Our latest Training day was on Thursday 26th September 2024, it was organized by our Training co-ordinator Nick Simpson who was also part of the Training team.
There were 5 pairings for this Training session, on Lathe 1 we had Alan Reedie being tutored by Alec Mutch, on Lathe 2 we had Inga Ballantyne being tutored by Nick Simpson, on Lathe 3 we had Judy MacDonald being tutored by John Ruickbie, on Lathe 4 we had Tom Todd being tutored by David Hobson and last but certainly not least on Lathe 5 we had Matilda Rattray being tutored by Daniel Stewart.
Our safety observer for this session was Keith Hodgson and we had one visitor who was also named Keith but I’m sorry to say I can’t remember his last name, suffice to know he hailed from Devon and was up here visiting relatives, he told me he really enjoyed the session and that he was part of a club in Devon.
Here are a few pictures of all the proceedings.
On Lathe 1, Alan Reedie was my pupil for this session, he had a Lathe but has never used it, he is also a member of the Dingwall Men’s Shed where he has access to a Lathe for practicing, the pictures above show Alan working on various stages of a shallow Elm bowl, this was his first session with me and also on a Lathe, he has arranged with Nick to have his 2nd session 2 weeks from now. The picture bottom right shows Alan with his finished bowl.
On Lathe 2, was Inga Ballantyne being tutored by Nick Simpson, this was Inga’s 3rd lesson and she was progressing really well, Nick had her working the bevel on the gouge just to get used to using the bevel to produce the best cuts. She was not booked to be on the Teaching schedule for this session but just turned up, fortunately for Inga there was a vacant Lathe and Nick agreed to be her tutor for the session. She didn’t produce an actual object at this session, it was more about handling the tools in the correct manor.
On Lathe 3 was Judy MacDonald being tutored by John Ruickbie, this was Judy’s 3rd session and according to John she was making really good progress, they were working on a piece of Sycamore to produce a small bowl. Again according to John she had done all of the turning, sanding and finishing with only verbal guidance from John, her next step will be to progress on to spindle work which can be a little more challenging.
On Lathe 4 was Tom Todd being tutored by David Hobson, this was Tom’s 1st session on the Training class, they were to make a small bowl, the wood we think was American Tulipwood, highly distinctive with the colours in the wood. David took him through the whole process step by step until we can see the finished product in the picture bottom right.
On Lathe 5 was Matilda Rattray being tutored by Daniel Stewart, this was Matilda’s 3rd session and she too was making very good headway, they were working on a piece of Sycamore making a small bowl. The pictures show Daniel giving Matilda some guidance in both the cutting and the finishing. Their almost finished bowl can be seen only requiring the final sealing and polishing,(bottom right).
Top picture, a general view of the inside of our work room, all the turners and pupils behind their safety screens with Keith Hodgson our safety observer for this session in the picture. Bottom picture, to the right we have Keith Hodgson taking a few photo’s during the session, to the left, a visiting observer whose name is also Keith, unfortunately I can’t recall his last name, suffice to say he does some turning, comes from Devon and was in Ullapool visiting relatives. We are always very happy to accommodate visitors where ever they hail from.
That ended the Training session for this week, the next Training session will be on the 10th October.