David Conley
Well-known member
Society of American Period Furniture Makers
Ohio River Valley Chapter
2008 1st Spring Meeting
Ohio River Valley Chapter
2008 1st Spring Meeting
As mention in the previous post, we all had a great time. The Neeley’s are wonderful hosts, the food was great, and the shop accommodated everybody with ease. These meeting just keep getting better. One of my measures of success is the number of regulars and the distance they travel to get to the meeting. We also had the opportunity to a number of new members. The total attendance for Saturday session was 46 and the number dropped to the mid 30’s for Sunday session. We had attendees from seven states (IN, MI, WV, VA, KY, PA and OH). We also had an instructor and student from Rio Grande College attend as well as a couple of editors from Woodcraft Magazine.
A very special thanks to Brian, Kindra and the whole Neeley clan for being such wonderful hosts and opening up their shop to us, again!! They also took care of all the logistics including lunches, dinner and the hotel. Thanks to Brian’s parents David & Carola for helping out and making the meeting a success. Finally thanks to Brian’s Aunt Janice who made the wonder homemade pies.
As always, I would like to thank each presenter for stepping up and doing a great job!! In addition, we had a lot of lively discussions during the presentations. Again, a BIG THANK YOU to all of the presenters and to all those who added to the discussions.
For Show & Tell, we had some very nice and unique pieces including a small 6-sided table with inlays, miniature pie crust tilt-top table, several chairs, walnut table with maple leaf inlays, William & Mary gate leg table, Philadelphia low boy, card table, Pennsylvania Spice Box, and a couple of jigs.
The demonstrations started out with Bob Compton and Jim Crammond as they showed us how to make a Windsor chairs. The demonstration started out with a lecture on what makes a Windsor, a Windsor Chair. Next he talked about the construction of the various parts and why certain woods were used for specific components. Bob also talked about the benefits of using riving wood and then proceeded to demonstrated how to do it. However, his log did not cooperate. We then learned how to split an uncooperative log. Final solution was to use a chain saw to cut an inch deep slot for the wedges to start in. (Checkout the pictures). I always learn more when things go wrong. And our group is large enough that someone usually has an answer. I know I never would have thought about using a chain saw to start the wedges. But, it worked like a charm. Bob then finished riving the log, shaped a spindle and showed how to construction chair. David Wright was also in the audience and he added to the Windsor chair discussion.
The second demonstration was by Bob Mustain. Bob talked about a chair he found at an antique store. It was a Federal side chair made between 1790-1810, from somewhere between Baltimore and New York. He bought the chair because he really liked its lines. Also, the square construction was a real plus because it really simplified mortise & tenon joints. Bob started off his presentation with his investigation of the joints. He then sketch up the chair first in hand notes and then in full size drawings. He also mentioned that Phil Lowe’s DVD on how to measurement an original (chair) piece was a good reference to have. From the full size drawings, bob made his patterns. Then Bob pulled back part the fabric on the seat to show us how the seat cushion was constructed.
The third demonstration was a carved chair by Dick Kammerer. In this case, it was a Chippendale ball & claw chair. Dick started this chair with the plans from Ron Clarkson’s book Making Classic Chairs. Dick followed the plans but change the hairy paw foot to a ball & claw foot. For this presentation, he talked about making full size patterns, cutting out the pieces, the carving that was involve and then assembling the chair. The talk included the compound tenon joints on the side rails into the back legs and about the back splat joint with the crest rail and the shoe.
The last presentation was on period furniture chair joints by David Heyer. In his presentation he discussed how to take the full size plans, make your patterns, and then cut out the pieces. Once the pieces were cut out, He marked the mortise and tenon joints and hatched the waste sides. He also put arrows on the top of the front legs so that he would know which mortises were the angled ones and which were square. Then David demonstrated how he cuts the mortises using a mortising machine. Next, David talked about the side rail tenon into the rear leg. Then he demonstrated it by showing the tenoning jig with an angle wedge screwed to it and the tablesaw blade canted to get the double compound angle on the tenon.
I know that I keep sounding like a broken record, but I really am impressed with the accumulated knowledge and talent we have in our group. The quality and educational value of these demonstrations are on par with the best conferences out there. Our size allows us to get up close and personal with the presenters. It was truly another wonderful experience sharing knowledge and fellowship. And as Sam Yerardi who is one of our newest members, said about the atmosphere, “I felt like I had come home after being away for a long time....” To me, that says a lot about the Neeleys hospitality, the friendly nature of our members, and the presenters for doing such a wonderful job. Thanks everybody!!!
The next meeting is about a month away and is scheduled for the weekend of May 17& 18 at Wood Werks, in Columbus, OH. The agenda has been posted on the Forum as the Second Spring Meeting with our special guest Jeff Headley and Steve Hamilton for the Saturday presentation.
Thanks,
David Conley