 A board meeting of the Saddlebrook Ranch Wood Worker's Club was held on 12/17/2020 at 3pm. All five new voting members were present: President Jeff Hansen, Vice President Mark Prose, Treasurer Harvey Goldman, Secretary Scott Saxon and Member at Large Jay Hall. Additionally the following advisory members were present: Dan Carter, Ed Cheszek, Ron Gustafson, Ron Hilbert, John Gordon, Ed Valdez, Charlie Anderson, Doug Redfield and Russ Hardy.
The following matters were discussed :
A treasurer's report was provided by Russ Hardy. Russ was elected as treasurer to replace Harvey Goldman and took over the job in December for an easier transition. The club has $539 remaining in the 2020 operating budget. Russ reconciled the books when he took over the treasurer's responsibilities and reported all was in order. A full report will be given at the first meeting of 2021 to include recommended future accounting practices and our total budget including money carried over from last year. The CNC debt was discussed. When the CNC machine was purchased it was agreed that all proceeds from CNC projects would be used to retire the debt. The debt was $3,500 and to date $1,600 has been applied to debt retirement leaving $1,900 remaining to pay off. Once the initial CNC debt is paid off the restrictions on proceeds from CNC work sold by the shop will be revisited by the board.
Membership renewals stand at 25 for 2021. The renewal fee remained at $100 for a yearly membership and a discounted fee of $90 if the renewal was paid by 12/31/2020. Anyone planning to renew their yearly membership should visit the shop before the end of the year to take advantage of the discounted rate.
Lockers on the back wall of the shop are rented on a yearly basis to any member. Currently only one locker space (one half of a full locker) remains available. All lockers rent for $120 per year payable in advance. Locker space can be shared between two members if they wish to split the cost.
Ed Valdez discussed the new computer CPU. The board authorized the purchase of a new CPU and software for the monitor's desk so all membership tracking, web site operation and financial work can be done on one machine. The computer has been purchased and will be set up soon. The web site currently has some issues and members cannot update their personal information or change shifts between monitors. Those issues will be addressed by our web site manager.
Mark Prose received the new circuit board and repaired the ceiling mounted Jet air cleaner by the sanding table. The repair delay was caused by a defective part and technical issues. The Rikon lathe needed new parts and we are sill waiting on some parts to finish the repair. The lathe should be repaired within a week.
The entire board discussed the operation and maintenance of the bandsaws. No new accessories or operating changes are needed at this time. John Gordon agreed to fabricate a feather board jig to aid in resawing on the Grizzly bandsaw. If any member has any suggestions on accessories needed for the bandsaw please contact any board member or place a message in the suggestion box.
All reference books and donated woodworker magazines are currently stored in the cabinets above the monitor desk. John Gordon will organize the construction of a bookcase to hold these materials so the cabinet can be used to store frequently used supplies like bandsaw blades and sandpaper so any monitor can easily access these items. A sheet of plywood will be purchased to construct the bookcase. Keep in mind that only monitors or members capable of replacing the bandsaw blades or drum sandpaper should do so.
Charlie Anderson discussed the issue of monitors performing the required one shift a month. Based on his survey the number one reason monitors are not performing the required shifts was due to Covid 19 issues or concerns. We have managed to fill all our advertised shifts because a few monitors have volunteered for 20-30+ shifts this year, well over the required 12. All monitors are asked to sign up for any shifts they can so we can keep the shop opened as planned.
Ron Gustafson advised he and his trainers have provided 14 training sessions since June 2020 and have trained 14 new members. Six of the seven designated trainers plan to continue training in 2021. The board discussed changing the training schedule to only train on one Tuesday a month and offer multiple classes on that day. A second Tuesday can be added if demand is high. A new schedule will be drafted and signup sheets will be available in the shop.
The board discussed opening the shop another day a week and the everyone agreed. The shop soon will be open on Thursdays all day and the calendar will be adjusted so monitors can sign up for those shifts. Everyone felt another day was needed because the shop was getting crowded on many days and we have a limit of only eight members at one time under current safety rules due to Covid 19.
The board agreed to start classes again and planned for box making and cutting board classes to be announced in January. A class on bandsaw operation will also be created to teach members all the things a bandsaw can do and how to safely use the tool.
The board agreed to replace the forstner drill bit set because many of the bits are dull and cannot be sharpened. John Gordon will research the issue and suggest a set for the board to approve.
The board agreed to replace the green ratchet style clamps that are difficult to use and have started to come apart. Hand grip style clamps will be purchased when a good deal can be found.
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