| Ted Fink Of TJF Turnings Shelburne, Vermont |
Sizing up a massive oak burl
My interest in working with wood began very early in the workshop of my
grandfather. The wonderful mixture of smells of wood, glue, waxes and oil finishes
I found captivating. He and my father taught me the basics of fashioning pieces of
furniture from hardwoods taken from the forest on our land. As the years passed I
visited every woodworker I could find and always came away more knowledgeable
for the encounter.
In 1997, my wife pointed out that I had filled the house with furniture so I had to
find some other pastime. That gave me the opportunity to concentrate on the
aspect of wood working that I had always enjoyed the most, woodturning. That
year I took an intensive course with master turner, Dick Montague of Groton,
Vermont . He introduced me to the local Chapter of the American Association of
Woodturners in Vermont, namely the Woodchuck Turners of Northern Vermont.
Among these skilled turners my woodturning education steadily advanced.
My challenge in woodturning is to reveal to the utmost the natural beauty hidden in
each piece of wood, at the lathe. I do much work on my original lathe, a
Powermatic 45 purchased in 1980 but have recently acquired a heavier lathe for
turning large unbalanced pieces more safely. I use a 3rd lathe (NOVA 3000) that
is mobile for demonstrations I give around Vermont at various festivals and other
venues.
One of the unique aspects of woodturning is that we can utilize to best advantage
wood that has defects that all other woodworkers assiduously avoid. These
include bark inclusions, crotch wood, bizarre grain and unusual pigmentation.
From each tree we reap these precious scraps just before the firewood gatherers
arrive.
The great joy of woodturning is the capacity to create something so functional and
beautiful from a rough piece of wood so quickly. The effort has borne fruit by
garnering me a total of 9 awards in the first 4 years of Vermont Design Showcase
annual competition.
grandfather. The wonderful mixture of smells of wood, glue, waxes and oil finishes
I found captivating. He and my father taught me the basics of fashioning pieces of
furniture from hardwoods taken from the forest on our land. As the years passed I
visited every woodworker I could find and always came away more knowledgeable
for the encounter.
In 1997, my wife pointed out that I had filled the house with furniture so I had to
find some other pastime. That gave me the opportunity to concentrate on the
aspect of wood working that I had always enjoyed the most, woodturning. That
year I took an intensive course with master turner, Dick Montague of Groton,
Vermont . He introduced me to the local Chapter of the American Association of
Woodturners in Vermont, namely the Woodchuck Turners of Northern Vermont.
Among these skilled turners my woodturning education steadily advanced.
My challenge in woodturning is to reveal to the utmost the natural beauty hidden in
each piece of wood, at the lathe. I do much work on my original lathe, a
Powermatic 45 purchased in 1980 but have recently acquired a heavier lathe for
turning large unbalanced pieces more safely. I use a 3rd lathe (NOVA 3000) that
is mobile for demonstrations I give around Vermont at various festivals and other
venues.
One of the unique aspects of woodturning is that we can utilize to best advantage
wood that has defects that all other woodworkers assiduously avoid. These
include bark inclusions, crotch wood, bizarre grain and unusual pigmentation.
From each tree we reap these precious scraps just before the firewood gatherers
arrive.
The great joy of woodturning is the capacity to create something so functional and
beautiful from a rough piece of wood so quickly. The effort has borne fruit by
garnering me a total of 9 awards in the first 4 years of Vermont Design Showcase
annual competition.
Turning the inside of a large
ambrosia maple bowl.
ambrosia maple bowl.
Photo by Kate Fink