AMAZING Machine Shop Tour: Nicholas Hacko Watchmaker!

Nicholas Hacko Watchmaker Machine Shop Tour! I love being surprised by the unexpected. In Sydney, Australia an unassuming building houses an amazing story AND amazing machines: a Makino wire EDM, a Kern 5-axis CNC Mill, and a Citizen Swiss Lathe! If you ask me, that's a GREAT start.
After having their own watchmaking brand for several years, they are branching out into precision watchmaking & manufacturing! Join me to see how these guys are tooling up!
Nicholas Hacko Insta | bit.ly/2Kwo2hK
Nicholas Hacko Blog | bit.ly/2wPznaB
Nicholas Hacko Website | bit.ly/2IoCpIl
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[@nickvk1aa450]

When John surprisingly showed up in Sydney we could not believe our eyes - NYC CNC has a massive following in Australia and we absolutely love his videos. Meeting him was a real pleasure - John is down to earth, genuine, enthusiastic young man and an asset to CNC community. The video he took in our workshop is completely unscripted, filmed in one go. Thank you mate and I hope we'll see you again in Sydney. A quick intro to the video: 18 months ago our workshop was just an empty storage facility. Our plan was to go slowly and acquire 1 CNC machine annually, learn slowly, and take our time. However, we got really excited and ended up with 4 machines in less than a year which are now imported, tooled, setup and running. The entire workshop is run by 20 year old Josh, assisted by Andrew (who only joined us a few months ago as an apprentice). Two of them do everything from design, tooling, CAD / CAM , coding to actually running the machines. Every single piece of equipment, tool and raw material you see in this video is imported into Australia which in itself is a major logistical challenge, but we are very proud that we are starting an entire industry so far away from US/Europe/Japan. Our ultimate goal is to become an educational facility and train young Australian kids in the art of watchmaking. A lifetime journey! For any young person out there interested in CNC : keep the dream alive, keep working hard, keep learning and keep making the world better place .

[@alphgeek]

Nick it's great to see what you're doing, thanks for letting us have a look into your workshop. Fantastic to see some advanced manufacturing still happening in Australia. Your workshop and equipment are amazing - I'm envious, with "only" a Tormach and manual lathe in my little garage shop down here in Geelong. Those lads really know their stuff, I was surprised to hear Josh is just 20! If/when you get classes up and running I'd love to learn about watchmaking, even if I don't qualify as a young kid any more :)

[@nyccnc]

Thanks again for hosting us and for the kind words. Keep doing what you're doing!

[@ScottMoyse]

Thanks heaps to Nick & Josh!

[@danielvia8705]

I see a call sign. 73's from KC8SIR. Great video and nice shop!

[@nickvk1aa450]

Daniel Via 73 mate!

[@KernMicrotechnikGmbH]

Amazing indeed! We wish you a lot of succes with the KERN Pyramid Nano!

[@chestervaldes7551]

This video makes me feel like I need to clean my shop!

[@ryanmarsh9623]

Out of all the shop tours this was by far the most intriguing one. Sounds like the young man has a bright future and can’t wait to see the products they produce.

[@ArikaStack]

I feel rather insignificant for being able to hold +-.001 on a TL1 lathe and VF3 now. Great work guys. Shops like this and machinists like this are people who I look up to.

[@bugrobotics]

Kern...hydrostatic ways...drooling

[@bostedtap8399]

Bug Robotics , I think KERN started off making theodolites, they still do, I assume it is the same company. Yes, very impressive, probably has heated ways and through warm up sequence.

[@Machine_NZ]

Wow, wow, wow... John, thanks for an excellent video. I'm absolutely fascinated by the machines and their accuracy. The mind boggles!. I can't believe this guy is only 20 years old. Regards Kevin MachineNZ (New Zealand)

[@keilwerth04038]

I watched half and had to pause to comment. Best video I've seen in my life. Fascinating. I would move to Australia to work for them. Thanks for shooting this!

[@Factory400]

"More accurate than shrink fit....." Lots of talk about microns. Seriously awesome.

[@greg2337]

I love the bored wife on her phone. Yvonne is a saint!

[@parentevan]

Evonne looks thrilled to be there! She's a trooper.

[@aquilifergroup]

LOL

[@jimrummy1300]

I love this video John! Thank you so much for doing these tours, especially to Aus. It's wonderful to see :) This is awesome motivation for all of us (especially us Australian) manufacturers. You're a legend!

[@ScottMoyse]

Awesome! I learnt a lot about Wire EDM in that video. Thanks heaps.

[@tacitus101010]

Great tour and a great video! Josh seems like such a chill guy. Looking forward to seeing more from them!

[@KeithDDowning]

Thanks for the tour John, that was great. I'm a watch collector, so that was very interesting.

[@nder12345]

yes thanks John. Been waiting for this one for awhile.

[@CurtVanFilipowski]

Was so excited for this tour when you mentioned it on the podcast! Thanks for sharing, watchmaking was a big reason I jumped into the machining world, terrifyingly awesome machines!

[@routercnc9517]

Great tour John thank you. Well done to your wife too for being so patient! If we are away I usually get dropped off (at a museum or whatever) while she goes shopping.

[@paulsteele6120]

What magnificent toys to play with.

[@jcurran2414]

Another Fascinating Vid. Thanks John and the people at Hacko.

[@MekazaBitrusty]

We make watches in Australia? Wow! I’m going to go look at buying one. So rare to see stuff made here.

[@skirmishgla]

Wonderful episode. Guy is so young but knows his kitchen extremely well, I am genuinely impressed. As an European also loved the metric episode :)

[@thiagoennes]

man, i am loving this series! keep going!

[@bobdickweed]

Great tour and info ...Thanks for sharing

[@SteamDriven]

Simply brilliant !

[@SpencerWebb]

Glad I could watch.

[@jasoncy31]

Wow! Really cool video. Thanks! I learned a lot. Never seen an EDM machine before.

[@mattym8]

Thumbs up before the video even started. Now let's watch this thing.

[@bcbloc02]

Cute little super detailed machines!

[@Eggsr2bcrushed]

Beautiful!

[@arnljotseem8794]

Awesome Nicholas. Your're living my dream....

[@bostedtap8399]

H6 tolerance collets, compare that to spindle run out of tool room mill/CNC. Very impressed with all/watch manufacture, look up h7 tolerance for ≤3.00 mm. Nice and very interesting video, many thanks for showing this.

[@robertevans6481]

Fascinating...great video as well

[@MrJugsstein]

Very cool. Im in Sydney so will be checking them out.

[@OrangeViseCompany]

Just read the article on the Hacko family in the Feb 2019 issue of MMS. Awesome shop, and Josh appears to be a talented individual steering the family business in the right direction.

[@chichcnc]

NYCCNC Down Under! Welcome to the world's largest island nation. Hope you enjoy your stay.

[@KK10155]

I have a feeling if these guys and clickspring join forces they could do some serious damage to the watch industry

[@Glockenstein0869]

Nope. Most watch collectors will only buy swiss. For better or for worse, that does not appear to be changing. The swiss companies survived the 'quartz crisis' and only got stronger. I have no doubt this company will sell watches. But let's see if they are still around in 20 years.

[@MasterWatchmaker]

@@Glockenstein0869 It's been 4 years since this video is recorded - and yes, we still make watches. We have also expended the workshop, added a few more machines (grinding, micro blasting, micro polishing) and just placed an order for the latest KERN 5 axis milling machine. See you in 2038!

[@Brunomills]

Very Nice machinery and organisation! I had the opportunity to interview for a job with them, regret taking another job instead. Specially now that I've become heavily interest in time pieces.

[@epipht]

Just awesome!

[@marcosmenescal2962]

Very nice, congrats! I wish you guys all the best.

[@drummerhammar]

Amazing....I love mechanical watches. Thanks!!

[@TheMixmastamike1000]

best tour in my opinion

[@TheMixmastamike1000]

well the starrett factory tour is a runner up

[@sub05nambiar]

A million dollar investment in just 2 machine. Would really go Nd work for these people. Toolmaking is not dead in Australia

[@gotuxy]

Yay! Metric baby! :)

[@BrilliantDesignOnline]

Wow, wow, wow.

[@Isaac-jt4rt]

Its intriguing to see the AF90. I have had the privilege to setup and operate one

[@AlexLancashirePersonalView]

He deserves to succeed . Amazing machines. I would uy one of his watches.

[@markissboi3583]

straya mate! Sidaneey 2019- just found this👍👨‍💻👉🤪( that worldcup guy) Nicholas Hacko Watchmaker Machine Shop Tour dam techporn in oz straya 🐨📈 welcome John NYC-CNC UR THE MAN BRO! we all luv your TechPorn shows👩‍⚕️👨‍⚖️ i just found NYC 2 months ago ? and on it 24/7 watch all i can 🐨👍

[@Antony_blr]

Hello John, you got an awesome host there. Great video, Cheers!

[@Stephen1455]

Minute 16.27 Old Moore jig grinder, yes I ran one and it had a thermometer in the quill, I persuaded my employer to build a separate room and have climate control, it worked I loved that job!!!!

[@glenralph5123]

STRAYA!

[@PhaseConverterampV]

Um....my phone has a clock on it. I guess mechanical watches are for the a certain type of super stud. Thanks for the tour, amazing nc machines. Hope you do well.

[@joshuaorange8290]

Really cool stuff, even if it was mostly over my head.

[@paddyflake]

Only about a year later Grimsmo has a Tornos lathe and even a 5-axis Kern machine. Only the EDM machine is still missing 😉

[@davidmacglashan4206]

Welcome to Australia Mate, assuming your still here. What brings you down under? Love the videos.

[@titter3648]

I was thinking Hakko soldering stations when i heard the name Hacko...

[@OriginalJetForMe]

#goals

[@garrettbingham3071]

Pyno is by far the most accurate machine I've ran from kern. And I've operated all sorts of kerns.

[@markissboi3583]

THE FACTORY LOOKS CLEAN 👍 BUT HOW MANY DROP BEARS OUTSIDE ? 🐨🤪

[@mikehorrod4367]

John, if you are ever in Japan please let me know. I can hook you up with some Japanese companies for some shop tours. I was at the DMG Mori open house last week. You would of loved it.

[@Thefreakyfreek]

finally system conversionon screen can you do the same but than the other way around so us metrik guys dont have to pauze the video to convert to metrick

[@pramponi]

Where was Nick? I've been following this project for years.

[@Rimrock300]

That's pretty large investments in machinery there for a small company in the start up phase. I would likely have had screws, at least, made by someone which specialize in that field like Laubscher in Switzerland. I don't quite get it, investing in that Citizen machine, that likely can manufacture all screws they need for a year, in 1 day?

[@ExtantFrodo2]

Wire EDM is planar, but the work can be moved to any angle. You could for instance make beveled gears with EDM. Still, EDM is not limited to wire EDM. As long as there is means to flush out waste material you could emboss a logo into a surface. It's quite an amazing bit of tech. No good shop should be without one.

[@CaskStrength777]

That's what ram/diesinking EDM is for. I spent 2 years running those making aerospace and medical titanium forging dies, but I'm also a trained watchmaker. I went to school for it for 2 years. These guys are basically using my exact dream equipment- specifically the Pyramid Nano mill. I would kill to work on any of this, I know Heidenhein and a lot of this. Their movement looks to be a clone of the common ETA 6497 caliber so many brands modify, or many school watches in the US are made from. If I hit the lottery- I'd be doing exactly what they are doing without pay for fun.

[@ExtantFrodo2]

@@CaskStrength777 ...and I'm envious of your experience. The grass really IS greener on the other side!

[@mannycalavera121]

Hey if you guys want an adult apprentice with experience in Esprit, HSM, Fusion 360 and Heidenhain 5 axis work HMU lol

[@tonerduckpin]

How much did the air fare cost?

[@ingmarm8858]

I'm guessing you are no longer here? (Australia)

[@Cerv3ra]

AUSTRAILIA MATEEE

[@dennyskerb4992]

My edm is a Victor 100

[@ayatotakema1194]

What is the name of that tourquise cnc it is a seismens ir a gear somthing

[@carbonfibercreationswashin7213]

I dislike the sound frequencies edm's make. I use to do work edm'ing .001" holes in cobalt and nickel alloys. Well anywhere from .001 up to .040"

[@martinjones6694]

Woohoo... i loved every part of this video... but the cherry on the top was quoting measurments in metric and having to put the imperial measurments on screen... I really dont get why america sticks to imperial measuments in engineering. Can anyone explain why?

[@localele1]

They have had the metric system for years but are still getting used to it. "In 1875 the United States solidified its commitment to the development of the internationally recognized metric system by becoming one of the original seventeen signatory nations to the Metre Convention, also known as the Treaty of the Metre. The signing of this international agreement concluded five years of meetings in which the metric system was reformulated, refining the accuracy of its standards."

[@martinjones6694]

Micheal Connor - yeah... but no bugger uses in in USA. 😁 every engineering video i watch i am doing approxamate conversions...

[@jnelson4765]

Lots of existing tooling - aerospace for a long time has been imperial specs, and a lot of the hydraulic and mechanical parts have only been in imperial nominal sizes. Automotive has almost completely gone over to metric, outside of some heavy vehicle systems (air and hydraulics) and people are getting more used to it, but all of our sheet, bar, and tube stock is imperial nominal sizes, and things like building codes and safety specs are also in imperial. Used to do bus and coach body work, and I had a metric set of tape measures and scales for the Mexican-designed buses and imperial for the US-designed ones.

[@martinjones6694]

I remember a story from Airbus while developing the A380. They had sent details to a manufacturer in the USA to make a electrical connector. all the measurements were in metric, but the bloke who was given the part to fabricate the sample converted to imperial.The part cost several thousand Dollars, and was only about 60cm long. Needless to say, when it arrived back in France to and they went to connect it up, it just did not fit. Not only did the pins not mate up, but it was too short.. When they found out what had happened, the engineer used a basic 25mm per inch. It may have stood a chance if he used 25.4mm They had to re-make it.....

[@sp1nrx]

Here's a little thought: all the legal descriptions of real estate, properties, contracts and more are based on the Imperial system going back to the foundation of the country. The money needed to resurvey, convert and otherwise rewrite all this would be enormous. Let's make a deal... we'll change to metric when the rest of the ex-British empire and Japan start driving on the other side of the road!😉

[@DutchClawz]

laminar flow? Somewhere on earth Dustin from smarter every day just turned his head in the direction of Sydney

[@ethanmye-rs]

Why not avoid the burnishing and use a jeweled bearing?

[@EmmaRitson]

a jewelled bearing still needs to be burnished? jewelled pivots dont like to be dropped much.

[@benjaminburtle1107]

Man... Can't imagine the payments. How?

[@tomkeating65]

Interesting enough. Pure water doesn't conduct electricity.

[@austindavis4477]

we use straight water in our wire machines, but dielectric fluid in our sinker edms, i thinks its just whatever the manufacturer requires for the machine

[@williamstaples5994]

Distilled Water, is a better description, but yea I've used it in a few areas where I needed to run Water next to electronics, still it does raise the issue that it wants to attract particles so the more the same water is used the more conductive it becomes if it interacts with any form of metal.

[@seanm5183]

TheSteamPunkDevil distilled water can be conductive. Only deionised water is truly non conductive.

[@Sharklops]

They likely don't use deionized water due to the extreme tolerances they have to hold on their parts. As I understand it, deionized water as an EDM dielectric fluid allows for higher machining speed but results in less precision due to its larger spark gap.

[@phranklyn]

Austrailia...

[@Neptune730]

That is a beautiful shop. Or rather Lab. This video cost me a wireless keyboard. Drool damage!!!

[@adamepb]

Had trouble concentrating on the gentleman's explanations on account OF THE CHICK AND GUY IN THE BACK JAW-JACKING. Otherwise, nice treat.

[@Joshsucks69]

Exmachina the chick aka john’s wife....lmao

[@nyccnc]

You try convincing your wife to spend 3 hours at a machine shop while on vacation ;)

[@adamepb]

New subscriber here....my bad, meant no disrespect, I didn't know that. Came here from Uncle Bumblefuck's garage and now I'm hooked. Love the content, will keep watching.

[@nyccnc]

Cheers :)

[@jamiedominy2686]

I hope you bought her a nice meal or a new watch for being 'dragged' around a machine shop whilst on her holiday XD.

[@berendlucasvanderweide]

I'd feel like a butcher in an OR..

[@bryansmith1744]

Go to mwi-inc.com for edm consumables

[@thewyliestcoyote]

First!

[@pijnto]

Watchmaker is a very loose term all I saw was a bunch of machines making watches

[@oovlocityoo2671]

push buttons. not watchmaker.. i am sorry, not sorry ,CNC is not watchmaking!!!

[@niteexplorer9934]

Nicholas Jackof, blah blah alright, show us how it works

[@saraalakangas9728]

Finaly some good brands. Makino is not mentioned enough in the milling and EDM segment. They are for me top top on the market.