November 6, 2025

Number of Attendees: 32

Notes:

  1. Mark opened meeting at 7:03 PM

  2. Treasurer’s report:

    1. We have 45 paid members

    2. Board has not met so can’t determine membership costs. Will let you know in late Dec

    3. Venmo payment is available

  3. New members: No new members at this time

  4. Member news: some members have had hip and knee replacements

  5. Old business

  6. December Christmas dinner

    1. Thursday night, Dec 4th

    2. Han Dynasty is winner

    3. As of earlier today, 15 confirmations. Collecting $10 reservation fee

    4. Han Dynasty was just under $30 last year for tax, tip, etc.

    5. BYOB

    6. Reservations to Salman

  7. January tool auction/3 leg stool challenge

    1. January meeting Jan 8th

    2. Meeting at Church: Unitarian Universalist Church, 401 Kings Hwy N, Cherry Hill NJ

    3. Bring anything you don’t need, expect to sell for pennies on the dollar

    4. Can put in a “reserve” price

    5. Remember 10% of sale price goes back to the guild (example, sell something for $25, please contribute $2.50 to guild, payable to Kevin)

  8. Officer Nominations and vote

    1. President: Candidates made their pitches

    2. Vice President/website

    3. Treasurer

    4. Secretary

    5. Directors at large

  9. Rockler announcement

    1. Help with projects when members of the public contact us – referrals? What is the process

    2. Standard process is give that info to Salman. Salman seeks out

    3. Concept is we will give members two weeks to respond, and include Salman or Rockler on any communication, so they stay “in the loop”

  10. Break and purchases

  11. Election

    1. Mike elected new president in the new year. Take on role in December

    2. Mark will remain as board member

    3. Rich removed himself from consideration for president, but agreed to be considered for the board; elected to board

    4. New officers take over on Dec 1 and will conduct planning session

  12. Member’s Forum

    1. Alan Tassof did presentation on his dust collection modifications

    2. Went machine by machine to show how he hooked folks up, including adding a blower

  13. Presentation on SketchUp by Michael Z

    1. Using this tool for 10 years

    2. Allows him to make shop drawings on computer, manipulate them, and use them

    3. He is going to demonstrate some of the capabilities

    4. Before SketchUp, did full size drawings, then might do mock ups with cardboard.

    5. Can take “’doodle” then bring it into SketchUp, and manipulate it

    6. Went through timeline of SketchUp roll outs

    7. Showed samples of various projects he designed, including joinery (biscuits, dominos, mortise & tenons, etc.)

    8. Views from front, side, top, etc. plus 3D look

    9. Showed animation capability

  14. Next Meeting, dinner meeting Han Dynasty, Dec 4th at 7 PM

  15. January meeting is the 8th at the church

  16. Mark closed meeting out at 9:08 PM

October 2, 2025

Number of Attendees: 26

Notes:

1. Mark opened meeting at 6:07 PM

2. Treasurer’s report: Not present for meeting

3. New members: No new people

4. Member news: None at this time

5. Old business

a. Wharton Esherick:

i. 11 people showed up

ii. Had some items out on exhibition, so might be worth returning in the future for any interested

b. Workbench (currently held at the church where we used to meet): Need dimensions from Mark Blum (the builder) so we can bring to Rockler for display

6. Member’s Forum

a. Guitar build – need to find place to spray a nitrous cellulose finish. Any ideas?

i. Explosive

ii. Need 10x10x10 space

iii. Canvas tent from Walmart? Need temp and humidity control

iv. Some discussion of potential locations but nothing definite

v. Maker spaces in Bethlehem PA, or in Collingwood?

b. David Potts (the former guild treasurer)

i. Great buy on Walnut

ii. Lucky Nelson, Moorestown (right off Lenola) – 15 BF for $140

iii. Kiln dried

c. Does anyone have a Carvewright CNC machine?

i. Came across one that is low price, want to know if someone has information

ii. Some discussion about info

d. Does anyone have a metric tablesaw?

i. Bore for arbor?

ii. Forest sells adapters

e. Show and Tell

i. Shadowbox, with table, bookshelves, books, etc.

ii. Shaper origin routing of Eagles symbol.

f. Three legged stool challenge

i. Could just make it out of 2x4s

ii. Best time to show and judge – decision made for January

iii. Suggested show and tell table every month for work-in-progress or finished project

iv. Other competitions/challenge – theme by month

g. Auction in January: Church?

i. January event members bring items they aren’t using and sell for stupidly low price

ii. Mike will ask church if we can use the space

h. Non-profit Washington Woodworkers Guild: Guild woodworking program will be sent to Salman: $58 for basic design program

i. Tools for making bowls

i. Sweetgum bowl – without bark

ii. Used grinder to hollow out – have to concentrate to keep hold of them

iii. Do it a lot in the driveway, with a special holding device he designed

j. November meeting will include a presentation on Sketchup

k. Williamsburg “Wood in 18th Century” Jan 22-25

7. New Business

a. Nominations for next year’s officers

i. Elections at November meeting

ii. Website shows current officers and positions

iii. Send officer nominations to Salman

iv. Salman will send out email on elections

b. December Christmas dinner location

i. Suggestions for restaurant

1. Han Dynasty – affordable, BYOB

2. Radin’s Deli – Good, large sandwiches (great for leftovers)

3. Barone’s – Moorestown

4. Salman will send out email with notes, and we can vote in November

c. January tool auction

8. Presentation: Bill Robbins

a. Philly Furniture show, juried event

i. Bill, veteran of Furniture show

ii. Bill did commission to do minister’s office/study

b. Bill Robbins

i. Worked with a lot of folks of the guild (Mark, Dave, etc.)

ii. Windsor chair, inspired by Lambert Hitchcock, from19 th century

1. Made chair with interchangeable parts

2. Often painted and stenciled

iii. Idea was to take something like that and make it simpler, but similar

1. Walnut and hickory

2. Using pattern maker’s bit (guide on top) to make some of the cuts

3. Steam bent the spindles using jig with “bending strap”

4. Top piece is slightly tapered where spindles go in. Top is thinner

5. Steamed just about anything, but prefer ash or hickory

6. Uses jig to hold rounded leg spindles to drill holes, rotate and drill next hole. Simple for his small shop

7. Seat is not carved out

8. Steam bending takes about an hour per inch of stock thickness

9. Glue needs a fairly long “open time” for the project

c. Mike had give away for guild members: Samples of glue (Titebond) for members

9. Next Meeting, Rockler, Nov 6th @ 7 PM

10. Mark closed meeting out at 7:40 PM

August 7, 2025

Attendance: 21

1. Welcome; Meeting started at 6:10 PM (new summer hours)

2. New Members: No new members tonight

3. Treasurer’s report: $3,459 in account. 42 paid members for 2025

4. Member’s news:

a. Salman in accident, he is OK, but can’t make it

b. Mike is having knee replaced, so can’t make it

5. Old Business

a. Mark went to Wharton Esherick Museum

i. Passed out two books for club members to look at

ii. Can take up to 30 guests at one time

iii. Mark has requested some dates (1 in Aug, 1 in Sep) $20 per person (no refunds)

iv. Can take up to 16 at a time

b. Discussion on workbench still remaining at church.

i. Original plan was to build it so we would have something to do demonstrations on

ii. It was not the maker’s intent that the workbench would remain with the church – it belongs to the guild.

iii. Some discussion on what to do with it (leave it, sell it, store it with a guild member, etc.)

iv. Current plan is to move it to Rockler, take the books/magazines for free table, and deal out the tools inside

c. Tool sale in Cinnaminson went OK, mostly old Craftsman. Some items for free table will be brought in next month

6. Member’s forum

a. Question on SketchUp. Some folks plan on discussion. Mike Z (one of the members) ends up being pretty expert in using the software.

i. Described other program, Layout, which makes an overlay

b. William showed some various woods that he used for his work

c. Alan Tassof made a flying saucer turning with inset, wide variety of woods (curly maple, walnut, cherry burl, etc.). Lots of gluing

d. Dave Potts cabriole chair leg: Dave described all the techniques and challenges to make a cabriole leg

e. John Owen fixing crack in chair leg; Chair was made up of dowels, and could be taken apart rather easily instead of having to deal with mortise and tenon joints.

7. Break

8. Presentation (Rich Turner – turner woodworking design)

a. Class list available up front for TWD woodworking school. Info on website

i. Teach woodwork without machines (chisels, saws, planes, etc.)

ii. Will start with some basic joints (half lap, etc.) and will work up to more complicated ones

b. Dovetails

i. Purpose is to reduce movement of wood in one direction. It’s a practical joint, not an art form

ii. Multiple ways of doing dovetails (using hand tools, router jigs, tablesaw jigs, etc.) Does not like jigs to make dovetails

iii. Tools: Saw, chisels, marking and measuring tools, hand plane, square. Can do it with just a saw, chisels and pencil

c. Layout and tails

i. Use wood to mark width, not marking gauge, for thickness

ii. Does layout by eye, cuts based on what looks right. Key is to saw square

iii. Uses a chisel to cut out dovetail, not a coping saw

iv. Saws out ends

v. Does tails first, then pins

d. Pins

i. Uses hand plane to set tails on, so he can mark pins– need to make it so you cannot see daylight between the pieces

ii. Mark them with knife, not pencil (too thick)

iii. Will use square to get the lines close, cut square with inside, leaving maybe 1/32” inside the lines, and pair them off

iv. Use chisel to clean out

e. Try to make the go together. Test fit

i. #1 reason they don’t go together is they don’t clean the corners

ii. Clean up the larger dovetails, not the pins, to make fit

iii. Tap into place gently and a pull apart and clean as you go.

f. To finish, rubs polyurethane varnish, create a “slurry” and it covers the gaps

9. Next meeting will be at Rockler on September 4th at 6 PM

10. Meeting closed at 8:07 PM

July 25, 2025

Attendance: 21

 

1.       Welcome; Meeting started at 6:15 PM (new summer hours)

2.       Salman: 2 days ago had woman call about her dad’s tools in Cinnaminson (he passed)

a.       Free, but old and well-used

b.       Salman will inventory, take pictures and email to everyone

c.       Will set up day for following weekend and take what you want

3.       Treasurer’s report

a.       A little over $3700 in account.

b.       Some more people have paid

c.       Will have more accurate # next month. We’ve got about 47 members

4.       New Members

a.       Charles

i.      Has been here before.

ii.      From Philly, custom furniture maker for years.

iii.      Now in basement 6 days a week, a lot of turning & carving (birds & embellishment of turned bowls)

iv.      Still does some commission work

b.       Six folks volunteered that they were turners. Meeting at Rockler this Tuesday

5.       Member News

a.       July Meeting cancelled by vote. Next meeting will be August 7th

6.       Old Business

a.       Del Val Turners will be meeting on Tuesday, June 10th (next Tuesday) at Rockler. 6 PM

b. Discussion on workbench still remaining at church. It was not the maker’s (Mark Blum) intent that the workbench would remain with the church – it belongs to the guild.

7.       Break

8.       Demos

a.       Alan Sharpe

i.      Leather press. Detailed plans are available here.

ii.      Takes shaving & sawdust and maybe coffee ground to make a compressed “brick” which can be burned. Burnes about the same rate as a log.

iii.      If you put in coffee, it has a nice smell

iv.      Press crushes out the water and expels it

v.      If it is just sawdust, it doesn’t hold together well. Need to put in shavings or paper to help bind it.

vi.      Five gallon bucket of sawdust and 1 hour of work can make about 12 “bricks” – leave outside in sun for 3-4 days

vii.      Use them in the fire pit outside – 4-5 of them at a time lasts one-to-two hours

viii.      To build the press, assemble it, clamp it, then drill the holes

b.       John Owen

i.      Carving Workshop and Bellemead Eagle

ii.      Carved head, then flag as backboard

iii.      Shaped head, shaped backboard

c.       John also had a “help me” question for the guild

i.      Family chair, given by his brother who passed to his girlfriend

ii.      The seat has a tongue & groove joint on the edge which has come apart (glue failed). He can’t seem to compress it

iii.      Suggested to take screws out and try to clamp it closed

d.       Big box with bowl in it.

i.      Lady across the street had a maple tree she wanted taken down

ii.      He carved it, did not turn it

iii.      Used Chainsaw, then used grinder, then gouges/chisels, sanders

iv.      General’s salad bowl finish

9.       Next meeting will be at Rockler on August 7th at 6 PM

10.   Meeting closed at 7:20 PM

May 1, 2025

Attendance: 26

 

1.       Welcome; Meeting started at 7:05 PM

2.       Rockler Store

a.       Closing 6 PM M-F, 5 PM on Sat

b.       Meeting time for guild will now begin at 6 PM until Sep or Oct (TBD)

c.       Iron Hill gathering at 4:30 PM

3.       Guests

a.       No new guests

b.       Summertime tends to die down a bit

4.       Demos

a.       Brian Menold brought in some items he made

i.      Dodecahedrons and items in. Fit together in box

ii.      Tabular cube, series of interlocking pieces

iii.      Packing puzzle – 4 pieces that go into box, need to slide stuff around and box is in two pieces, to make it all fit together.

iv.      Small puzzle with 22 different types of wood – easy to make, kind of loose. Takes about 15 steps to disassemble

v.      He uses a model maker tablesaw (4”) to make a lot of his stuff. Blade is 6/100” wide to keep kerf very small. Don’t really have to sand

vi.      Tries to make batches of 30-40. Usually takes 2-3 weeks

vii.      He has folks who send him puzzle ideas. Brian makes 30-40 copies, and gives two to the original designer.

viii.      Brian has a book, available on Fine Woodworking or Amazon

b.       Alan

i.      Represents the opposite end of the accuracy. Bowl

ii.      Blew through bottom, repaired with leftover segmented rings and what-not

iii.      When do you stop fooling around with a failed project?

c.       Phil

i.      Electric grinder

ii.      Channel with plunger, they push up on the motor and spins the motor

iii.      Automatically turns off when it doesn’t have resistance

iv.      Looking for advice on what to make the plunger out of

v.      Also brought a cabinet for it – made out of PLA

5.       Free table had lots of books and some assorted items

6.       Dave Potts class

a.       Step stool with dovetails

b.       Talked about Mario Rodriguez and Alan Turner at Philly Furniture Workshop. Great teachers and great woodworkers

c.       SAPFM a great group to join and participate with

d.       Taking class on chair making – pretty good. Olde Mill cabinet shoppe in York PA

e.       Not huge, but all the machinery/tools you need

f.        Talked about assembly, tools required and how used, keystone piece

g.       Will try to bring in a new chair by Christmas

7.       School very close in Cherry Hill, run by WGSJ member Rich Turner

a.       Turner Wood designs

b.       Chest making, cabinet making, etc.

c.       www.turnerwooddesigns.

d.       Traditional hand tools design

8.       Break

9.       Dominic from Rockler

a.       Delaware Valley Turners Guild coming

i.      Usually meet at Moorestown friends, but coming to Rockler on 2nd Tuesday of June

ii.      Opportunity for cross “pollination” of the two groups

b.       No word on effect of tariffs on costs at Rockler. Will provide updates as time goes on

10.   Brad (our treasurer) is recovering from his surgery. Would have been here, but he is in California with his kids (who are getting ready to move overseas)

11.   June’s meeting will be at Rockler on June 5th at 6 PM

12.   Meeting closed at 8:23 PM

March 6, 2025

Attendance: 30

 

1.       Welcome; Meeting started at 7:00 PM

2.       Guests/First Meeting

a.       Dave Potts (different from the former treasurer)

i.      Lives in Bordentown

ii.      Dad was cabinet maker, I am an industrial arts teacher in Columbus

iii.      Getting ready to retire after 44 years

b.       Dave Blue

i.      Retired PSE&G

ii.      Carpenter, working to be a cabinet maker

3.       Old Business

a.       Museum visits

i.      Esherick in Phoenixville PA. Small groups

ii.      Field trip to Nakashima near New Hope, PA. Cost $150/person for guided tour, $75/person for walk around tour. Not deemed feasible.

b.       Rockler: Members need to re-register up front for 10% discount

4.       Presentation 1 by John Owen: Williamsburg

a.       Annual event in January at Colonial Williamsburg, focused on furniture making in 18th century

b.       On site $350 + hotel/food; Zoom - $175

c.       Videos up on website for two months after event

d.       Videos show 18th century furniture and how it was made. Multiple cameras, excellent presenters

e.       Up close pictures, some upside down so you can see joinery, etc.

f.        Took notes in Word, then print screen during video to show specific pictures of process/items of interest.

5.       Doug showed UV glue & UV light

a.       Epoxy adhesive and UV light makes it cure in seconds.

b.       The light also shows leftover glue, in case you are trying to finish a project

c.       Passed around to see

6.       Break

7.       Presentation 2 by Doug: Turning a live edge bowl

a.       Doug showed some items that could be turned

b.       Showed wood blank sample to be done, then chucked in; ash with bark

c.       Worked on outside of bowl first. Used bowl gouge and worked on outside first, instead of inside

d.       Once outside is roughly formed, then re-chucked and changed to working inside

e.       On inside, worked from outside to in, because your gouge has more support that way

f.        Worked thickness of walls to ¼”. Sometimes he goes as thin as 1/8”, but its pretty flimsy

8.       Members Forum

a.       Prototype sign available if anyone interested to take it home. Built with wood donated by the late Jim Parise, former president. Dave Potts said he would take it

b.       Joanne’s Fabric is going out of business. Some fabrics there are good to cover bench for glue, or to make tool rolls. May get some deals.

c.       Shellac as a boat sealer? Team discussed that when you mix Shellac with Ammonia, it can make the substance waterproof.

d.       Discussion of UV light cured finish.

9.       April meeting will be at Rockler on April 3rd

10.   Meeting closed at 8:40 PM

February 6, 2025

Attendance: 33

1. Welcome; Meeting started at 7:06 PM

2. Treasurer’s Report

a. We were at 28 paid members,

b. We have $3572 in account

c. 4 new members in January

d. We have 30 members from 2024 who have yet to pay

3. Guests/First Meeting

a. Rich Dubois

i. Woodworking for 12 years

ii. Building for customers for 7 years

iii. Do everything – tables, beds, building dinette

b. Rich Dunbar

i. Voorhees

ii. Hobbyist

iii. School plays wardrobe, stuff for kids escape room

c. Larry Bopp

i. Medford

ii. Hobbyist – doing it for a few years

iii. Doing a lot for grandkids

iv. Woodturning as well

d. Andrew

i. Mullica Hill

ii. Getting back into woodworking after some time off

iii. Do a lot of turning

iv. Working on new stuff

e. Jim

i. Long time hobbyist

ii. At this point, mostly interested in toys for grandkids

iii. Mark mentioned doing toys for kids as a guild

4. Old Business

a. Colonial Williamsburg in January

i. Three of us went down to 18 th century seminar they have every year

ii. Dave Potts shared they had good demonstrators on 18 th century hand tool woodworking

iii. Used ultraviolet light to determine finishes used

iv. Demo’d a lot of techniques – not a lot of furniture, but how to do certain joinery

v. Planning to hook into TV next meeting and show the presentations

b. Discussion of video of new finish which dries under ultraviolet light

i. Members only have seen the video

ii. Some discussion from members on various glues used

iii. One member will bring his light in and we can try it out

c. January Tool Auction

i. The guild made $50, so $500 of material was sold

ii. Did not take commission on the widow’s tools. A lot of success with hers and sold about $1,000 of her stuff

5. Presentation 1: Election

a. Mike Richter talked about meeting location

i. Started the club 15+ years ago in church. Had a good guest speaker 8-9 months out of the year

ii. Now we’ve been at Rockler for 2 years, Mike doesn’t think it is an optimum location.

iii. Downside of church is Fee’s, no powered tools

iv. Upside, can use workbench, kitchen, more comfortable location

v. Open discussion by members on staying at Rockler vs. Church

1. Additional cost of dues. Was $50 when we met at church vs. $30 now

2. Space. Current meeting at Rockler is a little constrained

3. Access to purchasing new items, materials, etc.

b. Mark brings up election and votes

i. Nobody else wanted nomination for President – Mark Showers

ii. Nobody else wanted nomination for Vice President – Salman Halim

iii. Nobody else wanted nomination for Treasurer – Brad Sanders

iv. Nobody else wanted nomination for Secretary – Kevin Drevik

v. Additional board members – Steve Smith, John Owen, Mike Richter

c. Plan is to hold another election next February (2026)

6. Break

7. Presentation 2

a. John Owen showed old advertisement

i. Back cover of Pop Mechanics had cheap products

ii. Tablesaw for $14.99, Lathe for $9.99

b. Dominic

i. Reminder that you need to remind Rockler folks that they need to re-add the 10% guild discount. Rockler corporate purges their list

ii. Rockler discount is 10% to almost everything

iii. Does not apply to big name tool brands (Festool, Rikon, DeWalt, etc.)

iv. Does not double-dip i.e. 15% sale discount on wood and 10% guild discount does not give you 25%. You just get the best one (in this case 15%)

8. Member’s Forum

a. Any show and tell?

b. Doug Live edge bowl – small sample.

i. Some discussion on how to chuck it and use the tools in the lathe

c. Discussion of various museums that you can visit

9. New Business

a. March meeting will be at Rockler on March 6th

10. Meeting closed at 8:35 PM

January 9, 2025

The January, 2025, meeting was the guild’s annual tool auction. It was a little different from other years because we had a large number of brand new tools from the collection of a recently-deceased woodworker who hadn’t yet had the opportunity to open and use them.

November 7, 2024

Attendance: 37

1.      Welcome

2.      Treasurer’s Report

a.      We were at 52, plus honorary 3 = 55

b.      $3062.40 in bank

3.      New Member

a.      Katrina & James Patterson

i.     in Southhampton, took a woodworking class in Rockler

ii.     Interested in woodworking at their house

b.      Lou, lives in Ewing

i.     Mostly hand tool work

ii.     Like to restore old furniture and clocks

iii.     Restoring for over 30 years

c.      Carl from Homedale

4.      Old Business

a.      Colonial Williamsburg in January

i.     at least 3 people going (Dave, John, Mark). Highly recommended, get to meet a lot of people, SAPFM is there, etc. Theme is furniture from lower class to gentry. Cabinet shop, joiners shop, carpenters shop, blacksmith’s shop

b.      Woodworking shows coming

i.     Baltimore late January

ii.     New Jersey in February

iii.     Some question on if they are on this year. No advertisement as of today

c.      December dinner meeting

i.     Eating at Han Dynasty restaurant in Cherry Hill

ii.     Thursday, Dec 5th

iii.     Roughly 25 people

iv.     They do not have a buffet

v.     Rough cost $40 or a little less

vi.     BYOB

5.      CNC Roundtable Discussion (Steve Smith led)

a.      Only one member has a CNC machine

b.      Equivalent of a router that is controlled by a computer, running on a frame to control it

c.      To go deep, may have to go multiple times over the same layout platform

d.      A lot of great videos on YouTube

e.      A lot of folks utilized for making repetitive parts

f.       A lot of signs, different sizes, one as large as 5’ x 9’

g.      Have to do some computer programing to do the work. Draw it up in software (provided) and then download to CNC

h.      Entry price point for new - $1,000, 12” x 24”. If you go with “Shark” product new, it comes with the software

i.       Most of the bits I buy are around $30.

j.       Depth of cut should be half the width of the bit (example, 1/32” bit would only go 1/64” at a time)

6.      Some discussion lasers, so demo on engraving a pen blank

a.      Inexpensive, maybe $100, Nitchey

7.      Presentation 2: Glue up rack (John Owen)

a.      Rack for gluing up

b.      Just 2x4s with slots for the clamps, drywall screws

c.      Clamps lie in slots, but proud of wooden rail

d.      Put on wheels, so its mobile

e.      Lightweight platform on top

f.       Open discussion by guild members on various ways to glue up

8.      Break for coffee and donuts

9.      New Business

a.      Auction will be January meeting, Thursday January 9th, 2025

b.      Estate Sale

i.     Salman, John and Steve went out to visit

ii.     Easily $40K of wood stuff, a full shop (Tablesaw, Jointer, Bandsaw, etc.)

iii.     Family needs the money, and is overwhelmed with all the stuff, what it is worth. They have no idea of what was needed

iv.     Spreadsheet sent out provided everything that was there

v.     Mark wants to, in the spirit of the holidays, to bid at least 75% for the items

vi.     Family needs the money now

vii.     Garage was full, basement was full , some in the bathroom, Sjobergs workbench

viii.     Not everything is big, some clamps, some other items

c.      Greg

i.     Built their retirement home

ii.     Moved to LBI, made a housewarming gift

iii.     Baby surfboard, ebony inlay, cherry, walnut strips

iv.     Two coats of polyurethane, plus some Minwax

d.      Next meeting is the Christmas dinner at Han Dynasty (see above for details)

e.      January meeting will be at Rockler on Thursday, Jan 9th, not January 2nd

10.   Meeting closed at 8:44 PM

October 4, 2024

Attendees: 25

 

1. Welcome (President) – 1 Min

a.    Started the meeting at 6:10 PM

b.   Some folks ate at Iron Hill at 4pm. All are welcome next month

c.    Free table up front. Take what you would like

2. Treasurer (Brad) – Not here tonight

3. New Members (Give us your name, home town, woodworking interests, questions/challenges, and what are they looking for? – 10 Min

a.    Jameson – Like making early Gothic furniture.

i.     Started in 1990s with Roy Underhill

ii.     Love making furniture by hand

b.   Bob – Lambertville

i.     Looking for a place

ii.     Used to be cabinetmaker, finish carpenter

iii.     Looking for advice, people to share with

c.    Jack

i.     Works on Intarsia

ii.     Passed around his work on a tablet; excellent work

iii.     Cuts it out, uses file to reduce it down

iv.     Satin finish

4. Old Business – 5 Min

a.    Hearne Hardwoods event on Saturday, Oct 5th

i.     Steve setting up car pool – no takers

ii.     Kevin driving with van in case folks want to take wood back – no takers

iii.     Discussion on Grof & Grof, just down the street from Hearne

b.   Christmas dinner

i.     Suggestions for where to go

1.    Coriander Vorhees (Indian)

2.    Han Dynasty Cherry Hill (Chinese)

3.    Iron Hill - Maple Shade

4.    Akira -Moorestown – (Japanese steak house)

ii.     Spouses welcome

c.    Colonial Williamsburg 18th century furniture

i.     Jan 23-26, 2025

ii.     All the woodworking shops working together

iii.     Presenters very free with their emails, advice, info, etc.

5. Presentation 1: Round table discussion on lasers in woodshop

a.    Steve discussed potential for getting one to do signs

b.   Brian paid for his in 2 months, due to cutting pieces for his puzzles

i.     Does a lot of engraving. Helps pay for itself

ii.     Engraving with laser very shallow.

iii.     Very accurate

iv.     No issues with lasers on MDF

v.     Laser is 20x12

vi.     Need 20Watt to really burn to 1/8” or ¼”

vii.     Has used his on Baltic Birch Plywood – did well

c.    Other folks were mostly hobbyist kind of things – trying to find a use for them

i.     Size 12x16

ii.     Very specialized tool – need to have a real use

iii.     Made earrings with it

iv.     Little disc that he uses for advertising at craft shows

v.     Everyone on line is trying to sell you patterns

vi.     10Watt laser doesn’t burn through material very well

vii.     Rockler laser in Catalog is $4,000 model

6. Break (Coffee, Shopping, etc) – 15 Min

7. Presentation 2: Dominic, store manager from Rockler

a.    Thanks for helping us have a fantastic year! Two and a half years in business

b.   Top store in $ per sales

c.    Third place store for all our tracked metrics

d.   When they did analysis, there were 26,000 customers in 50 mile radius of this store

e.    Closed some 20 stores in US this year – mostly due to low sales, high rents, etc.

f.     Reiterated store 10% discount to guild members on applicable items. Most large manufacturers (Festool, Sawstop, etc) do not give discounts, so this is not applicable for guild members

8. Members Forum – 20 Min

a.    Tim, lives in Medford. Has old house from 1863 in Medford

i.     Working on front porch, want to match the existing rail

ii.     Provided 6ft length, and was hoping that someone would be interested in building. Top and bottom

iii.     Have some 4x4 cedar which can match this

iv.     If interested, contact him

v.     Guild members suggested to look at Edgewater Park Millworks

9. New Business – 5 Min

a.    Lady wants help with her Slab table. Lives in Moorestown. Kevin has info and will provide.

i.     She wants your contact info and will contact you herself

ii.     Kevin provided handout to interested people

10. Meeting Closed at 7:30 PM

August 1, 2024

  1. Welcome (President)

    1. Some folks ate at Iron Hill at 4pm, some going over after meeting

    2. Welcome to new folks

  2. Treasurer (Brad)

    1. Brad not here, taking care of sister’s estate

  3. New Members (Give us your name, home town, woodworking interests, questions/challenges, and what are they looking for?

    1. Carl Kraven:

      1. Moved to NJ 9 years ago

      2. Make a little bit of everything. Tools in storage got wet, so rebuilding

  4. 4.    Old Business – 5 Min

    1. Hearne Hardwood (Sat, Oct 5th) Hearne Hardwoods trip

      1. Trip will be Saturday

      2. Intent is to rent a van/bus. Will meet at Rockler at 8:00 AM

      3. Cost is roughly $40 a person for bus and driver to go out and bring back

      4. Steve will take money up front at September meeting for those intending to go.

      5. Kevin Drevik will be bringing a large van so folks can purchase wood and bring home

      6. Other providers will be there. Look at Hearne hardwood website for updates

  5. Presentation 1/Act 1: Hand Planes

    1. Survival and Extinction

    2. Plane is a blade of some sort, held in place by a carriage of some sort to create a repeatable cut

    3. Wood planes shown. They aren’t garbage, they are often better than the metal Stanley planes for doing specific work (like scrub plane, etc.)

    4. Showed transition planes next – the step between wood planes and all-metal planes

    5. Showed infill planes with metal bodies but wood interior. Quality is very good for these.

    6. Stanley was main producer at the turn of the century of all-metal planes.

    7. In 1919 Stanley tools merged with Stanley tool and die, and started creating “Sweetheart Planes” – highest quality they produced

    8. During/after World War 2 – steel was in high demand, workers were drafted, so quality went down and stayed down

    9. Big manufacturers did product molding planes, but Stanleys #45 and #55 were big ones they tried to use to supersede the wooden ones.

    10. Showed metal rebate planes

    11. Explained the Stanley numbering system

  6. Break (Coffee, Shopping, etc)

  7. Presentation 1/Act 2:

    1. Also showed a variety of other planes, often not useful (block plane, rebate plane, etc.)

    2. Some planes have different angles for the blades (50 degrees, 55 degrees) for difficult grain. Don’t really need these, in his opinion. Just learn how to sharpen

    3. More discussion on various hand planes and hand tools, and how to use them

    4. Discussion of Lie Nielsen, Lee valley and Clifton plane makers. High quality. He prefers Lie Nielsen.

    5. Some discussion on Japanese “pull style” planes. Extremely sharp.

    6. He sharpens from 600 up to 1500

  8. Members Forum

    1. Bob brought in some samples of his work

    2. Inlay carving with tools, including shaper origin

    3. Question on Harvey tablesaw, clone of SawStop. Some people believe they are Chinese knock off, but quality is good

  9. New Business

    1. Next meeting, Thursday, September 5th at 6 PM. Doug will do a handle turning demo

  10. Meeting Closed at 7:40 PM

July 11, 2024

Attendees: 18

 

  1. Welcome (President) – 1Min

    1. Started meeting at 6:05

  2. Treasurer (Brad) – 7 Min

    1. Membership at 54 members

    2. 5 new people last month, 1 this month

    3. Funds around $3,400

  3. New Members (Give us your name, home town, woodworking interests, questions/challenges, and what are they looking for? – 10 Min

    1. Bob Middleton

    2. Hobbyist woodworker

    3. Palmyra

  4. Old Business – 5 Min

  5. Winterthur

    1. Went to Wintherthur several months ago

    2. Mark suggested giving $100 to them as a gift for their work

    3. Vote was 15 for, no against

    4. They are graduate school for U of Delaware for furniture preservation

  6. Members Forum – 20 Min

    • Asking for help on barrier Project

      1. Countertop is bowed

      2. Didn’t finish back side, so it may have finished cupping

      3. Tried wetting it and leaving it in the sun and it will flatten

      4. Suggestion was to take off finish and edges, then leave in sun with weights on top to flatten. Should slowly flatten off

      5. After flattening it, you may run it through wide belt sander to help cut it out

      6. Could also put battens on it at 90 degree angle to help keep it from bowing

      7. For next one, you could put a breadboard end on it. Search on YouTube for “breadboard” end

    • 4x4x8ft beams, pressure treated are bowed. Any fix?

      1. Not really. The pressure treated lumber bows all over the place

  7. Presentation 2: Mark on Gottshall Block

    1. Project to work on your hand tool skills

    2. https://alliedwoodshop.com/blogs/blog/quarantine-woodshop-gottshall-block

    3. 3” x 7” x ¾” thick

    4. Use hand tools to make changes to block

    5. Mortis, dado, tenon, etc. on block

    6. Perfect project to help you improve your hand tool skills

    7. YouTube presenter goes through how to do this

    8. Salman will put up on website, with link to YouTube Video

  8. Oct meeting Gottshall challenge, mallet and chisel

    1. Video on how to make/work on: Making a Gottshall Block ASMR ish

    2. Video on how to make it with hand tools: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHE03q9Pfd8

June 6, 2024

Attendees: 30

 

  1. Welcome (President) – 1 minute

    1. Some folks ate at Iron Hill at 4 PM, some going over after meeting

    2. Welcome to new folks

    3. Some discussion on what to do with large numbers

  2. Treasurer (Brad) – 7 minutes

    1. Membership at 49 people

    2. Ran out of tags and lanyards. More on order

    3. Treasurer’s report (money in account, number of members) – roughly $3300 in account

  3. New Members; give us your name, home town, woodworking interests, questions/challenges, and what are they looking for? – 10 minutes

    1. Gary Peterson, Elmer, 15 months retired from work, daughter wanted me to be plugged in with other woodworkers

    2. Mike, doing craft shows with wife, wanted to get into woodworking to do stuff at shows, making charcuterie boards, whiskey boards, etc.

    3. Jeff, owns Lucky Nelson’s, a sawmill on Lenola Road in Moorestown, does cutting boards, slabs, etc.

    4. Bob, invited by Mike at local craft show. Builder, carpenter, did craft shows up and down the east coast. Retired now. Craft shows, boxes, etc.

  4. Old Business – 5 minutes

    1. Winterthur Trip in May

      1. Introduced to library for research

      2. Chair making library, both on site and on line

      3. Dominy shop, shop with hand tools in late 18th/early 19th century

      4. Main House, 175 rooms of early American furniture, different rooms, different periods

      5. Accommodating to woodworkers

    2. Next meeting, Thursday July 4th. Do we skip or move the meeting?

      1. Plan is to move meeting to July 11th @6 PM

      2. This was discussed at the last meeting, also, and is already on the web site

    3. Hearne Hardwood (Sat, Oct 5th) Hearne Hardwoods trip

      1. Kevin Drevik will be bringing a large van so folks can purchase wood and bring home

      2. William in the past had set up benches with folks and done demos

      3. Other providers will be there. Look at Hearne hardwood website for updates

  5. Presentation 1: Rockler Services

    1. Slab Flattening, Two sizes, small and large

    2. Smaller one is $199

      1. Allows you to setup on 2’ x 4’ plywood flat surface

      2. Special bits for flattening

      3. 18” capacity

      4. Side rails, router rides along it, goes back and forth to flatten slab

    3. Larger one needs 4x8’ plywood flat surface

      1. 28” width

      2. Same setup, longer rails, wider surfacing

    4. Uses

      1. End grain cutting boards – can’t run through planer

      2. Jointer for wide items

      3. Slab flattening

    5. Demo its use

      1. Fairly quiet router. Shop vac attachment for jig (sold separately)

      2. Don’t try to take more than 1/8” depth. Width of cutter is 1-1/2” and you cut about half cutter width at a time (3/4”)

      3. Using 3-1/4” HP routers for big table

  6. Presentation 2: Lucky Nelson’s slab service

    1. Sawmill on Lenola Road, 5 minutes from Rockler store

    2. Live edge, chainsaw mill. Then bought a Woodmizer, portable bandsaw mill, doing jobs immediately

    3. Makeshift kiln, works well

    4. Offers kiln services, live edge slabs, flattening services, planning, etc.

    5. Sells mostly domestic hardwoods, mills logs and also gets wood from domestic providers

    6. Goes to people’s homes, cuts down logs into lumber. A lot of red oak and soft maple

  7. Break (Coffee, Shopping, etc) – 15 minutes

  8. Members Forum – 20 minutes

    1. Question on Harvey tablesaw, clone of Sawstop. Some people believe they are Chinese knock off, but quality is good

    2. Mike and Tony talked about Peter’s Valley in upstate New Jersey

      1. Nonprofit near Delaware Water gap

      2. Offer instruction of a variety of crafts (textiles, jewelry, blacksmithing, woodworking, etc.)

      3. Extraordinary speakers (Tage Frid, Sam Maloof, etc)

      4. Dovetail classes, etc.

      5. You stay on site

    3. Dave Potts demo’d a square awl. Described the “birdcage awl” used originally to make birdcages. By twisting in hole, it will bore a hole

    4. Traditional small craft association. Meet in union lake in Millville, with nice wooden boats.

    5. Ray said he will be putting up lathe for sale, as he is done turning.

      1. Suggest look online for comparable prices

      2. Possibly share info with the turners’ guild

    6. Wayne brought small hand planes to chamfer edges

      1. Also showed smoothing plane

      2. Lives in Collingswood

      3. Would like for folks to help set them up and try them out

      4. Some discussion on how to setup, is it sharp, etc.

  9. Question on Japanese joinery, Kumiko, etc.: Toshio Idaki

  10. New Business – 5 minutes

    1. Brought in a 10” chop saw from neighbor. Neighbor asking for $25 for it

    2. Next meeting, Thursday, July 11th at 6 PM

  11. Meeting Closed at 7:50 PM

May 2, 2024

1.     Welcome at 7:07 PM

a.     Mark showed off the guild sign that Steve made, now posted on the wall at the store

b.     Mark talked about the Jan/Feb guild auction

c.     Reminder that at 5 PM before the meeting, some of us meet at Iron Hill brewery for drinks, dinner and discussion

2.     Attendees: 38

3.     Treasurer (Brad)

a.     Treasurer’s report (money in account, number of members)

i.     A lot of new members, as of last month we have 37 members for 2024 year, but more signed up tonight

ii.     $3,328 in account

4.     Name Tags. Want to get name tags for everyone, so folks can see and recognize each other. Please turn them in at end of night

5.     New Members: give us your name, home town, woodworking interests, questions/challenges, and what they are looking for.

a.     Mark, Mt. Laurel, retired, just got into making Christmas toys for grandkids

b.     Kevin, Maple shade, not retired yet, spent a lot of money here, enjoy different types of woodworking

c.     Kevin Bradley: high school woodshop teacher, does all types of woodworking

d.     Charles, Philadelphia, custom furniture for 30 years, now down to basement, but doing grandkid projects, turning

e.     Mike, Edgewater Park, trying to figure out how to fit everything into his shop

f.       Bea, Vineland, here to learn how to build a picnic table & benches that won’t warp

g.     Alec, contractor for a while, built a few resin live edge, started turning. Learned a lot he doesn’t know

5.     Old Business

a.     Wintertur Trip.

i.     Mansion in Delaware, 175 rooms of American antique furniture.

ii.     Offered us the chance to take 30 people there on Tue May 21st, in the afternoon. Several possible visits.

iii.     New Exhibit by Jenny Alexander on green woodworking chairs. Entire library given to Winterthur

iv.     Dominy collection. Dominy workshop on site, four generations of woodworkers, Now the shop is at Winterthur in its entirety – so you can see a functioning 19th century woodworking shop, tools and all

v.     Meet at 1 PM at Cracker Barrel Restaurant at exit 1 on NJ turnpike. Carpool from there

6.     Members Forum – 10 Min

a.     Shop Tip (Kevin has elevation mechanism) – lubricate the saw

b.     Next Saturday, May 11th (Bordentown) is the remembrance for Jim Pariss at 1 PM – 3 PM. Past president, great person

c.     Picnic Tables

i.     Some recommendations on wood (Cedar) for picnic table build. Cypress is another potential wood, hardware should be stainless steel (Cedar will eat regular steel)

ii.     Medford Cedar has good pricing. Good point of contact

iii.     Popular woodworking has stuff online that is available for free

d.     Dave brought up his marquetry table as a demo piece

i.     Used white wood and tulip wood for the flowers

ii.     Went through a lot of his difficulties to work it down (sanding it down burned it, etc.)

iii.     Shellac finish

iv.     Wood is just core wood, walnut veneer, other woods for marquetry

7.     Break (Coffee, Shopping, etc.) – 15 Min

8.     KPW Machinery Inc

a.     Kevin Walsh – liquidating machinery and tooling for folks

b.     Sold to all sorts of customers, industrial and individual

c.     Located in West Chester, PA and Riverton

d.     Working on website. Phone number is 856-283-7662 (Norm) or 215-920-6636 (Kevin)

9.     Presentation 1: Marquetry (Phil Truong)

a.     What is marquetry, how he got started, etc.

b.     Marquetry is decorative techniques used to make intricate patterns

c.     Provided demo pieces for folks to look at

d.     Started with a laser cutter and a 3D printer. Tried to find different things he could make with laser cutter

e.     Started with coasters, branched out

f.       New approaches – painting vs. resin

g.     Lessons you can learn – coaster thickness, epoxy bubbles, paint bleed

h.     Look out for “scope creep” in your design decisions

10. Presentation 2: Table Model Easel design & build (John Owen)

a.     Discussed pallets and easels for painting. First is simple piece of plywood with clips

b.     Displayed a simple desktop holder – holds the painting, can stand it upright, so you can work on it

c.     Also showed a floor model easel, on wheels, to be able to move back & forth. Based footprint on family room, sed 1x3s, hardware, etc.

d.     Uses weights as counterweights, adjustable (based on the weights you put on in back) so you can move it up & down by hand

11. New Business – 5 Min

a.     June 6th will be next meeting

b.     July Meeting will be July 11th (the first Thursday is the 4th)

c.     Hearne Hardwoods trip (Sep/Oct 2024). Carpool? Kevin Drevik will be bringing a large van so folks can purchase wood and bring home. Club will make some decision next meeting

12. Meeting Closed at 8:45 PM

April 4, 2024

Welcome at 7:05 PM

a.      Mark showed off the guild sign that Steve made with Lou Salto’s help

b.      Steve talked about sign 2.0 (first sign used Jim’s wood which wasn’t seasoned enough, so it had to be redone). Glued up, brought it to Lou Salto, sanded it, then Greg did CNC work, Steve painted it, then put on Osmo to seal it up

c.      Dominic from Rockler will put it up on the wall

2.      Attendees: 27

3.      New Members

a.      Four new paid members tonight. Need to make sure they get on the email list

b.      Jeff Nichols (Haddon township) getting into woodworking last few months

i.     New passion, new house

ii.     Just got married a few months ago

iii.     Eastern Pine wedding arch

c.      Bob (Southampton)

i.     Into cutting boards, charcuterie boards,

ii.     Looking for classes at Rockler

4.      Old Business

a.      None at this time

5.      Members Forum

a.      Nothing to bring up at this time

6.      Dust Collection – Rockler

a.      Handed out pamplets showing dust collection, air scrubbers, piping, etc

b.      Number 1 defense is a dust mask with good filters

c.      Powermatic dust collector

i.     Dust collector picks up the larger dust particles and some of the small particles.

ii.     Some vac systems (like Festool) can have HEPA filters, which get down even smaller micron particles

iii.     Part of whole system (mask, dust collector, air scrubber)

d.      Air scrubbers, typically hang from ceiling.

i.     Purpose of air scrubber is to get rid of the smaller particles “floating” in your shop. Often used when you leave the shop to get rid of dust, so when you return after 30+ minutes (ex. To apply finish) the dust is out of the air

ii.     He turns it on all the time, whenever you are in the shop

iii.     Good for fine dust, the stuff that gets deep into your lungs

iv.     Remote control, six speeds

v.     110V, Needs 15 Amp circuit

vi.     51-67 decibels of sound (pretty quiet)

e.      Trend dust helmet (100% coverage, hose comes in from back with clean air) –

i.     Goes to 0.6 mirons

ii.     98% efficiency

iii.     $399

7.      Dust Collection: Medical (Mike)

a.      Originally worked in the field of respiratory therapist, eventually becoming the head

b.      A workplace woodworking area is a lot more extensive. Hobby woodworkers systems are mostly sub-par

c.      PowerPoint presentation (sent to the guild membership afterward)

i.     Discussion of lung layout (air valves, nodules, etc.) and how oxygen gets transferred to the blood to go to the rest of the body

ii.     Went through various effects of sawdust (dermatitis, lung inflammation, eyes, etc.)

iii.     Sanding, sawing, etc. The dust is just going to billow around you. Point-of-impact dust collection can do a lot, but won’t get everything

iv.     Should always were a mask when using machines – dust collection and air scrubbers don’t do it

v.     M95 mask only as good as a surgical mask. Not good against microscopic dust

vi.     Mask only as good as the fit around you skin

vii.     Full face respirator with cartridges more useful. Different cartridges can be used for vapor, for dust, etc.

viii.     Points to take away – always were mask as 2nd layer of protection

8.      Break

9.      Demo – low Priced tours

a.      Harbor Freight – quality can be questionable, but they are getting better. Good for supplies

i.     Markers & lumber crayons

ii.     Sanding belts

iii.     Multi blades

iv.     Gloves

v.     Chip brushes

vi.     F-style clamps

b.      Dollar Store

i.     Silicon brushes

ii.     Rubber mallet

c.      Joanne’s fabric

i.     Vinyl table cloth to cover workbench when finishing

10.   New Business

a.      Winterthur Trip to visit Jennie Alexander’s chair presentation

b.      Riven out of green wood, put together without glue

c.      Jennie left all her library and writings to Winterthur. Collection has been digitized so you can access it online

d.      Docent has agreed to have our guild down for a special tour, including the Dominy shop as well

e.      Mark will follow up with Winterthur for potential dates

11.   Meeting Close at 8:52 PM

February 1, 2024

Welcome at 7:05 PM

Attendees: 28

  1. Rockler

    1. Resetting guild membership in February for 10% on Rockler items (may not apply to specific vendors or special items)

    2. Note, you cannot double dip -- e.g., if on sale for 20% off, you won’t get an extra 10%.

    3. Store has worked up a deal with a saw blade sharpener, so if someone wants their blades sharpened, store can help

  2. Discussion of last meeting -- no new items

  3. Mention of free table. Will start having a table at each meeting where members can come and leave free items for guild members. Just come and pick up what is available

  4. New Members: No new attendees at meeting

  5. Treasurer Guild info -- brief (Brad)

    1. Number of members: 39 paying members in 2023, 28 paying members so far in 2024

    2. Financial Report: $3,100 in account

  6. Members forum:

    1. Mark discussed Colonial Williamsburg event

      1. Several speakers were approached, and we may be able to get them to speak in meetings this year

      2. Theme was woodworking books. Chris Schwarz has "The Anarchist’s Design Book" for free, online

      3. A lot of talks/presentations on 18th century woodwork. Well worth a trip

      4. Chris Schwarz was editor at Popular Woodworking. One of his other loves is the Roman Workbench and he has an excellent article at Fine Woodworking "Tools and Shops" edition in 2023.

    2. Potential for speakers from Store

    3. Survey for meeting results

    4. Is there any technique or issue that you are having issues with that you want to discuss? Something you need help with? (Nobody had one)

    5. Some discussion of Woodworking show in Edison on Fri-Sun, Feb 9-11. Address 97 Sunfield Avenue, Edison, NJ, right off exit 10 of NJ turnpike

      1. Steve asked if folks were interested in getting a van/bus. Significant number of people said yes

      2. For 2025 show

      3. Also consider the Hearne Hardwood in Sep 2024. Some 6-10 vendors, demos of sawmill, lots of lumber

    6. Craft of New Jersey has their annual auction in Flemington, Saturday, April 20th. Auction starts at 9:30 AM, plus tailgate sales. Pretty much hand tools. Machinist tools also.

  7. Discussion of SawStop issue. Guild members came to try and help

    1. SawStop had problems

    2. Had to take out bolts to reset the top. Looked like whole thing had shifted

    3. Used dial indicators, etc., to try and fix it

    4. Company is going to replace it because it was passed our guild member

  8. Kevin’s DeWalt 735 planer stopped working

    1. Replaced the circuit breaker -- no go

    2. Traced power from plug to switches to motor, getting power

    3. Saw YouTube video saying strike motor with mallet, hard, several times. Kevin did this and it started working

    4. Probable issue is the brushes are going bad and may need to be replaced.

  9. Brad showed a Syrian tabletop that had water damage

    1. Pieces missing, Pieces black

    2. Maybe try oxalic acid to see if clear it up

    3. Group suggested talking to Steve Latta, Don Williams or Patrick Evans

  10. Demonstrations/Speaker. Member demonstrating/explaining something

    1. Members brought in a variety of mallets

    2. Discussion of variety of woods used

    3. Carver’s Mallet, round, often used by carvers. William suggests using hornbeam for this, as you are striking on the long beam.

    4. Carpenter’s mallet you are striking on the end grain

    5. Design issues for mallet

      1. End of it should be a little hollow, so you can set it on end

      2. Don’t put decorative bands in it, wood as it is hit could split out

      3. Knob at end helps keep you from having it drop through your hand

      4. Much prefers the rough mallet, both for carving and for chopping dovetails/mortises/etc.

    6. Open discussion by group on their mallet choices, materials, etc.

  11. Sign being reworked. The wood Jim donated was fairly unstable, and "potato chipped" (extremely warped), so Steve will work on a new one

  12. Suggestions for field trip (see above)

    1. Woodworking Show Edison (Feb 2025)

    2. Winterthur (TBD)

    3. Hearne Hardwood (October 2024)

    4. Craft Auction (April 2024)

  13. Wrap-up. Next meeting will be on Thursday, March 7th

January 4, 2024

We had our tool auction, with guild president Mark Showers returning in his role of auctioneer. The event was very well-attended and quite a few very good deals were had by the guild members.

The guild collected $77; given that the guild typically takes 10% of all guild sales, a total of approximately $770 was spent.

November 2, 2023

Number of Attendees: 24

Notes:

  • Mark opened the meeting at 7:02 PM

  • Sign for Guild at Rockler

    • Jim Parise has medical issues, but wanted to donate wood for sign

    • Wanted it to be a little rustic. Used biscuits to draw in, cross-grain issues

    • Greg had CNC machine for designing & carving out sign

    • Brought home & painted all the letters in, white

    • Talked to store manager, going to post in store

  • Dominic discussed new Products from Rockler

    • Glue bottle caps – fit on Titebond and Rockler glue bottles

      • Biscuit glue cap

      • Festool

      • Rockler Bead-block

    • Early Spring, slab-flattening jigs (small model and large model)

    • 48 new Rockler branded product were shown at latest manager’s meeting

    • General consensus of guild was that the membership enjoyed seeing new items

New Folks

  • Elise

    • Live in Cherry Hill

    • Very handy (rebuilt deck & kitchen)

    • Wants to do woodworking, not just carpentry

    • Had trees come down in yard, had someone mill it

    • Doesn’t have a router,

  • Mike

    • Been around tools all his life

    • Career in Coast Guard, got out in 2020

    • Small shop at home 120 SF, carving & wood turning

  • Jack

    • Here to support Mike (his son)

    • Mostly in construction & carpentry

    • May get into woodworking when he retires in a year or two

  • Joe

    • Started wood carving in Boy scouts. A lot of chip carving

    • Wood turning, furniture

    • Do it for myself and family

    • Belongs to carving club in Pennsylvania, meets 8 times a year in Berks County (Churchville PA) – 45min from Delran; Meet 4th Thursday of every month

    • Pennsylvania Delaware Valley Woodcarvers: https://delvalwoodcarvers.com/

  • Mark talked about the SAPFM (Society of American Period Furniture Makers) event this weekend. Also discussed the January 2024 SAPFM event in Colonial Woodworking

    • Good opportunity to meet 18th century furniture makers

    • Presentations taped and available for months

  • Hearne Hardwoods had their annual event in early October

  • February 2024 the Woodworking shows are back, this year its in Edison. February 23-25

    • Guild could pay for a 10x10 booth spot for Fri-Sun

    • Good for getting new members

    • Typically $12 a person for weekend

  • Mitch from Rockler has a new toy to show folks

    • Uses a variety of tool tips that could fit onto any angle grinder to carve out

    • Safety gear (large mask, gloves, etc.)

    • Carves well, textures very well

    • Chisel easy and safe to use

    • Excellent tool for doing large carvings

    • Discussed pricing for each tool

    • Demo’d the carving (folks had to gather around)

    • Chisel/V-gouge

  • November 11th, Veterans day event for pen turning - $100

  • Classes: 9:30/11:30/1:30/3:30

  • Christmas ornament - $25

  • December is Holiday dinner

    • Salman suggested Han Dynasty

    • Someone suggested Barone’s

    • Mike suggested Jewish Deli

    • Salman will send out email for folks to rank. Based on total votes, Salman will determine result

  • Brad noted that $2500 was in treasury near the end of October

    • Discussion of what to do with funds

    • Guests instructors, tools, site visits

    • Members are asked to send Brad ideas and he will collate them

    • Mark will talk with Dominic to keep it at Rockler store

    • Mike will set up a date for folks to go over and inventory the items in the bench

    • Mark will scout with 3-4 members at SAPFM in Colonial Williamsburg for 2024 speakers

  • Mark closed the meeting at 8:56 PM

September 7, 2023

Number of Attendees: 28

 

Notes:

  1. Mark opened the meeting at 7:00 PM

    • Need to give advance notice to Iron Hill restaurant for 5 PM. Need RSVPs ten days in advance

    • Make sure you bring chairs to the meetings. We only have a limited amount

    • New Folks?

  2. Pete Hammil

    • Turnersville

    • Been around woodworking 50 years, since 1975

    • Degree in Industrial arts, taught it for 6 years

    • Joined Carpenters’ union, worked for trade shows

    • Retired for 13 years, with small but well equipped shop in basement

  3. Fred

    • Many years, most shop time in machine shop

    • Couple of years ago, got tooling from his son

    • Doing mostly wood turning

  4. Luther Perry

    • 33 years old, nurse and parametic

    • Took up woodworking during Covid

    • Made a workbench, planer, tablesaw, CNC machines

    • Enjoy it a lot, learning a lot, looking forward to getting info from guild

  5. Dick

    • Made a set of bookends in 10th grade

    • Don’t have access to shop right now

  6. Andrew

    • Dick’s son

    • Dad taught shop stuff

    • Got a few tools (chop saw, etc.)

    • Doing a lot of backyard projects

  7. Battleship New Jersey

    • Selling teak deck as mementos

    • Pretty rough shape

    • Prices high, because they give you a certificate of authenticity

  8. 2x4 challenge

    • Grading going for craftsmanship

    • Go with one vote per person, using a post it note pad

    • Folks went through their projects, one-by-one, describing the materials, joinery, why they made it, etc.

    • Mahogany end table with brass (interesting glue up)

    • Offset bowl with interesting way to cut and re-assemble

    • Three dimensional cutting board

    • Large salad bowl

    • Stool with Cabriole leg

    • Puzzle Box

    • Phone holder

    • Keepsake box

    • Stool

  9. Guild voted by post-it note, with the item with the most post-its being the winner, then 2nd, then 3rd

    • Winner was “watch box”

    • End table was 2nd place

    • Stool was third place

  10. October event is Sharpening

    • Folks demo various ways to sharpen, and people can try them out

    • Mark soliciting who wants to demo and what they will demo (saw sharpening, card scraper, etc.)

  11. November’s event is a scrapwood challenge. Take wood from your scrap pile and build something

  12. Mark closed the meeting at 8:50 PM

July 6, 2023

Number of Attendees: 19

 

Notes:

  1. Mark opened the meeting at 7:12 PM

  2. Dominic Avateli is the new manager (Chris got the chance to go to a music retailer, so he left Rockler to pursue his dream)

    • Woodworking his entire life

    • Currently a “side gig” mostly concentrating on turning & lathe work

    • Worked a store since it opened

    • Wants to know what we can do to help each other out (supporting guild and Rockler)

  3. Discussion of discount policy – 10% on most items, but does not count for motorized product (Festool, DeWalt, SawStop, etc) or already marked sales items

  4. Rockler during summer, cutting back start time to 6pm, from Memorial Day to Labor day (or October). Requested that guild might consider coming in earlier – like 6 PM start, rather than 7 PM

    • Mark’s workaround for August – field trip to Saw Mill in Collingswood, 7 PM – dusk

    • August 3rd

    • Mark will provide meeting location and point-of-contact

  5. Salman will send the list of all current email recipients to Brad

  6. Dominic described Kansas City Woodworker’s guild

    • Large building

    • Each person had their own wall

    • Working at non-profit, with maker space (machines, benches, etc.)

    • Meetings were show & tell

    • Attendance 100+ people

  7. Question on the Wharton Esherick tour

    • Person on site suggested better to do it in the Fall

    • Mark thinking of November for site visit

  8. Tool Library

    • Some items that guild has include slow speed grinder, track saw, duo dowel jointer (similar to a biscuit jointer, but drills dowel holes)

    • A lot of the books, CDs, etc., are in the workbench at the Church

    • Some discussion on purchasing new tools (such as a vacuum bag system or CNC machine)

  9. Person in New York, with missing carvings 6” x 12” something like twelve of them. If interested in doing the work, text or email Mark.

  10. New folks at meeting?

    • Steve, wife & he just moved here from PA

                                          i.    Wants to learn woodworking (what to buy, how to make, etc.)

                                         ii.    Made niece a bookshelf, starting doing simple things

                                        iii.    Member of Philadelphia Woodworks, so got to use their tools and learn

    • Bill Stoudt from Cherry Hill. Joined guild right before panemic

                                          i.    Mostly gifts in woodworking

    • Deborah and Brian

                                          i.    Refinished furniture

                                         ii.    Interested in restoring furniture (fix, refinish, etc)

11. Mark demonstrated his Bridgewood jointer/planer blade sharpener

    • Mark volunteered to sharpen everyone’s jointer/planer blades in 15 minutes

    • Haven’t used it yet. Went through manual for repair & setup, so everything works

    • Sharpen two at a time, then take one off & leave the other one on as a template for the remaining ones

    • Color blade with black marker, bring it in to cut center of blade. It will then sharpen a hollow ground bevel

 12. Brian Menold (published author) discussed how he does his puzzle boxes

    • Showed sample of various puzzle boxes he created

    • A typical one has eleven (11) moves to open

    • Has designers around the world sending him designs. He builds them and pays them for the design (though usually its just a copy of the puzzle)

    • Has 72 different species of wood

    • Produce a 6-12 different puzzles, 20-30 each, total of 200-300 puzzles a period (often 4-8 weeks) so over a thousand a year

    • Copies of the book available on Amazon or Fine Woodworking

    • Showed his three piece pyramid puzzle

    • Don’t import or export the woods on “do not ship” or endangered list – so no issue with shipping

    • Variety of jigs, small tablesaw, various special designed machines used to make items to the exact size

13. Salman discussed his purchase (from Brian Menold) of the Shelix helical head blades for his DeWalt 735 planer

  • Installed the helical head in his planer. 40 total carbide cutters.

  • Instead of having to replace a whole blade, you can rotate individual cutters. If you need to replace it, you just need to change out one small cutter, not the whole blade

  • Brian was originally spending $hundreds a year to replace the old planer blades, replacing them every month. Didn’t have to change them for a almost two years after he made the switch

  • Brian noted that you will want to change out the old bearings when doing his, unless they come with the new helical head

  • A lot of YouTube videos on how to do it, including a 59 minute one, and a 15 minute one. The recommendation is to watch the long one once and to use the short one as a reference while actually doing the work

14. September event is the 2x4 challenge (what can you make out of a 2x4); details on the front page of the site

15. Sharpening event for October meeting

    • Folks demo various ways to sharpen, and people can try them out

    • Mark soliciting who wants to demo and what they will demo (saw sharpening, card scraper, etc.)

16. Mark closed the meeting at 8:56 PM