Board Briefs

Si Farmer

Treasurer:

Liz Rohde reported receipts of $2,986.00 and disbursements of $4,153, leaving us with a balance of $7, 518 as of 4/11/02.

Programs:

Ken Bahr reported on the visit of Michael Doerr at the last meeting, and workshop. Feedback indicated he was knowledgeable, well received and entertaining. The problem with the autofocus on the projector was an impediment to an otherwise good presentation.

Workshops:

Dick Yezek reported that some opening are still available for the Garret Hack workshops. One should call him or register promptly at the next meeting. The ‘best buy’ is the combination Saturday / Sunday offerings.

Exhibits:

Don Berger reported on the opportunity of the Guild to do a Sheboygan Art Exhibit. There were several questions raised about the feasibility of such an exhibit, inasmuch as we plan to do another one at the Wisconsin Lutheran College again. A show of hands will be taken at the next Guild Membership Meeting and, in indicated, further exploration of this event will be pursued.

Publications:

Si Farmer reported that Brian Halligan has agreed to act as Webmaster for now. Brian will be asked to find out from Jerry Davis who the Guildís Internet Service Provider is; no one on the board knows for sure. The library listings on the web will be compared to our inventory by our Librarian and Brian will make any necessary corrections on our web listings.

Toys:

Ron Hinderman reported that the Guild is the recipient of more lumber. We now have some maple, elm, hickory, oak etc. Ron says that if you’re willing to participate in a Toy Makin’ Fun Event, please call him and he’ll arrange for such a fun-fest.




Raffle

Alan Clapp

Richard Burke, Ed Cessna and Fred Rusch were the winners of the March raffle.
The raffle prize to be given away at the Friday May 3rd meeting is a 16-piece Forstner bit set. The bits range in size from 1/4” through 2 1/8”.



Reflections

Michael Doerr’s Visit - Chair Design & Fabrication


Si Farmer

The membership was treated to an evening of slide show and discussion on the principles of chair design and fabrication by a student of the Sam Maloof Design School. Michael Doerr took two summer classes from Maloof, and fashioned his own designs which incorporate the Maloof joint.
Michael now has about a half-dozen designs of his own which use the Maloof joint and he has some of the chairs and benches on display at the meeting. In addition, he makes other kinds of furniture, the kind that most of us would like to make, if we had the talent, time and where-with-all. His presentation demonstrated that ‘the process’ is essential, first in laying out the design to incorporate 90° joints, and then in designing the lay of the legs and backs to fall within these parameters.
His Saturday workshop at the Sylvan Studio was well attended. At this event, Michael demonstrated how he laid out the pattern for the legs, back etc, and how he made the Maloof joint with the router....tweaking it a bit here and there, until he got an air tight joint. His philosophy seems to be, “If you don’t take time to do it right the first time, when will you find time to repeat it”! He didn’t seem to be in a hurry to complete any of the procedures.
It was interesting to see him ‘free-hand’ the band saw in cutting out the components of the chair. He stressed the need to use sharp bandsaw blades if one is to attempt to do free-hand compound cuts.
His presentation was slated to run from 8 am until noon, but he stayed a couple hours later to answer questions from the attendees, and demonstrate some aspects of seat design and fabrication.
If you weren’t there, you missed a great opportunity to interface with a top woodworker.

SHARPENING WORKSHOP

Mary F. Anderson

As a new member of the guild, I had the great fortune to take a workshop on Sharpening of Planes, Irons and Chisels. It was held at WoodCraft in West Allis on Saturday, March 16, 2002. Members John Petrovic and Walt Hadcock presented the class. We had a great crowd and a lot of fun.
We started out by learning the different ways to sharpen various tools. The methods that you can use to sharpen your tools are; the Sandpaper method, oil or water grinders, grinding stones, paper wheels and leather straps/wheels. What we were to accomplish in the class was to learn what sharpness is and to learn the sandpaper method. The definition of sharpness is “Two polished planes intersecting at a point.” In the class John warned of the differences in sandpaper grits from manufacturer to manufacturer. They can be very different.
Next we went on to actually sharpening the tools that we brought to class. We started out by flattening the back of the iron or chisel. This is as important as the beveled side because it is half of the cutting edge. We used a red marker to mark the back of the tool close to the edge. Then we rubbed the edge across 80-grit sandpaper, alternating these steps until the red marker came off of the edge in 3-4 swipes. We continued this, doubling the sandpaper until we got to 2000 grit. All of the machined marks on the tool edge should have been gone up to a fraction of an inch from the edge. John and Walt stressed the importance of a good polished edge because the edge will be sharper and stay sharper longer.
The next half of the class, we discussed the opposite side of the tool that needed to be sharpened. There are three shapes that can be sharpened on a tool. There is a flat, convex and a concave bevel. We then discussed which bevel would be best for the different tools in your shop. We then went on in the last part of the class to sharpen the opposite side of the tool we brought.
I felt that this was a great class for the beginner in woodworking and I had a lot of fun. The instructors were very helpful with any questions and problems that you came across. I learned a lot from this class.


Special Features


Toy Makin' Fun Fest

Ron Hinderman

Are you interested in making sawdust along with producing some wonderful toys? I know there are a lot of retirees out there. Would you like to join me at a Toy Makin’ Fun Fest? How about during the day----or how about on week-ends?
My shop is waiting for some good people to help me out with your skill, talent and ideas.
When a bunch of people get together, everything goes smoother - and look at the results when we are done! Look at all the of the wonderful toys we give the kids at Christmas time, and think of all the smiles on these kid’s faces.
We can also use good clean wood, and any other parts to help make these toys. How about helping out?
Please call me.
Thanks

Classified

For Sale

Wood: Great selection of 18 species of hard and soft woods in three grades plus shorts are offered for sale at very competitive prices. Spaulted, curly, birds eye and quarter sawn boards are also available. Logs are band sawn (4/4 through 8/4) in Plymouth, WI by Jack Langjahr (new member from Plymouth, WI) who operates Exterior Design Landscaping.
Jack Langjahr
crystaltj@juno.com N7181 Co. C Rt. 3
Crystal Lake Drive, Plymouth, WI 53073

Wood: Basswood for carving; Red Oak, Maple, Butternut, Red Elm, air-dried 1-yr. Some 8/4; rest 1-1/8 inch. Real buy at $1 board foot.
Alan Kelling (Friend of the Guild)


Drum Sander: Woodmaster, Model 1200, operates like a thickness sander, with power in-feed and out-feed rollers. with extra sanding belts. $350
Lathe, Jet Wood Lathe, Model 1236JWL, variable speed, with extra tool base, like new condition. $425
Pete Sapienza

Lathe; Jet Mini-Lathe, Model JML-1014 Ideal for pens and small turnings. Like brand new. Used only once. $300.
Dick Butula