Just a Reminder & a Tiny Dovetail!

Hello to all of you.  I'm just sending out this reminder about the possibility of a field trip to the CNC shop.  So far I have very few emails at:   eugster96@cox.net to let me know that you would be interested in going.  There is no day set yet but it would be a weekday and after 3 pm. If seeing the CNC machine in action is a possibility for you would you shot me an email so I can try to coordinate it with Ed?  Much appreciated.


So, what's this about a tiny dovetail?  Well, we've been going through the house in an attempt to downsize and simplify things.  Some things we are selling on Ebay and we came across this abacus:

 It's one that Diane's mom brought back from Japan when she was stationed in Guam during WWII.  She was in the Women's Army Corp then. I hadn't noticed the dovetails until I took this photo to put on Ebay.  They don't show in the photo but I can see the scribe marks made during the layout.  Don't know about you but I thought this was pretty cool!

Other Club Business & John's Show-and-Tell

In addition to the previous blog showcasing the work of Jim and MaryJane Chadbourne  there were some other things that went on at our meeting.  Rex Doty, who you probably remember from our Christmas meeting, contacted us and offered the use of his shop for our next monthly meeting.  He's the founder of Toys4Smiles and a member of the Sin City Woodworkers as well.  The shop is located near Polaris and as soon as I cement the arrangements with him I'll send out a blog with directions of how to get there.

Another thing that was announced is a possible field trip to Ed's son's shop here in Las Vegas.  This is a woodworking shop that uses CNC machinery.  The majority of us know what that is but few of us have had an up-close look at the how's and why's of that technology.  The time hasn't been set yet but I'd like to know how many of you would be interested.  It would have to be a week day and sometime after 3:00.  Ed said the shop normally closes at that time but his son offered to have one of his employees there to give us a demonstration.  I'll try to coordinate all of this but the first thing I should know is this: How many of you would be interested and be available on a weekday between 3:00 & 5:00? 

 Please send me an email, my email is eugster96@cox.net by the middle of next week so I can give Ed an idea of how many of us could make it.

Another topic that comes up at almost every meeting is the upcoming AWFS show, it's due in July and is a great way to see the latest tools and technology.  If you've never been it's a must see.  Here is a LINK to their website.  As of today, the education schedule isn't out yet but maybe bookmark it and check back on your own.  Seminars deal with the business aspects of woodworking, creating your own portfolio, marketing, etc.  The ones that are probably more interesting are those dealing with our craft.  I've taken advantage of demonstrations/lectures by Garrett Hack (design) and also Frantz (dovetails).  These tend to fill up fast so it's to your advantage to check back often.

Last of all, Jamie took a series of pictures of the stool I brought in to sit on as well as initiate the Show & Tell segment of our meetings.  Please consider bringing in something that you've completed to share with the rest of us.  I don't mean to sound self serving but by answering the questions asked by some of the members I'd like to think that information and ideas were passed on. This is a great way we can share what we know with the rest of the group.  Speaking of sharing, we're always open to demonstrations to enhance our meetings ---- don't be shy!

Overall view, approx. measurements 18" tall x 20" wide x 16" deep.  Honduras Mahogany

Leg detail, chamfers cut with block plane and spokeshave.  Mortise and tenon with Ebony dowel.

Detail of through mortise on stretcher, Ebony dowel

Leg Detail, accomplished with a jig, router, and pattern  bit.

View of woven Seagrass seat

Mary Jane Jim Chadbourne's amazing work

Oh Boy, I knew I should have taken notes at our last meeting!!   Here are the amazing pictures that Jamie took of MaryJane Chadbourne's work.  If you're visiting this blog you may be wondering why these beautiful art pieces are featured on a woodworkers group site.  Well, let me back up just a bit and have you scroll down and look at the fourth and seventh picture.  Yep, that's how these started out.  Her husband, Jim, is a member of the group and as a woodworker married to an artist, he gets to make the  wooden boxes for his wife to embellish.  These are not without complications and challenges.  For one thing, the polymer  clay that MJ so skillfully embosses and paints, create lots of weight -- add the findings she attaches to them as well and you end up with a pretty heavy object.  Until Jim figured out different ways to counter-weight the boxes they had a tendency to fall over when they were opened.



These two boxes are a good example of that, Jim ended up hollowing out the feet and putting some lead in there so they wouldn't flip.  Mary Jane gave the name for the little shutter detail that you see on the right box which she gets in Mexico ---- told you I should have taken notes!






Here you see MaryJane as she explains how she works the polymer clay.  In the photo below you can see exactly how much detail there is to her art work.  Look closely and you can make out the portrait of a woman complete with a beaded collar -- and we thought cutting dovetails by hand was exacting.





This is a close up of her work.  She can put sayings or other pictures on them and has done several commissions for either single or series of her boxes.  Her work is displayed in galleries here in Las Vegas and also in Utah.

Meeting Reminder, Wednesday @ 7:00 pm

  Just a reminder about our next meeting which is only 2 days away.  One of our members, Jim Chadbourne, collaborates with his wife in making wooden boxes.  His wife, Mary Jane, then embellishes them with different materials such as clay, glass, metals, paints, etc. They are then shown and sold at galleries here in Las Vegas and also in Utah.
  Remember that during the last meeting we mentioned having a Show & Tell session as a regular part of our meetings?  Feel free to bring in something or tell us about a technique you use and share your work with the rest of us.  As always, bring your chairs.

Boeing 727 Re-Model

Hello SCWW, a friend of mine sent me this via an email and I thought it was pretty cool and you would enjoy this -- What an idea and her total cost wasn't bad at all!

What a creative idea! Joanne Ussary bought a used Boeing 727.  She paid $2,000.00 for the plane.  It cost $4,000.00 to move and $24,000.00 to renovate.  (She has a LOT of wood and specialty windows for $24,000!  I want her carpenter!)  But not bad for a $30,000.00 investment...  The stairs open with a garage door remote and one of the bathrooms is still intact.  There is a personal Jacuzzi in the cockpit. The Boeing home is featured as part of a collection of creative conversions.  It  has a spectacular view!  (I wonder how much the land with this view cost!!!)  WOW!!! 

Two Year Anniversary

As you were scrolling down these pictures of the beautiful work brought in by Mike Viher, I bet you didn't realize what a monumental meeting last Wednesday's was.

Hard to believe but that meeting marked the two year anniversary of the:

SIN

CITY

WOODWORKERS (drum roll please!)

We had a great turnout for the meeting and started with some lively discussion on the quality (or lack thereof) of the tools we are able to find. The highlight of the meeting was Mike's presentation.

Mike brought a nice variety of his work, including this cherry clock, with hand turned spindles and some interesting details.









































Here is his shop clock, complete with chime, so he can keep track of time as he works in his shop. Who doesn't lose track of time when you're working in the shop!























Lucky for us he must have a pretty large vehicle and lots of help to bring all he had to show. Really nice work and we all admired his inlays, especially when we learned that some of them were about 3+ inches thick and went completely through the pieces.

Here are some of Mike's inlays, pretty amazing work.
























































He also showed some of his lathe work and it was interesting to know that the Almond bowl came from a chunk of firewood.



















Hard to find downed trees here in our desert so this must be the next best thing.




















Mike's presentation was informative and he answered all of the members questions about his technique.

At our next meeting, Jim Chadbourne is scheduled to bring some of the boxes that he makes. These are pretty small and very nicely done, he collaborates with his wife Mary Jane, who sells these boxes in galleries around town.

I brought up the possibility of any one of us bringing in a "Show & Tell" item to the meetings to share. The one concern about this was that you shouldn't bring in something that would upstage the presentation for that meeting. Rather, we could share a technique we learned or discovered, a new tool that makes your work easier, a way to finish, or what ever. The purpose of this would be for all of us to know each others work a little bit better. As an example, if someone talked about a technique it may be something that another member is struggling with so the two of them could get together and share what they know.

See you next month!

Our Meeting, this Wednesday 2/16

The meeting this month will feature Mike Viher who is one of Jamie's students.   He describes himself as a "retired bum" but, according to Jamie, he does some pretty incredible work.  We're hoping that he'll bring in work that includes inlaid, end grain cutting boards, some of his bowls, and maybe even a clock or two.  The meeting is at 7 pm and as always, bring a chair if you want to be sure to have a place to sit.  Bring your questions to shot at Mike as well especially if the type of work you do includes what he does.  It's always good to ask and discuss what we do with others, it's a win/win situation for all of us.
      See you there!, if you came across this on the web and need more information or directions just call 631-1870.