If you missed May's meeting, no worries, here's a reprieve.  Master turner Louis Boucher screened an hour long introduction to lathe work .  It was aimed at folks who are contemplating getting a lathe or those who have neglected lathes sitting in dusty corners of their shops.  In the video he covered topics like essential needs in specifications and accessories; explained how and when the different turning tools are used; and demonstrated in real time turning a mallet and bowl from scratch.  And then he donated the mallet and bowl for a draw to the club.  Here is a shorter introduction -- only 12 minutes -- to woodturning by M. Boucher, given at Lee Valley three years earlier.  If he has whetted an appetite for learning more about turning, consult the list of Lee Valley presentations to see when he is speaking next.  Un gros merci to M. Boucher for his informative presentation, a highlight of this year's meetings!

Looking forward to another chat with your co-members of the Ottawa Woodworkers Association?  Well, it's coming up on Tuesday the 6th of April 2021.  Look for an invitation in your email to the 7:00 PM Zoom get-together. We can talk about anything related to woodworking, naturally, but for this month Jocelyn Plourde suggested a theme, namely,  Help!  Strange goings on visited his bandsaw this week, and he would like to get to the bottom of it; what caused the weird behaviour?  Those of us with extensive bandsaw experience are encouraged to attend the meeting, so as to help Jocelyn restore sensibility to his machine.  And if anyone else seeks answers to problems of any sort in the woodshop, please bring your concerns to the fore.  As usual our meeting will proceed following a format free-of-structure, so as soon as one conversation dies down, chime in with your concern.  No need to register beforehand, and even if you think of an issue at the meeting itself, at the last minute, spit

March 2, 2021:  A new permanent page is being developed to store member-created files and to make them available for download.  Often the file will be a slide show at a past meeting, but there is no restriction on the types of files stored there as long as they're legal.  Access to this page is by clicking the "FILES" tab along the top edge of this page. March 3: Link to YouTube video on how to make perfect splines or keys added.

Alright.  There's no way to spin it.  We do not have a feature presenter for our March 2, 2021, first Tuesday of the month, meeting.  Still, some of us are having birthdays in March, so that's something. We will do again what we did last month, execute a move first put forth by Mark Allen when he was Program Director, namely, we turn the meeting over to us, the members.  So, what do you have to Show-and-Tell us?  Are there Shop Tips you would like to share?  What about Jigs , are there some that work really well for you?  Maybe there's a recent Shop Improvement to crow about?  To take a page from Fine Woodworking, what about Methods of Work ?  And one more: How do I ... [fill in the blank]?  To explain, every meeting has one or more of us who have solved the very problem that faces you now.  Ask your question at the meeting, and just pray you don't get too many conflicting answers.  Look, there must be a million things you do or wonder that merit sharing.  Bring t

Your Best Woodshop Tips We want to hear your best shop tips.  The tips can be about anything, whether it's about working wood or storing rags; fine furniture or machine stands; hand tools or power tools; whatever.  If it's something that you do in your woodshop that might benefit others to learn, let's hear it.  You can set up a live demonstration, prepare slides, or make a video, doesn't matter, we're up for it.  You can even just talk about your tip if that's what you want to do.  By the way, let George know if you would like to practice with your set-up, slides, or video beforehand.  Email georgef@uottawa.ca  Prepare several tips.  We will start with everyone's best tip, and then have a second round, and maybe a third until we either run out of tips or run out of time.  Come prepared because Jocelyn will be calling out names.  We will also hold a Show-and-Tell segment and a Question-and-Answer portion in the meeting.  Look for the invitation to the Zoom

The OWA was invited to join a developing umbrella group called WoodShows.com.  They promise access to virtual woodworking shows from Tuesday afternoons to Thursday nights, and are offering us the ability to hold our own meetings as before, but using their platform.  It seem we can attend other groups' meetings as well. At this point it is a little cloudy on exactly how to use their platform.  Their platform is not Zoom, but similar enough so that the transition will be painless.  Annoying?  Sure.  Painful?  Maybe not. Some things we do know: They have given us 60 tickets, enough for all the OWA members we have this year and had last year.  Don Duchesne will send you an email that contains a link, maybe with instructions to activate your ticket.  It will be personalized in the sense that it, along with your email address, will give you access to their offerings.  To get started, you will have to register with them, WoodShows.com.  Through January I (George) will play around with