Chapter Challenge

I am not a big joiner, especially a leader.  I will work hard, do what I am told but not big on volunteering to lead a project.  So funny thing happens.... I mention to the president after the July meeting if we are doing anything on the chapter challenge.  So the president brings it up in the August meeting and describes it and Phil has one idea for it and describes it  The president puts it out for a volunteer to head the project... silence.. anyone... silence... "I'll do it...." yep  if you bring up the idea it is your baby!

Montgomery County Ag Fair

8/17/10  Had a great time at the Montgomery County Ag Fair in the MCW booth.  We had a big wheel lathe and a jet mini lathe.  This is the third year we had the big wheel and the first year that we had power to run a real lathe.  The mini is one that we loan to the Wounded Warriors program at Walter Reed.    

The turner in the pictures is Bert our president and the one instrumental in getting us into the WW program and the MCAgFair.  He has done a great job getting us into these programs.   He has done a great job since becoming president in January.   

The grand champion in craft was a series of turnings.  Very interesting.

Day 2 ... not so well.

I did round two of the McNaughton with the larger blank.  In retrospect, maybe too big for my mighty little lathe.  It started out maybe 6 or 7 inches deep, with a tenon on it.  When I started the coring in the center I had a catch and the piece came spinning on the bed with the tenon cracking out.   New tenon turned and remounted tried again and came out again.   Plan B... returned the tenon and remounted it, pulled the tailstock up and turned the outside bowl.  It worked well, up to the point at the bottom... There shouldn't have been a point at the bottom but that is how I turned it .... I think I can get something use full but the large bowl may be more decorative.. Then put a tenon on the center and took a core out of it.  This worked fine.  Not sure if the first problem was sheer size, technique, or the sapwood tenon.  Probably a combination of all of them.

I finally got around to fixing my tailstock.  When I got my Nova DVR the tail stock was missing a setscrew to hold the system together.  When I put it together, it never ran smooth.  It always turned very hard.   I have been trying to get the hex wrench into it to get the setscrew out and clean it out and it hasn't been working, like the setscrew wasn't there.  I was cleaning up after the oak was on the lathe today.  It corrodes the bed and any iron it contacts.  I had the tailstock off so I finally decided to fix it..  I popped out the bracket that the set screw holds but the crank wouldn't come right out.  After a lot of trial and error I got the crank to pop off.  I dug around where the set screw was and realized it was filled with gunk.  I dug it out with an ice pick and got the screw out.  Cleaned off the parts, oiled them and put them back together, and it seems to work.

first coring was successful

I got my McNaughton M8 system this week.  ;)  

I got the chainsaw out today and cut up a 15 inch diameter oak log... It was about 20 inches long.  I cut it in 1/2 and cleaned it up for the lathe.  Pith was off center so one side was deeper than the other.  Smaller one went nicely over the bed, the larger one could have been trimmed better to fit but had to turn the head.

I pulled out the McNaughton system from the box, I was so good not opening the shipping box, and the Mike Mahoney DVD  on the McNaughton Center Saver.  I didn't know this came with the system when I bought it, but I am so glad that it did... I came up and watched the DVD for 20 min. then went back down, put the smaller blank on the lathe and set up the M8 based on the DVD.   Went smoothly, had a few hiccups, and some small catches.  I am not real fond of the support bar that didn't seem to stay in place for me but it was fun and a good first experiment.  I did a real small middle bowl, next one is a little thin on the bottom but the next one and the big one turned out with good thicknesses.

I am a happy turner!

Beech delivered...

A couple of weekends ago,  I went to Galeton for a class reunion.  On my trip I stopped in to see the Smails.  It is so nice to see them and got to see farmerSmail for the first time in 5 years.  I left them with with 5 bowls from wood that was acquired from them taking trees down.   I learned that the beechnut tree was a given to Mr. Smail from his father when they moved into the house and he planted 3 of them and this is the one that lasted.  I felt very happy giving him something from that tree.   I tried to suggest that he share them with his children but he was saying that he was disinclined to do so.  :)       These three bowls were from that  beech tree and I love the color and character they have.  The top one has a mineral oil and beeswax finish and the rest have salad bowl finish on them.    See previous posts beech branch and  show and tell.  Also check out MCW newsletter for other info and shots of these bowls.

I had a lot of trouble with the ash.  I am not sure why.. Some of it was my turning, but I think that even some of that may have been because some of this was degrading more than I thought.  One of the bowls is much darker now in the darker heartwood because it was chipping out and I glued it up with CA glue.  Since that caused the wood to darken I "colored" all of it and it came out ok.  I was given a couple more logs from these trees but have been out in the "carport" for over a year, giving many little critters a chance to have a taste..  Lets see how they come out..

AAW 2010 The big names

The instant gallery allows participants to bring 3 items to show and if you are a presenter you can bring 5.  Some of the biggest names in woodturning brought their wares to show at the instant gallery.  You can see from the picture of Cindy Drozda's work below that tables are filled with items and 8 to 10 rows of long tables not including the silent auction items and special displays.  This is very overwhelming and mind blowing that this many people are making such quality work.

David Ellsworth

 

John Jordan

 

J. Paul Fennell

David Nittmann

Cindy Drozda

Dale Larson

Mike Mahoney

AAW Hartford

I need to post some of my thoughts and experiences from the 2010 AAW convention in Hartford CT.  I had a great time.  Sometimes I got way overwhelmed by all the art, talent,  potential opportunities, and people... so many people!  A couple of the big picture things that I came away with are:

1.  seeing things and people that I have seen online, in print or @ our club meetings.

This is an example of something I saw on WoodCentral.com and couldn't believe it when I saw it/them and then when I saw it I was still dumbfounded that it was so cool and mesmerizing.    I went out with 2 friends Friday night for dinner and ran into woodturners Barbara, Pat and Dixie.  We went to 4 restaurants  before we could find one with room to eat.  Barbara had done a demo at MCW and it was very interesting.  She had candlesticks on the table and one in the silent auction and Phil won it.   They kept talking about Pat's entry in the Acer (maple) display that and the wonderful sphere.  I had not had a chance to check out that area but I am impressed as well! and Dixie seemed to have taken the show by storm, she had a cool entry in the Acer exhibit, this lipstick teapot in the teapot exhibit, and was picked out of the Instant Gallery with an excellence award.

2  The whimsy and thought that some people can do.  The chapter challenge is very cool where groups of people come together to pull a project together. 

There also is often an item that makes a statement, where this one is a bunch oft "human forms" in different woods with "one root".

3.  Things that will take me out of my comfort zone but may be doable and or at least a good starting place.  This cube from the Acer exhibit is a good example.  Many of the demos also did this as well.

4.  And finally how did they think of that.. this was turned at the show buy one of the emerging artists exhibit with twigs glued into the base and put in a block of ice and then the ice block was turned.  Several people commented on how cool that was with the water flying everywhere!  I am bummed I missed it.