Making Aerogel
The price for a slice of aerogel from BuyAerogel.com suddenly seems very, very reasonable.
Micro RC Smart Car
This is an impressive hand-built, small-scale mod—right down to fully functional steering and lighting.
Fun fact, the "smart" in Smart Car is a quasi-acronym for Swatch Mercedes ART. The watchmaker, Swatch, and car maker, Mercedes, worked together on the initial prototypes for the original Smart Car. When Mercedes chose not to continue pursuing making the vehicle electric and opted to go all-in on scaling up production for a gasoline-powered version instead, Nicholas G. Hayek Sr. pulled Swatch out of the project.
Tiny
I've had the Jaeger-LeCoultre caliber 101 set up as an ebay alert for over a decade, in hopes of acquiring one to perform an in-depth disassembly and review at some point. Today is the first time a complete movement has popped up, albeit in a fully functional watch. While justifiable for what it is, $10,000 CAD is too steep to rationalize spending simply to take it to pieces. For now, here's a candid picture of what once was—and may very well still be—the smallest mechanical watch movement ever mass produced.
Image from ebay listing
Millionomètre
The millionometer, from the French millionomètre, was developed in the watchmaking facilities of the Le Coultre brothers, Antoine and Ulysse Le Coultre, in 1844. Half a decade later, the two would part ways, Antoine LeCoultre agreeing to take on the company's debts and Ulysse setting out to establish a new company.
The millionometer is the earliest known instrument able to measure at the micron scale (one millionth of a meter, or thousandth of a mm). Only two are known to have been produced by the Le Coultre brothers. The one pictured above being the smaller of the pair, now owned by Jean-Maurice Le Coultre and on display at the Espace Horloger in the Vallée de Joux.
Bref, voilà un domaine qui reste un peu dans l’ombre pour offrir toute la gloire aux belles montres que l’on n’aurait jamais pu construire sans ces instruments de mesure si discrets.
To paraphrase, precise tools, despite being critical to the craft, remain in the shadow of the glory of all of the beautiful watches that could never have been built without these discreet measuring instruments.
Image credit Georges Monnier
Movement Design as an Exercise in Artistry
Delightful perspective from Jack Forster on the often unsung hero of truly fine watchmaking, opened with some equally excellent perspective, in cameo form, from John Davis.
Coincidentally, had this article been published prior to today, the MRE reference would have flown right over my head. Not being American and having never served in any military capacity, I was oblivious to the existence of Meal, Ready-to-Eat (MRE) kits, which are standard fare for troops serving in the field, until reading about them in Catherine Price's Vitamania this morning. Engineered to be as lightweight and durable as possible while still delivering the full array of nutrients and energy a soldier needs to perform at peak capacity for a sustained period, they're an apropos comparison to the austere, workhorse movements that power the vast majority of mechanical timepieces.
