It's That Time of the Year

     Hello fellow sawdust makers, our next meeting will be tomorrow (3/20) at 7pm in Jamie's shop.  What time of year is it? …… time to collect the optional, non-mandatory dues.  Dues are $20.00 per year and go towards maintaining the Meet-Up pages and other business related fees.  That's the boring part.  The exciting part is that these dues help with refreshments for our traditional Christmas meeting and all who have paid up dues are entered into a drawing.  This drawing has various things but the highlight is the gift certificates from Lee Valley.  If I remember correctly, last year there were two for $25.00, one for $50.00, and the grand prize was the one for $100.00.  One way to increase your odds of your name being drawn is to also do a featured presentation at a meeting, then Jamie will put your name in twice.
     Tomorrow nights' meeting will feature Richard Whitson who recently took a class from William Ng who has a school in Southern California.  Here's a LINK to the schools website.  It's pretty amazing, the amount of precision that Ng (pronounced ing) puts into his work.  When you realize that it's the joinery that makes the piece stay together you'll appreciate the class Richard took.  Five days of intense work making various types of both Western and Eastern style joinery, here's LINK to that class.  If you have a minute, click on it and just look at the pictures.  This isn't a quick and dirty Kreg pocket jig, biscuit joiner, or even the Domino joinery --- these take some serious planning and skill building!
     The meeting will start at 7pm and I'm betting we'll get a chance to do our round robin introductions and have an informal show and tell session to share something with the rest of the group.  These should be quick items so that Richard will be able to cover all he has to.  I don't know about you, but as someone who enjoys the challenges (and frustrations) of doing hand work I'm looking forward to our meeting ---- See you then, John

February 20, 2013 Meeting

     Another successful meeting and Jamie pointed out that this is the beginning of the fourth year of the Sin City Woodworkers.  I, along with probably 8-10 others, are what are called Charter Members who were there at the first meeting that Jamie ever organized at a local library.  I have to admit that being a long time resident of Las Vegas since the late 70's I was one of the hopeful but skeptical ones that this group had a chance!  Thanks to Jamie's drive, ambition, and personality we're still going strong.  Last night we had about 25 members show up for our meeting.  Here's a view from the rear of the room of Jamie leading the group.

The Leader of the Pack!

     As far as the business end of the meeting went the announcement is out that our unofficial dues will be officially collected next month.  They're $20.00 for the year and I think you'll agree it's twenty bucks well spent.  You'll always walk away with something you didn't know, or a new acquaintance you made at the monthly meeting.  Dues go for internet fees and end of the year Christmas party and gift certificates.  During our show and tell session the question came up about how to market and sell some of the items we make.  Mostly we'd like to at least cover our supplies and tools; wood addiction is my term for that!  There is a website by the name of Etsy, here is a LINK to their website.  This is a really cool site that features handmade items from around the world.  I prefer to use this for gifts whenever possible because they're unique, one of a kind, and created by craftsmen and women just like us.  It's like buying local on a larger scale.  Here is a LINK to Jamie's Etsy Shop and also a LINK to mine as well.  If there are others in the group who have a store on Etsy let me know.  Jamie mentioned the idea of having that be the subject of a future meeting which could be of benefit to many of you.  It's been an experience for me that's mostly positive.
     On to the show and tell segment of the meeting.  Ed brought in the Wenge bowl he showed the parts of at the last meeting.  You may recall that it's part of his "bowl from a board" series and it turned out beautifully.  Unfortunately the bowl spent so much time being passed from one member to the next and admired that we failed to get a picture of it for the blog.
     Ron brought a number of his road construction machinery in for us to enjoy:

Ron's Construction Equipment

There are lots of small parts that move so don't let the small size of these fool you into thinking they're an easy project.  As someone mentioned, these would make for a good collectible item for heavy equipment operators or "wannabe's".
     Kate brought in this piece:

Stone Wood ??

Kate, that's Ron in the Background

She caught a few of us off guard when she called it stone wood!  It's actually a piece of alabaster that was from a larger project she was working on.  If you're not aware of it there is a stone carving workshop here in Las Vegas operated by a very talented carver.  Her name is Sharon Gainsburg and if you have the urge to try your hand at carving stone she offers classes as well as a sample lesson.  Here is a LINK to her website.


The other member to bring in and share his recent work is Persi.  He too is a carver and has shared some of his work before.  This is the piece he brought in to share this time:

Looks Beautiful Doesn't It?

     This particular piece is carved out of Alder which he says is fast becoming his favorite wood to carve in.  It holds details well and is not quite as hard as Maple but neither is it as soft as Basswood.  His second favorite wood is Black Walnut but finding 8/4 can be difficult.  He's been working with thicker stock to begin with so that he can make his details deeper.  The question always seems to come up as to how long did a piece take to make, his reply on this one was about 50 hours including the preliminary drawing and design time.  He uses a combination of power tools for the rough out and then hand chisels, x-acto knife, razor blade, etc. -- what ever it takes to get the job done.  He's going to challenge himself next by doing portraiture which is very exacting.  From my artist wife Diane, I know that's so true.  You can change the branches on a tree and get away with it but move someone's nose 1/4" to the left, add a slight hook, maybe a zit and guess what?  It's a NO SALE!
     Our main presenter this evening was Dennis Patchett who'll be teaching a carving class at the school beginning next week.  Here he is ready to amaze us with the work he is able to do.  One underlying theme I always pick up from Dennis is that he truly loves what his work.  We've talked at various places and it's pretty obvious.  This is the key for all of us as we work towards whatever goal we have -- enjoy the process and time spent with your tools.

Our Resident Carver

    Anyway, a little bit of history on this chest.  It's a late (or very early) Christmas present for his wife and is one he's building after completing a similar one for his daughter-in-law. The obvious details you can see are the turned legs and full dovetailed corners.  Inside of the chest there are three hidden drawers revealed by lifting up a panel -- nice touch!

Three, Dovetailed Secret Drawers

On the front of the chest he carved her name:

             
And if that wasn't enough, flanked it with these butterflies on either side:

     Another item he brought in was this carved shell of Black Walnut on a drawer front.

Carved Walnut Shell

   A very nicely chip carved box of Tiger Oak was another item he shared with us.  Chip carving is an area he will cover in the class and claims it's fairly simple!  According to him, the lay-out is more time consuming than the actual carve.  This may be true once you've truly gotten the hang of it but I've spent some time struggling with it.

"Actually, I just sharpen my finger nail ……."

Here's the complete box:

Tiger Oak with Basswood Top

     You can see what he's talking about, they are "simply" triangles cut into the wood.  This motif began with a circle that was divided into 12 parts.  Cuts are made about an eighth of an inch deep with the difficult part of making them meet precisely at the center.  Holding the knife is a learned technique, one he demonstrates here on a row of triangles.  Notice the work to the right, that too is basically triangles arranged in a different way.

Knife Technique

    One thing true about chip carving is that it takes very little money to get into it.  Chip knives can be purchased for less than $30.00 or so and I think you can get started with just one style.
     One other carving Dennis showed and I'll admit I fell in love with is this flower:

My Personal Favorite

     As you may expect, this brought many comments.  It's actually only about 1/2" deep.  It's the way he layered the petals and flower pieces that gives the illusion of much greater depth.  The contrast between the gouged out background with the smoothness of the flower and leaf give this piece lots of appeal.  It will be a class project, one I'm anxiously looking forward to.
     To sum up some of the comments and information regarding his carving skills, Dennis says he probably spends three hours of study time to determine where all of the planes of the piece will fall to every hour of actual carving time.  In an earlier conversation with him he mentioned that he'll go out in nature and just observe how flowers unfold, how leaves lay and curl, or how the bark on a tree winds its way around the trunk.  The magic comes in when you can control your hands and tools to bring what's in your minds eye out to that three dimensional piece of wood ---- something Dennis has mastered quite well.
     All due respect folks, but I'm now officially tired; time to join my Ali and take a nap!

Wow, Second Meeting of 2013!

    Not only is this the second meeting of the year, it's also the start of four years of Sin City Woodworkers.  Quite an accomplishment in a town like Las Vegas that's known for its transient nature.  I remember when I first started teaching here how students would come and go all of the time.

     The featured presenter for this month's meeting will be Dennis Patchett.  If you're not familiar with him he's our resident carver.  Not exactly sure what the focus of his demonstration will be this time but you can be sure it'll be interesting and informative.  I believe he'll also be bringing in some of his latest work to share. Those of us who know Dennis will attest that his previous demo's have always left us inspired to take on the challenge of carving.  If you really want to give it a try, he'll be teaching a class that begins next Monday (2/25) evening at 6pm and goes for 6 weeks.  You would be wise to check with Jamie as soon as possible about signing up for it.  Here's a link to her class pages to make it easier:  LINK

     As always, we'll begin our meetings with the round robin introduction tradition.  Meeting starts at 7pm, bring a chair if you'd like and also any recent work you'd like to bring for our show & tell segment.  

See you Wednesday!

A Chilly but Well Attended Meeting

      As is my habit, I count the number of people that show up for our meetings and to tell you the truth, I was pretty amazed last Wednesday.  Ran out of fingers and toes because we had 36 of us there and I've added another 7 to my mailing list.  Speaking of that, does anyone know Chris Hagen?  He put himself on that list but his email keeps coming back to me.  If you know him would you let him know so he can contact me (eugster96@cox.net) and I can get his address correct.  

     As you can see by the crowd of us gathered around Pete, 36 people in Jamie's shop helps to keep the warmth in the room.  I'll show more of his amazing looking cutting boards later in the blog.  Jamie mentioned that next month marks our 4 year anniversary as a bonafide group.  That's an accomplishment by itself.  I thought it was kind of cool that several of you mentioned that you were "charter members", I wonder how many of us there are that can say that?  We've come a long way from being chased out by the security guard at the library!

Gather Round, Stay Warm, and Check it Out!

     After our round the room introduction tradition a few important items were brought up.  One of them has to do with a new class that Jamie has added to her schedule.  It's a 6 week carving class that will meet on Monday evenings from 6-9pm beginning on Feb. 25.  The class will be taught by Dennis Patchett, here's a LINK to Jamie's page for more information or to sign up.

     Another item of interest is that Eric Felder announced that there will be assorted power and hand tools for sale through the school.  They will be re-furbished by Eric as needed and you can find them in the lobby area where the lending library is.  If you have tools that you no longer need there's a possibility that you could place them there as well but space will be limited.  Contact either Eric or Jamie for more information about that.

     Beginning next month dues will be collected.  These are voluntary and are a bargain price of $20.00 for the year.  Money goes to maintain the Meet-up website and some other administrative costs.  The majority of it seems to be returned at our annual Christmas party in the form of refreshments (hard and soft!) and those ever popular gift cards to Lee Valley.

      We had a few members bring in some items for our show and tell session.  First up was Ron Seipel who showed off some truly cool looking toys that he has made.  Being a new grandfather myself I can definitely relate to this.  I have a monster truck plan brewing for my own 2 year old!  Look at what he brought in to share.

Nice BiPlane, Notice the Engine Details

Looks Like a P-51 Mustang

Minimum Up Keep Pooch!

     Among the items needed to make these types of projects are wheels, pegs, and caps.  He mentioned that a good source for them is Meisel Woodworking.  I found them on the web so here is a LINK to make your search easier.  Just took a quick look myself at what they have to offer and they seem to have it all.

     The next person to share with us was Ed with his infamous, one board bowl.  As you probably know, he's gotten on a lathe phase and last meeting teased us with the one board bowl concept.  I gave you the website for the person who I think, is the creator of this process.  Like it says, you use one board and cut it a certain way to produce the bowl.

Board = Bowl

You Can See It Created Some Interest!

     The process starts by cutting your desired board in half.  In this case he's using a piece of Wenge.  He explained how to calculate the angle you set your bandsaw table at but I'm afraid I missed that but suffice to say that the table is angled.  Next you cut out segments as shown in this picture:

Parts is Parts

     These are then glued together.  Basically you use what's referred to as a "rub joint".  If you're new to woodworking this joint is made by putting glue on the surface and then rubbing the two pieces together. You can feel the glue starting to grip, then you you simply hold it together for 15-20 seconds and set it aside to dry.  Common uses for this method would be for reinforcing blocks in corners or maybe under a table top.

Stacking and Staggering Layers

     Once the segments are dry they are glued one on top of the other making sure to stagger the joints. The final assembly can be clamped by putting weight on it or else Ed mentioned running the drill press quill down on the whole assembly and then locking it in place.  He uses either Roo-glue or Titebond for these bowls.  Speaking of bowls, Eric gave his recommendation for a one day lathe workshop offered by Jimmy Clewes and showed his that he made.  Several others in the group, including Jamie, have talked about him before.  Jamie is trying to talk him into doing a demonstration for us but until then, here is a LINK to his website.  It lists dates and gives more information about him and his work.

     

     The main presentation of the meeting was made by Pete Hauser.  As you can see, it brought everyone around him so we could understand what his technique is to make his end grain cutting boards.  The question came up, "what's special about end grain?" and that may have been something others were thinking as well.  I like how he answered it, as a teacher I would use the same type of analogy that wood is a series of straws rather than a solid piece, he uses broomsticks for his analogy.  If you picture it that way it's easier to imagine a knife cutting on the end of a brooms bristles, it will go between them rather than cut across.  This way your knife edge doesn't dull and the marks it leaves won't be very noticeable.

Check it Out

     In the photo below, he's pointing out the pattern.  What makes these boards so interesting is that the pattern is hard to discern and it leaves you scratching your head as you try to figure it out!  Let me see if I can explain the process.  Lupe challenged me to do it in such a way that she could make one of these even though she was off galavanting in warm, tropical Panama and wouldn't cut her trip short to make the meeting.
     The process starts by taking your pieces of wood and gluing them up edge to edge.  The pattern will be determined by the number, size, and coloration of those pieces.  The unfinished blank below the one he's pointing to is that blank.  You can see that the lighter pieces of wood are wider than the dark ones. Varying the width varies the final boards design.

Examples and the Start of A New One

     Once that blank is dry you'll cut it apart and number the strips.  The thickness of the board is determined by how wide you cut these pieces.  To get the seemingly random pattern Pete would flip every other strip end for end -- that's the secret for getting that offset.  These are carefully glued together, 3 or 4 strips at a time.  Any more than that and it becomes a real hassle to keep them from sliding around as you clamp them up.  You can see those strips at the upper, right side of this picture:

Upper Right, Unfinished Piece

     The more variation you put into the first strips, the more complex your final result will appear.

Different Species + Different Widths = Different Results

     I wasn't the only one to see Escher's type of work in these boards.  The patterns seem to repeat over on to itself.  Don't try to cut a straight slice of bread if you've been enjoying your wine!!

     Once everything is glued, clamped, and dry it's time to smooth things up.  Pete uses Titebond III for these cutting boards.  He recommends using it sparingly to avoid filling the end grain with it.  Pretty difficult getting that cleaned up.  The best way to attack this is with a wide belt sander.  Some of you know Larry Yule who has a shop and excels at custom work.  Pete found him and was able to rent time on his 36" wide belt sander to work down his boards.  The finish on these boards will be either plain mineral oil and he's also starting to use a product called Tried & True.  The goal is to  completely saturate the pores of the wood with the oil to seal it against whatever you're going to cut on it.
     As an added bonus to his demonstration, Pete also brought in one of the boards that Larry makes.  This is really crazy!  I've talked with him before on these boards and you'd be hard pressed to figure out the way Larry puts these together --- that's his own, best seller secret!

Larry Yule's Board

     If you look close you can see how he inserts a small piece at random to throw off the pattern.  Not only does it fool your eye it also throws off your attempts to establish the pattern.

Another View of Larry's Board

First 2013 Meeting -- Dress Warm!

     Don't want to sound like your mother but it's cold out there so even with Jamie's heaters going full blast and the warmth of our woodworking bodies there's bound to be a chill in the air!  I've been able to get my shop up to the mid-40's this week and NO, don't want to hear from you lucky ones that have the central air/heat going on in your shops.
     Seriously though, this Wednesday the sixteenth marks our first meeting for the new year.  As usual the times are 7-9 (or so) and our featured speaker is Pete Hauser.  He's a fairly new member and he will go through the process he uses to create his uniquely patterned, end grain cutting boards.  I didn't know this but Jamie mentioned that end grain cutting boards keep your knife sharper it doesn't slice across wood fibers in use.  Pete will be bringing examples of boards he has made in the past and also a billet of a board in progress that he'll use to explain his technique.
     As always, we'll have our "show & tell" session so feel free to bring in your latest project, jig, or gizmo to share with the group.

See you tomorrow night

Christmas 2012

Founder and Leader of the SCWW -- Jamie

     We started our meeting on a cold, December evening at Jamie's studio/school, Wednesday the 19th. This marks the fourth year for our group and it's great to see how we've survived!  People have come and gone which is to be expected in any organization but I think we've all benefited from our monthly meetings, demonstrations, and getting out of our self-imposed isolation as woodworkers!  As you can see, there was some libations (no tools = Okay) and treats which we all enjoyed.

Raffled Items

     We started off with a drawing for some donated items that you can barely see on the table.  There were two boxes of Bench Cookies (non-edible), Richard and Eric each scored a box of those.  And then some vise grip clamps for a drill press which was won by Cal.  Next was the big event as far as the drawings go.  With monies from our dues, Jamie purchased several gift cards from Lee Valley which I'm guessing ranks pretty high as our favorite toy store.  Son of a gun ---- I was a winner with a $25.00 gift certificate.  The other lucky winners were:  Chuck -- $50.00; Jamie -- $50.00; and the top award of $100.00 went to Dennis.

     Besides the drawings, libations, and socializing another aspect of this meeting is for the members to bring in and share their projects.  This is a great time to see what we do when we're off in our shops.
Russ showed us this beautiful 4 panel, room divider that is made of Cherry and Cherry plywood.  He mentioned the plywood and needing to keep track of which side is the A and which side is the B!  Beautiful example of mortise and tenon joinery:

Four Panel Screen

     Ed, who's been working away on his bargain basement lathe, brought in what he referred to as a "one board bowl":

One-Board Bowl

     I don't know if it was the libations or what but I had a tough time grasping the concept of how this bowl was made.  Ed said the process came from a guy by the name of Malcom Tibbets so here's a LINK to his website so you can get more information.  Now, I'm going to go out on a legal limb here.  In spite of Woodcraft Supply sending me their Cease & Desist Letter: 

Merry Christmas John, from Woodcraft

    I also found this video produced by them showing the process Ed employed to make the bowl, here's the LINK to that.  Anybody know a cheap lawyer?

     A new member, Percy brought in this carving he recently completed.  It's done on Maple which is pretty hard on the tools, and is a combination of power tools to rough out the design followed by hand work:

Percy's Rose Carving

          Many were interested in his website, here's a LINK to that for you.

     Rich, who's been a member for quite some time brought in a P-51 Mustang and told us about a DC-3 aka as a C-147 he recently completed for a airplane mechanic that specializes in vintage, military aircraft:

Rich's P-51 Mustang

     Besides my "science fair project" style of the legal problems Woodcraft sent my way, I decided to show this apartment sized wine cabinet:

John's Wind Cabinet

     It's designed to hold 3 bottles horizontally and 4 Merlot sized glasses.  The doors are done with Radio Weave caning.  Many of you were interested  in the hardware used to secure the doors.  It's actually a casement latch:

Rat-Tail Latch

     So, here's a link to where I bought it:  http://www.houseofantiquehardware.com/window-hardware-rat-tail-casement-latch

     Our final presentation was made by Ted.  He does some fantastic work and has shared the building of a custom Oak staircase he's been working on in Utah.  You may recall his demonstration this summer on pattern sawing with the table saw and the making of the tapered posts.  Obviously he couldn't actually bring it in but did share some photographs of it:

Ted's Staircase & Plumb Bobs

     As you know, he's also a bit of a tool junkie -- hmm, that may be an understatement!  He's holding a huge, English style of plumb bob and brought in a number of them from his collection of approximately 120 which are displayed on a Plumb Bob Tree in his house.  The oldest is a stone one from the 14 or 15th. century but most date from the mid-1800's to the 1950's.
     You can also see a sampling of his moulding and other planes in the background.  The largest is a 3" crown moulding plane plus various other shapes and sizes.  Of particular interest to me was a really nice scrub plane from Holland that I just couldn't fit into my pocket!  Many of these planes were custom made by the user, often of a hardwood like Maple inlayed with boxwood at the wear points and even homemade blades of old files.
     The meeting ended with socializing, stories, and several tried out the planes that Ted brought in.  A couple of sore arms later they were singing the praises of the electric router and shaper!

So Quiet & Peaceful

Assorted Planes

      I'll end this final blog of the year with a:

Merry Christmas to all, 

and to all a Good Night!!

Happy New Year

The Day You've Waited For!

HO HO HO TOOLIES!

     It's Christmas time in the Wooditis shop located way up in the north of Las Vegas!  Our end of the year get together to celebrate not only Christmas but also 4 years of Sin City Woodworkers has arrived.  Normal time, 7:00 pm and the same wonderful location which is 2267 West Gowan, unit 106.

     If this is your first Christmas get together we will have drawings for fabulous gift certificates plus an array of door prizes.  If you should have something you'd like to donate for that door prize drawing do bring it in -- who knows, that thing you have gathering dust may be just what someone else needs.
   
     The format for the meeting is different from the others we have during the year.  The shop will be relatively dust free which you know is pretty hard to achieve in a woodshop!  Bring in a project you've made during the year if you'd like to share it with us.  I know some of you have made things that are way too large to bring in but bring photos of your work.  Some of those that come to mind might be a staircase (hint/Ted) or a console table (hint/Dave) and that's only a few this Santa has on his list!  It's a great time to mingle and start up conversations about the project, gives us a chance to pick everyone's brain and learn about techniques that are new to us.  Also gives us a chance to find out what other members woodworking preferences are.

     This is a meeting where you're encouraged to bring even non-woodworking guests!  There should be some goodies out there to munch on and feel free to add to that as well.  There are quite a few members who have been with the Sin City Woodworkers for the entire 4 years and, thanks to Jamie's' efforts we're still going strong!

See you tomorrow at 7:00 pm