Turning Club Question

Re: Turning Club Question

Joel Hunnicutt

>Mark, we've done a couple of things that have worked out pretty well. We have a list of turners that are mentors in certain aspects of turning (mine is segmented) that are listed in the newsletter and folks are encouraged to contact us to get together for one on one time. We also have "hands on" demos a couple of times a year where everyone that has a mini brings it and we have various stations to practice various techniques.

Re: Turning Club Question

Sean Troy

>With our club, we only have use of our meeting location one time a month. We encourage members, and especially newcomers to talk to the so called ,oldtimers, and get to know them.Many of our members will invite others to there shop for some lessons in turning and at the very least, talk after our meetings to answer any questions.Our membership is up around 260, so there is always someone willing to help out another turner. Sounds like you need to get others to help you out with all the duties in your club. A quick way to get burnt out is doing it all by yourself. Congrats on the meeting location and our best wishes are with you. If your ever find your way out here in Arizona, we meet the third saturday of each month. Times and locations are on our web site. Take care, Sean

Re: Turning Club Question

Richard Allen

>Hi Mark

The club I belong to has two "skills enhancement" days a month. We are lucky that the school we meet at has a shop with many lathes for use to use.

We require membership in the AAW to use the equipment and charge $5 a day to defray the cost of upkeep. Two or three of our most outgoing members run this program and it is very successful. We have a membership of over 200 so there are a lot of resources to draw on.

We also have a mentoring program which is often very successful.

Once a year we have a picnic instead of a meeting where members bring mini lathes and a food dish. There will be as many as 15 lathes running at the picnic.

There are two instructional resources in the area. One is run by the county's adult education department which features one of the clubs excellent turners as the teacher. The other is courses given at the local Woodcraft.

All of these opportunities are heavily used and are blessed by the hard work of many talented individuals along with the luck of having the physical resources which we have available to us.

Thanks

Re: Turning Club Question

Bill Grumbine, Kutztown PA

>Hi Mark

We have something of the sort, at least to my way of thinking. If I am wrong, someone from our club (like that Dinyar guy) will be sure to correct me! Every other meeting we have (had) been meeting in the shops of various members. A demo of some sort with some hands on by those who wish to try is always encouraged. I put had in parentheses because recently someone in the club has complained about this practice!

Apparently this person, whoever it is, does not think we are encouraging enough of the membership to come out to these meetings. We state very clearly that they are officer meetings for the purpose of discussing the business that will be presented at the next general meeting, but that the meetings are open to anyone who wants to come, and that there will be show and tell and a demo. We also email directions to whichever shop to everyone in the club.

Anyway, this is one of our best ways to get people turning and to get them moving on. They get to try out different lathes, and see how others have the shop set up. We don't have a mentor program per se, as all of the more advanced turners are younger people with jobs and children at home i.e. lots of demands on time. I do a lot of free stuff on the web and in my shop, and offer written help over the web, but I am one of those lucre loving people who charge for the pleasure of my company. Maybe when I get old I will be able to afford to give it away. ;-)

Bill

Re: Turning Club Question

MP Wall

>Chicago Woodturners has mentoring before each meeting if there is interest, they also do mentoring on the following Sat after the meeting if there is interest. We also have a list of mentors and instructors who will teach for little to fairly high fees based on the instructor and the nature of the lesson.

MP Wall

Re: Turning Club Question

Charles Bjorgen

>I just completed a two year stint as a board member of the Minnesota Woodturners Association. At the start of my term I volunteered to coordinate what we call small group hands-on sessions where a member would agree to host a certain number of turners -- dependent on size of shop -- to gather and help new turners increase their turning skills. Sometimes the host would teach a specific kind of turning, other times it might be a free for all where all kinds of turning would be done. Last October we had a bowl turning session. In November, two members showed others how they make certain Christmas ornaments. Just last Saturday, we had a big session in a local high school woodshop where 26 members showed up, nearly half of whom were there to help new turners. They have all been highly successsful.

We've also had discussions about a mentoring program which I would like to see get off the ground. Our thoughts are to keep a database of members who would like to get together with an experienced turner for one-on-one help. Our club topped out at about 195 members last year so there is no shortage of new turners looking for help.

Anyone attempting to coordinate any such program needs to be aggressive, however. One needs to be able to pin down potential hosts, make certain the announcements of sessions is timely and available to as many members as possible. I would announce sessions via email and at our monthly club meetings. There was also the additional problem of hauling around our club mini lathes for these sessions. Natually, a permanent location would be ideal. We just don't have that yet.

Re: Turning Club Question

Keith Tompkins

>Hi Mark, I belong to two clubs, one a turning club and one is a woodworking association.

At our woodturning meetings, we have a beginner's session that starts one hour before the regular meeting.

I am involved in the board of directors of the woodworking association, one of the largest in the US. There is a TREMENDOUS amount of talent in both of these groups. We have a Showcase each March, with an instant gallery and classroom rotations with well-known woodworkers , similar to AAW Symposiums.

I am attempting to make better use of the available talent.....I want to set up a certification program, where woodworkers of all levels can study with an expert in their field. They, in turn become certified and become mentors for the next generation. This is a not-for-profit educational organization, and I think the certification program will fit right in.

Possibly, the certification process would work in your club......Keith

Re: Turning Club Question - thanks

Mark Kauder, Phenix City, AL

>Thanks to those of you who responded.

You gave me some good ideas, not the least of which is charging the folks that want to come to the mentoring.

Mark