After the CAD design part of the circuit and the watch case we move on to the CNC, next step: engrave the various parts.
The circuit
First I tried to engrave the clock circuit. Since the circuit is a dual layer I had to do several tests (at least 10) before I was able to create a working one.
The main problem was to perfectly align the two sides of the circuit so that the routes and holes for the components coincided on both sides. So I made 4 guide holes that would allow me to align the two sides of the circuit.
The material I used is a simple copper-plated base on both sides.
Another delicate phase was the creation of the holes for the components and routes. For these, I used a 0.4mm bit but on the first try something went wrong 🙈
This problem occurred for various reasons, in particular for some error in the CNC software but also having to turn the circuit to drill the other side added some complexity to the work.
So I had to start again and create a new one, but in the end my efforts paid off:
Now the last thing that remained was to coat the circuit with the solder mask in order to protect it.
In the end the circuit looked like this:
The case
After preparing the circuit, I started building the case. Also in this case I had to do it twice because the first time I had wrong the calculation of the depth levels due to my inexperience (in fact it is my first project with the CNC):
In any case, once the carving was finished, the case looked like this:
After testing that the case and the circuit matched, I sanded it with sandpaper, giving it a slightly prettier shape:
After testing that the case and the circuit matched, I sanded it with sandpaper, giving it a slightly prettier shape:
Finally I applied cooked linseed oil to protect the wood and give it a more beautiful look and color:
The strap
As mentioned above, the strap is the only part I made without the CNC because it would have taken too much time (and I had little – I have to work to improve the software).
In any case, at first I created two types of straps:
Then I chose the one in the photo on the right because some pieces of the other had wrong measurements and in any case I preferred it aesthetically.
To join the various components of the strap, I used a simple 0.6mm diameter iron wire.
To drill the various pieces I used a drill with a 0.6mm bit but it was a very delicate operation because the holes I had to make were very small and above all they had to be aligned. Obviously I got someone wrong but I had a lot of spare parts so it wasn’t a problem to replace them.
After making all the holes I dedicated myself to aesthetics: I sanded and beveled each part of the strap with sandpaper and finally assembled the various pieces. All this took me about a couple of days, but the result satisfied me:
Finally I added the clasp to the strap (I bought this 😂) and here is the final result:
And we have reached the grand finale !! 🎉🎉🎉
Now I just have to show you the assembly of the wooden structure with the electronic part!
Stay tuned 🎙️📣