Here's My Workshop!
by Ken Gaidos
Nolensville, TN
I have been a turner since 2003 when my wife called me into the great room to watch Norm Abrams
cut a chunk of log off, split it and turn a side grain bowl on TV. I said, “I can do that”. So, I
got my chainsaw and ventured into the woods on our farm, cut off a piece of ash, mounted it on my
$200 Ridgid lathe and turned my first bowl.
Well, all of our three children thought it was great. The spalted ash was quite impressive and they
wanted one. In short I was hooked.
Soon I was purchasing a 1640 Oneway lathe and being a tool enthusiast, I bought every tool in
sight. I enjoyed turning large pieces and needed something larger. So, I added a 4224 Powermatic.
Now a Stubby from Australia is my lathe of choice. Everything I have learned has come by Woodturning
Magazine, Woodturning Design, AAW Magazine, videos and attending demonstrations. In 2005 I
received a Tennessee Association Scholarship and attended a three day workshop at Trent Bosch’s
studio.
I turn in a shop, plain and simple, nothing fancy. It is in a barn built in 1926 on our farm. I
turned the milking part into my shop by removing the stalls. It does have a concrete floor, though
not level. It had a trough down the middle for cleaning. That was filled in, the walls insulated
and covered with sheetrock. My heat is every propane and kerosene heater I could buy. My air
conditioner is a used window unit I placed in the back wall.
Four years ago I had the opportunity to acquire a 200 year old log cabin. Two friends and I
disassembled, marked every log, and rebuilt it on a pasture next to the house overlooking the
lake. This is where I store all of my saleable turnings.
Woodturning has now dominated my waking hours. I feel like I am 20 years behind. In actuality, I
am probably 40 years behind and I keep trying to catch up. I enjoy turning many different forms
from bowls to hollow forms. I wish I could settle on one or two basic forms and perfect those.
However, I have not yet been able to achieve that goal. I want to try everything.
You can email Ken at
kgaidos@yahoo.com.
