View Full Version : Need Ideas for club demo's
Roger Turnbough
12-09-2011, 1:49 PM
The title pretty much says it all. We have done all the usual suspects recently. We need something new and fresh. Y'all got any ideas?
Roger
Thom Sturgill
12-09-2011, 1:57 PM
Well you didn't say what the usual suspects are so - bottom hollowing cutting out and replacing the bottom of a long necked HF.
Multi-axis turning like some of the boxes shown recently - only need a little geometry layout and nerves.
Marty Eargle
12-09-2011, 2:25 PM
Kind of difficult to say without knowing more about your body of work.
I say the best bet is to teach what you know. Demos on the fundamentals of form, finishing, and presentation can be just is important as a demo on a specific kind of piece. If your club members do a lot of hollow forms, there are a lot of people that don't know about the golden ratio and how it can enhance the form of a piece.
Richard Allen
12-09-2011, 2:34 PM
Bowls
Bowl shapes
Rim design
Foot design
End grain bowls
Boxes
Basic box
Fitting a lid
Multi Species boxes
Side grain boxes (lidded bowls)
Finials or handles
Threading
Hollow Forms
End grain hollow forms
Southwest hollow forms
Side Grain hollow forms
Thin walled hollow forms
Beaded hollow forms
Rim design
Foot design
Ellsworth shaped hollow forms
River rock shaped hollow forms
Platters
Shallow platters
Deep platters
Rim design
Rim - body interface design
Foot design
Segmented work
Hollow forms
Open segmented
Segmented bowls
Multi species bowls
Stave work
Multi axis work
Spindles
Boxes
Bowls
Mounting techniques
Ornamental work
Using a rose engine lathe
Indexing
Ornamental Turning Device
Sorby OTD
Crafts
Pens
Bottle stoppers
Small bowls
Boxes
Spindles
Chair legs
Table legs
Stretchers
Candle sticks
Equipment
Lathes
Chucks
Gouges
Tool steel
Scrapers
Hollowing tools
Making tools
Jigs
Photography
Cameras
Photo booths
Taking pictures of shiny surfaces
Improvements in pictures
Marketing
Craft shows
Displaying your work
Pricing your work
Working with Galleries
Producing gallery level work
Other disciplines
Wood burning
Coloring
Metal leafing
Carving
Piercing
Sand Blasting
Wood
Domestic woods
Latin American woods
South American woods
African Woods
European Woods
Asian woods
Southeast Asia woods
Australian wood
Symposiums
The month before and the week after the national symposium
The week before and the week after a symposium other than the national AAW symposium
Gifts
What to make for gifts
Birthdays
Wedding
Christmas
For another turner
For wood giver (someone who has given you some wood)
Sanding
Hand sanding
Sandpaper brands
Inertial sanders
Power sanding
Special sanding circumstances
Finishing
Oil finish
Film finish
Lacquer
Varnish
Epoxy
Buffing
Wally Dickerman
12-09-2011, 2:42 PM
A demo on tool sharpening is always popular. I've done it a couple of times at our club. There is nothing more important in woodturning than knowing how to sharpen tools.
I brought in my grinder, My 1 inch belt sander with a fresh blue zircon belt, and a board to draw pictures. I use the belt sander with a 60 grit belt for reshaping tools. Cuts much faster than a coarse grinder and it runs cool. Blue zircon will outlast al. oxide belts by at least 10 times.
I asked members to bring in a tool to be sharpened or reshaped.
Bill White
12-09-2011, 2:42 PM
Sharpening?
Well darn! He beat me to it.
Bill
Jim Underwood
12-09-2011, 5:01 PM
I always thought a demonstration on methods of workholding might be interesting. That could run all the way through traditional methods like drive centers and face plates, to glue chucks and jam chucks, on to home made chucks (like the longworth and donut) to scroll chucks and vacuum chucks, not to mention steadys, like string steadys, board steadys and wheeled steadys...
bob edwards
12-09-2011, 5:26 PM
I always find an evening spent on the basics is appreciated by all. Some of us have bee turning for so long we forget to explain why we do a certain thing. Why do I anchor the tool and plant my feet that way. Why do I grind a certain angle on my bowl gouge. Why do I always start a project between centers. I could go on and on but you get the idea. This not only dose this bring out different opinions and makes for lively discussions.
Josh Bowman
12-10-2011, 7:14 AM
Nick Cook, came to ours and turned a lamp, it's fairly big, but didn't take long, he also showed how to use scraps to turn coffee scoops, and a "magic" salt shaker. If showed a lot of basics as well as some work holding stuff. Really enjoyed it.
Roger Turnbough
12-10-2011, 8:55 AM
Thanks guys for all the great ideas. Its usually a last minute scramble to come up with a topic for the meeting. I Really appreciate the advise.
Roger
Curt Fuller
12-10-2011, 10:56 AM
If you're able to operate a chainsaw in your demo area then a demonstration on harvesting your own wood and preparing blanks is usually pretty helpful. Lot's of beginners seem to be unaware of just how much beautiful wood is at their fingertips if they learn what parts of a tree hold the good stuff.
Scott Hackler
12-10-2011, 11:23 AM
From log to bowl would be a good demo and a demo on shapes and profiles (golden mean ratio).
Thomas Canfield
12-10-2011, 9:21 PM
I have done a demo a couple of times called "Bowl Turning for Beginners, by a Beginner". I explained a couple of different mountings and my preference of worm screw in chuck to start turning the outside and tenon on bottom, how to then reverse and tun the inside using a green blank. I encourage using green wood for beginners since it is easier to turn, less dust, and the long streaming shavings really get one hooked. I then take a dried green turning that has gone oval and show how to true up the tenon and start the outside using the expanded jaws of chuck as jam and live center. The bowl is then reversed and outside finished and inside turned. The bowl is then revered again and using a jam with rubber shelf liner pad and live center turn off the majority of the tenon for smooth or recessed bottom and then cut off nub for sanding. All the steps can be expanded, but it is a simple demo to try to encourage some of the newer turners to take a chance and turn a bowl.
I cannot emphasize enough the using green wood for beginners, and turning rough bowls allows for learning tool techniques that can be further refined when going to dry and finished products, rather than try for the art show product on the first try.
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