Original subtitles

NARRATOR: Today, on "How It's Made"...

Somewhere back in time,

somebody was blowing on a fire to get it started

and wondered if there were a way to do it

without hyperventilating.

A lot of people must have had this idea

because different kinds of bellows

can be found across the ancient world from Egypt to Asia.

In the Auvergne region of Central France,

this manufacturer has been building

classic fireplace bellows since 1895

using high-quality beechwood and leather sourced nearby.

An artisan starts by selecting a template

from a range of sizes and shapes.

He traces an outline on a piece of wood.

He uses a band saw to cut the rough outline of the shape

to prepare for the next step.

A craftsman then places a stack of three rough-cut shapes

on top of a master prototype and clamps the stack in place.

A large bearing slides up against the master prototype

and, by following it,

guides a specialized cutting tool

around the perimeter of the stack.

The operation quickly

and precisely reduces the three pieces of wood

to exactly the required dimensions.

This purpose-built mechanism undertakes

a three-step operation.

A drill pierces a hole in the narrow end

while a second drill opens three holes underneath.

A circular saw quickly slices partway

through the neck of the piece.

A craftsman then uses a rotary tool

to easily cut a decorative pattern of concentric circles

into one side of the wood.

A cutting blade positioned at precisely the right height

allows an artisan to slice a beveled groove partway

around the perimeter of the wood to the required depth.

A craftsman uses a powerful band saw

to divide the wood in half along the groove line

all the way up to the cut across the neck.

The wooden components are now ready for the finished process.

An artisan dunks the components in a tub of stain

and places them on a shelf to dry.

She keeps each pair of components together

while separating them slightly to ensure

they don't stick together.

Once the stain has dried,

the artisan buffs the outer surfaces of the components

on a buffing wheel to make the wood smooth.

She then carefully positions the components on a table

and sprays them thoroughly with a protective layer of varnish.

Once the varnish has cured,

a craftsperson can begin assembly

by creating the valve that covers the intake hole.

She installs a rounded length of wire,

stapling it in such a way as to create enough tension

for the wire to act as a spring.

This step completes the interior of the bellows.

An artisan can now bring the two halves of the bellows together.

She starts by wrapping a precut piece

of locally sourced sheep's leather around one handle

and attaching the leather in place with small nails.

Carefully hammering a series of closely-spaced upholstery tacks

at regular intervals

secures the leather to the perimeter edge

of one half of the bellows.

The artisan can now attach the second half

by repeating the operation on the other side of the leather.

Adding a thin strip of leather along the tack line

will help prevent any ripping or tearing.

The artisan uses a section of precut leather to form the hinge

necessary for the proper functioning of the bellows.

The size, position, and tack pattern must all be precise

in order for the tool to open and close smoothly and easily.

The artisan trims off any excess lengths of leather.

Finally, she installs the nozzle.

Making a dent with a tool called a punch prepares the site

for a nail which secures the nozzle in place.

The completed bellows function perfectly.

This simple, finely crafted tool is built to help start

warm fires for years to come.

NARRATOR: Calissons are a traditional French candy

made of almonds, candied melon, and orange peel

topped with a thin layer of hard, typically white, icing.

Calissons are the specialty of the city of Aix-en-Provence

in the Provence region of Southern France.

The calisson was created in France in the mid-15th century

in honor of the wedding of King Rene of Anjou

and Queen Jeanne of Laval.

The confection became the specialty of Provence,

the region of Southern France known for its almond orchards.

Inside the greenish hull is a hard shell.

Inside that shell is the edible almond seed.

The almonds arrive at the workshop dried for conservation

and their brown skin removed.

The first step in the production is to rehydrate the almonds

with steam for about 10 minutes

so that they can be worked into a paste.

Once the almonds' moisture content

is increased by 2 to 4%,

the almonds pass over a vibrating screen

to drain any water resulting from steam condensation.

Meanwhile, this cauldron heats up liquid beet sugar.

France is one of the world's largest sugar beet producers,

so high-quality beet sugar is readily available.

Workers transfer the hydrated almonds to a grinder

and add candied fruit -- 95% melon and 5% orange peel.

This flavor is the 500-year-old traditional recipe.

Workers grind the ingredients for about 10 minutes

until everything is thoroughly blended into a coarse paste.

The paste drops onto a conveyor belt,

which transfers it to a kneading machine

into which workers add the hot liquid beet sugar

and natural almond oil made from bitter almonds.

Kneading blends the ingredients

and smoothes the texture of the paste.

A worker boxes the calisson paste

and sets it aside for three days

to let the sugar mature and stabilize.

Calissons are topped with an ever-so-thin layer

of royal icing.

Unlike creamy icings, royal icing is as hard as a rock

To make it, a worker combines icing sugar

and whipped egg whites passed through a strainer.

A mixer beats the ingredients

until the mixture is thick and smooth,

which typically takes about 10 minutes.

After 3 days of rest, the paste is ready to be worked.

Shaping and decorating the calissons is a specialized task

entrusted to these experienced artisans

called "calissonaires."

First, they place slices of paste in a press

and load a mold underneath.

They cover the mold with a wafer -thin sheet of unleavened bread.

Then, the press piston descends, forcing the paste,

with the bread layer underneath,

into the mold.

They skim off the excess paste,

then fold the stencil over the mold

and apply the layer of royal icing.

They lift off the stencil and push the buttons

which activate the mold pistons.

Each piston pierces the base of a calisson

and lifts it out of the mold.

Finally, they remove the calissons with combs

designed to fit around the pistons.

A 10-minute trip through a tunnel oven

set at low temperature bakes the royal icing

to a hard and shiny state.

Cameras record the position of the calissons

as they exit the oven,

guiding a robotic arm to pick up 160 per minute

and place them in plastic trays.

The next machine seals each tray with plastic film

to preserve freshness.

There's also a gift box format for which a worker hand-fills

plastic trays

designed to fit lozenge-shaped metal boxes.

These traditional calissons contain a candied fruit content

of at least 30%, the melon being a variety

cultivated in the region of Provence.

However, if your taste buds are the type that buck tradition,

today, you can enjoy a wide selection

of other fashionable flavors

such as clementine and cocoa bean

or raspberry and matcha green tea.

NARRATOR: This new generation of personal watercraft

is something entirely different.

It does more than skim the surface.

This watercraft dives underwater and can remain submerged

at a depth of three feet or more for up to a minute.

It also leaps into the air and rolls with the waves.

This watercraft is painted to look like a vintage fighter jet,

and it rolls and dives like one in the water.

A worker sprays a gel coat into a mold for the main body.

This gel will become

the shiny surface of the completed fiberglass part.

Once the gel coat has hardened,

a worker brushes a vinyl ester resin onto it.

This resin is known for its water resistance.

He switches from a brush to a roller

as he generally applies the resin

to the hardened gel coat.

The crew then drapes what's called chopped-strand mat

over the mold.

This fabric is made of long strands of fiberglass.

The binder in it dissolves on contact with the resin,

causing the fabric to soften to the contours of the mold.

After trimming the excess material,

the crew completely saturates the strand mat with more resin.

Rolling it on firmly gets rid of air bubbles.

The top half of the main body mold

has been lined the same way.

They now bolt a dorsal fin

mold to the back on the top half of the mold.

The crew now joins the two halves of the mold.

As a crane lowers the top to the bottom,

workers ensure they line up perfectly.

And they lock these two main molds together with bolts.

A worker enters through the cockpit

opening to roll on more resin.

Meanwhile, another member of the crew

pulls two sheets of fiberglass fabric

onto a cutting machine.

The top fabric is a strong, tightly woven fiberglass,

and the bottom one is the chopped-strand mat.

Automated blades cut the fiberglass to various shapes

and dimensions,

each one designed for a different part

of the diving vessel mold.

These large rectangles will be used to mold

the sides of the watercraft.

After folding up the pieces,

the worker hands them over to the fiberglass technician.

The technician has just an hour to apply the fiberglass

before the recently applied resin starts to harden.

He builds up eight layers

and completely saturates each one with more resin.

While the thicker fiberglass material provides strength,

the thinner chopped-strand mat aids adhesion

and helps the fabrics conform to the mold.

After a 3-hour cure, workers have a solid, seamless fuselage.

The crane lifts the fuselage out of the mold

and moves it onto a dolly where it will stay

while the team works on the other parts of the watercraft.

The cone-shaped front bumper is next.

The worker uses only three layers of fiberglass to make it

because this bumper is meant to collapse

in the event of a collision.

For that reason, the part is also known

as the vessel's sacrificial nose.

At another station,

crew members line fin-shaped molds with fiberglass

and then pour liquefied plastic into the cavity.

Once cured, the plastic will anchor the top of a steel

wing shaft in the fin.

A worker presses the shaft into the liquefied

plastic with the end

protruding from the fin.

A second mold, also lined with fiberglass

and filled with a plastic core, goes on top.

The team bolts it together and leaves the part to cure.

The fins will ultimately be supported

by a triangular scaffold

made of aluminum square tubing.

The worker clamps the scaffold framework to a worktable

to stabilize the framework as he welds it together.

He then welds the scaffold tower to the base.

The worker drills holes for the bushings that will be used

to attach the fins to the scaffold.

Stay tuned for more as the team prepares

this personal diving watercraft for its maiden voyage.

NARRATOR: This personal watercraft leaps,

dives, and barrel-rolls with the waves.

But it doesn't capsize.

It's been engineered to return

to an upright position in the water.

And when it comes to the fun factor, this diving watercraft

leaves other recreational boats in its wake.

To make the diving watercraft's passenger cabin,

a worker sprays a gel coat onto a form

and covers it with fiberglass.

A computer-driven router then carves into marine-grade plywood

to produce structural backing for the sides of the cockpit.

A worker slathers adhesive putty onto the plywood part

and applies more adhesive to the fiberglass cockpit.

He presses the plywood to the glued areas of the cockpit

and brushes resin onto the front of the plywood.

After cutting the cockpit section in two,

the crew glues the parts to the inside of the fuselage.

The fabricating team applies adhesive putty

to the cone-shaped bumper known as the sacrificial nose.

They slide it onto the front of the fuselage

and the screw the bumper in place temporarily

while the adhesive sets.

Another worker sands all the fiberglass parts

of the watercraft to remove bumps and blemishes.

This piece is the engine hatch.

The team bolts the aluminum scaffold

to the floor of the fuselage.

This is a test fit to confirm

that the dimensions are exactly right.

As they installed the scaffold, the used dummy wing shafts

to correctly position it within the vessel.

They confirm that the dimensions are right

and that the scaffold sits plumb to the base of the watercraft.

The next team inserts the hatch frame

and the rim around the cockpit.

They'll bond the frame in place later with a liquid plastic

and adhesive putty.

After priming the sanded surface of the watercraft,

team members lower the 300-horsepower engine

into the hatch.

This is a dry fit to confirm everything lines up correctly.

They'll eventually remove the engine

for the final paint and artwork.

As the dry fit continues, they connect the air tubes

to the snorkel fins that deliver air to the engine.

The engine hatch has, by now, also been primed,

and they fit it to the diving watercraft's main body.

The crew verifies that the hatch sits flush

with the rest of the fuselage.

A worker installs the exhaust outlet into the hole

at the rear of the watercraft.

Crew members slide elevator fins into bushings at the back.

These fins will control the pitch axis of the watercraft.

Next, they install the jet propulsion system.

Back to the cockpit,

the crew bolts the control pedals to the floor

and run cables to the jet propulsion unit,

the elevator fins, and the steering system.

They reinstall the dive fin scaffold,

which has been powder coated in a yellow color.

The crew connects the dive fins to the scaffold.

They situate the control panel just above the control pedals.

They run a metal linkage from the dive fins

to a control stick.

They then test the control stick and confirm it moves

the dive planes easily and correctly.

Bucket seats made of lightweight carbon fiber

minimize the load for added speed.

They tuck a rubber gasket into the framework

for the clear canopy that will surround the occupants.

They add a bead of sealant

where the gasket mates to the window frame.

The vessel canopy is made of thick aircraft-grade acrylic.

It's been tinted to repel the sun's rays

and keep the temperature cooler in the cockpit.

The back canopy serves as a hatch for accessing the cockpit.

Finally, an artist does a custom paint job

and makes the fuselage look fierce.

With the mechanical components reinstalled,

this diving watercraft is ready to hit the water.

Fasten your seatbelt. It should be quite a ride.