CALGARY WOODTURNERS

(LIKE MINDED PEOPLE EXPANDING KNOWLEDGE OF WOOD TURNING)

MARCH 2003 – NEWSLETTER

GUESTS

Brian Emerson, Don James, and Ron Faulkner.

NEW MEMBERS

Pat Churchman, and Bill Mcleod

ANNOUNCEMENTS, NEW BUSINESS/OTHER

- The meeting was chaired by our Vice Chairman, Tony Lucas who will also chair our next meeting while President Terry is "down under".

- Gallery Xylos had their opening on Feb.28/03 and featured the works of Doug Haslam, Jim Osenton, and Tony Lucas. The next featured artist will be Tony.

- The Stampede is looking for wood turners to demo for 1.5 hours on Monday and Saturday. Jim Osenton and Jim Thorne have put their names in but another/backup may be required. Talk to either Jim's for more details.

- Spruce Meadows will be having their Red Ribbon Contest June 6 - 8, 2003. Tony has more details if anyone wishes to enter.

- REVIVAL OF "THE CHALLENGE'
We need a new name for this - how about "The Monthly Project"??? Tony suggested that we design and build a business card holder. The majority (or preponderance) of which shall be turned. Bring your creations to our MAY meeting when we will arrange for lots of time to discuss design etc.

- Speaking of SHOW and TELL, we tried a new format for this meeting. In an attempt to speed up the process, the items were placed on a table for all to view before, during the break and after the meeting. Any comments on the change??

- Our Exhibition Committee is looking for a place where we could create a small permanent display, possibly at Spruce Meadows and other venues. Consideration was given to being in an office. Other suggestions for locations included the Airport and Devonian Gardens. Ideas???

- Tony made an excellent suggestion as to how we might be of help to new turners. He suggested that we have a register of members willing to receive others seeking some sage wisdom. The idea being not 24/7, but more an appointment arrangement for a mutually convenient time to help novice turners getting started or turners wishing to advance their expertise, including advice on purchasing tools. Tony, Andy Lockhart and Bob Virgette immediately volunteered to start this program. This is a great idea that will be welcomed by many of our members. We will place this concept on the agenda again in May or further discussion.

- A suggestion was made to establish a "Bank of Turned Objects" to allow our group to present a turned item to speakers. This bank would run on donated items from members, with the thought that a speaker could have a choice from the items in the bank. Tony is going to turn a creation for our April speaker, but it would be nice for the speaker to have a selection to choose from. Any volunteers??

- A source of local Ash trees in the 6/8" size has been located west of Midnapore. Check with Dave Beeman for more information. Dave also has log sealer available.

SHOW AND TELL TABLE

DEMONSTRATION

We had the pleasure of 2 speakers for this meeting.

Frank Allen from The House of Tools provided his wisdom on the subject of abrasives. I would have said sandpaper before his talk, but now I know better. Abrasives, what we used to call sandpaper, are made of layers. starting with the backing, the base coat, the abrasive grains, and finally the top coat to bind everything together.

The base can be composed of either paper or cloth ranging from very thin to thick. The material used becomes a balance of economy or wear. Papers range from A to F, with A - D being the lightest and used in sheet goods. E & F are typically found in belts. Cloth backing ranges from JF to YY, JF - XY are Egyptian cotton and XX/YY are Polyester. The base coat was hide glue in the good old days but is being replaced by resins. The grains are imbedded in the base coat and arranged by an electrostatic charge to align the grains perpendicular to the base for better cutting action. The grains are then covered with a resin to hold all the particles in place.

Open coat abrasives are designed to have 50 - 70% of the base covered with grains. This allows the dust to collect between the grains and cut faster, but may tend not to give as smooth a finish. An application for this would be on belt sanders. Closed coat abrasives have a higher coverage of grains on the base providing the best finish. Final stages of sanding on hardwoods with the finer grits, is an example of the use for these.

The size grading for abrasives is governed by several standards from both North America and Europe. While the numbering system may be the same, the size of the corresponding grain is different for the same number on the back. (220 is not the same in the different scales). The abrasives seem to be settling on the FEPA scale denoted with a "P100".

Storage is important in Calgary's dry climate. The abrasives can gain and lose moisture similar to wood causing curls to develop. Sheets should be stored on a flat surface, preferably pressed flat, away from sources of moisture and at a stable temperature. It was suggested to keep it away from basement walls. To store belts, hang them on a dowel perpendicular from the wall. This will prevent creases and twisting of the belts.

Stearates are added to the abrasives to act as release agents helping to let sawdust (abrasive dust) not to clog the paper. The downside is that it needs to be removed prior to finishing with a tack rag. t reacts mostly with catalysed lacquers, but may effect other finishes as well.

Frank suggested that cloth backed abrasives would be the best for turning due to the tear resistance plus the ability to be used with oil finishes.

THANKS FRANK, for the stimulating advice about the world of abrasives.

AFTER THE BREAK 

JIM THORNE carried on after the break with a slide show of Instant Gallery from the AAW convention last year. While the lights were out and it was hard to write, I did remember flashes of turnings from all the possible types; segmented, carved, alabaster, large burls, micro turnings, offset work, human figures, and multi stacked centre saver bowls. MOST IMPRESSIVE!!!! I am sure the real thing was even more impressive than the slides captured.

THANKS JIM, inspiration for all of us to attend the conventions in the summer.

NEXT MEETING

TUESDAY APRIL 8 AT 7:30 PM AT BLACK FOREST WOOD

AGENDA

John Chalke will discuss Design Principles.

John is a designer craftsman in ceramics. He is a teacher at the Alberta College of Art and Design, has extensive background in teaching throughout England, and U of A, is a member of the Alberta Guild of Crafts, and has won the Governor General award for excellence in his field.

As John will make a 2 hour presentation, WE WILL NOT INCLUDE OUR USUAL SHOW AND TELL IN OUR AGENDA. OUR POPULAR SHOW AND TELL WILL RESUME AT OUR MAY MEETING WHEN MEMBERS ARE ENCOURGED TO BRING THEIR "CHALLENGE" CREATIONS.

Wilf Talbot

Many thanks Wilf, Carl.

Ref: CW22