Woodturners Newsletter, December 2024

West Bay Woodturners Newsletter is a monthly update on the club activities. This free resource is available to beginner and professional woodturners.

Next Meeting

Program and President’s challenge:

Upcoming Meetings and Demos

• January 2025: TBD, but most likely our traditional extended show and tell

President’s Message

Well, I just read David’s piece that you will find below. I can’t think of anything to add, except to thank David for being an inspiration to me and others in learning and improving woodturning skills, but also in being of service to our club and our community. It has been truly an honor to follow in David’s and many other’s steps to keep our club growing and interesting. I am excited to see what Jon Bishop and Jim Koren will bring to our organisation. You can already feel the energy that new board members bring forward!

Anyways, please come join your friends, partners and fellow woodturners at our Holiday potluck, bring a healthy appetite for the food, and also for the gift exchange and ornament raffle. We will review the gift items at the January meeting as we’ve done in the past.

Claude Godcharles

Last Meeting Review

Wednesday November 20, 2024

Pictures by Angela Gunn and Roman Chernikov

Announcements

• Officers for 2025: Our new board of directors was duly elected at the last meeting, the race was tight, but the vote was unanimous for the slate of candidates! So please gratefully welcome your new board:
• Jon Bishop – President
• Tom Gaston – Vice-President
• Jim Koren – Treasurer
• Laura Rhodes – Secretary

As is the custom, the 5th position for member-at-large will be filled by the new board at the first board meeting.

November Program: Bowl with handles by Tom Gaston

Presidents Challenge: Egg shape, any tool!

Inspired by Eric Lofstrom’s October demonstration where he showed turning eggs by practicing the skew-chisel skills.

Show & Tell:

Participation Prizes

“As the Wood Turns” by David Vannier

Sadly I will miss our pot luck again this year, but I know you will all have a good time. It is a great opportunity to show our significant others why we are so involved in the club, sharing memories of the year, and having a chance to collect a fellow turners gift. It has been a good year, IMHO. We’ve shared turning knowledge and experiences with everything from the handle demo Tom just did to discussing finishes. Hopefully you’ve enjoyed it as much as I have. Thanks Claude for leading us this year, and thanks to Jon for stepping up and taking the reins for this coming year.

Personally, I enjoyed my experiences at the AAW symposium in Portland. Sharing time with old distant friends and the many new friends I had time to share with them. Woodturning is a passion that we can all share. It crosses so many different occupations, including those who chose to make it a living. If you haven’t attended a symposium, I encourage you to get to one! There are a number of opportunities. Unfortunately none are going to be local, but are within driving distance, or definitely a reasonable flight. An opportunity to walk through the instant gallery will fill you with ideas. You have an opportunity to sit through 10 different programs, which sometimes are really surprising in how interesting they can be. Of course, don’t overlook the opportunity to rub elbows with some of the best turners in the world. The time over drinks can be quite eye opening.

I capped this year off crossing off a bucket list class. Was very worried I wouldn’t get to go due to my health issues, but all worked out. The class was like drinking from a fire hose. Lots of experimenting since I’ve been back, and plenty of studying. While my direction isn’t for everyone, it is something I want to chase. As a retired engineer, I’m struggling to use the other side of the brain. My daughter says I’m making progress, which is encouraging. But so much to learn. Isn’t life great! in general, I try to take hands on classes whenever possible. You never know what you will walk out with. Sometimes it is how to use a new tool (new to you). Sometimes it is a new direction to explore. I made the mistake of thinking I didn’t have enough experience to take a hands on class early on. The slot went empty, and I would have learned so much. I encourage you to take hands on classes whenever possible. They are inspirational, educational, and can be a lot of fun!

I’ll wrap this up, thinking about next year.. i certainly want to keep paying it forward. So many past members, many aren’t with us any more, shared and helped me. My life has forever been changed for the better. I hope I can help someone else with this same joy. I’ll encourage each of you to find that area that adds value to your life. It might be chasing making beautiful functional bowl, or chasing the perfect hollow form, or expressing your inner voice with an embellished turning. Whatever it is, there is always something to appreciate, recognizing the skill and effort put into the piece. Have a great Christmas and new year! I’ll see you next year.

Dave
www.daves-turned-art.com

Woodturners Newsletter Editing Notes

WBW members, if you have a personal website and would like it included in the President’s Challenge and Show & Tell sections of our Woodturning Newsletter, please let the newsletter editors know. Email us at info@westbaywoodturners.com.

WBW board members and committee chairs