Components › Movement › Winding mechanism & time setting

THE WINDING PINION

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1. General description

The winding pinion is made of Steel and has two perpendicularly cut sets of teeth. It belongs exclusively to the Winding mechanism. Its axis is pierced by a hole that allows it to freely adjust to the winding stem.

When the Crown (de facto the Winding stem) is pushed (against the Case), the Lever / Rocker presses the Sliding pinion against the Winding pinion. By turning the Winding stem, the Sliding pinion is driven by the square of the Winding stem. In its rotation, the Sliding pinion drives the Winding pinion through their common Breguet toothing (unidirectional disengaging). Because of this toothing, the driving of the Winding pinion only occurs in one direction of rotation of the Winding stem. In the other direction, it disengages, preventing the Train (wheel train) from turning backwards and from forcing on (breaking) the Click of the Winding.

Once driven by the Sliding pinion, the Winding pinion drives, through its second toothing, the Crown wheel positioned above or below the Bridge of Barrel on a perpendicular Axis.

Figure 1

Diagram of a Winding pinion

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Figure 2

Kinematics of the Winding mechanism

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2. History

The invention of the Winding pinion can be attributed to Adrien Philippe in 1842 when he filed the patent for the first pendant winder that did not require a Key. As the mechanism was not yet combined with the time-setting mechanism, the winding pinion was then directly driven by the winding stem and had a single toothing meshing with the crown wheel. It was in 1847, with Antoine Le Coultre’s invention of the lever winding (and setting) mechanism, that the winding pinion took on its current form and acquired its characteristic double toothing.

3. Handcrafted manufacture of a winding pinion

A lathe is enough to fully manufacture the winding pinion. Very little turning is needed. Both toothings can be cut on the same lathe using an offset milling cutter and a dividing plate. The finishing and the polishing can also be done using the lathe.

4. Industrial production of a winding pinion

As with most small-diameter circular components, the Automatic lathe is the ideal machine for producing winding pinions in any quantity. It is thus possible to carry out all the operations (turning, cutting) quickly and in a single cycle. Whatever quality is desired, machining a winding pinion using this method will only take a few minutes.