Tool Cabinet Presentation at the Virtual Wood Show
Last weekend I had the pleasure of speaking at the Virtual Wood Show. This is an online version of the Wood Shows that are traditionally held in Toronto, Hamilton, and Woodstock, Ontario, Canada. In the past, I've enjoyed attending these shows in person. In fact, I made a video of the last Toronto Wood Show to give viewers around the world a taste of what a Wood Show is like.
This year though, due to COVID restrictions, the show was virtual. That meant a very different experience than attending in person but it also opened up some opportunities. The key drawback for me as an attendee, was that there weren't any of the major tool companies to talk to at their booths to understand what's new in the industry. On the up side, because the event was online, anyone could attend, regardless of where they live.
My presentation at the Virtual Wood Show was about the woodworking tool cabinet that is the backdrop in many of our videos. I did one presentation on Saturday and one on Sunday. Both sessions had over 50 attendees and I was surprised at the global reach of the attendees. There were people from as far away as Scotland and California to people who live near me in Lindsay and Peterborough. I was also happy to have my friend Andy join online from my own town and a few others from the Durham Region as well.
I shared with the audience how I designed and built this tool cabinet. I built my first tool cabinet in 1999 as a prototype that used pegboard in the back so I could easily adjust the tools when I acquired more. 15 years later, I decided to build the permanent version but I realized that I will still be changing my tools in the future. I designed a unique way to make tool holders that I can adjust them over time. You can check out the design and build videos in our Woodworking Tool Cabinet playlist.
I attended several workshop sessions over the weekend. Vic Tesolin and Steve Der-Garbedian presented a series of sessions about making curved wood. They covered bent lamination, steam bending, and how to build a steam bending box. I also learned that Steve has just published a book about veneering - a craft he really enjoys. Check out Steve's new book, Veneering Essentials.
I also watched Ken Rude turn a bowl. Woodturning is a newer skill for me and one I thoroughly enjoy. You'll see woodturning in some upcoming videos I'm making this year. Ken gave some great instruction on how to turn a bowl and get the chisels working effectively. You can learn more about Ken on his website Branches to Bowls.
Rob Cosman is a wood show favourite, and he showed demonstrations on a number of hand tool skills. If you've never seen how to effectively sharpen a hand plane, Rob is the expert to learn from. Here's one of his recent videos on sharpening.
Marty is a furniture designer-maker who also teaches spray finishing for Fuji Spray. I learned a lot in the 60 minute session and I now have greater confidence in how to spray complex pieces with my Fuji Spray Mini-Mite 3 HVLP sprayer. If you're interested in learning about spray finishing, check out https://fujispray.com/resources/workshops/
I enjoyed the Wood Show both as an attendee and a presenter. A whole weekend dedicated to all things woodworking is my kind of weekend! If you haven't experienced a woodworking show, in person or virtual, I highly recommend it. You will get inspired and add to your woodworking knowledge.