Mid Staffs Woodturning Association Newsletter Issue 13 - February 2007 Editor: Paul Bellamy Tel:

Transcription

1 Mid Staffs Woodturning Association Newsletter Issue 13 - February 2007 Editor: Paul Bellamy paulbellamy@dsl.pipex.com Tel: Peter's ramblings Are you a collector? By that, I mean do you have an interest in a subject which encourages you to buy - and store - items you like but don't really need? Such as music (CD's or DVD's) or even foreign stamps. But more about stamps later. Most of us have some sort of collection. A friend of mine has a vast collection of books, videos, press cuttings, figurines etc., of anything to do with the early Walt Disney cartoon films - Snow White, Pinocchio, Bambi and the like. She rarely views the videos but they are there - ready - and of course, they very soon create a starting point for conversation when visitors arrive. One of my neighbours has a collection of over 100 Royal Doulton figurines, most of which cannot be displayed because there just is not enough room in the display cabinets! But she 'possesses' them! Perhaps she thinks of them as an investment for the future. At over a hundred pounds each to buy, I hope they are, but I doubt if she would get her money back if she sold them. Certainly a dealer would offer her nowhere near that price - especially as a 'job lot'. When I was a young boy - about 8 or 9 years old - I started a collection of fish. Fish? Yes, fish! You see, just a few yards from the back of the house where I lived, there was a disused canal. By disused, I mean it hadn't seen the passage of a boat for over thirty years and although there were a few factories along its length, there was very little pollution. The water was crystal clear and at the edge, quite shallow. By lying face down at the side of the canal you could see the fish on the bottom. Not only fish but leeches, water- worms and newts, not to mention frogs and toads which were evidenced at certain times of the year by large amounts of frogspawn and subsequently, tadpoles. What a wonderful time it was for a young lad around ''Don't you go near that canal!' was my mother's cautioning order when I went out to play 'over the fields' 'Yes mom' - and off I'd go.(note: I would never have used the expression 'OK mom' in those days, - It would have been regarded as 'slang' But of course eventually I would get involved in fishing. Not on my own as I was usually with other lads. And so began my collection of sticklebacks - there were two or three sorts of 'jackbannocks' as we called them - gudgeon, roach, perch and other incidental pond life. I kept them in an old galvanised bath and over a period of time of course, some died and were replaced by fresh examples. And of course, size matters so the search for bigger and better examples to impress the other boys was always on. But at that age interest soon fades away and eventually the collection was returned to the wild, much to the relief of the fish, I am sure. But ever since those days, I have always been pleased to find a newt or a frog in our garden pool. I moved on. Foreign stamps! Philately, to give stamp collecting its proper name, was probably the most popular of all hobbies amongst young people, particularly in the days when the vast majority of letters actually had stamps on them, not the uniform and bland franking which seems to adorn most letters received today. But you can learn a lot from stamps. Stamps, and in fact the whole of the modern postal system, was invented by the British in 1840; and because of that, it is felt that the depiction of the Queen's head is sufficient to tell you that it is a British stamp and there is no need to actually use the country's name. Document: C:\MSWA\Newsletter\2007\February\MSWA_February.doc Page 1 of 8

2 Here are a couple more facts about stamps. Not long after the evacuation of Dunkirk, Germany occupied the Channel Islands and very soon the supply of penny stamps which were used for local mail in those days dried up! Now strangely, the British postal authorities in London, authorised the occupation postal people to take the two penny stamps and cut them diagonally and use them as penny stamps until new stamps could be printed (without the Queen's head, of course) In 1990, to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the beginning of the postal service (with stamps, that is) the colour of the first class stamp, then 20p, was changed to black, in memory, so to speak, of the original Penny Black of Also a special set of stamps showing the heads of both Queen Victoria and the current Monarch was issued. I know that the cost of postage seems to be always going up but spare a thought for the Germans in the winter of 1923 when inflation was totally out of hand. It then cost 80 billion marks to send an inland letter! Yes, collecting stamps can be a very interesting pastime but I have long since given up. and I remember that at about the time I got married, many of my foreign stamps were stuck on to a parchment lamp shade just for decorative purposes. What a shame. So now I come back to my original question 'Are you a collector? I bet you are, or have been at some time in the past. What about all those turning tools in your workshop? do you use them all or have you just 'collected' some of them because you felt that you must have them. I know that this point of view could be applied to me! Give it some thought, eh! Regards to you all, Peter Editor's scribblings Well it looks like you've got me as Editor for another year. Not much to say this month except for the sad news about Bill Kinsman. I never met him personally but he was one of the contributors to the 'new' newsletter articles, for which I and the other club members should be very grateful. Thank you Bill. Obituary It is with great sadness that we record the death of one of our oldest and dearest member, Bill Kinsman. For a number of years Bill had suffered from a very rare form of blood cancer which, even knowing it would be progressive, he endured in his usual stoical and philosophical way. In his passing we have lost another of that rare breed, a true gentleman. I m sure I am not alone in saying he will be sadly missed. Missed, not only for his gentle and kindly dealings with everyone he met, but also for his generous nature and for his skills and knowledge which he shared so willingly with those who needed a guiding hand. Bill was always eager to pass on his knowledge, sometimes in the form of a demonstration. Who will ever forget his performances? In particular that exciting performance of his demonstration. William s Woody Widgets - masterful! We will remember you Sir William for a very long time. Gordon Fradley 24 January Page 2 of 8

3 Club information Club merchandise Your club committee for 2007 comprises:- Chairman - Peter Worrall Tel worrall227@wheatason99.fs.net.co.uk Secretary - Dawn Hopley Tel Mob dawn.hopley@btinternet.com Treasurer - Maurice Partington Tel mrpartington@tiscali.co.uk Assistant treasurer - Roy Fallows Tel paulacon@btinternet.com Events secretary - Geoff Payne Tel Mob payne420@btinternet.com Abrasives - Terry Gray Tel terrygr-marg@tiscali.co.uk Raffle - Margaret Hill Tel Not online Member's representative - Ron Barnsley Tel Mob ronbarnsley@blueyonder.co.uk Newsletter - Paul Bellamy Tel Mob paulbellamy@dsl.pipex.com Please only use phone numbers if absolutely necessary. Clothing The club has a selection of items for sale, all featuring the club name on a blue background. Sweatshirts (dark blue) T-shirts (light blue) 7.00 Baseball caps 6.00 The sweatshirts are ideal for the workshop at this time of year; nice and warm, and they keep all that loose clothing wrapped up, but they are also smart enough to wear down the high street. See John Smith at the club meetings if you would like to purchase any item of club clothing. Abrasives If you need that finishing touch, Terry Gray has the club's stock of abrasives. They are 1.75 per metre and we have 180, 180, 240 and 320 grit in stock. He also has packs of Abranet, recommended by some other club members, at 1.80 for a set of 5 sheets. Club meetings The next meeting will be on the 2 nd. March. The demonstrator will be Gerry Marlow. He specialises in long stemmed goblets but may do something completely different! Club Competition pieces The Challenge Cup piece for March is:- A bowl, maximum 8 in. diameter, with decorated feature(s) e.g. texturing, carving, pyrography, colouring etc. The Novice piece for April is:- A piece of turned fruit. And to really prepare for things, the Premier Cup piece for January 2008 is:- A lidded urn, height between 8 and 12 in. Books, videos and DVDs Just a reminder. The club has books, videos and DVDs for hire. There is quite a selection and the fee helps support the club. See list at end of newsletter. Next issue Height matters! Write up on Gerry Marlow's demo. That said, articles, pictures etc. from any other members will help keep the newsletter going. After all it is YOUR newsletter. Deputy chairman The club still needs someone to take on the role of deputy chairman, to 'learn the ropes' this year, ready to take over from Peter next year. You don't need any previous experience, just a bit of courage to stand up in front of the club members. And there is full support from the rest of the committee. So come on, if you enjoy the club, now is the chance to put something back in. If you want to ask any questions about the role, please contact anyone on the committee. Page 3 of 8

4 January competitions results (Sorry these weren't in the Jan issue and no photos - unless someone took any?) Premier cup won by N Armstrong. A total of 4 members entered Challenge cup won by G Payne. A total of 12 members entered over the year. Novice trophy won by A Plews. A total of 9 members entered over the year. February competition entries This month's piece was a fruit bowl, maximum 10 inches. A good show of pieces with various shapes and sizes. Well done to everyone! First place Brian Garratt Second place Paul Bellamy Third place Anne Hopkinson Margaret Hill Sorry, no details Page 4 of 8

5 Ken Allen - 'Wood from the woods' For those that don't know, Ken is a long standing member of our club but that is not the reason he has become a regular demonstrator for us. His demonstrations are always interesting and informative, and this evening was no exception. It started with an announcement that he would be doing not one, but three pieces based on a common theme of natural timber. Ken lives locally and had first hand experience of the recent storms, resulting in some successful foraging for wood from the woods. This led to some discussion on the legality of 'collecting' timber but did not reach a definitive answer. I think most of us would agree, there is a good case that you are using something that would otherwise just go to rot, so it shouldn't be a problem but I would add, if you can find and ask the landowner, you can't do much more. (Anybody have any comments on this? Ed.) It also prompted the first of many useful tips throughout the evening, that the ends of freshly cut wood should be sealed as quickly as possible to prevent cracking. (I have had good success using cling film or the more industrial pallet wrap. Easy to apply and can be kept in the car, no heating or messy liquids. Ed.) Ken explained that all the pieces this evening would be thin walled vessels but before he started turning, he passed round a pot that was a copy of a museum piece. It was a piece of beech that had been stained a deep reddish brown, with beetroot juice, then turned very thin and decorated by piercing. The result was most impressive, if only how light it was as the wood was probably less than 1/16" thick. It take practise to work to this sort of thickness, but that is the key. Practise, yes you will go too far on some occasions but that is all part of learning. Now on to the turning. But before mounting the wood, Ken stressed the importance of the alignment of the head and tailstock. It is worth doing this on any new lathe but also every time the head is moved on a swivel head lathe. He also pointed out, when mounting wood, don't hammer wood on to the headstock - that will damage the bearings. If necessary, use mallet to mount drive into the wood, then put it in the headstock. Don't use a hammer or you can damage the morse taper. The first item would be a thin walled goblet from beech. Ken started with a piece of branch mounted between centres, roughed it down to a cylinder and turned a spigot on one end to suit the chuck. With the wood mounted in the chuck, Ken used a small bowl gouge to true up the end face, using several cuts for practise, if necessary, then started to hollow it out. Always complete the cut to the centre or you will have trouble with subsequent cuts, as the tool will be trying to cut too much wood. And Ken explained, despite all the comments about 'rubbing the bevel', this isn't possible on a hollow ground tool, from a wheel grinder; you are actually 'rubbing the heel'. That is why a smaller gouge can cope more easily with a sharper corner. And it is important to keep the edge sharp, especially when wet timber will blunt the tool more quickly. This is due to the minerals that are drawn up in the sap and are still trapped in the fibres. The final, light cut of the inside of the goblet bowl, was made with a freshly sharpened tool, to achieve the best possible finish. It is difficult to sand wet wood as it tends to go 'furry'. If necessary, wet and dry paper should be used, wetted with water or oil, to finalise the surface. With the inside finished, the outside shape was formed. Ken used a lamp to shine through the wood, to indicate how thick it is but he did mention that is not the only factor. The type of wood, alignment of the grain and it's water content, will all affect the intensity shining through. It only took Ken a short while to achieve a consistent, thin wall, and even this was done with continual chat, proving his skill at turning, and talking. Next Ken moved on to the stem. Since a lot of wood has to be removed, this is a good time to practise the shapes for the stem and base; if you go wrong, you still have another chance to get it right. Ken likes to decorate the spindle with a few beads and coves but he believes the shapes should be set 'by eye' rather than use dividers to keep its 'hand crafted' look, otherwise it looks machine produced. Old tables never have identical legs! The top of the base was shaped to suit and then Ken started to part the goblet from the chuck. However, he didn't cut straight in, he used the parting cut to hollow the base, reducing the amount of wood so it will dry without stressing the wood. He used an old machine hacksaw blade, with the teeth ground off, mounted in a handle, as a narrow parting tool. Page 5 of 8

6 The next piece was to be a natural edge bowl. This used a drier piece of wood, with noticeable spalting even though this was from a standing tree. Ken used a pair of dividers to determine final form of bowl. Normally the wood would be mounted centrally but you may want uneven sides, so an offset would be needed. For example, florists likes to lay small bunch of flowers out of one side but have a backdrop of other side of bowl. An offset would have the desired effect. As Ken was mounting the wood on the screw chuck, he passed on another good tip and that is to use a three cornered 'saw' file to sharpen the threads. Just hold the file against it, with the lathe running at minimum speed. (I suppose you could turn it by hand if your lathe doesn't go that slow.) And it is important to drill the hole to suit the shaft of the screw thread, to ensure a good fit. Ken started with the tailstock against the wood to provide support while he removed the bulk of the wood but once the piece was reasonably balanced it was moved away and the chuck spigot cut. Finally, he marked the centre of the base, which would be used later for reverse chucking. It's easy to forget to do this, which will make that much more difficult. Another important thing to remember is not to use your hand on the workpiece to slow it down, as many of us do with ordinary turnings. Either wait for it to slow normally or put you hand on the chuck. Ken finished the outside of the bowl with a final cut made with freshly sharpened tool. It was then removed from the screw, and the foot spigot mounted in the chuck jaws. Now the inside could be hollowed out but as this progressed, the length of tool overhanging the rest got to the stage where vibrations became noticeable. Ken's tip - fill the groove in the bowl gouge with wood filler. This adds weight and support to the tool, reducing vibration. And the filler removes easily as the edge is ground. Another tip! One difficulty with hollowing out turnings is the 'pip' that often gets left in the centre. Instead of trying to turn this out, or sand it off, leave the piece in the chuck, but with the power off, rotate it until the grain runs vertically. Now use a scraper, levered against the tool rest to remove the blemish, followed by hand sanding. The final job on this piece was to reverse chuck the piece so the foot could be made more appealing. Ken uses a piece of the non-slip matting over the chuck jaws, after all the inside of the bowl is circular even if the edge suggests otherwise. Now the tailstock can be brought up, gently, to the indent made earlier, guaranteeing everything is centred. A few deft touches with the gouge and the foot has a nice curve instead of the sharp edge of the spigot. Very neat! The final piece was a winged, natural edge bowl. This is virtually the same as the first bowl, but as the wings are turned very thin, it is imperative that the piece is done in one session. No lunch breaks, or the wood will 'move', making it impossible to get a consistent thickness. And you should always be prepared to modify the design if you come across something that requires a change. In this case Ken had to contend with a resident woodworm that had bored through the log! An excellent evening full of tips, anecdotes and superb turnings. Thanks Ken. Quote for the month An elephant a mouse built to government specifications! Page 6 of 8

7 Minutes of the Annual General Meeting 12 th January 2007 Apologies M Gadsby, R Fallows, S Bagnall, D Forrester, S Hall, T Gray. Approval of the minutes of the 2006 AGM The minutes of the meeting of 13 th January 2006 were approved after being proposed by R Dixon and seconded by K Lanchester. There were no matters arising. Chairman s Report See attached report. Treasures Report See attached report The treasurer submitted a statement of accounts to the meeting (copy attached) and drew attention to the loss of around 200 on the year. Following comments from the floor it was proposed by P Hinton and seconded by R Barnsley that the monthly meeting payment on the door be increased to 2 from the current 1 as a way of increasing revenue, but in future this would also cover the cost of the interval refreshments. This was carried on a show of hands. Also raised was the amount of the annual donation to charity and it was felt by the meeting, on a show of hands, that the amount should be 50 and not include the raffle amount as had been done before. It was then agreed that the sum of 50 be sent to the Stafford and District M S Society as the donation for The question of the auditor was raised and as previously, Tony Hulbert agreed to conduct an audit of the accounts. Election of Officers and Committee The following officers and committee members were elected. Chairman P Worrall. Proposed R Dixon seconded K Lanchester. Treasurer M Partington. Proposed R Barnsley seconded J Hulse. Secretary D Hopley. Proposed R Dixon seconded A Hopkinson. Events Secretary G Payne. Proposed D Neale seconded J Hulse. Assistant Treasurer R Fallows. Proposed R Dixon seconded D Neale Committee members P Bellamy, M Hill, T Gray, R Barnsley, J Smith. Proposed G Dawson seconded P Worrall. Proposal that the Annual Membership fee be increased by one pound This was proposed by R Dixon, seconded by G Payne and carried unanimously. Proposal that the charge for visitors be increased to 2 This was proposed by R Barnsley and seconded by P Hinton but following comments from the floor that visitors should pay a higher amount than newly agreed member s charge of 2, a vote was passed, on a show of hands, for a charge of 3 to be levied in future. Any Other Business. The suggestion was made by the event s secretary that the club might consider some visits to places of interest to members. A positive interest was indicated by members with suggestions of Turner s Retreat, Ockenden Timber, Ashley Isles and others being mentioned. G Payne will now look into the feasibility of arranging such visits. A request was made by M Hill that members should make a point of supporting the raffle as not only did it help the club finances but it also funded the cost of the prize each month given to the competition winner. The question was raised by A Plews with respect to the novice s competition, as to whether the revised format for entries had been successful in increasing entries. It was confirmed that it had resulted in more entries and it was felt the competition should remain in its new form. Problems relating to arriving on time for meetings at the earlier starting time agreed at last year s AGM, were raised by D Neale, but on a show of hands the great majority were happy with the 7.00pm start and did not wish to change it again. C Gibb questioned the outcome of the approach last summer, from the Alrewas show committee member. It was confirmed that we were in touch with them and had agreed to demonstrate at their show later this year. Members will be advised as soon as details were available. On behalf of members, G Fradley requested that a vote of thanks to the officers and committee for their work in running the club be recorded. Page 7 of 8

8 Turning tips This section is for any tips or advice you would like to pass on to other members. It doesn't matter what it is, if you discovered something you found useful, that you think may benefit others, please pass it on. Record Power Spring promotion Record have their latest promotion catalogue with various special offers on tools and accessories. There is also a Free DVD on 'Buyers guide to thicknessers and planers'. For those that have seen their 'bandsaw' DVD, I suspect this one will be similar, with a combination of sales info but also useful tips. What have you got to lose for the price of a stamp or a phone call. To request the promotion and the DVD call or call in at any Record Power dealer. I use Jaymac in Derby but there is probably one in the Birmingham area. Head and tailstock alignment It is easy to check the alignment at the headstock end of the lathe by bringing the tailstock up to it but if you want to check the alignment of your lathe at its full length, mount a spindle in your chuck, turn it until it is well balanced then remove the tailstock; face off the end and using a skew, mark the centre of the end. The mark should remain in the centre. If it does not the spindle is out of balance and you need to sort that out. Now, bring the tailstock up to the mark and any misalignment will be evident. The longer the spindle the more accurate you will be. This is a useful check on a new lathe but useful if you have a swivel head lathe and you have just moved it. Paul Bellamy Useful websites There is an awful lot of information available on the internet but some is better than others. If you come across any good or useful sites, please let me know and I will publish them in the newsletter. The following are worth a look :- thanks to Geoff Payne thanks to David Neale Questions and answers This section is an opportunity for members to ask questions for other members to answer, primarily about woodturning but I see no reason why this couldn't be extended further. There is a lot of knowledge in the club on many subjects and this should be an easy way to get answers. Items for sale or wanted If you have any items for sale, or if you are trying to find something, send me the details and I will put it in the next issue. Record Power RP3000X chuck Good condition. 25. Contact Roy Fallows on Latest news Newsletter Archive All the 2006 issues of the newsletter can still be found on an 'Archive' page on the website. Follow the link from the main page. List of videos and DVDs Shear Magic - Robert Sorby Turning Boxes - Chris Stott Woodturning Workshop - Reg Slack Cutting and Sharpening for Woodturners - Chris Stott The Capsule Box - Ray Key Turning Wood - Alan Holtman Turning Wood (cheese board and knife) - Alan Holtman Turning Wood (table lamp) - Alan Holtman Ditto...(eggcups and stand) Ditto...(polishing) Sharpening Tools - Jim Kingshott Skew Chisel - Allan Batty Colouring Wood - Jan Sanders Woodturning Miniatures - Reg Slack Turning Wood - Alan Holtman Record Power's Woodturning Projects Woodfinishing Tricks Course on Spindle Turning-Ray Jones Bowls for Beginners - Ray Jones Woodturning, Foundatio Course-Keith Rowley Indexing Unit CD-Rom AWGB Instant Galleries DVD Turning Projects - Richard Raffan Page 8 of 8