made a specific stop in Lititz just to see me

Everything is fine, or so I tell myself every day. Sometimes I feel like I’m working nonstop and other times I feel like I got through a day barely doing anything at all. Our SAWTA 2 test this Monday will be a large milestone, and the last major thing we do before the second years and dual students graduate in July.

I will try to remember to take pictures of more of my projects in action as I continue school. Just have to get through this test first.

Thanks as always for reading,

Matt

Now for pictures:

The Escape Meter. Or what will eventually become the Escape Meter. This is an incredibly dense project that tests everything we know about micromechanics and even more that we don’t know. The pins (small, silver color pegs) align the plates to each other–four in total at two pins a piece except the top plate. It was not easy but it was surprisingly fun, and incredibly satisfying to do correctly.

From my instagram, my hand pusher set. The block was one of the first projects we were assigned so having it complete and ready to use is extremely satisfying. The tips are made of acrylic and were tricky at first, but it quickly became one of my favorite mediums to work with because of the lack of wear on cutters and small tolerance for getting a perfectly clear surface finish. The handle was a lesson in practicing slot cutting for working on winding stems eventually.

Which brings us to the winding stem. While it wasn’t perfect, it is functional. This will be the stem I use to set the time and wind up my school watch once it is complete. This project was as difficult or more difficult than you can imagine. Every part built off the previous section and adhering to tight tolerances while keeping the surface finish as perfect as possible was an exercise in frustration. Not to mention making perfect pieces only to have them warp (and be rendered irreversibly useless) due to imperfections in my technique at heat treating/tempering. This one was the ninth stem of its kind I made, and the first and thankfully only one I had to submit.

While I don’t have any pictures of hairspring being made, I took these a few days ago to show the tools involved with assembling a balance wheel. It involves friction fitting, shaping of metal, and of course constant checking to make sure the parts are lining up correctly.

After assembly, the wheel has to be trued on truing calipers like this one. If the wheel spins unevenly (how close is it coming to the bar coming out of the center?) at any point it could seriously affect the timekeeping of the watch it will eventually be in. This level of detail is pretty tame compared to the some of the stuff we do.