Filing Squares

Today I finished polishing my files which allowed me to move on to the next project that required that to be complete.  The project is to take a length of steel rod, cut off an exact length and then file a exact square into the cylindrical metal.  A total of four were assigned for the next several days and as a testament to how difficult this technique was to perfect I was only able to complete one acceptable part in about six hours.  Now that I have the hang of it, I should be able to finish the last three tomorrow.

A shot of the finished polish on the files

A shot of the finished polish on the files

O, herro

A completed part, Tolerance .04mm

Files

Today I spent the better part of six hours trying to get a flawless mirror polish on the safe side of my finish file.  It's very close, but achieving a flawless surface is tricky. I'll give it a shot with diamond paste tomorrow and post the results.

Days 1-2

We received our toolkits on Monday and spent the first part of the day organizing our benches where we will be spending the next year.

First project: The filing block

For this project you need to take a piece of square hardwood stock which is appx. 24mm square and reduce it to 20mm square.  Then once this is accomplished you follow a blueprint and apply angles, grooves and slots to the piece.  It proved to be good filing and sawing experience. 

It took me a total of 3 tries to get a block that was passable and I could turn in.  In the end I think mine turned out quite well.  I guess I'll know when it is scored and returned.

A shot of my block in progress of being filed and sanded to size. 

A picture of the completed product. 

This is now a watch blog.

Greetings again everyone!  Since I last posted I have moved to Seattle to attend the Watch Technology Institute at North Seattle Community college.  It is a two year-long program that trains certified watchmakers.  I will be posting occasionally as I complete projects in class and acquire new skills.