Stateline Woodturners
July 11, 2026 Club Meeting
Visitors: Gregg D. found the club online and has already signed up as a member. He is an experienced turner living in Rogers and is most interested in making bowls. John R. was visiting with his son Whitt, who is being taught by his grandfather to turn. Their first project is making chess pieces.
Debe K: Ben asked about Debe’s status following her knee replacement. Kurt said she was up and walking and expecting a full recovery.
Show-N-Tell, Novice: Entrants were:
· Buzz P. brought a bowl a friend had wanted repaired due to a crack. Looking at the signature, he realized it was made by Les B., a former club member that has moved to New Mexico. He repaired it using CA glue and finished it with gunstock oil and Minwax.
· Carl H. with a spalted oak bowl finished with Water Lux and a segmented bowl made with walnut and purple heart. He commented that he spent most of his time on cutting, laying out, and glueing up the segments with much less time spent on the turning.
· Jim H. with a spalted sycamore bowl finished with 3 coats of Water Lux.
Carl won best in this category with his segmented bowl.
Show-N-Tell, Advanced: Entrants were:
· Paul M. with a small urn. He said this project reinforced the importance of measuring since he almost went through the bottom and crushed the top because he didn’t leave enough material (which he was able to replace).
· Tom A. with platter from a piece of wood he brought from Houston which he thought was Mesquite. He filled small holes in the bottom with super glue.
· Mike S. with 1) several walnut jar lids he made for his wife, 2) several small thin bowls made from Bradford pear, and 3) a two piece Yeti cup holder made from yard wood that he was contributing to the Bring-Back raffle.
· Mike E. with a large platter with a zig-zag band of segmented woods crossing the platter and other segmented pieces around the edge. The woods used were purple heart, wenge, walnut, and maple. He first had to build a jig for his cole jaw chuck to hold a piece this size, then he had to turn the piece outboard since it was larger than he could do on his lathe bed. He was not satisfied with the finish, and was going to re-do it.
· Frank E. with a walnut platter with a high rim. He bought the piece of walnut from Timber Wolf.
· Thurman H. with a small maple basket illusion plate (which he entered in the Bring-Back raffle) and a spalted persimmon urn with small beads and coves down the sides which accentuated the spalting.
Mike won in the advanced category for his large, segmented platter.
August President’s Challenge: Anything that incorporates offset turning.
SWAT: Ben promoted the SWAT (Southwest Association of Woodturners) symposium August 28-30th in Waco and noted that the Rocky Mountain symposium would follow in September.
VA Pen Program: Ken read a statement regarding the success of the first VA pen turning session. There were 4 grateful vets (oldest was 94) that got to learn to turn a pen, and left with what they had made. Even a nurse was able to join in since there was an extra lathe. They left excited about coming back, and we expect interest in the program to spread. A thank you to the 10 club members that volunteered to assist with the launch of this outreach program.
Treasurer: Paul M. did find, and purchased for $165, a replacement battery for the club’s defibrillator. Now that it is working, he is looking into training so we will know how to use it. He was also able to purchase a capacitor for the club’s midi-lathe that had failed at the Rogers Historical Museum. It now runs but is making some noise that may indicate another issue.
President’s Comments: Ben noted that the club is affiliated with the American Association of Woodturners (AAW) and encouraged all members to join individually for all the benefits and information shared there. He announced David M. will be heading up the Christmas Brunch and Gift Exchange (in leu of a December meeting). He also mentioned that the Fayetteville Public Library Center for Innovation will be offering classes on use of their Lasers, 3D printers, and CNC. In response to his call for safety stories, Thurman H. recounted how he had left a candle burning overnight on a desk and was so thankful it only damaged the desk and not burn his shop down.
Bring Back Raffle: There were approximately 13 items raffled off, with the first winner being Mike E. picking Thurman’s basket illusion platter.
Demonstration by Bill C.: Making Sanding Abrasive Paste
Bill talked about sanding abrasives with or without wax, and had various ingredients on display. He also distributed printed instructions which are available in the download section of our website as Member Resources > Document Library > Finishing > Sanding Abrasive Paste by Bill C. He brought a hot plate and mixed his sample using a pot with water, a bowl sitting in the water, mineral oil, wax, and pumice. He then applied the paste to a piece of wood mounted on the lathe.
Attendance: Approximately 31
Please send omissions and corrections to David Wimberly (wdw@uark.edu) so that this record can be corrected on the website.