Wood for club auction

[John K Jordan]

Sharpened up the bandsaw and fired up the dust collector.

Our Knoxville turning club is having the annual wood auction soon and I get to be the auctioneer again. (maybe because I can be loud) I cut a truck load of green osage, cherry, and ambrosia maple blocks, from 4x4 to 10x10, about 15" long as well as spindle squares and box blanks. I cut up the bigger stuff on the bandsaw mill. I made a bunch bowl blanks, some left square and others rounded. All waxed and ready to go. Other club members donate wood too, sometimes magazines, books, tools. I might take a few dozen farm eggs just for fun.

I added two tubs full of dry wood from my stash, some domestics like holly and dogwood, some exotics like ebony and cocobolo. I think we still have more of the big dry roughed out bowls that a woodturner's widow donated last year.

https://sawmillcreek.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=380980&d=1520729358

Anyone in area, come on down! (March 20.) If your turning club hasn't tried an auction, you might try it. This has been a huge success for us and it gets a lot of wood in turner's hands.

A couple of pics from last year, not a quarter of what we auctioned:

380985 380987

JKJ

[Steve Schlumpf]

Very impressive!! How many turners in your club? Just curious because that is a lot of wood!! Hope your auction goes well!

[Peter Blair]

What a great idea John. Sure hope you sell out this year. I have sooooo much wood but if I was in your area I'm sure I couldn't resist adding a few chunks!

[John K Jordan]

Very impressive!! How many turners in your club? Just curious because that is a lot of wood!! Hope your auction goes well!

I don't know for sure - I see 90 on the member list but maybe 1/2 are active. Others come just for the auction, though - I think at least 10 are planning to drive over from the Crossville club.

In the past we've sold everything. Even those of us with a LOT of wood usually come away with something special or different.

There are a couple of helpers staging wood at my station and others keeping the books. I look over each piece carefully and point out any visible cracks, voids, pith, knots, stain, bug signs, and punky areas as well as pieces with special value like great color, figure or spalting. I also sometimes make suggestions like "this would be perfect for a xxxxx!" or offer to cut up an extra-big piece in case that might hold someone back. I don't dilly-dally around, maybe 2 or 3 seconds before "Sold!" which helps keep things moving. Sometimes I throw free stuff just for fun. All in all things stay lively - I know the evening sure wears me out!

Peter, quick, FedEx the chunks! :) Fortunately there are a lot of generous people just like you who bring nice chunks from their stashes. In the months before the auction several people even brought log sections to my shop and I cut them up into useful defect-free blanks. Everyone knows the wood they bring will make someone seriously happy and the money lets the club do things it couldn't otherwise.

JKJ