Welcome to Walker's Sawmill online!
Walker's Sawmill is a traditional sawmill in
Hopewell
Junction, NY. Most of the machinery we use is almost one hundred
years old. We take pride in cutting wood the old fashioned way and we
look for the odd piece of wood with knots to create the most beautiful
benches and salon tables from.
All the benches and tables on this website are for sale. Please
contact us at 845-223-3801 or send us an
email and ask us
about our special pricing on select pieces of
furniture.
We also make custom made furniture such as tables or a bar. Furthermore
we sell
unfinished
product as well. Please click here to see more.
About John Walker
John Walker has been a teacher for over thirty two years. The first
fifteen years of his career were spent as a wood shop teacher and the
next seventeen years as a middle school technology teacher.
John is now retired and can spend unlimited amount of time playing at
the mill. His other passion is the time spent catching and raising
turtles. Each bench proudly displays a wood branding of a miniature box
turtle.
A note from the artist himself:
"The wood used comes from trees which
have fallen naturally through - out the beautiful upper Hudson Valley. The
benches are crafted following the natural curvature and flow of the
wood grain; and no two are alike."
About the Process
The logs range from twenty to thirty inches in diameter and can be as
short as five feet or as long as sixteen in length. The log is then cut
by a fifty-two inch circular saw.
Then, the wood is stacked to be air dried for a minimum period of one
year for each inch of thickness. All pieces are either face jointed on
either the twenty-four inch jointer or the twenty-five inch planer. A
draw knife is then used to round the corners of the end grain and edges
of the benches. They are then sanded for optimal smoothness by one
hundred-twenty grit sandpaper.
Next, holes are bored through the tops in order to secure the legs. A
peg is then secured into the surface with a an elm wedge. The one and
three-eighth inch diameter pegs start off at 6 inches long, are hand
made by a lathe in order to ensure long lasting strength and durability.
Uniquely mounting the legs at a fifteen degree angle creates a functional and attractive bench.
About the Tools
John Walker:
"Over the years I have accumulated a collection of
machines to make the wood shop I have today. I became interested in wood
working when I took my first wood shop class in high school. I bought
my first machine in 1970 and it was a Sears Bench Saw. Little did I know
I would become the wood shop teacher of the shop that I learned how to
work with wood. Today, I use a set of machines which allow me to make
the benches I've always wished to make."
Machines Used:
1920's Ireland sawmill to cut logs into workable pieces
1920 Porter 24" joiner to joint faces
1987 Northfield 25" planer to to make top and bottom surfaces parallel
1930's Blount lathe to make 1 3/8" dowels for benches
1947 Walker Turner drill press to bore holes into table tops and legs
1933 Yates American 16" table saw with a sliding table to cut the 15
degree angle on the legs.
