La sua caratteristica sono quadranti interessanti, spesso di materiali molto belli.
Oggi è arrivata questa newsletter che vi riporto in estratto che racconta (da commercialone ovviamente) come fanno i quadranti e mi ha riacceso l'interesse.
Quanto ai modelli il mio preferito è il siege, ha una cassa interessante e delle bellissime colorazioni, ma in genere come vedrete dalle foto che ho preso dal sito sono super colorati, con un lume pazzesco e con un sacco di soluzioni visive eccessive:
How Exactly Do We Make Our Dials?
Hi there,
We hope this finds you well.
You wouldn't believe that it takes double the amount of time to create a Signum dial than it does to assemble an entire watch.
Today we are going to talk you through one of the most exciting facets of Signum, how our dials are made and why.
As you'll probably know, we went viral last year for our Lapis Coral & Blue Pietersite Lume dials which were absolutely stunning. Both of our dials made it through a 6-month development process, resulting in truly unique and beautiful timepieces.
Many people often ask how the raw materials for our dials are sourced and crafted...
Read on and we'll pull back the curtain on the Signum design & manufacturing process.
Step 1 – Sourcing
The first step we take when designing new dials is the design stage. We consider and explore multiple materials, from a wide range of stones, minerals, shells and bones that can be turned into watches.
Using our experience of minerals and stone dials, we tend to begin this process of material sourcing and choose from stones that are known for their striking color or light-reflective appearance. As there are so many to choose, we rely on suppliers to help us.
Once we've aligned on the search of the material of our choice, we conduct the sourcing process to obtain raw pieces. We figure out the logistics to ship the material to our factory, where it then goes through quality control to determine if it can be used.
This process can take weeks. Once the shipments are received, our partners will evaluate the shipment and determine the quality, separate the suitable ones and choose the best quality mineral to enter the production process.
Step 2 – Processing, Cutting & QC
Once a mineral has been chosen, it will enter a rather complex and meticulous manufacturing process.
Our manufacturing process starts by removing iron from the stones. If it's particularly dense like lapis, it means it is extremely fragile. This is where the meticulous attention to detail becomes critical to its durability. The difference is to ensure that what we're developing is structurally sound while making sure the stone material retains its natural appeal & striking color throughout the manufacturing process.
The next step is cutting the chosen raw materials into thin pieces. This is also where the most challenges occur, with the minerals breaking easily if you are not careful. Due to how fragile these dials can be during this process, it's very common for about 30% that can break or shatter during this part of the process, making it one of the most difficult parts of the manufacturing process.
After cutting, we need to hand select the pieces and move forward in the process – ensuring no chips or cracks exist in the dials. The damaged pieces usually do not move forward from this stage.
Step 3 – Drilling & Assembly
Once we have perfectly cut dials, we next begin open work and basic bezel fitting. This process ensures that the dials fit our case assembly before we continue onto the next step.
After sending out the new dials to our drilling station, workers start drilling holes to house the hand axes for the dial. We carefully take the dials, measure each one before we introduce it into the process to create uniform dials across dials.
After this, the holes and added window features, as well as the chapter rings, are fitted and fine-tuned so that each individual piece is ready for assembly into the watch.
Step 4 – The Final Piece!
The final product of the process is just as satisfying – stunning.
Embrace the dial and all its glory, like the Signum Coral Bronze. With a stunning mineral stone dial, this piece embodies craftsmanship.
With every piece we design, we strive to create a multi-faceted design that speaks to our ethos of creating a stronger connection to the natural world and meaningful watchmaking innovation.
We hope you enjoyed reading about our dial & manufacturing process!
i prezzi sono altini, ma sono molto belli. cosa ne dite?
