Working with Wood Show Canberra 2007 – day two.
I returned to the Working with Wood show today and the folks at Timbecon were very helpful in locating the base to my jointer, and it was quickly stowed in the van. And since I was already there I may as well have another look around. The rain had clearly kept some people away and it wasn’t as crowded as in previous years. But most stands were still doing a good trade.
The weather cleared and I saw the demonstration of the Lucas portable saw mill – it is simple but very effective, as all good designs are.
and I bought some timber straight off the mill – who says I don’t buy timber at woodworking shows!
The wood wizz was demonstrated to good effect on what looks like a wide tabletop to be – this is another great design that does its job very well. Ideal for a furniture business.
I got a better photo of the sail boat kit showing the sail rigging – it looks delightful.
And the scouts were progressing on theirs
You can see how the boards are stitched together with copper ties, and the framework is being inserted afterwards to provide strength and rigidity, while maintaining a lightweight design.
I also revisited the Triton Club stall and got a photo of the thread holder – it is quite ingenious, using the same principle as a louvred blind to make the threads easily accessible. The thread holder is made from Victorian ash, ply and hardware dowel. You can see the prototype beside it which was used to test the mechanism and to ensure the correct heights for the reels. This holder was built to overcome the frustration of having to dig through drawers of cotton reels, and is wall mounted.
At Chris Vesper’s stall I lashed out on a luxury marking knife – sturdy enough to use as a chisel in tight places, this tool is a work of art and the handle feels great in the hand
I also watched the great Australian Criicket Bat Race – between Stan Ceglinski and Timbecon – man versus machine!
This one was cut out on a band saw and given rough shape on the same machine, then sanded to round off the edges and smooth the handle. Meanwhile Stan began by splitting a piece of timber from a stump and hacked away with a blade – sending wood chips flying all over the guy from Timbecon!
Although starting from a raw stump, Stan quickly hacked out the shape – here he is refining the handle
And it was almost a draw! with the Timbecon guy raising his just seconds before Stan had finished signing his name – two very different approaches, but Stan sure knows his timber and clearly loves every minute that he spends working with it.
I then watched a demonstration of pen making on a small Sherwood lathe. Afterwards the guy asked if i was interesting in taking up turning. I told him I had an old Rhino (Taiwanese) lathe but it didn’t have the morse tapers to accept the pen mandrel. The guy then pointed out all the other things you can do once you have one so equipped and I noted how smooth and silent this one was – the Rhino makes an audible hum. After seven years with the other lathe it wasn’t too long before this one had my name on it – yes I bought the shop-floor one for an extra (considerable) discount off the show price – I pick it up tomorrow. I even have a bench space just ready for it! See how much I’m saving??
I also bought a resin finish for my forthcoming table 🙂
So it was another good day at the Working with Wood Show in Canberra.
Cheers
Jerry
