It's Finally here!
Galootapalooza XIV
You've waited patiently for the official notice, so here it is:
Saturday August 1st from 9AM to Whenever The Law Shows Up.
Location: The corner of Hubbard and Oakley in Chicago.
(2256 W. Hubbard Street)
Who: Galoots Of All Persuasions*
What: How to begin? Galootapalooza is a nice day with friends enjoying galootish activities such as old tool admiring, oldtool making, oldtool using, oldtool buying and oldtool selling. Then when we're hungry, we eat and drink like Galoots. (No blender drinks allowed without prior approval.)
The Router Making Workshop. Price: $20. Open to the first ten who sign up. Each person gets a kit to make a bronze router plane. The kit includes a bronze casting, a cutter holder, one finished cutter, knob blanks and knob screws. The workshop will cover light machining of the castings, drilling, filing and tapping. Knob turning or carving will be covered and we'll show you how to forge and heat treat cutters for your router. Time: We don't know, but what are you? On a schedule? Work as long as you want. |
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Bill Keller of BKForge Bill is a U of Michigan Engineering Grad who double-majored in Knifemaking and Brewing Beer. He'll be on hand with all kinds of demos. Before you touch, assume that everything he shows you can cut string in mid-air. Bill's creativity will amaze and amuse you, but his jokes won't, he gets them from his little boy Harrison. (They're funny when Harrison tells them... go figure.) |
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IT'S ALIVE! The Great Plane-Offs of the past were always a good way to enjoy some good natured competition while learning a few things about making your tools work better so you didn't have to work harder. Well let's do it again! Bring your best-tuned plane and if you have some gnarly mystery wood bring that too. We'll have a good old fashioned Plane-Off complete with divisions and brackets. Prizes will be awarded, so give it your best shot. Categories will include Smoothers, Block planes, "Jack-And-Longer" and maybe even a Scrub-Off! Here's your chance to prove that a beat up old Revonoc can whip a Norris' butt! |
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An
Hour* With Bring your problem-tools to Galootapalooza because the Doctor is
making a house call. The Doctor will help. He's got a great bench-side manner that will have your problem tool working like new. If he can't fix it himself, he'll tell you what you can do with it! *Sometimes it just seems like an hour. |
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Meet Celebrities You may be sharing a story with Wayne Anderson. Yelling at Gil Chesbro
to get off your toe. Swapping Philosophies with Mark van Roojen.
Or discussing with Mike Lindgren how, exactly he invented Dark Matter.
If Chris
Schwartz tells you that you're holding that mortising chisel all
wrong, don't hold it against him! These People Will Be Here*... and many many more. |
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Things to Bring: |
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We're trying to keep Galootapalooza a FREE event. To do so means we supply essentials like Refrigeration, electricity and stuff like plates, cups and utensils. For Lunch, there are some great places nearby where you can fill up for under $7. We'll probably take a lunch break about noon. Dinner at Galootapalooza has always been a Pot-Luck event with galoots volunteering to work the grill and everyone pitching in to make the meal great. And it always is! The RSVP form tells us whether you're staying for dinner and if so what you want to eat. You can bring your own meat or leave it to us to get you burgers, brats or breasts. You'll pay for what you order based on the RSVP form prices. We'll keep the meat cold so you don't get sick. Please bring a dish to pass. Store-bought is allowed of course, but we'd rather you bring your Grandma's recipe for Baked Beans. (Or chili, or potato salad, or peach cobbler.) NOTE: There will be a secret ballot for the Fan's Favorite in the side-dish, salad and dessert categories so give it your best shot and win a prize! LIBATIONS: You're gonna wanna drink. There are literally DOZENS of things to drink in the world and we can't make everyone happy. We'll have essentials like Tap Water and some sodas on hand, but we encourage you to bring your own favorite. If you ONLY drink Olive Oil and Captain Morgan on the rocks, you'd better bring it, 'cause we won't have what you need! We'll have a few coolers and ice and of course a commercial refrigerator, but try to pretend you're going to a family picnic and you'll probably have everything you need. SAFTEY FIRST: The shop is a place full of danger even when you're in you're right mind. Alcohol is a great shortcut to injury. Please be smart. Your Mommas Will Not Be There To Protect You! Along the lines of safety: Like in any working shop environment, you MUST have Safety Glasses. You might also bring a pair of work gloves and if you're smart, some hearing protectors. Don't even try to wander around the shop in sandals while people are working! Sandals are fine for after work ends and relaxing begins, but we ask you to use common sense.
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Suggested: There are two ways to look at this. You could come to Galootapalooza in your birthday suit and have a fine time, but it makes sense to bring some things to make your day more pleasant and more fun.
For instance: A Lawn Chair. Your own personal cooler for drinks and ice. We'll have ice buckets and coolers, so this isn't a big deal. Safety stuff like glasses, hearing protection and shoes. (Please read the mandatory column) You might tune up a plane for the Plane Off. Bring tools for sale, swap or show and tell. Bring something for the Tool Doctor to inspect. (another reason not to arrive in your birthday suit.) Pay attention to the weather report. Do you need sunscreen? Raincoat? Parka? This summer in Chicago, nothing is out of the question.
NOT Suggested: Needs to be said. As much as we love 'em, kids and pets will probably find Galootapalooza XIV to be both a boring and scary place. The venue is a working metal shop and you know that no matter how hard we try, it won't be kid-proof. The only way to keep them safe is not to bring them. I'm sending my assistant Gracie to a hotel for Saturday and Sunday because I think it's the best thing for her and for us. Don't get sensitive on me, you know I'm right.
Don't forget; the morning after our event is the M-WTCA
meet at Garfield Farm in LaFox Il. You can get more information on
that from the |