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Arbortech Woodworking Competition 2016!

September 1st, 2016 Arbortech Woodworking Blog

On the 20th of August, the Arbortech courtyard in Perth Western Australia was once again transformed into an outdoor art gallery, with staff members showcasing their talent and pieces of work in the 2016 Arbortech Woodworking Competition. Family members, friends and colleagues gathered to view the wood creations that were all crafted using the Arbortech Woodworking range of products. To say “woodworking revolution” is an understatement, as the pieces in this year’s competition were nothing short of stellar. So much so, that a number of pieces have already been sold to the public.

Among the experienced staff woodworkers, there were a few new and nervous additions to the Arbortech family this year Max, Ramesh, Jana, Ade, Patricia and Alicia –“The Novices”. Although new to woodworking, they all gave the tools a go and where all equally shocked by how easy the Arbortech woodworking tools were to use and even more shocked at what they could do with the tools.

“We aren’t kidding when we say the Arbortech tools give their users the “Freedom to create the Impossible” says Patricia, our talented Graphic Designer and creator of the “Lagoa”, a beautiful, layered plywood tray.

Max, another Novice and the company Management Accountant goes on to say “I was a little nervous before using TURBO Plane, I have not had any practice using it. I was afraid I would take too much wood off and there would be no way to fix it. But I was very surprised at how fast I got the hang of it – it was actually the most enjoyable part of the project: using the TURBO Plane. I also used the Power Chisel to carve the design and TURBO Shaft to carve the holes to install the fin – they were also fun to use – surprisingly, it all went as I envisioned (it is a true testament to how user friendly the tools are – I have never made anything out of wood before).”

On another note, the more experience staff woodworkers did not fail surprise either, showcasing their perfected techniques, talent and creativity. A testament to this is Matt Cormack, our Product Designer who has been with Arbortech for over 20 years. He carefully sculpted his piece out of Plywood. The challenges lay in the fact that the project was small and the wood was fairly unstable which resulted in small pieces breaking off. Despite these challenges Matt managed to pull off a beautiful piece of woodwork called “Manta”.

Now take a look at for the rest of the pieces…

Saving the best for last – obviously this piece won 1st place, but I bet you wouldn’t believe this won first place in the NOVICE category! Jana was initially inspired by the Arbortech creation of the Twist Candle. You can view both of the projects and how to make them on our Power Carving Project Page.

A chat with Australian wood sculptor Ian Bell

July 15th, 2016 Arbortech Woodworking Blog

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A chat with Australian wood sculptor Ian Bell

We talk to professional wood artist and sculptor, Ian Bell about his passion for woodwork, power carving, Arbortech and his new found adventure with Sculptures at Killalea.

Tell us a bit about yourself and how you got into wood carving and sculpture?

Years ago I lived in Tasmania and worked as a ship builder and gained lots of experience using every type of hand/power tool available .I was looking for something creative to do in my spare time and in 1995-96 completed an associate diploma in art craft and design and have been hooked on wood carving ever since.

How does your life of woodcarving compare to your life before? Do you ever miss you previous career’/s?

I have much more freedom now and can structure my days around creating artwork. As far as my previous career goes, it was a means to an end and has now allowed me the opportunity to pursue my passion.

What is the inspiration behind your work? Can you tell us a bit about your artistic style or technique?

I love nature and particularly the ocean and try to echo the shapes and patterns I see into my work. I would describe my style as free-form and try to always incorporate texture, form and contrast.

You have your own gallery now, how did that start?

I supply quite a few galleries with my work and have a gallery section on the website. It takes hard work and lots of time.

How have our (Arbortech) tools played a role in your sculpting process? Do you have a favourite tool?

I have been using the Arbortech power carving attachments on my grinders for many years and find that they allow me to move lots of material very quickly, which means I have more time and energy to produce even more work. All the tools serve a purpose but if I had to choose a favourite…it would have to be the Industrial Woodcarver.

What is your favourite piece and why?

Hard question to answer…they are all my favourite pieces while I’m working on them because that’s when I’m learning the most as every piece has it’s challenges and no one piece is the same.

You are a co-founder of the Sculptures at Killalea festival that’s making its debut later this year in NSW. Has your passion for wood carving played a part in creating the Festival? Tell us what sparked this idea and what you hope to achieve with this event?

Definitely, and the idea to create this type of event stems from one thought, which was “How good would sculptures look in this beautiful area.” My hope is that people and particularly kids get that light bulb moment that starts them on their own journey with sculpture or any other creative pursuit.

To visit Ian’s gallery online: http://www.ianbellcreations.com.au/

To find out more about Sculptures at Killalea please visit http://www.sculpturesatkillalea.com.au/

To learn more about Arbortech’s power carving tools and attachments visit our Power Carving Page.

Using salvaged or recycled wood with Arbortech tools

June 15th, 2016 Arbortech Woodworking Blog

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Candle stick holder out of waste wood by Kevin Inkster:

Watch the step by step tutorial

Right from the beginning, Arbortech tools have been designed with salvaged wood, recycled wood and waste wood in mind.

The very first tool I developed was what I now consider to be a crude form of the Woodcarver blade. As rough as it was, it removed wood incredibly fast so I took it to a piece of Sheoak and freehand carved a bowl which I still have and love.

Sheoak bowl

I refined the blade for better control and then looked for larger projects. My specialty as a woodworker was in making chairs. To supplement my income in those days, I drove a country school bus. I had noticed a fallen Marri tree on my run so I took a chainsaw along one day, and got the school kids to help me drag a section of the trunk onto the bus. My intention was to carve a whole chair directly from the tree trunk using the new tool that I had developed. Not a particularly practical chair but it did have some charm. I noticed that when carving smooth free form shapes into the wood, that the grain and features of the wood would reveal beautiful patterns that would not be apparent in normal milled timber.

Chair carved from a Marri tree trunk

The result was that it won a major prize at a local Wood Festival and kicked off the beginning of Arbortech.

Since then, almost all of Arbortech wood working tools have been developed with either salvage or waste wood in mind. The TURBO range of products are ideal for machining wood in the round such as tree branches, roots or stumps. Of course they can be used with milled timber and I have done a lot of work by blocking up milled or dressed timber, but I always made a point of using waste or reject wood. Below are some examples of furniture that I made using a whole truck load of paneling wood called Scribe. Each piece is an off-cut that has been rejected because of a flaw such as a sap pocket. As it happens, such flaws become features when sculpted and do not affect the strength of the finished article because of the blocking up process.

Chair made from scribe

For our annual Arbortech staff competition, we encourage the use of salvaged or waste wood. We collect interesting wood from street verge throw outs and use every thing from small branches to wooden pallets.

Stylish coffee table by Kevin Inkster

Watch the tutorial

‘The contemplation bench’ by Sven Blicks

Beach house sign by Kevin Inkster

Watch the tutorial here

‘Stretch giraffe’ by Steve Marsh

Buddha face by Kevin Inkster

Artist Interview – Steampunk Gun by Vince Austin

March 16th, 2016 Arbortech Woodworking Blog

Meet Vince:

A wildly ambitious creative artist in Western Australia. Vince has a fascination for the steampunk genre and has created an absolute masterpiece called the “Elephant Hunter Hunter” which we had to share with you. And naturally, we had to pick his brain to see how he thinks when coming up with his creative pieces:

1. What inspires you to make steampunk guns?

As an artist I’m driven by many variants, in the case of the steampunk ethos it is an affinity with dark timber, leather, brass and copper. Victorian futurism is one of its definitions and the idea of making a gun that has functions other than firing bullets appeals to me greatly. To handle a weapon with the weight and apparent function which is completely harmless is thrilling! The Elephant Hunter Hunter is its own statement in this regard

2. When did you first make one?

I made a couple of large sci-fi guns in 1999 and they were purchased and used to dress a local club for the turn of the millennium, giving it that futuristic feel.

My first steam punk pistol was a fractional tethering modulator called the ‘turtle boner’.

3. How long does it usually take you?

Depending on the complexity, from 7 to 10 days for smaller items up to 2 or 3 months for larger ones.

These puppies are built on a whim as it were and often a found or given item can facilitate a whole offshoot of additional aspects. They truly evolve with me.

4. Are you fascinated by the steampunk theme and why?

This is where I’m at present, I’ll change and grow like many artists do, but right now, this blend of form and function, suggestive of a traditionally crafted piece of archaic technology simply floats my boat.

5. You’re spending quite some time on these items, does it hurt to let them go to a buyer?

Yes it’s my puppy, it’s a real piece of my life, unique and for sale, a process, a journey. When it’s gone there is a void. So I take lots of construction photos and finished pictures to see me through the darker mourning.

6. How did you come up with the Elephant Hunter Hunter name?

Live by the sword die by the sword, as we sow so shall we reap, hunt as you too will be hunted, do to others as you would have done unto yourself, karma. There’s more. I could go on for days!

7. How much are you selling the Elephant Hunter Hunter for?

Currently $30,000. Keeping in mind it is and will be the only one in the known universe.

8. Did you use Arbortech Tools and where?

Yes of course, the butt of the gun was carved from a jarrah roof joist with the TURBO Plane; it’s perfect for those fluent curves. The Mini Grinder and Turbo Shaft were also used for some other more detailed handles on the pistol grips.

9. Would you recommend Arbortech for future use?

Absolutely, reliable robust and they do what they claim to do. This is not always the case with many tools on the market!

Thank you Vince for your time and keep on creating.

Contour Sander – Sticky, Adhesive Discs Not Quite Sticking?

February 3rd, 2016 Arbortech Woodworking Blog

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Are your Sticky Sanders flying off of your Contour Sander mid use? If you are a user of the adhesive disc method then you are probably well aware that the adhesive discs perform best at finishing sanding. We recommend heavy sanding with the heavy duty discs followed by the adhesive discs to remove any scratches left from the flange of the Heavy Duty Discs.

The trick to stopping the Adhesive Discs from coming off of your Contour Sander is to keep the backing pad clean. We have provided past methods of cleaning your Arbortech Contour Sander pads with acetone, cleaning spirits etc. Here is a quick and easy way to clean your Contour Sander’s backing pad using a rubber eraser or if you are short an eraser – your thumb! If you would prefer to watch the video on how to do this, click here: How To Clean Your Arbortech Contour Sander Pads

As you know, the Contour Sander is ideal for sanding internal curves and contours by utilizing adhesive backed sanding discs. We have received many questions as to why we opted for this method. The reason is simply because the Sticky Sanders allow you to follow profiles nicely, and this also eliminates the problems experienced with the hook and loop method.

Adhesive residue on the rubber pads

When you are continually changing the adhesive/ sticky sanding discs, a certain amount of adhesive tends to build ups on the rubber backing pad. Where there is a combination of adhesive and dust accumulation on the backing pads it can prevent adhesive discs from sticking properly, so your discs will tend to come off too easily.

Previously Kevin recommended you simply wipe down the rubber pad using acetone or paint thinners but not everyone has these materials on hand. Since then Kevin has found it is much more convenient to simply rub the adhesive disc with your thumb; which works particularly well if it is warm from use.

Rub the pad with your thumb

You can actually roll the adhesive off the backing pad with your finger. This is a convenient method unless there is too much adhesive build up. Then best option for this scenario is using a standard soft pencil rubber eraser.

Use a normal soft rubber eraser

Put the eraser into a vice and then bring the Contour Sander backing pad into contact with the eraser while it is running. Within a few seconds it will rub off the adhesive build up very quickly. When you are mounting the eraser into the vice, the trick is to mount it very low so only a centimeter or so is above the level surface. If the eraser is protruding to much, it will simply vibrate and break when you bring the Arbortech Contour Sander into contact with it.

Mount the eraser in the vice and run the Contour Sander over the eraser

Now place your Arbortech Contour Sander over the eraser and switch your grinder on. The eraser will pull the adhesive off the Contour Sander’s backing pad quite easily and leave it nice and clean. If there is still adhesive on the pad, just repeat the process until you are satisfied with the end result. Once the adhesive has been completely removed off the Contour Sander’s backing pad, you can attach a sticky adhesive disc onto the backing pad and get back to sanding!

Super clean rubber pad!

There you go folks, a new quick and easy way to clean your Arbortech Contour Sanding pad. Click on any of the images above to watch this tutorial tip on our YouTube Arbortech Woodworking Channel.

Try this simple tip of cleaning your Contour Sander pads and let us know how you found this new cleaning method by leaving a comment in the section below. We would love to hear your thoughts!

If after trying this method you are still experiencing issues with your sticky sanders not quite sticking, please contact [email protected].

Arbortech Staff Woodworking Competition Entries 2015

October 28th, 2015 Arbortech Woodworking Blog

Mahi Mahi

by Matthew Cormack

I used leftover 12mm marine ply from the floor of my boat. I traced the fish off a photo by eye onto one of the pieces and roughly band sawed it out. I used that as a template to draw it onto three more pieces and band sawed them all out.

The four fish shaped pieces of ply were laminated using Aquadhere, a wood glue. I used the TURBO Plane to rough out the form of the fish, using the layering in the wood to help with the contours (see unfinished picture showing the contours). It was finished with the Mini TURBO and Contour Sander prior to using diluted food colouring to add the colour.

Winners of the Arbortech Staff Woodworking competition 2015

September 7th, 2015 Arbortech Woodworking Blog

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Winners of the Arbortech Staff Woodworking competition 2015

Winner of the judging Panel Prize was won by Junior Linke (Blade supervisor) for his lamp which he called “Natural Light”. Junior was inspired to make this after seeing a guy carve a cowboy hat in the States while working at a Wood Show. He used a lovely Mallee Burl piece for the shade which is a very hard West Australian wood and a piece of Olive wood for the base and centre pole.

1) Junior’s first step was to rough out the centre of the burl with the TURBO Plane checking the depth regularly so as not to go through. Then sand the outside and Junior used the Contour Random Sander. He then started planning down the piece of Olive wood to eventually make a cylinder for the stand which he then sanded.

2) Once he was happy with the thickness of the burl shade he used the TURBO Plane to start taking the thickness down. The best outcome would be to end up with a very thin layer of wood which will allow enough light to penetrate when illuminated.

3) After sanding the inside of the shade, Junior then started work on the base of Olive wood. He basically followed the shape of the wood using the TURBO Plane and TURBO Shaft before sanding off with the Contour Sander. You might also notice his very inventive way of holding the shade in place which was scraps of high density foam glued together with the basic shape left hollow and a great “clamp” for the shade.

4) He then used the TURBO Shaft for drilling a hole suitable for slotting in the stand. Once he had done this, he glued the stand into the hole. Before gluing he drilled a centre hole in the stand for the wiring and fitted the electrical fitting to the end.

Staff Woodwork Comp Winners 2015

August 27th, 2015 Arbortech Woodworking Blog

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THE JOURNEY

WINNER OF PEOPLES CHOICE AWARD

Made by Steve Marsh

Steve is the Financial Controller at Arbortech and has discovered his love of woodworking after using Arbortech tools, he has won the staff competition 2 years in a row. His piece started out as a piece of Sheoak (West Australian timber) which he salvaged from his brother’s property many years ago so the there is a lovely aged colour to the wood.

The shape of the wood basically dictated shape of the sculpture and he started to play with hollowing out the log by using the Mini TURBO. He then used the TURBO Shaft to get into those hard to reach places and create the deep channels as well as gently smoothing the shape of the wood.

Once he was happy with the overall shape he used the Contour Sander to sand the piece together with some hand sanding where needed. Steve had always intended to put on some metal off cuts from the Arbortech Brick & Mortar Saw blades to represent his family however during the making of the piece it became more about life’s experience and journey.

Putting these metal pieces onto the piece proved to be one of the most difficult tasks due to their size and the way he wanted to attach them to the wood. Steve pre-drilled all the holes and each piece of metal was screwed with 2 screws. He then finished off the whole piece with oil.

Steve plans to mount the piece on a metal square with a supporting bracket to hold it upright in the garden.

The 2015 Annual Arbortech Staff Power Carving Competition by Kristine Inkster

August 13th, 2015 Arbortech Woodworking Blog

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The 2015 Annual Arbortech Staff Power Carving Competition by Kristine Inkster

Well it’s that time of year again when all of our staff are encouraged to make something using Arbortech tools.The idea was to help everyone understand how the tools work and what they can be used on so we can all help our customers questions and queries with real experience and knowledge. This is now the third staff competition we have had and the benefits have far outweighed our expectations and any hesitation anyone might have had before starting their project has gone. We now have people planning their project way ahead of the start date and hear stories of working late into the night sanding and shaping. All new employees are encouraged by others to get started so creativity and healthy competition is well and truly alive and well. We are very proud of everyone for participating in this competition and producing such a wonderfully high standard pieces.

I am going to write up some blogs about each piece over the coming months and while I am getting the photos and stories together for these I thought it was probably easy for me to write about my own entry first. As a Director of Arbortech, some people think that being married to Kevin and being around woodworking for the last 30 years that I would be quite good at using our tools. The truth is that I am not and can be considered as much of a novice as most other staff. So onto my entry which won runner up prize from the independent judging panel…

THE SEED POD
by Kristine Inkster

We recently picked up some lovely wood called Sheoak which was cut down by mistake by the local council who had left several logs of approx. 30cm (12”) diameter.

I chose a piece which I estimate to be approx. 60cm (24”) long and decided to carve a bowl. The wood looked like it had been cut a couple of months previously so it was still quite green. I first started by using the TURBO Plane to smooth the surfaces and give me a nice surface to work with.

Once I had a block to work with I marked out the rough shape of the opening I wanted in my bowl and started with the TURBO Plane and then continued with the Mini TURBO due to the tight opening I had penciled.

The Mini TURBO was great and easy to use and as I had made a bit of a wave shape on the top of my bowl so I could get in and under this.

The shaping part of my bowl was done in about an hour and a half so I then started using the Mini Grinder sanding discs with 60 grit. After the rough sanding was finished I used the Contour Random Sander with some finer sanding discs attached and this was great for getting up under the lip and into the bowl.

After I had finished the sanding there was some splitting in the wood happening as it was still a little green so I started filling it with some resin and waited for it to dry. After a day or so it was cracked some more so I filled it some more. This went on for several days until I decided that I would never end up filling all the cracks and knocked out the resin and sanded back the crack to make it a feature.

I then painted a Black Japan stain onto the outside to give it a point of difference which I am happy with and hence the name seed pod. I finished it off with some wax on the outside and oil on the inside.

AS170 Review – BCM for Tradies

May 14th, 2015 Arbortech AllSaw Blog

Meet Vince:

Mahi Mahi

THE JOURNEY

WINNER OF PEOPLES CHOICE AWARD

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