Fixing Yesterday's Rookie Mistake

Remember the little mishap I mentioned yesterday, where the barrel ended up on the opposite side of the stem position? 😅 Well, I’m happy to report that it’s all fixed now! 🎉

Thanks to Fusion 360’s joint system, repositioning the train of wheels and moving the barrel to the correct side was straightforward. It’s one of those moments where I’m grateful for modern tools making the process so much smoother than it could have been. 😊

This fix was a great reminder that every mistake—no matter how rookie—is an opportunity to learn and refine the process. With everything now back in place, I can confidently move forward with the plates and winding mechanism. Onward to the next challenge!

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Progress Update: Jewel Placement on fourth wheel

Today, I made a few adjustments to the watch’s tree structure and set the jewel in place for the fourth wheel. It was a straightforward, productive day—sometimes, the simplest tasks bring the most satisfaction!

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Rookie Mistake on the Plates

I started working on the plates today to prepare for the winding mechanism, but... I made a rookie mistake! 😅 The barrel ended up on the opposite side of the stem position—oops! 😂

Thankfully, Fusion 360’s joint system saved the day. All I need to do is reposition the train and move the barrel to the correct side. That’s inexperience for you, folks! Hehe, every mistake is just another step in the learning process.

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Progress Update: Adjustments and Jewel Placement

Today, I discovered that my mainspring barrel was a bit oversized, actually protruding through the case. 🔍 This meant I needed to rearrange the positioning of the wheels to make everything fit properly—fingers crossed, they won’t end up too tight!

On a positive note, it looks like I’ll be able to use the same type of jewels for the center, third, and fourth wheels, which simplifies things nicely. 😊

Today, I added jewels to the third wheel, and tomorrow, I’ll continue with the fourth. I’ll also begin planning the bridges and plates, bringing the design another step closer to completion.

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Choosing the Perfect Jewels for Our Watch Movement

Today, I wanted to dive into an aspect of our movement design that’s been carefully thought out: choosing the right jewels. It’s a vital step, and I’ve spent a lot of time weighing options to ensure each component performs flawlessly, following the NIHS (NIHS 04-04F, NIHS 94-10, NIHS-05-01, NIHS-05-03) standards for precision and durability in watchmaking.

For this design, I’ll be using straight jewels on the dial side and olive (also known as bombe) ring jewels on the plate side. Each type has its own advantages, primarily in reducing friction and wear, which is essential for ensuring smooth movement in the train of wheels. The NIHS standards provided key guidelines for evaluating each jewel type’s fit and performance within the system.

To give myself some leeway during production, I ordered 18 jewels of each type: the R53.30 and R50.80K from swissjewel.com. This flexibility will help address any fine adjustments we need to make as we finalize the fit and finish of the train. These jewels are precisely sized per NIHS tolerances, so having extras means we can adapt without compromising progress or quality.

It’s a small but critical detail, as every watchmaker knows, but one that will ultimately contribute to a smoother, more reliable movement. Stay tuned as I continue to refine this design, one jewel and shaft at a time, always with NIHS standards as our compass!

I'm also thinking of using the same jewels for the center, third and fourth wheels.

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Life Update and New Adventures in Watchmaking

Hello everyone!

It's been a little quiet on Fezuone.co recently, and I wanted to share why. My wife and I just welcomed our beautiful daughter into the world, and we’ve been soaking up every precious moment with her. It’s been an incredible experience, and I’m truly grateful for this new chapter in life.

But while I’ve had to step away from the workbench a bit, I’ve been putting any free moments to good use—diving deep into the world of tolerances. This focus on precision will be crucial as I work on designing the shafts and jewels for the train of wheels. It’s been a fascinating study, especially as I consider how these micro-measurements directly affect a watch’s reliability and performance.

Thank you for your patience, and I look forward to sharing more soon. In the meantime, know that this project—and my passion for watchmaking—is very much alive, just evolving alongside life’s latest adventure!

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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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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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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Because why not

Testing out a quick different design for the wheels!

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