AWA Sawdust Award

Criteria

This award recognizes those members who have given greater than average service to the Albuquerque Woodworkers Association (AWA). This award does not require the extent of service necessary to receive the Annual Distinguished Service Award (DSA). When appropriate, a member in good standing with AWA, may be recognized with the Sawdust Award for assistance to the organization.

This award will be given as appropriate and not necessarily on a monthly basis. All members are eligible however, there is a period of ineligibility if a nominee has been the recipient of the DSA within two (2) years.

Award nominations should contain a description of a specific contribution. However, it does not need to be more than a couple of sentences.

The important thing is that members are recognized for all they do to further AWA in the public eye.

How to nominate

Send your nominations to Ron Danner. His email is dannerron02@gmail.com. Nominations received by the 2^nd Saturday in a month will be considered for awards to be presented at that month’s meeting.

Past Awardees

David Loving
Bonnie Ullman
Rick Martin
Jerry Trujillo
Charlie Gunter
Jerry Van Slambrook
Darrell Filkins
Mike Ulrickson
Kent Elrod
Wally Lopez
Karol Baughman
Bert Grant
Gary Reese
Jack Harris
Diane Galbraith
Russell Smith
Steve Scott
Les Bruce

Schedule of live workshops

Meetings of the AWA take place the third Saturday of the month and feature live workshops and demonstrations. Workshops begin at 9:30 AM.

September 19, 2026
CNC with the Shaper Origin
Mick Simon

The Shaper Origin is a hand-held CNC router.
How It Works
Visual Tracking: The tool uses an on-board camera to read a proprietary patterned tape called ShaperTape (which looks like dominoes) applied to your workpiece. This allows the machine to map out its exact location in real-time.
Automatic Cut Correction: You manually steer the machine by following a digital line on its integrated touchscreen. As you guide it, internal motors continuously auto-correct the router bit’s position up to 100 times per second, ensuring cuts are accurate within 1/100th of an inch.
Safety Retraction: If you steer too far outside your vector line boundaries, the spindle immediately retracts automatically to prevent any damage to your project workpiece.

Shaper Origin web page

October 17, 2026
An Overview of Finishing
Russell Smith

Confused by varnish vs. lacquer? Brush vs. wipe-on vs. spray? Russell will provide a practical overview on the science of wood finishing. He will attempt to pull back the veil of mystery surrounding what is in reality a very simple craft that involves little more than transferring a liquid from a container to wood using, rag, brush, or spray gun. "The secret of wood finishing is that there is no secret, and any woodworker who wants to can master this aspect of the craft."

November 21, 2026
Wood finish evaluation project
Neil Davie

Neil collected samples of favorite finishes from a number of AWA members. Each finish was applied to samples of maple, oak, and walnut using the member's preferred approach. Neil collected the samples and tested the finishes for properties that are important in finished projects. At this meeting Neil will share the results with us.

(order is subject to change)

Meetings begin at 9:30 AM.

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