January 2018
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Win a CNC For a Year

Felder Group USA is inviting woodshops to sign up for a drawing to win a Format-4 CNC machine center (the profit H08) for a year of free use. The machine has a table size of 5' x 10' and a 13.5 HP motor. It's designed for professional nesting applications in the smallest of spaces, and is equipped with a drill block with 8 positions, an 11 position tool changer, and a touch pad for Z axis measurement. It also has a matrix table with optimised grid geometry, for perfect nesting results. Woodworkers can visit the website and simply sign up online. Felder is also offering a chance to register for free tickets to IWF in Atlanta this coming August. Founded in Austria in 1955, the company has eight locations across the U.S. and 200 worldwide.

IKEA Loses Its Founder

The IKEA name combines the initials of its Swedish founder Ingvar Kamprad, (IK) with the first letters from the names of the farm and village where he grew up - Elmtaryd and Agunnaryd (EA). Mr. Kamprad, who pioneered the concept of flat-pack furniture that is assembled by the buyer to reduce costs, passed away Saturday, January 27 in Sweden at the age of 91. His 1998 book, The IKEA Story, is described by the company as meeting "an openhearted Ingvar Kamprad, who speaks candidly about his relation to alcohol, love, business, dreams, politics and fiascos. He reveals how the business started by a 17-year-old grew into a global furniture giant." Founded during the second world war when he was a member of the New Swedish Movement (a fascist organization led by far right extremist Per Engdahl, which Kamprad later said he regretted joining) the company now has about 400 stores worldwide. While personally frugal, Kamprad was a noted philanthropist and the foundation that owns IKEA is requireed to either reinvest profits in the company, or donate them to charity.

  

 

Build A Bed Without The Box Spring

Rockler Woodworking and Hardware has launched a new program called Build It with Rockler, and the first project is a Modern Bed Frame with Headboard. It features a hardware kit, free downloadable plan, online skill-builder videos and in-store tool demonstrations. The project uses fundamental frame and panel construction, features a steel frame and assembly hardware, and has two rows of contoured wood slats that eliminate the need for a box spring. The free downloadable plan includes an exploded view of the project, a list of materials required to perform the build, and step-by-step instructions (punctuated by several photos) to aid in the assembly process. Skill-builder videos showing the process of installing the bed rail fastener brackets (using the Beadlock® joinery system and Rockler's taper jig for the legs) are also available to view online. All Rockler retail stores will host demonstrations throughout February that cover the tools and techniques required.

Equipment Demo in North Carolina

IMA Schelling Group USA will hold live equipment demonstrations in the company’s new 10,000-square-foot showroom in Raleigh. These will include the Barbaric RTS 02 return material-handling system, in conjunction with the IMA Novimat Compact R3 edgebander. Also demonstrated will be the Barbaric LCV linear feeder, which works in conjunction with the Schelling fh5 automated panel saw. These automated material-handling machines use a vacuum technology that gently manipulates materials to help prevent damage and provide greater flexibility in part sizes. The company will also provide hands-on training with the machines. IMA Schelling and Austrian-made Barbaric automated material-handling systems debuted their North American alliance at last year’s AWFS show and includes return conveyors, linear feeders and automated storage retrieval systems.

  

 

Cabinet Vision Adds New Photo Realism

The latest release of Cabinet Vision from Vero Software gives woodshops almost photo-like images which can be used as a sales tool. Cabinet Vision Version 11 also includes a simplified way to add natural light. And any object can now be selected and the finish type, material and texture can be changed, just on that one item, from any 3D view. Improvements to Auto-Fill let a user automatically fill a room with cabinets through a single click. Until now, users would draw in a generic design package, which then had to be transferred manually into Cabinet Vision. Now, every step of the design and manufacturing process can be handled in the program. Shops can design whatever they want, render it, produce a cut list and price list, or send it straight through to the CNC machine.

PDS Now Repairs Saw Arbors

Precision Drive Systems supplies and repairs spindle motors in North Carolina. Now PDS has begun offering repairs on an extensive range of main and scoring saw arbors to better-than-factory standards at a fraction of the price of OEM replacement. PDS rebuilt saw arbors also solve runout issues with precision-face grinding and precise measuring in a micron/control room environment. The company can repair both main and scoring arbors for Altendorf, Biesse, Gabbiani, Giben, Holz-Her, Holzma, Homag, SCM, Schelling and Selco brand saws, plus others. The saw arbors are disassembled, cleaned and evaluated. Critical surfaces are precision ground, and bearing and spacer stackups are measured. Upgraded bearings are specified and installed, and then each unit receives final assembly, run-in, temperature, balance and vibration analysis. PDS backs each rebuilt unit with a six-month warranty.

  

 

An Event For Arts & Crafts Enthusiasts

Craftsman Farms is Gustav Stickley's early twentieth century country estate in Parsippany, New Jersey. The log home sits in thirty park-like acres and is a National Historic Landmark. On Thursday, February 15th, a fundraising dinner to benefit the estate will be held at the Grove Park Inn in Asheville, North Carolina. Included are a BBQ and Southern comfort food with local craft beers and wine, live bluegrass music, and floor-to-ceiling views of Asheville and the Blue Ridge Mountains. There will be an Arts and Crafts Trivia Challenge with prizes. The cost is $140 per person, and net proceeds from this event directly support the maintenance and operations of the Stickley Museum at Craftsman Farms. A portion of each ticket may be tax deductible. Reservations can be made online or by calling 973-540-0311.

New CNC Router from CAMaster

The new Cobra Elite from CAMaster is made in the USA. Backed by an industry-best two-year warranty, the new CNC router is being sold directly by CAMaster "at almost half the cost of similarly configured competitor models". It is designed to handle high production loads, and has a heavy, all-steel welded frame, a steel gantry and steel gantry supports that ensures maximum rigidity and durability. It comes standard with many top-of-the-line features including a 12 HP HSD spindle, a brushless digital AC servo-drive system, 25 mm. precision rails and bearings, and 10:1 precision planetary gearboxes for precise cutting at higher speeds. With cut speeds of 1500 ipm and rapid traverse speeds of 2500 ipm, the Cobra Elite has high versatility in mind. There's an automatic tool changer available, along with extended gantry heights, drill banks, vacuum tables, vacuum pod systems, aggregate heads, knives and much more. It also comes with free lifetime technical phone support and online diagnostics.

  

 

Pres. Carter Has A Hand In California Show

This spring, the Escondido Arts Partnership presented WOOD, A Furniture Show IX, which was hosted by noted A&C furniture builder Brian Murphy and was presented in association with the San Diego Fine Woodworking Association. The show featured "amazing handcrafted furniture including contemporary, traditional, art furniture, as well as veneering and marquetry". One of the pieces that was not for sale was a bronze hand sculpture of former President Jimmy Carter and noted chair maker Russ Filbeck, who are shown at left in an image from Russ's website. The piece, called Team Work, was cast at the Veterans Art program in Fallbrook, California by Dick and Brandon Roy. It is one of three versions of the casting, which portray a drawknife being pulled across work in a shaving horse. One set was auctioned last year for $140,000 at a fundraiser for The Carter Center. The gallery is located at 262 E. Grand Avenue in Escondido, and exhibitions are free and open to the public.

Current And Upcoming Shows at the Messler

The Messler Gallery has just completed a Contemporary Wood Lighting exhibit that explored wood as a medium for expressing light. It did do through the work of twenty contemporary designers and makers from six countries, and you can see their work on the gallery website. Now, the curators are currently presenting Maine Wood, a biennial juried exhibition of outstanding Maine woodworking in all genres. The show runs from January 22 through April 11 at the gallery on the campus of the Center For Furniture Craftsmanship in Rockport. Then, from April 20 through May 30, the gallery will display the work of students enrolled in this year's nine-month program - an annual treat that has delivered some extraordinary results over the years. For example, the cherry, ash and ebony Kumiko Credenza shown here was built by Adam Howell of Camden, Maine in 2016 and was part of the 2017 Current Student Work show. The dimensions are 25" x 36" x 14".

  

 

Gary Rogowski's New Book

Handmade - Creative Focus in the Age of Distraction is the latest offering from teacher and master craftsman Rogowski, the founder and director of the Portland, Oregon based Northwest Woodworking Studio. Described as a new classic in the tradition of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, the work is not so much a how-to as a why. It "confronts the greatest obstacles to creative focus in the modern age: distraction; pointless busyness; fear of failure; and the devil of self-doubt that tells you your work doesn’t matter". It is part narrative and part discourse on the value of mastery, practice, and creativity in this time of what the author sees as attention disorder. The book is available from Linden and argues for the need to create, for using our hands to help us engage with the world, and the value of failure and forgiveness in our work.

Another OVVO Innovation

The Irish company OVVO is a leading European manufacturer of invisible casework connectors, and it is beginning to gain traction in North America. Next month, OVVO will introduce the new V-1230, a connector that incorporates all the features of the 2017 Interzum show's Best of the Best award winning V-0930. The new hardware is ideally suited to high grade chipboard, and is available in both permanent and knockdown (KD) versions. It has a deeper profile than the V-0930, which significantly increases the holding strength in chipboard. But it is also compatible with materials such as high pressure laminated panels, composite material and solid woods. An innovative dovetail design delivers enhanced shear and tensile strength, and the new connector also features a solid central rib for increased joint rigidity. Plus, its single piece housing is designed for both manual and automatic insertion, and the V-1230 is compatible with benchmark CNC equipment and software. The US distributor is E.B. Bradley Co.

  

 

Paul Downs to Address CMA

The Cabinet Makers Association was formed in 1998, so this March members will be celebrating its twentieth anniversary. Primarily an organization of smaller shop owners, it's an opportunity for cabinetmakers and woodworkers to come together, share knowledge and experience, and help one another. The group's annual conference this year will be held March 1 and 2 in Colorado, at the Crowne Plaza Convention Center. Non-members who attend will receive a one-year CMA membership (a $275 value) as part of their registration. Cabinetmaker Paul Downs is scheduled to be the keynote speaker. He started his business in 1986 and since then has grown it from a one-man shop to 19 employees - and he has never made a kitchen! Downs will tell attendees what factors have led to success, including how to market over the Internet, how he hires, what he pays and even how much money he takes home.

Arkansas Arts Center Offers Woodshop Classes

The Arkansas Arts Center in Little Rock is an art museum and active center for the visual and performing arts. Among its many outreach programs are woodworking classes for both adults and children. This spring the Center will conduct adult classes in penmaking on the lathe; basic CNC including prepping files and working with a Piranha FX CNC; hand tool woodworking; plus several basic and intermediate general woodworking classes. Students can work on their own projects with guidance from an experienced instructor. A downloadable catalog is available on the Center's website. The Museum School is sponsored by the Dorothea Lawrence Gilbert Fund for Art Enrichment and Outreach, which was established by Dr. Amy Gilbert Pollard and Harry T. Gilbert Jr. (a remarkable man) in 2008.

  

 

Upgrade Your W&H Molder

In addition to adding several new in-stock molder knife profiles, Williams & Hussey Machine Co in Amherst, New Hampshire, also recently introduced a new Chip Extractor & Head Assembly. Owners of W&H molders can replace their older cast iron and sheet metal chip deflector with the new Linear Low Density Polyethylene (LLDPE) chip extractor. It was designed to deliver better chip flow, and completely cover the knife area for added safety and efficiency. The new assembly includes the head itself, the chip extractor, two arbor bearings, four pressure screws, four pressure springs, plus spring guides and check nuts. Designated as item # 54-520, it's listed in the new catalog at $350.00. W&H has been manufacturing professional grade molders and profile knives for over sixty years. Woodshops looking at purchasing a molder for straight or curved work can view several videos of the machines at work on YouTube™.

Woodcarving & Wildlife Art Festival

More than thirty exhibitors will show their wood carving and wildlife art at an annual event in March that is organized by the Lancaster County Woodcarvers in Pennsylvania. Titled the 45th Annual Woodcarving & Wildlife Art Festival, it takes place on March 17 and 18. There will be door prizes plus books, tools and carving supplies for sale, and free demonstrations. The featured carver, Al Jordan, is a resident of Rochester, New York and a celebrated championship bird carver: he created the owl at right. The event takes place at Millersville University Fitness Center. Hours on Saturday are 10 to 5, and on Sunday from 10 to 4. Parking is free, and food is available. Admission is a $5 donation, and kids under 15 are free with an adult.

  

 

Extremely Bright Jobsite Light and Charger

Milwaukee Tool recently introduced the RADIUS™ Site Light/Charger, a new addition to the company's family of M18™ tools. It's capable of running on either one or two battery packs, and delivers 9,000 lumens in a 360° coverage pattern (that's about 600W in incandescent bulbs, or 150W in LEDs). Adjustable output levels let a woodworker light up a jobsite for up to 14 hours on a single full charge. Called the model 2150-20, it has a two-battery charger on board. Plus, plug-in and daisy-chaining means one can connect up to six lights on a single circuit. Milwaukee's ONE-KEY™ technology also provides users with the ability to digitally create custom light settings, track the tool on or off site, and manage tool inventories. A unique, stackable design makes the Radius Site Light easy to transport and store. It's built to thrive in tough conditions with a high impact polycarbonate lens and IP54 ingress protection against dust and water. It's also backed by a five year tool warranty and limited lifetime LED warranty. Milwaukee now offers more than 125 tools that are fully compatible with the M18 family.

Additive Technology For Small Shops

Dremel continues to surprise woodworkers and other makers with its range of state-of-the-art technology. The latest offering is the 3D45 printer ($1,799), which uses additive technology to make parts. Woodworking traditionally uses subtractive technology, where we remove material to reveal a part. Additive 3D printing basically builds in plastic. It can be used to build prototypes for long production runs, or just to duplicate a single missing part such as, say, a drawer slide mount. The new 3D printer, which has a strong appeal for pattern makers, does prototyping at less cost, and far faster. With a heated bed and a high-temperature extruder that allows multiple types of filament (such as Nylon and Eco-ABS), the 3D45 is reliable and uncomplicated, with intuitive instructions and real-time analysis. It is also the only printer to automatically recognize filament and adjust printer settings, eliminating the need to re-slice files for each type of filament. Makers can monitor and control multiple printers from anywhere with remote printing capability and an integrated camera, so several parts can be made at the same time using several printers. Dremel also just launched a new website that is designed to complement the 3D printer.

  

 

Next Generation Laminate Tops

Loti Corporation in Aurora, Oregon, helps woodshops bring the look of solid surface or even quartz or granite to plastic laminate countertops, at a much smaller price. It does so by eliminating the black lines or unsightly seams that are the norm in laminate edges.

Loti's program, called Gem-Loc, is outlined in the company's new online catalog, which can be used as a sales tool by woodworkers.

New Books on Joinery, Finishing

Two new woodworking titles have just been released by California based Linden Publishing (WoodworkersLibrary.com). The Art of Coloring Wood is a guide to understanding dyes and chemicals. Written by Brian Miller and Marci Crestani, it's 144 pages and has 140 color images ($24.95, ISBN 978-1-61035-305-2). And Strother Purdy's Doormaking walks a woodworker through the materials and techniques involved in adding this skill to a shop's repetoire ($26.95, ISBN 978-1-61035-291-8). Both are wideley available online, in bookstores, or directly from the publisher.

  

 

Lightening The Load

For woodworkers who run a one-man shop, or work alone with sheet goods much of the time, the Crazy Horse Dolly might be of special interest. This is a unique, low-tech cart that was invented by cabinetmaker Larry Lee, who has been using it in his own shop for over 17 years. This January, he has begun marketing it to woodshops through a website where one can watch a couple of videos on all the roles it can play. Woodworkers can order a dolly on the site for $295.00 plus shipping. Larry says that he wanted to build a simple, economical dolly that let one person easily and safely move heavy sheet goods and other awkward materials around the shop. He succeeded: his invention helps a woodworker handle materials that are hard for one person to carry.

  

Wooden Footballs For The Super Bowl

Twenty minutes northwest of Boise, Idaho, there's a woodworker who has an unusual connection to Super Bowl LII. The game will be played in U.S. Bank Stadium in downtown Minneapolis on February 4th, 2018. Our thanks to KTVB Channel 7 in Boise, which reports that retired engineer Ben Tyson, a luthier and fine woodworker, has just completed two wooden footballs for the game. Well, they won't be used on the field: they're props for the NFL Network's studio set. He milled the eighteen ribs for each ball on a desktop CNC, and then hand bent each using a wet mold and heat. JCM Set Design told KTVB that the footballs will be displayed on one of the sets inside the Super Bowl Experience at the convention center in Minneapolis. To see the report, click here. Images courtesy of KTVB.

  

 

Jobsite Vac From Makita

Makita USA introduced a new brushless dry dust extractor this month. The XCV08Z operates on two 18V batteries and includes the company's AWS (automatic-start wireless system) that uses Bluetooth™ to communicate between a tool being used, and the dust extractor. This is the latest addition to Makita’s range of cordless dust extractor/vacuums, and it has an efficient three-stage HEPA filtration system, automatic filter cleaning, and extended run time. (The image at left shows two units, one with the battery compartment lid open.)

  

Second Chess Set Piece Now Available

In celebration of its 10th anniversary, Next Wave Automation is offering free instructions and VCarve files for making a commemorative chess set. WoodEzine reported last month that the Piranha Pawn was available. Now, complete instructions and design files for the Seahorse Knight (at right) are available at no charge on the company’s website. Subsequent instructions and files for each chess piece will be provided each month. Plans for the chessboard are also available. Next Wave Automation "designs and builds small format automation application systems (including several very affordable entry level CNCs) for businesses that need high quality technology that will grow as they grow".

  

 

Small Project Clamping

Rockler Woodworking and Hardware has expanded its line of award-winning Sure-Foot® clamping tools with an accessory for gluing up small projects. Steve Krohmer, Rockler's vice president of product development, says that the new Mini Sure-Foot Conversion Kit allows woodworkers to create the perfect clamping tool for projects like boxes or small panels. It includes wide attachment feet that snap securely onto both ends of a Clamp-It® Bar Clamp (sold separately), and two sliding spacer attachments that fit onto the clamp's bar. The feet keep the clamp from tipping over, and they have holes to screw them to a workbench or fixture. They also elevate the clamp, making it easier to turn the handle. The sliding spacers lift the workpiece off the clamp bar, preventing discoloration across glue lines, and they also for more evenly distributed pressure. The kit (item 55952, $7.99) includes attachments for one clamp and it works with 5", 8" and 12" Clamp-It bar clamps.

Working with wood: The women of Jepara

CIFOR, the Center for International Forestry Research, is a non-profit, scientific institution that conducts research on the most pressing challenges of forest and landscape management around the world. It has been working with woodshops in Jepara, Indonesia, for almost a decade. One of its goals is to improve the lot of women who carve and build cultivated teak furniture there. The women seem to love what they do in this city of two million, but they are paid very poorly, and make about half what men make. For example, a grandmother named Zaekah makes about $2.60 (US) per day sanding furniture. Even at those wages, the industry is in danger: "garment factories are moving into the area," a story in Forests News says, "and offer alluring job opportunities to young women, with better pay and working conditions free of sawdust and splinters". One can read the piece by Deanna Ramsay here, and watch a short video.

  

 

Turning Pens on a Small CNC

North Carolina based ShopBot is showcasing its Handibot® portable CNC tool as the new way to make pens. The company says that turners can automate many aspects of traditional pen-turning, and the controlled rotary indexing capabilities of the tool mean that one can intricately carve any shape, pattern or detail with high precision, and repeatability for production runs. It allows creative expression in terms of shape, graphics, labeling and customization and is a whole new way to express skills and artistry. Handibots are easily operated from virtually any device, including a smart phone. CNC pen making is a great introduction to technology-based manufacturing: here's a short video. There’s a lot of 3D art already available for easy download, and Handibot’s Pen Station package provides three projects to get started. As pen-carving with CNC becomes popular, one expects to see growing libraries of pen projects.

SMA Workshop Tour and Balustrade Class Preview

Parks & Sons in Knoxville, Tennessee has been crafting the highest quality stairs for over thirty years. The company uses a tangent handrail method, rather than limiting itself to stock parts. This gives each staircase a distinctive and personalized design. Using digital measuring and CNC technology, the company can create whatever its customers can envision, and on January 18 and 19 it will demonstrate that at the Knoxville shop. As part of developing valued training programs for its members, the Stairbuilders & Manufacturers Association (SMA) will be at the event to preview its curriculum for a balustrade installation class. SMA will be seeking direct input from attendees as to how the program might best meet the training needs of the stairways industry. These workshops focus on stairbuilding issues, and breakfast and lunch are included. Interested woodworkers can find more info here.

  

 

Better Jobsite Hand Protection

Milwaukee Tool’s newest dipped gloves are designed to provide ultimate durability, all-day comfort and best in class dexterity for handling small objects. Their Smartswipe™ index fingertips provide full access to touchscreen devices without removing the gloves, and the textured nitrile palm provides best in class grip performance. The gloves are made of a nylon and lycra blend to provide all day comfort and wick away moisture and also feature high dexterity fingertips to maximize control when handling small objects. Level 1 gloves are for material handling and general purpose remodeling applications. Level 3 gloves feature ANSI and EN cut level III protection, as well as best in class puncture resistance to help prevent injuries from sharp objects on the jobsite, and are suited to demolition, wire-stripping, and pipe threading applications. And Level 5 gloves are ideal for sheet metal, ducting, and glass handling applications.
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