Practical work examples from the British Horological Institute Certification Exams
There are a number of ways you can learn watchmaking, some require you to attend a school or college for a number of years (WOSTEP is a good example, 24 months of training) others have a program of self-study and do-it-at-home in your own time, and some require you to pass a set of exams in order to be certified.
I did a lot of research when I decided that I wanted to challenge myself and see if I had what it takes to become certified as a professional watchmaker.
First off,I made inquiries and visited a WOSTEP school here in France, but the thought of spending 30,000 euros on the course alone, then there was the living costs and the loss of an income for 2 years, when it was all added up, WOSTEP was not something I could justify or financially absorb. Next I looked at some of the watchmaker certification programs in other countries, and in one case what I came across was a joke, one organization required a few practical tests and had a sample exam, a sample of which I reviewed, and when I read the questions and my wife answered 8 our of 10 correctly, I knew they were not what I was looking for, so what to do?
Finally I came across the DLC program offered by the BHI, and the Certification Exams, and after a bit of research, realized that it was perfect for my requirements. The BHI Exam requirements are demanding, more so than a WOSTEP program in my opinion: the BHI requires servicing dozens of movements, numerous written essay type exams, portfolio watches, and fabricating numerous parts and pieces to tolerances as high as +- 0.05mm.
So I though it would be of interest to the readers to gain some insight into an area of horology they may know little about, the practical certification process, and to see a small sample of some of the parts and pieces that I had to make for my BHI exams.
First up a small clock part:
Here is what you get in raw form, some high carbon steel, and some brass
You are sent a drawing of the parts you need to make, here is what the raw materials were turned into:
Flame blued, love this colour
The brass rod
The various parts before assembly
And the results
Next up, a cock, plate, arbour, jewel, and screw.
As above you are sent raw material to work with.
Working on the cock first, holes drilled
Then, I mount it in the lathe and start turning it down
Making progress
More progress with the alignment dowels installed and more finishing
A view of the underside of the mounting plate
With the cock installed
Screw fabrication
Arbour fabrication
All the parts finished
Final assembly
These are only two examples of the many parts I had to make or repair by hand, there is much more fabricating required as you progress in the examinations. I Hope this sheds some light on an area of watchmaking that you don't see very often.
Thanks for reading.
There are a number of ways you can learn watchmaking, some require you to attend a school or college for a number of years (WOSTEP is a good example, 24 months of training) others have a program of self-study and do-it-at-home in your own time, and some require you to pass a set of exams in order to be certified.
I did a lot of research when I decided that I wanted to challenge myself and see if I had what it takes to become certified as a professional watchmaker.
First off,I made inquiries and visited a WOSTEP school here in France, but the thought of spending 30,000 euros on the course alone, then there was the living costs and the loss of an income for 2 years, when it was all added up, WOSTEP was not something I could justify or financially absorb. Next I looked at some of the watchmaker certification programs in other countries, and in one case what I came across was a joke, one organization required a few practical tests and had a sample exam, a sample of which I reviewed, and when I read the questions and my wife answered 8 our of 10 correctly, I knew they were not what I was looking for, so what to do?
Finally I came across the DLC program offered by the BHI, and the Certification Exams, and after a bit of research, realized that it was perfect for my requirements. The BHI Exam requirements are demanding, more so than a WOSTEP program in my opinion: the BHI requires servicing dozens of movements, numerous written essay type exams, portfolio watches, and fabricating numerous parts and pieces to tolerances as high as +- 0.05mm.
So I though it would be of interest to the readers to gain some insight into an area of horology they may know little about, the practical certification process, and to see a small sample of some of the parts and pieces that I had to make for my BHI exams.
First up a small clock part:
Here is what you get in raw form, some high carbon steel, and some brass
You are sent a drawing of the parts you need to make, here is what the raw materials were turned into:
Flame blued, love this colour
The brass rod
The various parts before assembly
And the results
Next up, a cock, plate, arbour, jewel, and screw.
As above you are sent raw material to work with.
Working on the cock first, holes drilled
Then, I mount it in the lathe and start turning it down
Making progress
More progress with the alignment dowels installed and more finishing
A view of the underside of the mounting plate
With the cock installed
Screw fabrication
Arbour fabrication
All the parts finished
Final assembly
These are only two examples of the many parts I had to make or repair by hand, there is much more fabricating required as you progress in the examinations. I Hope this sheds some light on an area of watchmaking that you don't see very often.
Thanks for reading.