Sorry for the delay in responding, first up comments about the BHI etc...
Every industry/organization has it's supporters and detractors, the BHI is no different. Love it or you hate it, it is what it is...no one is forcing anyone to belong.
The staff at HQ in Upton Hall are not clock/watchmakers, they are administrative and run the BHI. The Board and Vice-Presidents are mostly M/FBHI members. All my interactions with the BHI since I joined 6 years ago, on the phone, via email, and during my on-site visits, have always been professional and to my satisfaction.
As for the general membership of the BHI, I would put them in a category of their own, show me any other horology outfit where you can you find so many of today's top horologists.
BHI members including:
Dr Daniels (deceased) - inventor of the coaxial escapement, probably the greatest horologist of our lifetime
Roger W Smith - only apprentice of Dr Daniels, maker of handmade watches
Jonathan Betts - former horologist at Greenwich, serviced the Harrison H clocks
Martin Burgess - maker of the most accurate pendulum clock ever, better than 1 second accuracy in 100 days
Derek Pratt (deceased) - among the top watchmakers of our time
And many, many others...
Is the BHI made up of old men who only tinker with clocks? sure they are some, the BHI appeals to retired men looking for a hobby and clocks are much easier to work on than watches, especially as your eyesight deteriorates, and clocks are more popular in the UK, where the BHI is based. Is most of the membership old men? I don't know, maybe, just like most organizations I have belonged to they tend to be made up of old men (me excluded of course): amateur radio, RC flying, antique car club, freemasons, etc,...
I was not aware that you could do these exams at a distance I've looked at the two Distance Learning Courses (DLC) from the BHI, they appear to relate as follows to watches:
Technician grade course – aiming towards being a technician servicing quartz watches
Intermediate/Final grade course – aiming towards being a Watchmaker servicing mechanical watches for which interchangeable parts are available (high relevance to this discussion!)
When I completed the DLC exams, only the final 2 written/essay exams and 2 servicing exams had to be conducted at Upton Hall. The remainder of the exams, written and practical I did at home, in Canada.
As far as I can see, these prepare you for a series of exams to be either a Technician or a first level of Watchmaker (there is a further grade of Watchmaker higher than that mentioned above). You don’t have to do the exams so, the courses can be done just out of interest.
The first course is about €1000-1200 which may not too bad as you get proper tutoring support for it where I assume you can send the tutor your work and he will comment. The exact extent of that support is not clear but as it’s half the course cost, you would hope it would be sufficient.
Oddly, the second course is cheaper at about €600-800 but, you only get tutor feedback on technical aspects.
The DLC and the Exams are two separate issues, you don't have to write the Exams if you follow the DLC. In fact you don't have to complete the DLC to qualify for writing any exams, the DLC is simply one method of preparing for the exams, but with the exam syllabus as a guide, you could self study outside of the DLC.
The biggest problem is finding out the details of the courses.
Anyway, none of this actually explains what you will be doing on this course (this really is just about all the data available except for the picture below which gives some very brief details of the modules) and for me, I don’t usually invest €1000+ based on so little information. That’s one thing that holds me back, the other being that for the second course, you don’t seem to get any feedback from the tutor on practical matters.
The BHI website has just been upgraded, and at this time not everything concerning the DLC has been migrated from the old to the new site. So there are gaps in the knowledge base and DLC program. If however you call/contact Maxine, I am sure she would be able to send you the PDF of the program in detail for your review.
For unit D2, will I be manufacturing from raw materials a clock train? I can’t believe it’s that and assume it’s just assembling something as the course that leads to that only needs "simple and inexpensive tools and machines".
You are required to make - from raw materials - (block of brass, steel rods, etc) a number of parts and pieces, and you do need a lathe and a variety of accessories to be able to make these parts. Tolerances for the handmade parts are on the order of 0.03mm in any dimension on any component, it includes making staff's, screws, balance cock and plate, bluing, polishing, installing jewels, etc.
To complete all 3 levels of the DLC, I had to service a total of 50 some odd watches during the course: ladies watches, chronographs, automatics, manuals, with complications etc. For the Final Grade I had to submit 5 Portfolio watches each requiring complex repairs and fabrication of parts along with an 8 page write up for each watch.
I’m not being critical, Rob, but, they could make this a lot clearer if they want to get people to sign up. I know you’re involved with the BHI so, treat this as feedback. I do feel like I’m missing something here….
Critical is good, I am also critical of the BHI and have voiced my opinion with them, and decided to become a participant and try and make it better, if no one acts where will the future watchmakers come from? As soon as I was awarded my MBHI I became active:
- regular contributor of watchmaking articles to the Horological Journal, with the goal of engaging the watch enthusiast members along with encouraging others to contribute. Problem is that many watch (and clock) makers won't take the time to share their expertise, to quote one "...you can't pay me enough to write an article for the BHI..." with that attitude there would be no HJ content at all ...
- Senior Examiner, having recently completed the DLC and written the exams, I am in a good position to provide positive feedback and bring about change to the system, rather than bitch about it, I decided to do something.
- watchmaking participant for the re-writing of the Intermediate and Final grade DLC program. For those who say that the BHI is still in the dark ages I would remind them that mechanical watches work today following the same principles that were invented a couple of hundred years ago. The autowinder patented in 1924 by Harwood has changed little in principle during the intervening years, sure we use different materials and slight variations on the original patent, but it's still a pivoted weight going round and turning a bunch of gears and winding the mainspring. Mechanical watches are old technology, you want modern - buy a Apple Watch.
Ask yourself this question: Do you want to be a "part installer" or a "watchmaker".
Parts Changer - The technicians employed by the watch manufacturers in the service centres are what I would call "parts installers", witness the number of returned parts shown here by members who have used the Omega service centre. Their job is to service as many watches (average of 10 movements/day) as quickly as possible and if they have a problem, any problem, they replace the part(s) until it's fixed. Remember the one post where they not only replaced the balance wheel (complete with hairspring), but they replaced the balance cock as well... As long as you have access to parts, as a parts installer you can service/fix the watch. This is the road followed by many and as long as you have the skills to take apart and re-assemble and lubricate the movement properly, it works just fine.
If your only requirement is to be able to service and replace parts on movements, I suggest that the DLC is not for you. Much better to simply take the TZ course and do a bit of watch related reading. If possible, hook up with a experienced/qualified horologist to have them check/provide feedback on oiling, that is the area most people are weak in.
Watchmaker - If you want to be able to repair movements ("repair" defined as being able to fix/fabricate existing or new parts) then sign up for the DLC.
I decided it was better to train to become a watchmaker/repairer than to only be a servicing parts installer. What do you do if the parts source suddenly dries up (not like that's ever going to happen)? or if you have a watch that is vintage and no parts are available. With the DLC training, in the majority of cases, I am able to effect a repair and get the watch working again. No parts access - no problem... Of course not all parts of a movement can be made or repaired, but in most instances it can be done as long as the person doing the work has the required tooling, skills, and experience.
Final comment:
No, the DLC is not inexpensive, but neither is quitting your day job and attending a watchmaking school full time. If you want to become a watchmaker, then the DLC is the only learn-at-home program that I am aware of. If you compare the DLC cost to attending a university or the WOSTEP program for 2 years, then the DLC doesn't seem quite as expensive. Consider as well that the new DLC Diploma program is graded at a UK "Level 5", the same level as a BA or BSc.
Having gone through the program from start to finish, it worked for me and I got a lot out of it, mind you, I put a lot into it as well...no results without a lot of effort.
Hope this helps, sorry for the length...
Rob
BHI Professional Watchmaker
www.roberthoran.eu
