Workshop News: Updated 02/26/2008    Please Note Date Change for May Workshop from the 17th to the 24th!

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Learn Fine Woodworking in My Shop -- in a small group or one on one
Registration now open for Spring 2008 Workshops -- See Descriptions Below

“Hands-on” workshops are great, but many people can't come up with the time or money to attend. Sometimes the facilities aren’t suited to the topic at hand, and I often have to jury-rig and ad-lib to make the whole thing work. Instead, why don't you join me and a handful of other students at my own shop for an in-depth, 7-1/2 hour long exploration of a fine woodworking topic. I'll show you precisely how I approach the selected skill: the tools, techniques, and thought processes. The session will be structured, following an outline of the day's topics, but include time to answer your questions, and opportunities to share knowledge among the attendees. Spend one day, then leave with your "tool-bag" loaded with information! One participant summed it up thus: “Very informative. Not only did we cover our given topic, but covered many more related techniques. It’s like 5 workshops in 1.”

The  group workshops are designed to present you with an in-depth and detailed introduction to the tools and techniques frequently encountered in the Northern European tradition of fine woodworking. The approach is refined, and personal, as embodied by the writings and work of my mentor James Krenov and myself. Each topic is covered during one full day. We begin at 8:30 AM, take a break at noon for lunch, then continue on from 1 PM to 5 PM. Your workshop fee includes lunch and a breakfast of coffee, tea, fruit, and hot scones between 8 and 8:30, to get us warmed up. The workshops are limited to six attendees and take place in my own shop. The format is strictly lecture, demonstration, and discussion --  no “hands-on”. Bring a notepad or a camera to record the goings on.

My shop is located in the beautifully pastoral mountain area of Valle Crucis, NC just outside of Boone. We are replete with charming Bed and Breakfast Inns, Hotels, and Fine Dining. Golfing, skiing, hiking, fishing and shopping abound.

Cost: $125

Registration: Please call or e-mail in advance to check on availability. Visa, MasterCard, and personal checks are accepted. Payment in full is required to register for each workshop and secure your place.

Refund Policy: Full refund minus $10 administrative fee if request is made 30 days in advance of the scheduled workshop. If notified less than 30 days in advance of the workshop there will be no refund unless your place is filled by another workshop participant.

Liability: You will be required to sign a liability waiver to attend the workshop.

I look forward to seeing you and sharing this wonderful tradition of fine woodworking!

One-on One Instruction:  New! Lower Cost.
I am happy to teach you one-on-one in my shop as our schedules permit. The advantages are customized offerings, hands-on work, and my undiluted attention. A typical 7-1/2 hour day involves 2-4 hours of lecture and demonstration with the remainder of the day hands-on work for the student, while I resume my own work (you are free to interrupt me as needed).   Cost is $150/day. Inquiries: info@davidfinck.com

  Spring Workshops 2008:

Saturday March 29th, 2008:   Workshop is Full -- please inquire about waiting list

Making and Mastering Wood Hand Planes

Romance and results?  Wood planes deliver both.  With performance rivaling that of the finest metal planes, at a fraction of the expense, wood planes deserve your serious consideration.   They are a lot of fun to make and well within the grasp of even a novice woodworker once you've seen how. You will simply be amazed by the precision and beautiful results a well-tuned wooden plane can achieve.

First we'll delve into sharpening and what makes any type of plane tick. Then I will demonstrate building a jack plane and we'll spend time getting to know it.  You'll learn to edge join boards seamlessly, flatten and true surfaces large and small and how to polish them to perfection.  I'll also cover squaring and trimming board ends, profiling edges, and proper use of the shooting board.  We'll finish up with a close look at cabinet scrapers, the often neglected, but indispensible sister tool of the plane.  The workshop is suitable for those at any skill level and is geared to woodworkers seeking exceptional tools and the ability to use them skillfully.

Topics:

Saturday April 19th, 2008

Exploring Bandsawn Veneers

Veneering is often though of as a cheap alternative to solid wood construction, and sadly, that's probably the truth for most manufactured furniture. But, there is another approach to veneering that is mindful of the design limitations of working with solid wood construction (we are mostly talking about wood movement here), while recognizing the need to economize precious resources without compromising quality in the least. 


With a little know-how and a well-tuned bandsaw you can saw your own veneers nearly 1/8" thick (that's about 4-5X thicker than commercial veneers -- the current standard is 1/40").  These veneers are thick enough to be worked like solid wood and nearly as durable.  They can be edge-joined and surfaced with handplanes and one never worries about adhesives bleeding through and ruining the finish.  Grain harmony is guaranteed by taking solid wood edge-gluings from the same plank the veneers come from, and those solid edge gluings are much preferable to veneered alternatives both in durability and shaping opportunities. The possibility of creating designs that aren't structurally feasible with solid woods, of matching veneers over surfaces large and small, and taking on advanced techniques like curved laminations, marquetry, and parquetry, while still making furniture of the highest quality, makes bandsaw veneering a very attractive technique to have under your belt.  This workshop will take you from tuning up your bandsaw to finishing the veneered surface and everything in between.

 

Topics:

 

New Date:  Saturday May 24th, 2008  (original date: Saturday May 17th)

Elements of Fine Cabinetry
 
We will explore many features and subtleties of fine-cabinetry as best exemplified by James Krenov.  We’ll start with design pointers, move to a method of doweling that results in highly reliable corner joints, then add the details: installing knife hinges, making wooden latches, shelf supports and handles, creating edge profiles, and methods of hanging the cabinet.  We’ll discuss options for back panels and doors including, frame and panel, veneered, glass, and solid wood.   Discover the details that really make the difference.

Topics:

 Endorsements--
All right, I'm blushing, but here's what some people have said in unsolicited letters:

"…Thank you for another excellent workshop. As usual the students left on a real high. Your patience and willingness to share together with your knowledge and talent make you a nearly unbeatable instructor…"
   Tim Pyles 
   Crafts Coordinator, Cedar Lakes Craft Center
   Ripley, WV

"…I feel deeply privileged to have had the opportunity to work with someone of the stature of David Finck. He is a great person, a talented artist, a skilled craftsman and an excellent teacher. I am still reeling from the amount that I learned in such a short time. I have been able to put many of these ideas to work for me in my own hobby shop and it is increasing my enjoyment of woodworking tremendously…"
   Workshop participant
   Peters Valley Craft Center
   Layton, NJ

Experience--
Here's what I bring to the bench as a woodworking instructor. In 1984 I began two years of intensive (six days a week, eight to ten hours a day) study at the College of the Redwoods Fine Woodworking Program under the direction of master craftsman James Krenov. I was schooled in the techniques of traditional furniture making as well as an effective method of designing. Since that time I have run my own studio designing and building furnishings, lighting, accessories and acoustic guitars. Browse the furniture and guitar pages to get an idea of what I do.

I've enjoyed sharing my experience with others since the start of my career. I've taught a variety of technique oriented workshops at craft centers, schools and guilds on both coasts, the mid-West, North and South for as little as four to as many as sixteen participants at a go.

General Offerings--
Here are some of the topics I have covered in the past at craft centers across the country -- call or e-mail me for additional information.

Wooden Plane Making:  2-5 days
Depending on the duration of the workshop, participants will make one or two wooden hand planes fitted with a high quality blade and capable of matching or outperforming any plane available. The fundamentals of plane use are also covered including: edge joining, squaring, trimming, profiling, flattening and smooth planing (producing a flawless hand planed surface). The workshop concludes with a look at cabinet scrapers - essential companions to planes. My book, Making and Mastering Wood Hand Planes, published by Sterling and released October 2000, is based on my experiences teaching this course over the last fourteen years.

Dovetailed Box:  2-5 days
Students learn the classic technique of hand cut dovetail joinery while producing a small box. The shorter class uses a simple sliding lid, the longer class also introduces the technique of "frame and panel" to provide a lid for the box. We cover the tuning and use of saws, chisels, knives, marking gauges and squares (even pencils) in order to optimize our efforts and produce visually pleasing and mechanically sound joinery. Discussion also includes dovetailing as it pertains to drawer work.

Curves:  2 days
An overview of creating and working with curves, from drafting to final shaping, presented in lecture and demonstration. Topics include: sawn curves, steam bending, bent lamination, template routing, and handling joinery with curved members.

Band Saw Veneering:  2-5 days
Veneering is a frugal way of extending precious materials as well as a means of extending one's design vocabulary, but it is hard to shake the notions of "cheap and shoddy" that often attend the word veneering. It's true, micro-thin commercial veneers often chip and crack, and working with them is not much fun either. Sawn veneers, one's you produce on your own band saw, are another thing entirely. Their thickness, nearly one-eighth of an inch, provides plenty of durability and working with these veneers is much like working with solid woods in terms of edge joining and surfacing. We'll cover wood selection and use, band saw tune-up, re-sawing veneers, edge joining, surfacing, edge-gluings, cores and pressing with clamps and vacuum. By the end, participants will have created a small surface suitable for an end table. The longer class also includes construction of the base.

Mortise and Tenon:  2 days
A variety of approaches will be taken to create mortise and tenon joints, both housed (blind) and exposed. Included are band saw, table saw, drill press, router and hand techniques. In the process each student will make a very useful and handsome pair of cabinetmaker's saw horses.

Elements of Fine Cabinetry:  3 Days
Through demonstrations and hands-on experience, we will explore many features and subtleties of fine cabinetry as exemplified by the work of James Krenov. We’ll start with design pointers, move to a method of doweling that results in highly reliable corner joints, then add the details: installing knife hinges, making wooden latches, shelf supports and handles, creating edge profiles and methods of hanging the cabinet. We’ll discuss options for doors and back panels, including frame and panel, veneered, glass and solid wood. Students can expect to leave with a partially completed cabinet and a solid understanding of the entire process.

For More Information, please write, e-mail, or call me. You can also fill out this online form and I will get back to you as soon as possible.

David Finck, Woodworker
161 Hickory Trail Banner Elk, NC 28604
phone: 828-963-6504
e-mail: info@davidfinck.com