Cool beans...good to see the AWCI mobile unit has been implemented...the CW21 instructors at the AWCI HQ in Harrison, OH were talking about this back in early 2018 when our daughter unit and I attended the AWCI Build A Watch course.
What would be really fun would be for students to be allowed to drag race that AWCI mobile unit at a local NHRA drag strip. I’m betting I could get it to do about a 35 second quarter mile...and I bet AWCI instructor CMW21 Tom S. could get it to do under 30 seconds with his extensive drag racing background.
Very good course for the beginner! Instructors were great. Very happy to recommend the course to folks. The bus is a little right back to back - but it’s very workable. I think the team did a great job putting that facility together! We also had a tour of the Chelsea Clock company. That was fascinating! Who’d have thought the hardest part was fitting the seconds hand! (YMMV) The obligatory watch pic :
Yeah - 9 till 6. Instructors helped with some of the _really_ delicate oiling. And there was no hairspring winding - but there were some absolutely challenging Pieces. It was also great to get a basic explanation of some of the core components as you were installing them. Very well done.
Thank you for the Chelsea Clock factory pictures. Some of that equipment looks well-used and long-lived. Perhaps parts of this 1943 Mark I deck clock were made on some of the same machine(s). And congrats on watch build...sounds fun!
Very nice indeed! Radium dial? The Gent that gave us the tour mentioned that the move to the new building was a significant undertaking. But it was a smaller space now. The records they keep on manufactured clocks and recipient are very impressive, dating back to the start of the company! I hadn’t realized the significance of these clocks until the tour.
Also, notice the astronomical clock in the large wall case. We obv didn’t get to see the movement, but you can see the different hand mechanisms driven by differing machinery. Very cool.
I love the "patina" on that hobbing machine. It looks like a hundred years of oil, sweat and dust. It's like stepping back in time. A complete contrast to the DMG Mori CNC outfit.
Great question; never thought about Radium and don’t have a Geiger counter. Doesn’t seem to have any luminescence now but unsure if the markers/hands were ever supposed to be such. Perhaps I should buy a Radon detector as gas decay products suggested as the bigger risk versus Alpha particles . https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/new-report-shows-radium-dials-might-pose-serious-danger Clock lives in a reasonably well ventilated room (and not on my wrist obviously) so hopefully no big issue but I will contact Chelsea to ask, particularly now that you’ve indicated they have good record-keeping. To get back on track, hope the newly built watch is running well (and is radiation-free!)
I also though it was interesting to see the differences in the CNC machines. ~30 years of technology improvements. IIRC the DMG has provided some serious efficiencies to the company and they were very happy with it.
Spoke with helpful gentlemen from Chelsea Clock - he remembered your tour. Yes, Radium. As of December they are no longer allowed to service radium-bearing clocks (dials) due to lack of approved facilities. They use Geiger counters on all incoming clocks and claimed handling/contact was the main concern. I’ll start a separate ‘radium clock face thread’ if merited after researching more, but FYI for any old Chelsea radium clock owners wanting factory service.