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Volume 33, No 04 April 2016 No. 317

Correspondence to

the Secretary, Trevor Lloyd

Woodgroup SA Inc web page:-

www.woodgroupsa.org.au

Opinions expressed in this Newsletter are not

necessarily those of the Editor, the Board of

Directors, or the Executive Committee of

Woodgroup SA Inc.

WOODGROUP CONTACT DETAILS

Contact the Secretary (Trevor Lloyd)

Email—3lloyds@adam.com.au

Contact the Newsletter Editor for March

(George Pastuch)

Email - newsletter@woodgroupsa.org.au

COPYRIGHT

PROVISIONS

Other Wood Working Clubs may use written

items by Woodgroup SA members without prior

permission, conditional on acknowledging the

article when published. No alterations shall be

made and nothing used when the author indicated

it shall not be copied. Designs however may not

be copied in any manner.

(George Pastuch - Editor)

Woodgroup SA— Member Clubs

Club Contact Phone

Northern Turners Inc Lindsay Winen 08 8344 8521

Western Woodworkers Inc Rena Hoare 08 8352 3207

Murrayland Turners Inc Charles Andre 08 8574 0105

Sculptors & Carvers Inc Graham Jones 08 8260 2827

Whyalla Woodies Inc Robin Sandy 08 8260 2827

Hills Woodworkers Inc Ron Burke 08 8389 8574

Copper Coast Woodworkers Inc Graham Nicolle 08 8821 4882

South Oz Scrollers Inc David Chaplin 08 8377 0529

Riverland Woodworkers Inc Brian Lock 08 8586 4916

Toymendous Inc Ron Crowhurst 08 8264 0034

Southern Turners Inc John Tillack 0408 866000

Riverside Community

Woodgroup

Brian Jones

Fleurieu Woodturners Dennis Murray 0431834472

From the President’s Shed

My tour of the Woodgroup Clubs continues with a visit to the Fleurieu Woodturners in early May where all

present learnt how to carve a clock surround using basic tools. Unfortunately I had to leave early and will have

to finish my carving without the expert guidance provided by Des. Show and tell included quality items

produced by relatively inexperienced turners. Keep up the good work guys.

I also attended the Murrayland Turners in late May where Brendon Stemp once again demonstrated his

innovative approach to turning in wood and resins. All present on the day had a great time and despite Brendon

stating he would not take offence with anyone going to sleep after lunch I am not aware of anyone who did as

no one wanted to miss any aspect of the demo.

I have attended two shows at the Wayville Showgrounds over the past month or so and if patrons follow through

on their promises several clubs should get new members as a result of the spruiking by Southern Turners

members.

Let the wood chips fly

John Tillack

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Note – Price increase effective 1st July 2015 (the first in over 12 years)

SCROLL SAW BLADES

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pinned. •We also sell the German made Flying Dutchman blades. •Pinless are $5.00 a dozen, while

pinned are $6.50 a dozen. •3” blades are $5.50 a dozen •Swiss Made Coping Saw Blades available for

$5.50 a dozen . We also sell mini chucks and mini twist drills. Foot switches for $65.

Proportional scales for $9.50 - a handy tool

We are agents for Hegner drum sander and other Hegner products. All prices are plus postage.

•••Contact us for a blade catalogue•••

H H Helen Harris

PO Box 1384, Murray Bridge SA 5253

Ph 08 8531 3440 Email—ochjh@scrolling.com.au

WoodgroupSA Network Meeting, Tuesday May 10th, 2016.

Trevor Lloyd was first off the blocks with firstly, an almond bowl about 300

mm diameter, which he had rescued after Jeff Wrigley consigned it to his

firewood pile, when a large crack across the bowl got larger. Trevor reworked

the piece, filling the “through” cracks with brass powder in resin. The result

was a quite successful rework, the brass blending in with the fairly strong

colouring and grain of the wood. (Almond appears to be a notorious wood for

splitting badly, in spite of sealing the ends immediately after cutting).

His second offering showed two “Lichtenberg” pyrography efforts, which he

and a friend generated by applying a high voltage across a plywood board that

had been made electrically conductive with a baking powder solution. The

tracks produced by the electrical discharges down the board wherever the

conductivity was highest, burned a quite artistic “dendritic” and “fractal”

pattern, some quite deeply. The operation is inherently

dangerous according to electrician Trevor, but the results can

b e s t u n n i n g . ( I t i s a m o d e r n a r t i s t i c

resurrection of work done in 1777 by Lichtenberg on the

electrical breakdown of insulators!)

Roger Humphris was next with a bottle-mounted candle

holder, based on one illustrated in the Australian Woodworker magazine some time ago

(November/December 2003 issue, p67). The candle-holder was turned out of redgum, was

about 100 mm high, with a maximum diameter about 50 mm, with a metal insert for the candle.

Because bottles were in short supply in his shed and house, he managed to find a genuine

“Pickaxe” bottle that had slumped in a fire. His candle holder, with its double flange, thus had a

more avant garde shape than the original

John Bennett seemed to be into ash (Fraxinus excelsior) bowls currently, as he passed a

roughly 100 mm diameter one around, unfinished after remounting on a stub, and partly

turned at the Merry Month of May weekend recently held (abbreviated to MMoM below).

He wanted comment and advice on how to eliminate a small blemish of cranky grain that

had resisted repeated sanding through the grits, forwards and reverse sanding on the lathe,

and hand sanding the offending region, with minimal effect. Suggestions from the floor

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added routes to try –wet the wood to raise the grain, and shellac to stiffen the fibres, before fur-

ther sanding. He will see!

Mel Pearce’s first piece was an “inside-out” turning about 100 mm tall, a flower form on a 40

mm diameter base, with a partly hollow stem, turned at the MMoM meeting. The impetus for

this “inverse” or “involute” item (consisting of 4 blocks carefully glued together, turned to one

shape, split along the glue lines, each piece rotated by 180, reglued and turned to a different

shape), came from a demonstration given by George Pastuch on the Sunday. George generously

provided a supply of already internally shaped, reglued blocks to

encourage anyone to give it a go, which Mel did with the result

shown. His second piece was a segmented genie bottle about 250 mm tall, with

circular inlays, made some time ago out of several timbers –mahogany, hoop and

huon pine among them. He had lacquered the bottle recently, and still had some

finishing work to do on it. Because the genie was forever escaping, he turned a

stopper out of huon pine to fit, in the May meeting. That kept the blighter in and

everyone happy. (The bottle is resting on Mel’s flower in the image).

Estelle Pearce’s contribution was a very decorative and delicate carving-cum-picture, inherited from her

mother. The Asian female spirit form was minutely carved from very thinly sliced bamboo. That was mounted in

a frame. Its precise history was unknown, but the execution of such fine work must have involved great skill

and incredible patience. Sorry, there is no image

Graham Were was another MMMoM participant, and had picked up on George Pastuch’s

work on involute forms too–his decorative pendant ornament version this time, shown at

right. At home he gave it a try with a piece of Obeche (Triplochiton scleroxylon) machined

into 4 identical rectangular blocks with square cross-section. (Obeche is a pale cream timber,

quite light, from Africa, and a bit splintery, according to Graham). Because involute work

requires very careful centring of the glued up square-section pieces on the lathe, he first

routed a small bevel just on the ends of the pieces on what were to be inside and outside

corners once the pieces were glued together. After glueing the 4 blocks at just the ends, the

bevels formed a recess into which a conical drive point or live centre fitted, thus ensuring

concentricity –smart thinking. Graham then turned the outside profile which later was to

become the inside. He turned the profile to make a larger windowed part in his pendant than George had

demonstrated. Splitting the blocks along the glue line, rotating each piece by 180º, and reglueing them together

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in the right order, he turned the outside to the required shape –and discovered that the inside recesses (formerly

outside) were almost too large –but the piece still held together, to yield a quite decorative item.

Eddie Jones was into one-piece pens (i.e. without a join in the

middle), so showed three of his latest creations. The three pens had

cherry, oak, or olive “skins”, one decorated with some fine

circumferential rings, and all attractive to look at, and quite

comfortable to hold.

Alex Mühlhölzl had a couple of items to show.

The first was a tiny bowl, about 25x 30 mm in

plan, turned out of pine knot or burl. It was well

executed, right to its base, and of course,

signed, with the wood identified.

His second piece was captured from a bunch of

borers that were escaping from his shed carrying a log of apple. He

managed to find enough wood in that to make a roughly 100 mm diameter

bowl that exhibited strong and eye-catching grain and colouring. Alex

decorated the small rim (just visible in the image), and a collar around the

base with 2 mm pyrography embellishments, to produce a most attractive

piece.

John Beswick showed an ebonised red-gum bowl with white

mouse, destined for a recipient who liked a “black and white”

theme. The bowl, about 250 mm in diameter, was turned to a

spherical form with about a 15 mm thick wall, remounted at an

angle to the top opening using a jam chuck, and a flat turned to

form the base, reducing the wall thickness there to a few mm. The

top edge was then cut away and scalloped to shape. Several coats

of iron ebonising brew were applied, sanding between coats, to

blacken the inside and outside surfaces of the bowl, apart from

the very bottom.

The white mouse was turned out of artificial bone (very

expensive medical material, but very uniform in texture and completely white), with white ears, pink eyes, and a

black tail added later, before mounting it on the bowl rim to complete a striking piece

John Tillack had a bunch of things that he had worked on this past month.

First up was a steel post he had made to fit onto his Sorby Pro-Edge

sharpening system, so he can sharpen gouges quickly and reproducibly to

the same angle.

He then showed a shallow winged bowl cum platter, all turned out of green

pear-wood bought from the wood sale at the MMoM meeting. He carved

the thin wings to a wavy shape using an Arbortech cutter, and shaped the

underside likewise, but with three short feet to support the bowl. A fine

piece, yet to be seasoned, that the image does not do full justice to.

His third piece was modelled

directly on the Macfarlane bow

sander, devised in the Evan

Du n s t o n e wo r ks h o p i n

Canberra, and extolled in the Australian Wood review, number 88,

p8, quite recently. The sander made smoothing continuously curving

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surfaces a breeze according to John, was simple to construct (3 pieces of wood), and in which it was easy to re-

place abrasive grits.

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The next meeting will be on

the second Tuesday of the month, 14th June, 2016

at the San Georgio Community Centre, enter off Henry St, Payneham,

7 for 7:30 pm start, until about 9 pm. The bar will be open as usual, and for coffee, tea, hot chocolate, fine wine, soft drinks, etc. As

usual, carvers, sculptors, whittlers, scrollers, pyrographers, toymakers, furniture and jewel-

lery makers etc. are all most welcome.

Western Woodworkers Inc. Western Woodworkers have again had a very good year. Very informative Saturdays and everyone being guided to a letter

level of woodcraft.

Four members again event to the Gold Coast to attend Turnfest. A venue which showcases the work and techniques of

renowned wood turners from worldwide countries. A huge opportunity to see and learn, first hand techniques of woodcraft

on a higher level, this gives a new train of thought and ideas exalate.

Timber enhancement sky rockets and ideas evolve. Next year’s Turnfest turns 15 years of age, and a huge contingent of

worldwide wood turners will be attending. It is truly a wood turner’s paradise. Watch for low coast air fares, and the

expense of the trip is much less.

Our usual Christmas and Christmas in July events are well attended of fresh choice, Diagonal Road Sturt SA our Woodcraft

display at West Torrens Library Auditorium 1 Brooker Terrace Hilton begins on Saturday 29 th of October to the 6th of

November inclusive 2016.

Wishing everyone and their families good health

Rena Hoare