DEPLOYANT – Luxury watch reviews & horological lifestyles – Luxury watch reviews & horological lifestyles
We were invited to visit Franck Muller Group’s dial factory, the Arnold Linder SA, in Les Bois, Switzerland. A rare occasion like this could not be missed. We started our essay with how the dials are mounted and finished. We continued with de dial lacquering decoration and mechanical operation like stamping or milling. The first part of our article is available here: Inside Franck Muller’s Dial Factory – Manufacture de Cadrans Soignés Part 1.
Doing Numbers, Logos and others
The numerals are produced using a cut-out process or by milling, depending on the design. Most dial specialists buy these from more specialised producers. But here in Franck Muller, they make the appliques in-house.
Arabic numerals “in between” processing: the numbers are cut, the burrs are removed, electroplated and then fixed on the dial and lacquer filled. Depending on the dial’s model, the steps could be different
Some of the numerals are gold electroplated. Depending on the model, the numerals types and finish can differ.
Despite the black&white look, this is a colour picture of the rhodium plated numerals. The numbers are held together by the back pins.
After the numerals and decoration are manufactured, the batch is sent to be mounted on the dials. For the electroplated numerals like the ones in the pictures above, this will be the final step.
Dials and numerals: dials waiting for the “12”, “1” and “7” to be mounted along finished dials. Image from a workbench.
The logos are done in the same way.
The Franck Muller logo: the technical specification in a red vinyl folder and the finished piece.
It all stands in the pins
I have several times mentioned, that the components need pins. For handling or for fixation, the pins are essential in the birth of the dial. We saw earlier that the metal dials are cut from a flat piece of metal.
Brass disks after pin soldering
Except for the ones from the mother of pearl dials, all the pins are soldered. There are two methods used. The most complex one involves placing the dial in its support, manual feeding of the pins (place and fix them) in the carrier and then electrical welding. It’s a simple but extremely monotonous process.
The second variant is an almost fully automatic tool: the dial is placed on the support and the machine supplies and solder the pins solely. The operator intervention is just for placing and removing the dial and check the feeding system.
The automatic fed pin soldering machine. It has the advantage of speed in soldering the pins from the back of the brass dial.
Inside the “typography”
Since the dials are 100% in-house, all the dial elements including the printing are done at the dial factory. The printing includes numerals, indexes, decoration, the name of the brand and, of course, the “Swiss made”. The dial factory takes big pride in their 100% Swiss made products.
Different types of printing and printed dials
The printing, just like in the lacquering department, requires a lot of skills and patience. Even if the surfaces are […]
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Article from: DEPLOYANT – Luxury watch reviews & horological lifestyles, by Dan-Andrei Kluska
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