What is EDM
EDM in this context is NOT a genre of music. Electrical Discharge Machining is a non-conventional type of machining that can do so really intricate and cool things.
I was particularly intersted in using it because EDM is used frequently in the hot section of gas turbine engines. So naturally I was excited to see one up close in action and actually use it!
Here are some pictures that outline the process
I wanted to use this week to also make something towards my final project, so this really is a case of using a $200,000 machine to do something that a OtherMill could have done, but hey it's pretty cool to have a watch body that was machined the same way HPT blades are!
In order to get the cut out in the centre of the watch body where the components would go, we first pre-drill a hole and then thread the wire of thee EDM machine through the hole
Once that was done we could machine out the inner void and subsequently the outer shape of the watch body.
Here is a video of the cutting process