I am no longer booking club and guild events, but will continue to do larger symposium demos as time allows. Please note that I am now booking into 2021, so plan accordingly.
Information needed
Length of time for the demo, and whether you want a turning demo (spalted wood and figured wood turning demos are the most popular), or a straight up spalting lecture on the science/history/DIY aspects, or a mixture of both.
Baggage
Due to laws regarding the transportation of wet wood across state / provincial / country lines, I cannot bring such items with me if I am traveling outside of my geographic region. However, most of these items can easily be purchased locally by the group, and I am happy to work with the resources available.
If you would like me to do turning demos, I will need to ship out my tools, which leads to…
Associated costs
Due to the time commitment required for such presentations and the growing needs of my family to actually see me once in a while, I do generally ask for my travel / lodging / food/shipping expenses to be covered, as well as an honorarium to be provided.
Symposium rates begin at $1500.
Honorariums are based upon the type of presentation / demo required and the length of the presentation, but are generally in the $250 range for a typical evening meeting that I can drive to and back from in one day (3 hours or less per direction). Evening meetings that require an overnight, but I can still drive to, run between $350-$450 (4-5 hours per direction). Evening meetings I have to fly to run $500. Full day demos run between $750-$1000 for up to eight hours. Cost difference depends on the ratio of lecture to woodworking involved, and distance to travel.
Stuff to Know
Working with spalted wood is a completely different ball game than working with sound wood. It requires different machining techniques and a whole lot of patience and anatomical understanding. Especially in the field of woodturning, I do not woodturn like you might expect. I have been working almost exclusively with spalted wood for twenty-five years. During that time I have developed skills and tool grinds that work best for me and the type of wood I use. Because of the way I turn, I seldom if ever experience blow ups or torn grain. But because of the way I turn, I have been ridiculed as well. If you are considering having me for a turning demo, please be prepared to come with an open mind to alternative turning techniques.
Contact
For questions and / or to check on presentation availability, please e-mail me here.
