Ellon Men’s Shed
Please note we have now stopped the Warm Space openings as we head to the warmer spring weather (we hope!).
On the 3rd December we held a pre-Christmas Open Day. We were busy with a BBQ, sales of tools and items made in the Shed, and demonstrations of the model railway and the CNC router (computer controlled wood working). At the Open Day in May we will be selling plants, planters etc. for the garden.
We were awarded £5000 from Scottish Government’s Just Transition Fund to install a replacement wooden shed in the garden to securely store items (mainly bikes and garden furniture) before and after restoration. Previously many of these items are left outside. We have been granted £2000 by the Robertson Trust to part fund our running costs for the next year. This is an enormous help and we are very grateful.
We have just ordered ‘cold metal crafting’ equipment to allow us to make garden ornaments, plant supports, ornaments etc.. Currently much of our creative work uses wood – this will open up a new range of activities.
A number of members are going through a training programme to learn how to use our CNC Router machine. This is progressing well and we will shortly be starting evening training sessions so more people can be trained.
We are planning to install a boule (petanquè) piste in the spring.
We are open for new members to join the Shed (it’s free). Many think that men need to be ‘good at DIY’, using machines etc. to enjoy the Shed – this isn’t true. We welcome those who want to socialise, have a chat, play cards, browse the internet, read a book, as much as those who want to get stuck into the workshop or garden.
If you are interested in visiting the Shed, becoming a member we would love to see you – we are open 10am-4pm on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday.
We also recently had a visit from Rainbow Guides to show them safe use of hand tools.
CNC ROUTER
In In May we had an award from the Community Fund (Awards for All/National Lottery) to purchase a CNC router. A CNC Router is a computer controlled machine (photo) that has a high speed rotating cutter to perform intricate wood cutting and shaping operations. We ordered the machine from Germany and it arrived in early October. It has a dedicated room in the portacabin where we’ve built a sturdy hardwood bench to support it. We are fortunate in that one of the Shed members has his own, virtually identical, machine and he is helping to train others in its use. We have a growing list of items that we envisage making: chopping boards, house signs, Christmas decorations, art work, stands for bonsai trees, engravings….. This is an exciting development for the shed expanding our capability and allowing the guys to learn new skills.
