BAWA meeting January 19, 2025
Combined in person and Zoom meeting held at Foster City Library
New President Paul Krenitsky called the meeting to order.
He reminded us that BAWA annual dues are due. The membership remains the same as last year: $60. You can pay online or send a check payable to BAWA to Jon Kaplan. at 682 Georgia Ave., Palo Alto, 94306
Paul emailed a query to members asking their opinion on the BAWA website content.
Program Announcements – Max Goldstein
Max reinforced the request that members fill out the online questionnaire.
He needs a speaker for February, and will consider having a number of members present short talks during the meeting.
Annual picnic will be in September.
We will have a 2x4 challenge this year, so buy your 2x4 so it will have time to dry out.
Featured Speaker
Our speaker was Patrick Waters, a furniture maker for 50 years.
At art school he learned about all the different historical styles of woodworking then apprenticed with an Italian furniture maker in New York.
Patrick's influences include Mackintosh, Guimard, Frank Lloyd Wright, and Stickley.
His presentation talked about of Arts and crafts, Art Nuveau, pieces by various artists, including the Morris chair.
The table he showed at the meeting had a top covered in Black Limba veneer.
The table has almost no right angles and could be considered whimsical in its unusual shape.
The table top is not flat, but made of two curved pieces shaped like rolling hills.
Patrick draws his creations full scale on a drafting board before making a full size mock up.
He mentioned Hughes Hardwoods in Rancho Cordova as a source for wood. Hardwoods Inc. was another good source. They have locations in San Jose and San Francisco. Patrick uses Hide glue, which Tom Gaston says will not creep like aliphatic resin (Titebond or Elmer's Wood Glue) Hide glue has a long open time, can be disassembled, and excess glue can be scraped off and reused.
Patrick applies hide glue to both sides of a veneer, then scrapes off the outside layer of glue. This keeps the veneer from warping.
He talked about the bar stool he made which has domino joinery throughout.
The curved chair back is made from bending plywood covered in veneer.
John brought in a clipboard and cutting board he made.
Max Goldstein
Max brought in a Hanukkah Menorah he made. It has turned maple candle bases and turned padouk "flames".
It has a small drawer for storing the flames. He designed it using Fusion 360, a 3D design program.
Mayuresh
Mayuresh brought in a beautiful bowl he turned from cinnamon burl. It is finished with many coats of polymerized tung oil.
Eric
Eric brought in end grain coasters that looked like checkerboard patterns. One set of coasters was shaped like a map of San Francisco. He is planning to make a cutting board with stacked end grain wood.
Bruce Powell
Bruce brought in his latest tool purchase, which was a Bosch 12V cordless drill and a Bosch cordless random orbit sander complete with dust collector. He really likes them and says they are great for small projects
Llyod Worthington-Levy
Lloyd showed slides of the Phillip Morley chair he made of walnut and sapele. He bought the plans and templates. He recommended Bell Forest Products for the wood
Wood in Action
Frank Ramsay
Covered Wooden Bridges
Chapel Bridge
Covered wooden bridges, where the main beams are protected from the rain by a roof structure and full or partial or sides, were once very common
Bridges were large investments and by enclosing them their life could be greatly extended. Most of these bridges around today are over 100 years old.
Sixty five years ago I saw my first covered wooden bridge, Chapel Bridge, Lucerne, Switzerland
At the time I did not know any of the details as we travelled with maps but never guide books. (I am sure they were available but not on our budget)
It is still the greatest covered bridge I have ever seen.
Under the roof arches of the bridge hang over 150 oil paintings from the 17 century
It is the oldest wooden covered bridge in Europe, as well as the world's oldest surviving truss bridge. It serves as the city's symbol and as one of Switzerland's main tourist attractions.
In the middle of the bridge is an octagonal tower which is older than the bridge that has been used as a prison, torture chamber, and later a municipal archive as well as a local treasury It is now closed to the public but has a small souvenir shop.
The bridge itself was originally built in 1365 as part of Lucerne's fortifications. It linked the old town on the right bank of the Reuss to the new town on the left bank, securing the town from attack from the south (i.e. from the lake). The bridge was initially 890 ft long, although numerous shortenings over the years and river bank replenishments mean the bridge now totals only 672 ft. It is the oldest surviving truss bridge in the world, consisting of strutted and triangulated trusses of moderate span, supported on piled trestles; as such, it is probably an evolution of the strutted bridge.
Unfortunately when I went to back Lucerne in 1993 it had been very badly damaged by fire but has since reopened to the public.
Most of the US covered wooden bridges are back east.
There are a lot more old wooden bridges still in existence than I expected.
