James Welbourne FBHI
Tutor

Biography

I was always interested in how things worked and tried to take them apart to find out. I knew I had to put them together again so they would still work and that I had to do both.
Watches did not arrive until I was 20 or so. I had a Waltham Traveller and the man in the shop said it was impossible to repair it. I decided this was not true and set out to mend it. Since I had taken things to pieces before, I was able to safely take it apart. I washed and reassembled it and the watch worked.
Later, I lived in London and decided that Hackney College and the BHI course would organise my interest in horology and guide my interest and skill sets. I also lived near Portobello Road Market and became interested in the various types of pocket and wrist watches.
I was lucky to find some kind people who leant me books and gave me watches to work on; theory and practice. I was able to attend WOSTEP as soon as I had finished at Hackney. Following my training I set out to earn my living by repairing watches. Much later I became involved with the open days at Upton Hall due to Mr Colin Houghton, a local watchmaker and friend. Once at the Hall you get asked if you can help… So could you run the platform course and what about a watch taster day? It took a while to get the idea but I enjoyed showing students how to work on watches. It is great to impart good practice and enthusiasm. I hope that I can entertain each student at an individual level and encourage them to think and solve problems and enjoy the work too.

James has had a lifelong interest in horology and ‘how things work’. Moving to London he attended Hackney College and trained with the BHI. He then attended WOSTEP and took off on his career in watch repairs including private clients with complicated and rare pieces