SPLINTERS

Tennessee Valley Woodworkers

Vol. 15/ Issue 7 July 2000 Editor: Tom Gillard

Meeting Notice:

The next meeting of the TN Valley Woodworkers

Will be held June 20, 2000 at 7:00 p.m. in the

Duck River Electric Building, Decherd, TN

All interested woodworkers are invited!

Juniperus virginiana

Another medium-sized "evergreen" tree, this juniper grows to 30 to 50 feet and 1 to 2 feet in diameter. In contrast to the flattened branchlets of the Northern White-Cedar, scales on mature Red-Cedars cover the rounded branchlets on 4 sides such that the stems appear square. Also unlike other similar trees in Ohio, the small fruit of the Red-Cedar is somewhat fleshy, making it look more like a berry than a cone. As they develop at first, these fruits are green. As they mature they turn blue and then are covered with a gray, waxy material. Similar to the Northern White-Cedar, the thin, light reddish-brown bark of this tree sheds in long, narrow, shredded strips. This tree prefers moist to swampy soils, but does well on poor, dry soil. It prefers limestone soils such as found in western Ohio. Similar to the Northern White-Cedar, the durability of the wood of this tree makes it useful as fence posts. Also the wood is used in making such things as moth-resistant chests, pencils and some furniture. One or two other junipers, which generally are northern trees, may occur in northern Ohio.

All coatings are designed to dry at certain rates for specific reasons. Stains must be wiped off consistently, sealers must soak into wood and allow trapped air to escape, topcoats must have a smooth glassed out look.

On a hot, dry day or night, coatings dry too fast. Hot ambient air (mid-80+ degrees) causes the solvents in your coatings to evaporate faster than normal. Stains won't wipe properly and clear coats dry on the surface, seal off air bubbles from escaping, and don't allow coatings to flow out from the wet edge.

Hot, humid air is even worse--the air is filled with moisture, not allowing space for the evaporating solvents. This causes the coatings to dry slower, yet still skin over quickly. In addition, lacquers will absorb the moisture in the air, causing the nitro cellulose to turn white (blushing).

In most cases, adding a retarder solvent can correct these problems. Adding retarder or a slowly-evaporating solvent will cause the coating to dry at its normal rate. This will give you back that wet edge

and keep the quality look you want, and also help to prevent blushing in lacquers. If a film has blushed, apply another coat of adjusted lacquer. It will re-dissolve the blushed white film back to clear.

Always keep a stock of various retarders on hand. They are easy to use and great for quick adjustments.

Remember: Different types of coatings require different types of retarders. Check the literature or ask your sales representative for proper instructions.

Remember: Adding retarders to coatings will keep films a little softer than normal. Let things dry an hour or two longer before re-coating, sanding, or stacking. Always test a few pieces before going to the next step.

A CONCLUDING NOTE ON THE TVWW PICNIC

By Ruth & Maurice Ryan

There were a total of 74 members and their guests who attended the annual picnic on June 24^th. From all indications, everyone truly enjoyed the outing, the games, the exhibit from Benny’s Woodworks & Tools, the prizes, the socializing and especially all the delicious food contributed by the supper cooks associated with the club. Many thanks go to everyone who donated the prizes, provided extra tables, assisted with the setup, serving and clean-up and who made this picnic a SUCCESS.

On behalf of the club I would like to thank Maurice and Ruth for making this years picnic a huge success. Thank you.

TN Valley Minutes for June

Announcements: Maurice Ryan announced that the annual picnic would be held on Saturday June 24, 2000. The location is to be near the Duck River Electric building. The club is to furnish ham, chicken and the drinks. Everyone is encouraged to come and bring a covered dish. Bennies of Shelbyville will be there to display and sell tools. Maurice indicated that several door prizes are to be given away and consist of: Bowl and box, scroll work, glue package, a scroll saw, books about wood turning, tapes on wood turning and tapes on wood finishing.

Tom Cowan announced that Ted Baldwin was ill and asked that the club sign a card and send to him.

Tom announced upcoming events that include the Coffee County fair and a fall symposium.

Doyle McConnell is the chairman of the fair activities and Bob Leonard will be the chairman of the symposium event.

Doyle McConnell will present beginners wood turning class and a sign up sheet was passed around for persons interested in participating.

A wood turning symposium will be held at Arrowmont School in Gatlinburg, TN August 25-27, 2000.

Tom Cowan announced that Phil Bishop will make the presentation in July on finishing wood.

Jim Roy announced that a deceased wood worker’s widow, Willa Finger has wood for sale consisting of walnut, popular, cherry, and some tools. Phone : 455-3181.

Jim Van Cleave, Ross Roepke and Jim Roy made window grills for the senior citizens center in Tullahoma.

Manual Brown-Wooden bowl with inserts of different wood which made the bowl very unique.

Ross Roepke demonstrated how to mark sandpaper in order to always keep the marking intact.

Doyle McConnell-vase from popular, a bowl from popular and a bowl from mimosa.

The program was presented by Tom Cowan on the practical approach to furniture design with applications to designing other things made of wood.

The program for the July 18 General Meeting will be on finishing techniques by Phil Bishop. Phil is a professional woodworker from Franklin County Tennessee. In addition to his general woodworking and furniture building, Phil is an expert in restoring and reproduction of old and antique furniture and possesses skills ranging from intricate carving to just about anything else you can imagine -- including matching color and texture of old finishes. Phil plans to bring to the program some of the techniques he has just learned at a recent class on finishing.