This month’s Atlantic Woodworkers Association meeting, the last one for the season, was a mix of reports, questions and answers, show and tell, a draw and an excellent presentation on Wood Toxicity called ‘Wood – Friend or Foe’.

The presentation on wood toxicity was given by AWA member Dr. Gene Nurse. Yep, that’s right, Doctor Nurse. Gene is a long time woodworker, a past president of the club and is now retired from the medical field.

Together with his nine year old granddaughter he put together a fabulous slideshow for us that included graphic anatomy shots and cartoon dancing dogs (mmmm… we’re still not sure who did what ). Using the anatomy shots Gene clearly explained irritants and sensitivity issues with working with wood.

Several points of note were how dust particles, because of their small size, can easily clog the smaller bronchi and bronchioles and the even smaller alveoli where the gas exchange of carbon dioxide and oxygen takes place. Also, the fact that not only do irritants enter the body through breathing but through our skin and eyes (yes, our eyes!) too.

Of course, what made this presentation not only entertaining and informative was the fact that Gene spoke from experience as both a woodworker and a doctor. So not only was he able to relate medical mumbo-jumbo to us on our terms he also focused on what cautions were specific to us as woodworkers. These were emphasized through personal stories and vivid analogies, like when speaking about working with spalted woods and cautioning us about the fungus he said, “Once inhaled it will grow inside of you. It will be like having athletes foot in your lungs.” This image certainly drove the point home!

Continue reading 'Wood Toxicity Talk At The AWA'

This month’s meeting of the Atlantic Woodworkers Association brought us back to Mill Supply for a tour of their new bandsaw blade manufacturing facility.

Mill Supply recently acquired the Hakansson Industries Eastern Canadian distributorship for making bandsaw blades and they were proud show us the new shop, the blade making process and the blades available.

Hakansson is a Swedish manufacturer of saw blades and is widely recognized as the most technically advanced bandsaw blade available. Mill Supply is now carrying on the Hakansson tradition and will be the largest bandsaw welding centre/supplier in Atlantic Canada.

We were given an in-depth overview of the blade making process, blade makeup, the different types of blades available, the types of machines used and several demonstrations of how the blades are made. Some members even ordered blades and watched them being made!

Here are some photos taken of the shop and manufacturing process:

Continue reading 'A Bandsaw Bonanza For The AWA'

This month’s get together of the Atlantic Woodworkers Association brought us back to our regular meeting place at the Home Depot for a special presentation on pen turning by our newly past chairman, Cecil Canam. In addition to other facets of woodworking Cecil is an avid woodturner and is quite passionate about turning pens. We certainly saw why tonight!

Cecil is also a member of the Nova Woodturners Guild. He turns bowls, Christmas ornaments, bottle stoppers and more. He says that very little scrap goes to waste around his shop!

The presentation started with an overview of safety considerations while turning with emphasis on wood toxicity and glue fumes. This was followed by a required tool list and an explanation of each tool’s use.

The process for turning a pen was clearly explained from choosing the wood and the pen kit style to the actual turning and finishing, and then finally putting all the pieces together, both literally and figuratively. This was done while turning pens so it was easy to see, relate to and understand each step.

Cecil turned several pens during his presentation including this Sierra style pen made out of Rosewood:

Continue reading 'Passionate Pen Turning At The AWA'

The Atlantic Woodworkers Association meeting last night took a bit of a twist. We were on the road with a visit to Second Source Power, a local alternative energy solutions provider.

Now, on the outset this may seem to be a strange visit for a woodworking club, but with many woodworkers working out of stand-alone shops and garages, as well as having our home heating concerns, the opportunity to find out more about other heating and power options was of great interest.

The 90 minute presentation was conducted by renewable energy consultant Brian Covert, who led us through all of the ‘Clean Green Energy’ products that they have available. Brian demonstrated his vast knowledge in this field by clearly explaining how each product worked and what application it would be best suited for. As well, he had answers to all of our questions. We all came away with a much better understanding of this often confusing, though positive, part of our future.

Second Source Power has alternative energy options available for commercial businesses, farmers and homeowners. They are a locally based company and they manufacture the world’s leading and most reliable 50kW wind turbine, the AOC 15/50, right here in Nova Scotia. Their products include solar and wind options, greywater recycling, geothermal, backup power and a whole lot more. As Brian said, “If you have a need, we have the solution!”

Here’s some photos of their display area:

Continue reading 'Alternative Power For Your Workshop'