Wilton Winterwonder Bash

[woodbloke]

We had our winter bash at Wilton today and a few stalwarts turned up for some series woody discussion:

Waka clearly doesn't believe how big Pete's new plane is;

so that the dining room table was soon groaning...and it t'were'nt food:

after much nattering we went out to the shop, here's Waka and Chisel:

and Paul Chapman with one of Waka's S&S planes:

and in case your eyes are deceiving you there's a Holtey here and some S&S infills:

Here's Pete and Heath Robinson deep in conversation over the new router...I have to say I was impressed with it Simon, nice one :wink:

and then it was in for a spot of lunch:

and then out to the shop again where Paul demonstrated his newly acquired Domino and Martin wanted to me to take a sneaky shot of the accuracy that can be achieved :lol: :lol: :

Martin and Paul, many thanks for the useful info on cameras and lighting...need to sort that out tomorrow. Paul (Chisel), many thanks for the 'magic mushrooms' and vino. Big thanks to Pam Newton for the yummy puds. Thanks also Waka for my new bit of AO. A really great day which hopefully we'll be able to repeat later next year - Rob

 

[Waka]

Rob

Thank you very much for a super day, its always good to meet old members for the first time, we can certainly learn so much from each other, I certainly do.

I have to say I was really impressed with the Draper router, who said it wasn't very good?

I have to say I was impressed with MR HANDTOOL demonstration of the Festool Domino, move over Steve Maskery you have competition.

I have to say from reading previous threads I was under the impression that Paul Chapman's only power tool was the Festool Domino, alas this is not the case, I think we counted a total of 10 when he reeled these off. I think a visit to his shop is called for.

All in all a great day, great lunch and great company, roll on the next get together.

 

[paulm]

Great day out

Fantastic opportunity to mix with a bunch of like minded guys, try out a fantastic selection of toys, sorry, tools :lol: , from the very top end stuff through to the handmade (also top end !), and tips and advice on all sorts.

Thanks to Rob and Alyson for putting up with us all, to Pete's wife Pam who we hope is going to be going into the mail order business for lime cheesecake and pavlovas :lol: , and to all the guys for bringing along so many interesting things to have a look at on the day, and for being such good company.

Had a great time ccasion5:

Cheers, Paul

 

[mahking51]

Great Day Out!
Thanks so much Rob & Allison for putting on a lovely day and super nosh, much enjoyed. Also Mrs Newt who can always get a living doing puds....
There were some good laughs had by all and I enjoyed meeting members previously unknown.
Loved the Draper router, really good value tool and very versatile.
Enjoyed having a go with the Festool very much and hope soon to start a whip round so that Mr Chapman can have more than three single biscuity thingies to fuel his new toy during demos :lol: :lol:
Looking forward to the next bash, might have to be down Darset way...... :wink:
Cheers all,
Martin

 

[Paul Chapman]

Paul demonstrated his newly acquired Domino and Martin wanted to me to take a sneaky shot of the accuracy that can be achieved :lol: :lol: :

Now, now Rob [-X You know full well that I was only showing a bit of solidarity with Waka after listening to the woeful tale of him cutting all the rails on his wardrobe doors too short :lol: :lol:

Seriously, it was another lovely get together with lots of interesting stuff to see and try. It was great to meet Simon (Heath Robinson) and all the old crowd.

For me the star of the day was Pete's hygrometer - another stunning and original piece of work and I hope he will post a few pictures of it some time.

Many thanks to Waka and Rod for bringing along your stunning planes and for letting me have a go with them

Thanks for the great lunch Rob and Alyson and to Pam for those lovely puds

All in all another great bash - let's do it again before too long

Cheers :wink:

Paul

 

[joesoap]

Now that was a most enjoyable and lighthearted post enjoyed by all . A good idea and as was said enlightening with interest .

I noticed on the shot at the lunch table that the six hmmmm , senior members wearing the trademark glasses . The exception being the young un who has that to look forward to . I put that down to the metric system , mm for 1/8ths was a shock to the eyeballs and we've suffered for it since .
Don't see it so much with the yanks could it be cause theyr'e still on imperial . Cheers !

 

[Harbo]

Thanks Rob for organising a great day - I really enjoyed it.
Lovely food, excellent company and some super tools to have a play with.
Newt's scratch stock is just amazing and Waka's planes - well what can you say except they felt, handled and performed better than the oldies - they looked great too!
I liked the look of the Draper router. Not too sure about the looks of the Veritas saw but it handled well which is the important thing. Perhaps it grows on you over time?
The new stylish and futuristic looking Veritas block planes seemed very well made and finished.
Pete's moving hygrometer was a great talking point and beautifully finished in brass and maple. His story of his attack by cactus had us all laughing and cringing at the same time.
:lol:

A great bash - thanks again

Rod

 

[joiner_sim]

It looks like a good meeting

There was a bash recently in Nottingham or somewhere roundabouts i think. I didn't have the confidence to go... being a young'un n all! :lol:

But looking from the photos of this bash, it all looks very friendly and a great chance to have a chat about what we do! :roll:

 

[newt]

A very enjoyable day, the Draper router looked like good value and it is refreshing to have some younger members on board. Rob and Alison thanks for putting up with us from 10.00 to 1700, a long day. There was a few choice tools on display, the gross value was in £1000....'s who said there was an economic crisis.

 

[Paul Chapman]

I didn't have the confidence to go... being a young'un n all! :lol:

If you ever get the chance to attend any of these get togethers, please do. It's always great to meet members and you really do learn a lot - as well as having a good laugh

Cheers :wink:

Paul

 

[promhandicam]

Sorry I couldn't make it this time but thanks for the invite Rob. Seems like you all had a good day!

Steve

 

[joiner_sim]

I just think that maybe the age gap would be a problem?

I think I'm quite socialable with anyone, but from experience in the trade, I have found that older people think the younger ones don't have much to contribute.

 

[woodbloke]

Sorry I couldn't make it this time but thanks for the invite Rob. Seems like you all had a good day!

Steve

Steve - you're most welcome anytime...and so far, candlewax hasn't been mentioned! - Rob

 

[Waka]

I just think that maybe the age gap would be a problem?

I think I'm quite socialable with anyone, but from experience in the trade, I have found that older people think the younger ones don't have much to contribute.

JS

You shouldn't be put off by any age gap, we can all learn from each other, just because we have years on our side doesn't mean we know it all, far from it.

The next time there is one in the Midlands you should go along, I know you'll be very welcome.

 

[Waka]

Sorry I couldn't make it this time but thanks for the invite Rob. Seems like you all had a good day!

Steve

Steve - you're most welcome anytime...and so far, candlewax hasn't been mentioned! - Rob

I didn't want to bring up the candle wax because to me a workshop is not complete unless you have a few candles lying around. I wonder if Santa will bring you any?

 

[Philly]

Sounds like you had a great day - apologies I couldn't be there.
Next time,
Philly

 

[HeathRobinson]

Thanks to Rob and Alyson for hosting the get together and providing the feast that can be seen in the pictures above. Thanks also for the Christmas card. Very thoughtful of you. It has just doubled as a spell check of Alyson's name - I wouldn't have guessed the use of the 'Y'.

Thanks too to Newt's wife for the deserts. I've been badgering Miss. Robinson since I got home to make me my own batch - especially the raspberry meringue roulade.

I post on many different forums that focus on many different subjects. This is the first and only forum where, as a relative newcomer, I have been made to feel so welcome on the board as well as in person. First by woodbloke when I was starting out and having trouble with the most basic of operations. Then, yesterday, I had a very enjoyable time meeting some of the people behind the posts on the forum.

Age differences? I didn't notice any! We're all interested in working wood and age is no barrier to sharing our enthusiasm. Heck, beyond the differences in age and the commonality of woodworking, the people you will meet at these bashes will have come from very different backgrounds. My first love is aviation, and on that score found that Paul Chapman's son has recently landed a job at the airlines, and Pete has been heavily involved with military flight testing among other engineering pursuits. He has many an interesting story to share!

If you want to attend a bash near you then I'm sure you'll be fine, 100 years old or 16 years old. Just be yourself. The people I met yesterday seem genuinely nice guys.

Cheers!

Simon

 

[Paul Chapman]

100 years old

There you go - giving away Waka's true age. He was trying to keep that quiet :lol:

Cheers :wink:

Paul

 

[joiner_sim]

100 years!?

I might pluck up courage to go along to one.... there was one recently nearby, but I declined the open invite :roll:

 

[Chris Knight]

Sounds like a great day indeed chaps! Full marks to Rob for organising it.