Hamilton Factory Vidoes

[Nookster]

Here are some fun links to some Hamilton Watch Co Factory Videos.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rL0_vOw6eCc How a Watch Works 1945

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vn86qfxVOlM Employee Video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FA9MrcBEc00 What makes a fine watch fine

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0gVRzokFLg Seasons Greetings

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_bvIkBajyw Ages of time

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wkaK1S_ZlPE John Bergey, President of Time Computer-Pulsar Bad recording, need good high volume

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5szJYA_z44 Pulsar

[Nookster]

One thing I enjoyed in "What makes a fine watch fine" is at minute 10:22 how easy the person makes the over coil. I believe the total hairspring is 12 & 5\8ths coils and this person just picks a point, grabs it and makes it look so easy.
I was told once you do the over coil, and you have the hairspring sitting on a flat surface, it should look like the stud is resting on the collet.

[SFC]

Two tweezer hairspring adjustments are the most dangerous. I really wish the clip of the overcoil continued on a bit. My guess is that the quick bend was a close guide requiring further adjustment in watch during final assembly. Never seen a watch factory in-person but it is on my bucket list.

Now where is the video of the making of this gorgeous in-house cartier movement

1847 mc.jpg (591.51 KiB) Viewed 1517 times

[Nookster]

That is good looking.

Yes, I wish the over coil was better defined. I would love to know where to start it and where to end it. I saw somewhere the stud lined up with pinning point.

[SFC]

Nook I was joking about the Cartier. My point was to show the low end of recent "in-house" luxury manufacturing... a movement that I would consider required very little skilled labor in its production. The finish on the machined bridges and rotor is similar to that of a 300-400 Japanese watch. And when I see the balance is standard ETA-Chron I ask myself why not just use the ETA 2892?


As for the Hamilton factory video.. the worker must have known the approximate distance from the stud to perform the bend (where to hold the hairspring with the tweezer in his left hand). And then know approximately at what angle and how much force was needed to perform the bend upwards (with the tweezer in his right hand). I would think after so much repetition the worker could get the overcoil pretty darn close. And the people doing final assembly would make very minor adjustments to the hairspring at the end of the process if necessary. I am just making this up as I don't know Hamilton ran their operation. Now can you imagine if your job was to pin the hairspring to the stud

[Deafboy]

It appears to me the "overcoil scene" is mainly there to show the spring to viewer. There is hardly any manipulation or bending.
I too would have loved to see the whole overcoiling process. I sometimes attempt "correct" the overcoil on my watches (987, 980, 982, etc.); it's really difficult. Fixing the terminal curve of a non-overcoil spring is child's play in comparison...

[SFC]

To be fair the clip lacks context. An overcoil is not a bend in one spot process. It requires more than one bend.. 2-3. I figured the hairspring was being bent because the tweezers are stubby and can do more damage then delicate long & skinny #4or#5 tweezers that hairspring work is done with. Also, because the rest of the film has lots of footage of people working. The real question is was it even feasible for people to do all the poising of the balance wheels , the overcoils , inserting the balance screws etc. Hamilton sold a ton of watches and the process would seem very labor intensive. In modern watch manufacturing anything complicated that needs to be repeated is mechanized. Hamilton must have had jigs set-up or some sort of mechanization to make things efficient. Maybe a question for Rene or others who have talked to ex-factory workers. I have no clue how the magic happened in Lancaster