Traveling Academy and WW'ing Shows

wood2turn · Post by **wood2turn** » Sat Apr 28, 2007 9:08 pm

We have a woodworking show in the Seattle area this weekend. Actually a 3+ hr. drive for me...and typically, like the traveling academies sponsored by SS the classes they provided were priced high enough that many of us on fixed incomes (my own due to disability) that we could not afford to attend. Alas...without a woodworker's club in my area and no other means I'll have to continue to depend upon this and other terrific forums to pick up tips and techniques.
So to those of you with vast amounts of experience THANK YOU and PLEASE continue your posts!

a1gutterman · Post by **a1gutterman** » Sat Apr 28, 2007 10:27 pm

wood2turn,

I do not know about classes offered by others than SS that you may have checked out, but as a recent "student", IMHO the SS Traveling Academy classes are well worth every penny they charge. I think that they are under-priced and on top of that, if you register early they are half price. Another additional benefit is you can bring your spouse along for free regardless if you paid the full price or one of the reduced prices. One other benefit is the reduced prices on SS accesories. IMHO they cannot be beat!!

Anyone else care to comment?

wood2turn · Post by **wood2turn** » Sun Apr 29, 2007 4:20 pm

Thank you for your reply Tim. I'm sure you have gotten a great deal of information from the traveling acdemies, as I'm sure I would learn something new too. But my budget being what it is maybe I should just give up. I can only allow myself 1 tank of gas per summer for my boat (that's about 6 trips), and I cannot even hope to purchase any wood for projects. All of the projects to date I've done from broken pallet wood or trees that nobody else wanted because they had too many knots. At least it will be this way until I get back to work (hopefully next yr.).

Again, thank you for your reply,
Wood2turn

a1gutterman · Post by **a1gutterman** » Sun Apr 29, 2007 5:35 pm

wood2turn,

I am sorry to hear of your current financial situation. I misunderstood you and thought that you thought the classes were overpriced. My apologies. If you ever DO have the opportunity to attend one of the SS Travelling Academies, I highly recommend them. Rick Davis is an excellent instructor. You indicate that you may be working next year: What will you be doing?

woodburner · Post by **woodburner** » Mon May 14, 2007 2:16 pm

Hi Wood2turn,

I am not sure how much you can get around, but I thought I'd let you know there are several woodworking and woodturning clubs in your area of WA. A club called Northwest Washington Woodturners meets in Mount Vernon at the Hillcrest Lodge, 1717 South 13th Street. They get together for meetings every third Thursday of the month at 6:30 pm. Most of these clubs encourage guests who are interested in woodturning to join in.
Their website is:
northwestwashingtonwoodturners.org
Their contact person is:
Julian Lee, Phone # (360) 299-2900
You can contact them to find out more information.
I know that most woodturning clubs like these (I'm a member of a California club) have members that will be glad to help you get started the correct way. And most members can let you know their sources for getting free wood for turning.
Having been in your neck of the woods more than a few times, I know there are great sources of beautiful wood to be found for free. When I visit my relatives in Port Angeles, I can't believe the beautiful wood that they're burning in the fireplace. I always go through the stack and bring home a bunch of it. I have found curly woods and burls that will cost quite a bit if purchased here in California.
So don't give up yet. There are several resources you can seek out for help. Hope this info helps you out.

wood2turn · Post by **wood2turn** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 11:24 pm

Thanks for your replies and wishes everyone! ...They appear to have worked at least some as I'm back to work (part time) again.
Woodburner...I did call and talk to julian about their club and he did invite me to attend 1 of their meetings. I also found a guy in another town about 20 mi. away that would be glad to give me some pointers.
I've started making planter from old fence boards and my wife has been selling them at work. Only made $200 so far but hey the wood was free and they worked.

Thanks again,
wood2turn

woodburner · Post by **woodburner** » Fri Aug 31, 2007 12:34 pm

Hi Wodd2Turn,

Just catching up and seeing if you were able to attend one of the local woodturning meetings in your area. I hope you can, as I am sure you will find it is worth the while to join one of these fine woodturning clubs.
I'm also glad to hear that you found someone who can help you out with some pointers. I have found in the woodworking community that there is always someone who will be glad to lend a hand.

Please let me know how things are going.

FrankEast · Post by **FrankEast** » Sat Sep 01, 2007 5:48 am

I attended one in Newark DE which was great in 2005. Can anyone tell if the Trav Acad is still held on the east coast? I'm of the imp. that the only TA instructor left is Rick Davis, assigned to West coast of US? Please let me know and thanks.

charlese · Post by **charlese** » Sat Sep 01, 2007 10:28 pm

FrankEast wrote:"... I'm of the imp. that the only TA instructor left is Rick Davis, assigned to West coast of US? Please let me know and thanks.

You have the correct information on the Traveling Academies. Only Western U.S. is operating with Rick Davis.