Robinson Nature Center, 2019 Open House Guildelines

Purpose

This page is intended to assist future demonstrators in knowing what was accomplished at the 2019 event, and to manage expectations regarding the demo and talking points. The goal of the guild being at the event is to promote woodworking and the guild and showcase RNC teaching opportunities.   This is a one day, five hour event.  For 2019 our goal is to have 3 members allowing one to talk, one to be working on a demonstration, and the third on break.  Demo items include a carving station, a shave horse, and a whittling chair/rocker.

The bottom of this page includes a printable example of talking points showcasing demonstrators knowledge and encouraging public interaction. That page will be printed and posted at the demo table.

2019 Event Schedule

• Set up is 10-11:45. Pull up at round about, and staff will assist with moving your stuff. Carts will be available. Park off-campus @ APL to leave local lot for patrons. After show, shuttles will return you to your car. 
• Show is 12-5, and includes kids crafts, face painting, nature walks, live animal presentations, and shows in the planetarium shows. There will be food trucks (2019 Green Bowl, Rolling Rita’s and Bebos mac Shack).
• Demonstrators plan for each hour: 20m talk, 20m demo, 20m free time.

Events and Demonstrators

Materials & Demos

Table Flier

Print this page to invite people to the booth. Adjust topics to focus on presenters skills.

ASK ME ABOUT

• HCWG HoCo Woodworker’s Guild <HCWG.org>
  • Shop and club (hours, meetings, purpose)
  • Volunteerism (B&O, RNC, LAX, RPC, HC Fair)
• Bird Houses and Birds (Owl, sparrow, finch, bluebird hollow, starling swallow perch, bat houses, odd hardware, license tops).
  • Gourd nests
    • Unpainted 8”, w/ 1”hole, on upper slope in sheltered area = house wren nest,
    • white painted larger, 1.5” opening hung in bright sun = purple martin  gourds
  • Wood box nests
    • 1-1.5” opening open field pole mount for (tufted titmouse, chickadees,  flycatchers, nuthatches, eastern bluebird)
    • 3’lx20”hx18”w vented barn or snowy owl box.
    • are hole, 3’ high @ stream edge for wood ducks
    • 8” square heavy perch 18” box,
  • shelf/bowl nests (swallow nests)
  • Predation – squirrel, chipmunk, wren, blacksnake, owl perches near bat-houses.
• Chairs (stools, bench, chair, structure, strength, weight).
• Boxes (shaker round (st gr maple or cherry), wicker (roots), Pin&post, hidden miter joints)
• Bowls (kuksa, layered, turned, woven, burnt, carved, roots, vines)
• Canes (dowels, root bends, axe handles, hammer handles, carved heads, LAX handles, dowel pins, fine but strong, compaction vs smoothness of surface)
• Wood processing (fell, mill, seal or curing, treat, beetles, burls, stabilized rot, cracks)
  • Timberline Farms, Sykesville – (Arnold’s)
• Finishes 
  • Arsenic pressure treating
  • Clear coat: oil, varnish (urethane) , epoxy (resin)+varnish
  • Translucent: stain, whitewash
  • Opaques: milk paint, latex, oils, tar/creosote.
  • Food safety, Moisture/UV, greying, rot, cellulose
• Woods (soft/hard, pines, sap, moisture, best for burning, best for bending etc.)
  • Old pine vs new pine, ash poles, maple boxes, oak fires, locust posts, exotics (dangers), walnut/cherry/maple furniture, cedar liners
  • Durability vs ease of build, expansion, bending, shape retention peg/nail/glue.
• Campfires (char-cloth and super-combustibles).
  • Minimalist stoves: in-ground, rocket stove, Kelly-kettle, downdraft/biomass heater.
  • Wild tinder, hand drill, bow drill, natural flint, sandy cotton.