A Dictionary of Occupational Terms Based on the Classification of Occupations used in the Census of Population, 1921.
ORDER X.—MAKERS OF WATCHES, CLOCKS AND SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTS
324.—Watch and Clock Movement Makers
Back to List of Occupational Codes
- arbor maker
- makes on semi-automatic machine or on lathe, hollow spindles or cranks used in watch and clock making.
- balance maker, rim balance maker, compensation balance maker
- turns and polishes on a small lathe, from blanks, balance wheels of clocks and watches; drills rims to take screws and fits screws to balance wheels.
- balance screw maker
- makes, in precision lathe and automatic device, steel or brass screws used in balances of clock and watch work.
- balance spring maker
- makes, winds and forms, from bulk lengths, fine springs used on balances of clocks and watches; coils up on special contrivance, by hand, coil springs of balances.
- barrel maker, barrel and fuzee maker
- makes brass cylinder cases, in which main springs of watches and clocks are housed, by stamping in power presses or by turning in lathe, orby a combination of these operations.
- bolt maker, bolt and joint maker
; watch motioner
- turns, in automatic lathe, bolts or pins used in clock and watch making.
- boxer-in
- attaches keyless movement to case, using small hand tools, and corrects badly fitting parts; cf. keyless motioner, keyless work maker.
- bridge maker
- stamps or presses from sheet brass, or cuts from bar into required form, bridges used in clock and watch making.
- cap maker
- stamps or presses from sheet metal, caps used in watch and clock making by means of hand press; fits dies in press, positions sheet metal, operates press by lever, and removes stamped caps.
- chronometer escapement maker
- an escapement maker (q.v.) making escapements for chronometers.
- chronometer movement maker
- a clock movement maker, or a watch movement maker (q.v.) who specialises in making movements of chronometers, from stamped or pressed blanks, by means of files and other small hand tools and watchmaker's lathe.
- click maker
- see detent maker.
- clock chain-maker
- makes up chains for use in clocks, by forming links, assembling them and brazing them.
- clock material maker, clock movement maker
; movement maker
- stamps, cuts, or turns parts of clocks in a press, on a lathe, or on a wheelcutting machine.
- cock maker
- makes bridges for balances or pallets of watches and clocks; work usually done by movement maker (q.v.).
- cog maker
- see wheel cutter.
- detent maker, chronometer detent maker
; click maker
- makes detents actuating on ratchets, for maintaining power during winding of chronometer or fuzee clocks and watches; files detent from solid steel and screws fine gold spring thereon.
- dial maker, enamel
- as for dial maker.
- dial maker, dial plate maker
- cuts dials of watches or clocks from sheet metal, brass, gold, silver, etc., by press or guillotine, after which dial is engraved by dial engraver (283) (q.v.); fits "legs," i.e brass lugs at edge which secure dial plate to frame-work of clock; sometimes specifically designated, e.g., gold dial maker, silver dial maker.
- escapement maker
- makes escapement of watches or clocks; stamps-out wheel, by means of hand press, from blanks, and cuts-out teeth by means of revolving sapphire cutter; bores wheel in centre; stamps-out pallet and lever and bores lever, cf. pallet maker; turns roller on lathe, and pierces it for prepulse pin, mills-out metal crescent and polishes it on lathe; cf. escapement matcher, escapement pitcher.
- escapement matcher
- machine watch making, matches wheel and pallet, also lever and roller, to fit watch so that it functions correctly, cf. escapement maker, escapement pitcher.
- escapement pitcher
- fixes wheel and pallet on arbor, cf. arbor maker, also roller and lever; adjusts correct depth by means of depthing tool and inscribes positions of above parts on pillar plate of movement; "banks" parts in position by drilling holes and fitting banking pins in pillar plate; cf. escapement maker, escapement matcher.
- escape wheel cutter
- a wheel cutter (q.v.) engaged in cutting escape fits and adjusts lenses.
- first half doer and pivotter
- see pivot maker.
- frame maker
- makes frames for support of movements in watches, clocks, etc.; stamps-out top plate by means of hand press, drills pillar holes on treadle lathe, turns sink for band; stamps-out pillar plate, turns sink for wheels, and drills holes for screws; fits screws in pillars to both plates, and fits a top plate and a pillar plate together loosely.
- fuzee arbor maker, fuzee cutter, fuzee maker, fuzee top maker
- makes, on a lathe, sometimes from castings, part of chronometers known as fuzee arbor, i.e., spirally stepped wheel, mounted on an arbor, cf. arbor maker, designed to equalise pull of mainspring, which is wound round; obsolete in watch and clock trade.
- fuzee chain cutter
- cuts stock lengths of wire into suitable sizes with wire cutting hand tool, for fuzee chains of time mechanisms, cf. fuzee arbor maker.
- fuzee chain finisher
- finishes and prepares ends of fuzee chains, with hand tools, in readiness for insertion into movements.
- fuzee chain hook maker
; fuzee chain wire pointer
- makes hooks of special pattern to be attached to ends of fuzee chains; takes stock lengths of wire, shapes with hand tools and points ends in lathe.
- fuzee chain link maker, fuzee chain maker, fuzee chain riveter
- makes links, by stamping on press; assembles and rivets them into chain lengths to form fuzee chains used in time movements.
- fuzee chain wire pointer
- see fuzee chain hook maker.
- hander
- fits hands, hour and minute wheels and cannon pinions to movement, using small hand tools.
- hand maker, watch hand maker
- stamps hands of watches or clocks from sheet metal, in fly or power press and dresses and cleans them by polishing and by blueing or lacquering.
- index maker
- see regulator maker.
- jewel hole maker
- drills holes in which jewels are set to act as bearings in watches or clocks, using jigs and precision tools.
- jewel setter
; roller pin maker, ruby pin maker, watch jeweller, setter
- sets and mounts jewels used as pivots in watch or clock making; selects suitable jewel; often cuts from rough and polishes it, by means of small treadle lathe, cuts suitable hole in metal bed of watch, leaving a small overhanging edge; inserts jewel, and bends over edge to retain jewel in position.
- keyless adjuster
- adjusts, with small hand tools, bars and sleeves to cases for negative set watches, i.e., requiring withdrawal of winder for setting; fits bar attached to winding knob, by filing, and similarly fits and adjusts sleeves, i.e., parts holding winder in position.
- keyless button maker
- forms, by stamping or turning in special machines, corrugated winding buttons of keyless watches; turns brass foundation and drills hole through on a lathe; turns fluted portion on a knurling machine, and sweats it on brass foundation.
- keyless motioner, keyless work assembler
- screws work of keyless watches on to movement and adjusts, with hand tools, the depths, i.e., distances of parts from upper, or pillar, plates; cf. boxer-in, keyless work maker.
- keyless work maker
- cuts keyless wheels, winding pinion and rocking bar for keyless watches on either power-driven or foot lathe; sometimes also does work of boxer-in and of keyless motioner (q.v.).
- lever and roller maker, lever escapement maker
- see pallet maker.
- mainspring maker
; spring maker
- (i) attends machine making clock springs; feeding strip steel into machine;
- (ii) makes main springs for clocks in small lots by hand, placing several thicknesses together and winding them into a tight coil on a small lathe; heats coil after winding and hardens spring in oil.
- motioner
- makes and fits, by means of file and hand drill, joint to movement, and fits bolt in watch where movement can be swung-out on joint clear of case.
- motion maker
- makes the toothed wheels, directly controlling minute and hour hands, by stamping in press or by cutting in a wheel cutting machine.
- movement maker (clock making)
- see clock material maker.
- movement maker (watch making), watch movement maker
- general terms for arbor maker, barrel maker, bridge maker, cock maker, detent maker, frame maker, etc. (q.v.); the same worker may be engaged in making more than one of the articles named.
- pallet maker
; lever escapement maker, lever and roller maker
- makes pallets, i.e., part of escapement of watches or clocks conveying impulse from train wheel to balance or pendulum; presses-out steel pallet by means of hand press; slots it to take jewels, using circular cutting machine; fits rough jewels and polishes surface to correct shape and depth to suit mounting of pallet.
- pendulum spring maker
- cuts, drills and prepares from strip steel or brass, on lathe or on special cutting and drilling machines, springs used in suspension of pendulums; cf. mainspring maker.
- pillar maker
- turns from brass or steel rod, in lathe or automatic machine, distance pieces or pillars used in framing of timing movements.
- pinion maker
- makes pinion wheels used in watches, clocks, etc.; inserts length of steel in automatic lathe, when cutting tool automatically traverses steel and shapes pinion- hardens and tempers shaped steel, and polishes it on revolving wooden disc.
- pinion pivotter
- see pivot maker.
- pin maker
- cuts, from wire, with hand cutting tool, and prepares, pins used in frames of watches, clocks, etc., by pointing them in a lathe; normally done by watch maker (323) (q.v.).
- pivot maker, pivotter
; first half doer and pivotter, pinion pivotter
- turns points, or "pivots," on spindle, or "pinion," of centre, third and fourth wheels of watch, on a lathe, and adjusts, by means of small hand tools, barrel of watch, i.e., makes it work freely upon its own arbor, cf. arbor maker, and to fit the mainspring; engaged only on hand made watches.
- ratchet maker
- see spring and click maker.
- regulator maker
; index maker
- makes, by stamping in band or machine press, from sheet metal, pointers which engage with balance springs for regulation purposes.
- roller pin maker, ruby pin maker
- see jewel setter.
- seconds hands maker
- a hand maker (q.v.) engaged in making second hands.
- setter
- see jewel setter.
- spring and click maker
; ratchet maker
- stamps and presses springs by hand, fly or machine press, from sheet steel and hardens them by heating and then immersing in oil; also makes clicks, used as stop ratchets in spring winding, in same way; sometimes done by watch maker (323) (q.v.).
- spring maker
- see main spring maker.
- verge maker
- makes, by hand, old fashioned escapement movements of verge watches; obsolescent.
- watch and clock material maker
- as for clock material maker, and movement maker.
- watch jeweller
- see jewel setter.
- watch motioner
- see bolt maker.
- wheel cutter, wheel maker
; cog maker
- (i) drills hole in centre of wheel blank in drilling machine; fits blank on pinion in wheel cutting machine, sets cutters and arranges gears of machine according to number of teeth to be out; controls machine by levers and watches for any faulty work;
- (ii) attends and feeds with blanks an automatic machine making one class of wheel only.
- wheel mounter
- fits wheels to pinions and rivets them on.
Back to List of Occupational Codes
From:
A Dictionary of Occupational Terms Based on the Classification of Occupations used in the Census of Population, 1921,
Ministry of Labour, 1927. Digitised by Peter Christian, August, 2016. This text is in the Public Domain. 