Well, not quite - but probably not too far off either. Yes, the boys are having fun, and so far, plenty of good news. Our CNC lathe is ready; the official training has commenced and coding is well under way. With a bit of luck, by the end of the week they will be making their first watch components!
Sydney delivery and installation date is now June 1, which is in accordance to the previous estimate. The other good news is that the 316L steel samples obtained from an Australian supplier are within the required tolerances. So at least we won't have to air freight 4 metre long rods from Germany – or at least not for components smaller than 3mm.
The lathe itself is the crucial watch parts making machine, and this particular model is well used by both German and Swiss makers. Anyone from Nomos to Lange has it in operation so we know that machine is capable of producing the finest watch parts. Of course, it will take us many months - if not years - to master it, but we are definitely heading in the right direction.
Another piece of good news is that we should be able to make even more complex parts than we originally anticipated: the 6-axis lathe can accept some special 'attachments' capable of cutting very fine pinions as well as gears. However, we will be limited by the diameter – for components larger than 3mm in diameter (main spring barrel for example) we would need one more CNC lathe...
Exciting days ahead - so stay tuned for more!
Happy collecting,
Nick
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