Workshop notes
Mechanical Bitcoin movement
Build logs, machining experiments, watchmaking notes, and lessons from trying to make a mechanical watch shaped by Bitcoin.
This is the main record of the project: what worked, what failed, what changed, and what I learned along the way.
2024/11/02 10:52 UTC
TLDRUpdated the dial design with new hour markers, a splash of Super-Luminova, and a cleaner outer ring, but it feels a bit bare without the main plate and bridges. Once those are in, it should all come together beautifully. 📸 Used an 85mm lens for some cool depth-of-field shots to capture the details.
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Dial Eye Candy: A Little Refresh
Taking it easy today and having some fun with the dial design! I decided to update the hour markers, added a touch of Super-Luminova, and simplified the outer ring pattern a bit. To capture the details, I played around with some depth of field using an 85mm lens.
Not totally in love with the empty look right now—feels like it’s missing something. But hey, once the main plate and bridges are in, it should all come together!
🤩
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2024/11/01 15:52 UTC
TLDRJust experimented with a new Super-Luminova design on the dial—still figuring it out but making progress! 🎨 More importantly, nailed the roller jewel positioning, which let me add a safety pin to keep the watch steady during knocks. Next up: tweaking the balance for better visibility.
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Balance and Super-Luminova Experiment
Tried out a new Super-Luminova pattern on the dial—still not totally convinced, but it's a start!
On the bright side, I finally nailed the roller jewel positioning, which let me add the safety pin. Turns out, it's all about keeping the balance locked when the watch takes a knock—who knew?
Next step: raising the balance just a touch so it’s more visible. Stay tuned!
🌟
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2024/10/31 15:52 UTC
TLDRI finally cracked the code to a smoother watch build by reordering the process: setting wheel positions first, then tackling joints, and wrapping up with wheel rotations. This tweak, along with a gear ratio fix that clicks perfectly, has brought my creation to life, especially with a new curved case that fits like a glove. Shoutout to Alberto Sicco and Charles Fontaimpe for saving my mainspring barrel mishap—next up, pinions and jewels! 😊
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Refactoring Adventures: Building a Movement from the Ground Up!
It took some serious tinkering (and a few dozen rebuilds of the train of wheels!), but I finally found a smoother approach—first setting up the wheel positions, then handling the joints, and finally rotating (or folding) the wheels into place. This way feels way more intuitive!
I also revisited the gear ratios in the train of wheels. Now, the hour wheel fits perfectly with the center wheel pinion—such a satisfying click when it all aligns! And yes, I've finally added the seconds hand to complete the time-telling trio.
The case got a makeover too! It now wraps comfortably around the wrist instead of just sitting there like a flat disc. A little curve really makes it come to life on the wrist.
Next up, it's time to add the pinions to the wheels and get those jewels in place—so exciting! And after that? The bridges! Can't wait to see it all come together!
I gotta give a shoutout to Alberto Sicco, Charles Fontaimpe from generaleressorts.com, I had a pretty bad mistake in the mainspring barrel, thanks to his comment I could fix it!
😊
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2024/10/30 16:20 UTC
TLDRTried a new wheel design just for fun and it's pretty wild! 🚴♂️ Check out the sketches to see the funky concept that's shaking things up. Catch the full scoop on my blog if you're curious!
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Because why not
Testing out a quick different design for the wheels!
🤯
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2024/10/30 12:27 UTC
TLDRHey! The blog post is about a watch design process update, where the layout now accurately shows hours, minutes, and seconds after a month of work. While some parts like wheels and jewels still need designing, the author is thrilled with the balance wheel's progress. The main challenge is aligning the center wheel pinion with the cannon-wheel, crucial for smooth operation. 🤯 Interested? Check out the full details [here](https://tbw.watch/post/view/previewing-a-potential-layout/).
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This is Exciting!
This layout is finally set up to show hours, minutes, and seconds correctly. Can you believe it's taken about a month to get here? Just one more detail to nail down (see last pic)!
Current Status:
- Wheels aren't designed yet, so they're still looking solid and rough.
- Bridges and jewels aren't in place yet either.
- Unexpected plot twist: I'm officially in love with the balance wheel ❤️
Here's the "But"…
The center wheel pinion is where the magic happens for the coaxial hands. It drives a secondary wheel, and the cannon pinion is friction-fitted right on top of that secondary wheel.
So, what's the issue?
I'm struggling to get the dedendums of the center wheel pinion to line up properly with the cannon-wheel, especially since its axis is actually the fourth wheel. Gotta figure this one out to keep everything aligned!
🤯
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2024/10/28 17:43 UTC
TLDRPutting all the components together revealed a crucial design flaw: the current sizes of the wheels don't allow the cannon pinion to fit properly. 🛠️ This means a redesign is necessary, specifically adjusting the teeth counts, to ensure everything functions smoothly. It's a good reminder that sometimes you need the big picture to spot the small but important details.
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Seeing everything together uncover errors
These wheels make all the ratios that will display hours, minutes, seconds in the same axis
Im really glad I layed them over together
why?
See that wheel with the curvy cutouts? well the cannon pinion fits in it, and with the current sizes I wont be able to fit the two wheels, need to rework the teeth counts!
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2024/10/25 16:21 UTC
TLDRI'm refining my watch movement design by following NIHS standards with some help from ChatGPT and Alex at Watch Repair Tutorials. Key focus: precise mainspring dimensions and a perfect barrel arbor fit to minimize friction, plus a smart choice of a bride rapportée for better automatic winding. Stay tuned for more as the prototype phase gears up! ⏱️
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Following NIHS - Refactoring.
Been closely following NIHS standards,
with the help of chatgpt, and Alex from watchrepairtutorials.com calculated precise mainspring dimensions:
- Thickness: 0.13 mm
- Length: 551 mm
- Width: 1.33 mm
Additionally, I ensured the correct fit of the barrel arbor, with a total height of 1.58 mm to fit smoothly inside the barrel, maintaining a clearance of 0.1 mm on both the top and bottom to prevent friction. I've also decided on the use of a bride rapportée (inserted bridle) for its superior control in automatic winding.
The technical details I've explored, including the use of Nivaflex mainsprings and calculations based on NIHS 11-02 standards, bring us closer to a well-engineered movement.
Stay tuned for more updates as I push forward with the prototype phase!
Barrel arbor, Mainspring barrel
Escapement (yep missing the safety pin) -- target: 28800 vph
Im thinking of going with KIF, but need to explore more
Train of wheels -- with proper reduction for the fourth wheel and minute wheel
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2024/10/25 13:39 UTC
TLDRThe blog post is about fitting hands onto watch cylinders made to a specific standard (NIHSg 24-10), with the wheel mechanism still being a work in progress. It's a peek into the technical details of watchmaking and the ongoing process of refining the mechanism. If you're into the nitty-gritty of watch design, this one's for you! ⏱️
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Hands fitting.
The cyclinders where made to NIHSg 24-10
The wheel mechanism under the cylinders is still WIP
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2024/10/21 06:32 UTC
TLDRThis blog post offers a quick look at the top and bottom incabloc components, modeled based on details from the incabloc website. The author is hoping to find a source to procure these pieces, showcasing sketches labeled sus 100.12.257 and sous 103.20. If you're into watchmaking or horology, it's a neat peek into the specifics of these watch elements. ⏱️
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Quick exploration of top and bottom incabloc.
I modeled these based on the incabloc website, hopefully I can source them from somewhere:
sus 100.12.257
sous 103.20
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2024/10/20 14:03 UTC
TLDRSwitching from 36000 vph to 28800 vph in watchmaking simplifies the process by reducing the need for additional wheels, and aligning with NIHS standards eases this transition. The exploration involves fine-tuning various components like the balance wheel and hairspring, with ongoing adjustments to optimize performance. The author is considering component choices like Incabloc and fendue virole, navigating decisions between laser welding and pinning techniques. 🕰️
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Exploring 28800 vph
It seems 36000vph, forces me to add a third and fourth intermediary wheels to the train, Im not sure I like that.
I decided to explore 28800 vph, following NIHS rules actually simplifies the process (NIHSG_34-04, NIHSG_34-25, NIHSG_35-10, NIHSG_35-15, NIHSG_35-20)
Please note that due to my exploration, these values are constantly changing
| Balance wheel Inertia |
12.5mm |
| Balance wheel Diameter |
10mm |
| Hairspring D |
6mm |
| Hairspring d |
1.3mm |
| Hairspring h |
0.18mm |
| Hairspring P |
0.17mm |
| Hairspring K |
2.65 10^-2 N·mm³/rad |
Overall view with a candidate of Incabloc 100.11.310/0* , though maybe it's a bit thick 🤔
Decided with a fendue virole (NIHSG_35-20), still need to figure out if going with laser-weld, or Pinning with a stick
Balance and wheel (NIHSG_34-04)
Balance that follow NIHSG_34-25 standard
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