21–30 of 113 posts
This reminds me actually a lot of Jiro Ono (famed sushi-maker). "Once you decide on your occupation, you must immerse yourself in your work. You have to fall in love with your work. Never complain about your job. You must dedicate your life to mastering your skill. That's the secret of success and is the key to being regarded honorably."
Sounds a lot like he was forcing himself to do the work in order to succeed and to be "regarded honorably".
It's great to see people like him and others like messersmiths such as Cut Brooklyn, swordsmakers, etc. continue the tradition of hand-made precision[1] products and doing it themselves rather than designing and then farming out the work to others or automating the process. It is, though, a kind of double edged sword. On the one hand they continue centuries-long traditions, on the other hand they get coöpted by hipst…
The watchmaker is selling his watches for between $45k and $250k and producing one a year on average so yes, he'll need rich customers. I suspect that there may be a different market in Japan though - perhaps older and more traditional people. Sooner or later he will need to take on an apprentice - it would be nice if he can start a school like that. You mentioned electronics, and the Japanese tradition of craftsmen…
Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's down. No need for the anti JavaScript task force here.
I remember at some point on HN those sorts of comments were reasonably well-voted, and now they litter the bottom of any thread they appear in. I wonder when that changed.
I don't like this either, and I personally run a javascript blocker (which makes the internet much more enjoyable, imho), but I absolutely recognize that this is not the optimal way to view the internet. I also use react on all of my frontends.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
The watchmaker is selling his watches for between $45k and $250k and producing one a year on average so yes, he'll need rich customers. I suspect that there may be a different market in Japan though - perhaps older and more traditional people. Sooner or later he will need to take on an apprentice - it would be nice if he can start a school like that. You mentioned electronics, and the Japanese tradition of craftsmen…
That is not that much of an income taking into the skill going into these watches. Wonder if he has to deal with much repairs and returns?
I'd imagine a 'return' would be a trip to the chap's house and personal attention until the watch was working properly. My old hand-assembled clockwork camera (a mass produced item compared to the mechanisms in the OA) has worked faultlessly for around 15 years. And I bought it second hand then.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Sounds a lot like he was forcing himself to do the work in order to succeed and to be "regarded honorably".
Do you interpret that as positive or negative?
Well... that's the first I've every heard of seasonal time. That's amazing. http://museum.seiko.co.jp/en/knowledge/wadokei/huteijihou/in...
"It should also be noted that in the middle ages the time of day was usually expressed as the part of the day or night that had passed. That is, sunrise was the beginning of the 1st hour of the day, noon was the end of the 6th hour and sunset was the end of the 12th hour of the day and the beginning of the 1st hour of the night. The length of the hour changed during the year with the amount of change depending on the latitude."[1]
It was the advent of mechanical clocks that regularised the hours. The difference was less the nearer to the equator your city was as well.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's down. No need for the anti JavaScript task force here.
I remember at some point on HN those sorts of comments were reasonably well-voted, and now they litter the bottom of any thread they appear in. I wonder when that changed.
Anyone know if there's a mirror somewhere? Hackernews' "Eye of Sauron" affect seems to have nobbled the site.
I've only seen the movies (and read the wiki too), so I could be wrong.
This reminds me actually a lot of Jiro Ono (famed sushi-maker). "Once you decide on your occupation, you must immerse yourself in your work. You have to fall in love with your work. Never complain about your job. You must dedicate your life to mastering your skill. That's the secret of success and is the key to being regarded honorably."
Sounds a lot like he was forcing himself to do the work in order to succeed and to be "regarded honorably".
Can't say that you can really tell what's on his mind.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
That is not that much of an income taking into the skill going into these watches. Wonder if he has to deal with much repairs and returns?
I agree that the income is (relatively) modest compared to the training time and skill level involved. I suspect that the income could grow organically in the future with apprentices &c. I'd imagine a 'return' would be a trip to the chap's house and personal attention until the watch was working properly. My old hand-assembled clockwork camera (a mass produced item compared to the mechanisms in the OA) has worked fau…
Also, I believe that even amongst the highest echelons of independent watchmakers, few are able to survive on their brand alone and rely heavily on either restoration work, work for larger more established brands, or a combination of the two. Even guys like Dufour and Voutilainen, two of the most respected independents in the watch world, partake in outside work for the big brands like Patek, VC, and AP.
If anyone is interested this is a post on a fairly recent visit to Beat Haldimann's workshop[1]. One of my favorite articles on these kinds of visits is from 2006 and involves a visit to the home/atelier of a former French kickboxing champion turned watchmaker[2].
[1]http://www.watchprosite.com/independents/a-true-discovery-my...
[2]http://www.watchprosite.com/richard-mille/alone-with-the-rm0...