BRADFORD WOODWORKING

We recently went to Portland, Oregon to celebrate the 50th birthday of our dear friend Jeff Behnke, a Rochester Institute of Technology classmate. We were joined by some other classmates for the celebration: John Dodd and Lorrie Frear, and Tim Donahue along with his wife Marie. After the party, we spent a few days at the beach. The water was VERY cold, but did not deter the guys from some skim boarding and polar bear swimming.

John Dodd, Jeff Behnke, and Brad Smith

There is a reason no one else is in the water!!!! It’s 55 degrees!

Tim Donahue, Sandy Smith, Brad Smith, Lorrie Frear and John Dodd

Filed by BradfordWoodworking at 4:24 pm under This n' That
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We’ve had a lot of storms around here lately. As a result, we got a lot of phone calls asking if we were interested in blown down trees. They mostly just wanted the logs out of there so….yeah! One of our jackpot finds was at a golf course that had lost a lot of trees. The only problem: how to turn them into lumber. Who do you call?? The WOOD MISER. This is a portable sawmill that comes to you. We have used it several times and it does a great job.

Here’s Brad sitting on one of his, what Joseph calls, Hollywood logs. He calls it that because it looks so perfect. A red oak, one of the many trees that came down in a golf course.

Brad already deciding what he’s going to do with that beauty.

Sawing off the edges.

Kyle and Luke stacking fresh cut red oak.  Can’t you just smell it? It will be put away for a couple of years so it can dry. Can’t wait to see what Brad’s amazing creativity makes out of these babies!

Filed by BradfordWoodworking at 8:36 am under Shop Peripherals
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Friday was the last day for our employee John Nelson. He and his wife are moving to Portland, Maine. He is going to attend Maine College of Art for woodworking. John started working for us when he was 15 and stayed with us for 5 years. We will miss him greatly but are very happy that he has chosen to take this path.

Below is a picture of the guys on John’s last day. Left to right standing; Cress, our retiree who comes in parttime to help and who the younguns’ try, with difficulty, to emulate his work habits. We even came up with a verb: cressify: to sand like Cress. Next is John, then Luke Yoder who is working for the summer while home from college. His father is Royce Yoder, the potter. Next is Brad, boss man (or at least we like to let him think so). In the front is Joseph. Doer of everything. If you’ve ever called here, you’ve probably talked to him. He answers the phone, takes orders, packs, ships, finishes, makes our web site, and trains the cat, Marble, to do tricks. Next to him is Kyle. Kyle is 16 and likes to talk. He came on a year ago and has learned a lot. We enjoy having him around. In front is Cirki, short for Circumference. She just hangs around waiting for a belly rub or a dropped morsel of food as someone walks by.

Filed by BradfordWoodworking at 12:36 pm under Shop Peripherals
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About every 10 years Brad decides he needs to build a building. First our house in 1985, then the smaller shop barn in 1995, then the big shop building in 2005. In between he throws in a couple of little ones. I’m thinking there might be a need/want/gottahave for one of these little cuties. What is the opinion out there? They could be built in sections and brought to someone’s property.

The above “shed” is used for gardening tools and the mower. There’s an awesome weather vane on top that’s turned sideways so you can’t see it. I’ll try to get a better picture of it.

This one is used for wood storage.

Filed by BradfordWoodworking at 9:57 pm under Shop Peripherals
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So I came upon these goose wings hanging in my yard right next to where my hammock goes. Apparently Adam found a dead goose in the pasture and decided to save the wings and dry them out. I’m thinking he’s going to use them somehow in a sculpture. Is that considered recycling? I just really want them gone by the time I hang up the hammock.

Filed by BradfordWoodworking at 5:22 pm under Adam Smith
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We have added tractor seat stools to our line up. We have these swivel seats cast for us in iron at an Amish foundry in Lancaster. We then turn the legs in ash on our lathe. Please note the Bradford Woodworking cast into the seat. We are feeling pretty smug about that.

Filed by BradfordWoodworking at 8:52 pm under What's Up
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Well, we are back from spending 7 days at the ACC Baltimore show. Funny how it seems to take a little longer each year to recoup. We had a great week reuniting with our craft/art, peers/friends that we see once or twice a year. Thanks to our “booth” buddies for a great week. Here’s a couple of shots.

Booth # 1012. We shared this with Pamela Hill who makes indescribably gorgeous quilts and
David Bacharach, a metalsmith, who makes beautifully colored woven metals wall panels.

Brad showing a customer his one of a kind book. He wears the hat because the mercury lights are very hard on his eyes.

Filed by BradfordWoodworking at 10:44 am under This n' That
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Adam and John are finishing up some work before the
American Craft Council show in Baltimore next week.

Come see us in booth 1012.

Filed by BradfordWoodworking at 6:17 pm under Shop Peripherals
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Allow us to indulge in a little bragging. Our son Adam has been accepted into the Smithsonian Craft show for his sculptures. This show is the “nation’s most prestigious juried exhibition and sale of contemporary American craft.” It takes place from April 10 through April 13, 2008 at the historic National Building Museum in Washington, DC. We’re very excited for him. He will also be doing the American Craft Council (ACC) Baltimore Show, wholesale only, February 19-21, 2008.

Filed by BradfordWoodworking at 1:45 pm under Adam Smith
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Here is a recent commission for a dresser. Turned out rather nicely we think.

Filed by BradfordWoodworking at 4:17 pm under One of a Kind
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