Workshop Wednesday 26/02/2014

Here's another Workshop Wednesday to catch up with what all the students are doing

Free Astronomy Course

Since the birth of horology, clock and watch makers have attempted to recreate the heavens in their creation. Astronomy and horology have always been linked and in fact a show and free book at Salon QP 2013 covered this subject beautifully: https://www.hautehorlogerie.org/en/the-foundation/events-exhibitions/s/salonqp-2013/https://www.hautehorlogerie.org/en/the-foundation/events-exhibitions/s/salonqp-2013/

Top picks from SIHH 2014

Salon International de la Haute Horology, better known simply as SIHH is a chance for high horology brands to show of their latest and greatest fine watches. It happened January 20-24 in Geneva, Switzerland.

Here's a look at five of my favourite watches from the event:

Visit to Big Ben & Elizabeth Tower

This January the students descended on the Houses of Parliament for look behind the faces of arguably the most iconic clock on the face of the planet. Unfortunately iconic status and accessibility don't come hand in hand as the belfry (and "peak" of the climb) room sits some 334 above street level...

Replacing a balance staff

Prompted by a record of repair watch I have with broken balance pivots, last week we learnt how to replace a balance staff. There's quite a lot to do, but it's certainly not has hard as I expected!

Platform Escapement Course at Upton Hall Part 2

This week at Upton Hall, the main focus was to be on manipulating hairsprings so were advised to prepare mentally for the challenge ahead. Before we started we were allowed a sneak peak at the auction storage room of the BHI which was a complete treasure trove. The next auction will be online in June.

To do the tests on the hairspring we first removed it from the the balance staff and rested it on the underside of the cock with the stud in place. This was so that we could see if the collet was central to the jewel hole or not. Paul told us that if the index could be moved without affecting the placement of the collet then the problem is towards the centre of the spring whereas if the index caused movement itself, then the clearance in this area is the problem.

Checking the clearance on the index pin

Balance Cock and Plate Project

As our first major project of the second year, I thought I would upload something of a photo diary to show the process of making the cock and plate. This was the most difficult thing I've had to do as part of this course so far, so this post will overlook the many failed attempts at various stages of completion!

Workshop Wednesday 05/02/2014

Welcome to the first of what will hopefully be a weekly post; Workshop Wednesday! Just an opportunity to see the various projects some of the students are working on. The day today started with the second years' weekly project meeting and a very exciting cake to go with coffee.

Talk by Rebecca Struthers

Rebecca Struthurs, our PhD student and director of Struthers London, is doing a short talk on the history of horology this coming week which certainly shouldn't be missed if you're in the area. Follow the jump for full details:

Laser Cutting in Horology

A resource we've just started to use in the degree course is the school's laser cutter, which is great for creating quick prototypes to test designs of things like escapements and wheels.