Photo Tour:

Inside the Jaeger-LeCoultre Manufacture


After wrapping up my annual visit to the SIHH watch salon in January, I had the rare opportunity, on the last day of my trip, to ditch the bustle of the Geneva Palexpo for the afternoon and journey to the beautiful Vallée de Joux for a tour of the Jaeger-LeCoultre manufacture in Le Sentier. Scroll down for my photos from the tour and get an inside look at how one of the watch world’s most prestigious maisons makes its timepieces.

 

JLC Factory exterior - window
The Vallée’s snow-covered mountains reflected in the windows of the main entrance

 

JLC Factory - Maison d'Antoine
The new, recently completed reception area – called the Maison d’Antoine after brand founder Antoine LeCoultre

 

JLC Factory Tour - farmhouse
Antoine LeCoultre’s original workshop, the foundation of today’s modern watchmaking complex

 

JLC Factory Tour - making flat components
Machines making flat movement components – the first step in the watchmaking process

 

JLC Factory Tour - springbarrels
Mainspring barrels with freshly cut teeth

 

JLC Factory Tour - discarded parts
Large jars of rejected movement parts testify to Jaeger-LeCoultre’s exacting standards.

 

JLC Factory Tour - Gyrolab balance
Demonstrating the stages of creating a Jaeger-LeCoultre Gyrolab balance

 

JLC Factory Tour - Escapement model
A teaching model of Jaeger-LeCoultre’s anchor escapement

 

JLC Factory Tour - pallet stones
Attaching pallet stones to anchor escapements

 

JLC Factory Tour - applying perlage
Applying perlage to a brass mainplate

 

JLC Factory Tour - anglage
Applying anglage to a movement bridge

 

JLC Factory Tour - finished bridge
A finished, decorated bridge

 

JLC Factory Tour - mainplates_1000
Finished mainplates ready for movement assembly

 

JLC Factory Tour - antique machine
An antique decorating machine from 1890

 

JLC Factory Tour - decorated movements
A lineup of finished movements demonstrates Jaeger-LeCoultre’s mastery of various haute horlogerie decorative finishes

 

JLC Factory Visit - Atmos Atelier
Jaeger-LeCoultre’s Atmos clocks on display in the Atmos Atelier

 

JLC Factory Tour - dial painting
Miniaturized dial painting in the Metiers d’Art workshop projected onto a tabletop

 

JLC Factory Tour - Christian Laurent
44-year JLC veteran and master watchmaker Christian Laurent shows us some of the brand’s most complicated timepieces

 

JLC Factory Tour - sunset
Sunset over the Vallée de Joux as our tour concludes

 

 

 

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