There seems to be some confusion about the day/date of the chainsaw event.  It is confirmed that it is on on Wednesday, 12th October at Oriel House Hotel, Ballincollig,

Seventeen members of the Cork Chapter of the Guild travelled to Glenn Lucas’s Woodturning Study Centre in Bagenalstown, Co. Carlow recently for a day of demonstrations.

To use the old phrase that was usually used in reports of events in the provincial papers many years ago, “a good time was had by all”.

From the outset Glenn spared nothing and his top-class teaching method, his willingness to share his knowledge and experience and his humorous asides quickly put us all at our ease.

For the morning session Glenn started with some spindle turning and the boring of a lamp.  This was followed fairly closely by the subject of his 4^th D.V.D., ‘Traditional Irish Platter’ from his ‘Mastering Woodturning’ series but with the added advantage that we, his audience, could ask questions and even have a sequence of the procedure repeated.

Immediately after a delicious lunch prepared by Glenn’s wife, Cornelia, ably assisted by his children Isabelle and Matthew, Glenn gave a demonstration of cutting up a tree with the chainsaw.

Back inside the workshop our host then went through the turning of a bowl.  Throughout all of the topics covered the choice of the tools being used, the best way to hold them and use them, the sharpening of them and the care of them was dealt with in detail. 

I am certain that nobody, even the most experienced turner among us, left that workshop on the day without having learned something.  One of the senior members of the Chapter was heard to say that in all the years he has been attending workshops that day was the best he had ever experienced.

Thank you Glenn, Cornelia and family for your wonderful hospitality - I must mention the fresh scones and tea/coffee on arrival – your generosity in imparting the great knowledge you have acquired and your friendship.

Thank you too to the 37^th Cork Scout Group (Togher) for the use of the mini-bus.  It added greatly to the day and the banter and fun between all of us made the journey seem quite short and certainly enjoyable.  Thanks too to our Hon. Secretary, Mick Bouchier, who did all the organising.

The entire group from Cork, with Glenn Lucas.

The course on the care, maintenance (including sharpening) and use of the chainsaw is scheduled for  Wednesday, the 12th October at Oriel House Hotel, Ballincollig at 7.00 p.m.  Please let Mick Bouchier know if you are attending.  Mick's contact details are 086 852 0542 or email him at mick.bouchier@gmail.com.

There seems to be a war being raged on Eucalyptus trees in the Cork Area. I now have three separate offers of freshly cut (green) eucalyptus. One is between Half-Way and Crossbarry, another is near Crossbarry and the third is in Carrigaline. Any woodturners who wish to get some can give me a call and I'll put them in touch with the kind people who have offered the wood.
Some people don't like eucalyptus much for turning but I have used it and liked the results. The most interesting aspect of it is that even when finished the turned item will most likely move a lot and one can end up with interesting shapes.

Members and friends might like to read this interview with our own Tony Farraell from The Irish Examiner, Thursday 4th August 2016.

All the members of the Cork Chapter of the Irish Woodturners Guild extent our sympathy to our fellow member, Stephen Pearson, and all his family, on the death of his mother. DETTA PEARSON on August 3, 2016,

Reception Prayers on Saturday at 9.30am in St Michael's Church, Blackrock, followed by Requiem Mass at 10am. Funeral afterwards to St Finbarr's Cemetery. 

For the July workshop we were back to Kieran Higgins’ workshop in Skibbereen. When one considers that it is about 125 km. from Cork City, where many of our members are based - with many coming from even farther away in East Cork – an attendance of over 20 members was quite satisfactory.

For his demonstrations Kieran likes to try something new that he mightn’t have tried before. His philosophy is that while we, the audience, are learning he might as well be learning too. That is a brave approach but with Kieran’s skill, experience and overall expertise it is an approach that he can get away with; and he did.

The partly turned urn with the lathe-steady in place.

His project was a Grecian-style urn shape that would sit on its side. He started with a large piece of elm that, as he said himself, was a “bit dozy” but which je had turned to a round before we arrived. He very quickly turned the outside shape and then he enthralled us with the gear and equipment he used to hollow and finish it. He first introduced a large lathe steady that he had made up by an engineering friend of his. He began hollowing with a forstner bit on an extended morse-taper shank that he drilled to very near the bottom of the interior. Then he introduced a Hamlet ‘Big Brother’ but after a while decided that that was too hard on his shoulder and arm. It was then he introduced an articulated arm that, again, his friend had made up. This piece of apparatus is very like the one that Simon Hope is making and selling but was much bigger and stronger. Why wouldn’t it be when one considers that most of Kieran’s work is the production of quite large pieces? This made short work of the hollowing with quite large shavings being produced. 

At this stage Kieran then introduced a laser attachment and for most of us who had heard about them but had never seen one before this was quite amazing. Not only did it show where the cutter was inside the vessel but also it was useful too in indicating the thickness of the wall.

Kieran, with all the equipment in use.

Adjusting the cutter on the Big Brother gave a finer cut and when Kieran eventually parted off the piece he had quite a good finish on the inside. Time didn’t permit him to do it but he plans to make a “trumpet” shape for the top from contrasting wood and this should finish off nicely what is already an attractive and skilfully made piece.

The almost-finished urn

Our competition had a very poor entry. Hugh Garrett made the only off-centre barrel lamp of the kind that Charley McCarthy demonstrated in June and that got first prize. Charley himself entered an off-centre item in the shape of a figurine and that was awarded second prize.

Hugh Garrett (right) with his winning lamp.  Chapter Chairman, John Ahern, on the left.

Our annual exhibition is on again this year in the James O’Neill building in Kinsale from the 8th to the 24th August. Members are urged to confirm that they will have stuff on display and to volunteer to attend and invigilate at the exhibition for a day or for part of a day. This is our one big chance to show off our pieces and by so doing to promote the Chapter and the art of woodturning.