The Reason

The Vaucher calibers present on the site are examples from a manufacturing structure that has the capabilities to produce virtually every component of a calibre, and provide these products tailored to its customers requirements from 10 examples until many thousands.

Vaucher has between 30-40 clients, including some of the most famous houses in the watch industry. During 2017 they produced over fifteen thousand calibers. Their capacity of production is thirty five thousand pieces per year.

Each caliber developed at Vaucher manufacture costs up to five million Swiss francs to develop and takes between three to five years depending on complexity.

Functions Self-winding - 3 hands - date Main dimensions (Diameter 25.60 - 26.20 mm)
Thickness of 3.7 mm. Power reserve (double barrel) 50h. Number of components 189. Jewels 28. Frequency 4 Hz (28’800. A/h). Type of balance Variable inertia with gold inertia blocks. Balance-spring Flat. Oscillating weight Tungsten. Oscillating weight winding direction Single direction, in anti-clockwise sense of the weight, viewing from the dial side.

The automatic rotor

Close up of ball race showing the ceramic balls

The ball race is crimped/riveted into the rotor body

Underside of the rotor showing the drive pinion for the automatic mechanism

The movement with the rotor, balance cock and balance removed.

The complete balance and balance cock assembly

The balance is free sprung. The timing is adjusted by moving the maslots (semi-circular pieces) on the balance arms. Avoiding a conventional index.

The stud holding the balance is held in place by a single lateral screw

Full view of the underside of the balance cock and balance

The balance spring is held into the stud by a resin which is solid and avoids any deformation of the spring

The small milling in the underside of the balance is made by machine when the balance is being poised.

The top surface of the bridges are finished with Geneva stripes, the lower with a snailing effect. The engraving is executed at the same time as the bridge is machined.

The screw in the centre of the bridge is linked to the setting lever and is unscrewed by less than a turn to allow the stem to be removed.

The lower screw locks the dials foot in place. To its right is the location for the movement clamp which hold the movement in the case.

The screw with 3 slots is linked to the winding mechanism. The three slots indicate that to unscrew it, it has a left hand thread.

The small vertical pin is linked to the setting and touches the balance when the watch is set so as to set the seconds hand.

The Swiss lever/pallets and pallet cock

Train bridge removed showing the wheels

Profile close up of wheels in place

All pivots are burnished after having been turned, which ensure the surfaces are hard and mirror finished

Wheels removed

All wheels except the escapewheel which is polished are circular grained on both sides

The barrel bridge which holds in place the two barrels

Underside of the barrel bridge with the two winding pinions in place

The rotor is held in place by 3 screws around the centre seconds jewel.

The movement with the bridges removed and the barrels and wheels in place

The winding wheels for the barrels

A barrel with its driving wheel partially removed

The driving wheel for the barrel in place

The winding wheel for the automatic which in one direction blocks for the rotor to wind the barrels and when manually wound allows the barrels to be wound with out damage to the automatic mechanism

The underside of the winding wheel showing the second ratchet wheel and driving pinion

Wheels and bridges removed, calendar disc visible through mainplate

The automatic train bridge

Underside of the automatic train bridge

Profile view of the movement with the rotor weight removed. The step is to allow room for the rotor weight.

The locating pawl and its spring which locate the calendar disc

The steel click acts on the raw metal of the calendar disc avoiding potential residue being produced

The calendar mechanism with rapid date change

The surfaces which are not functional are finished by spotting (pearlage)

The triangular piece pushes the calendar disc around when the what is in rapid date change position

The date disc sits in the main plate to allow the dial to avoid touching it when assembled

An intermediate setting wheel

Exploded view of the bridge side of the movement

The films shown below are from Vaucher's website and provide extra details into each calibre as well as their system CLA for final quality control of assembled watches.

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You can learn more about Vaucher Manufacture Fleurier at www.vauchermanufacture.ch

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