A lifetime hobby

 

February 28, 2019

Bob Janssen displays some of his wonderful woodwork, in the picture above courtesy of Rural Montana Magazine.

Courtesy of Rural Montana Magazine

Tongue River Electric Cooperative Trustee Bob Janssen of Volborg made his first wood-working project as an 11-year-old in 4-H. Half a century later, the now 64-year-old still spends as much time as he can working with wood, though his skill level has progressed quite a bit since his first project. His home features furniture, a grandfather clock and ornate bowls that he has handcrafted.

"You can take a block of wood and you don't know what you will end up with," Janssen said when asked why he loves his hobby. "It's the challenge."

He said that to him, working with a piece of wood is like life. The wood may look perfect from the outside, but once you get into it there are knots and wormholes and things you have to deal with.

"You have great expectations, but then it takes twists and turns," he said. "It's like life really... sometimes it doesn't always turn out the way we want."

Beautiful bowls

Over the years Janssen has made at least one of just about anything you can make out of wood. His current passion is segmented and layered multi-wood bowls, some of which take more than 20 hours to complete.

In 2013, he watched a DVD on making layered and/or segmented bowls, and decided he would give it a try.

"It blew apart (on the lathe) three times," he said. But Janssen didn't give up. He figured out how to fix it each time and eventually ended up with a beautiful piece a foot tall or more, which he gave to one of his daughters.

To make the ornate bowls, Janssen first takes boards he buys and, using a band saw, cuts them into a uniform size, about 2.5 inches wide by 10 inches long, and all the same thickness. He then glues them together so they look like a large cutting board. From there, he cuts out the various rings he needs and slices them like bologna - all the same thickness, but slightly offset in size. He then glues them one at a time from the base up, letting the glue set and then shaping the bowl on the lathe as he adds layers.

"When it starts out, you wouldn't know what it is (going to be)," said Janssen's wife, Lynnette.

It's also nearly impossible to exactly replicate any one bowl.

"My wife keeps asking me to make a matching set of bowls. I told her I can't," Janssen said, laughing. "I can make you three bowls, but they won't be matching."

Janssen has used various kinds of woods in his bowls, but he prefers the exotic woods as they add a unique splash of color to the finished project. The downside, he said, is that those woods are expensive. He used to pay $10 a board foot for tulip wood - a pinkish hued wood with a floral aroma - and now it's about $80 a board foot.

He also likes to work with cocobolo and Indian rosewood, both of which have climbed to nearly $85 a board foot.

Janssen gets excited about working with different wood. He recalled going with a local industrial arts teacher to a wood store that had several exotic woods in Denver 30 years ago.

"It was like going into a candy store," he said, smiling broadly.

Other Projects

Through the bowls are what he works on most frequently these days, Janssen enjoys wood projects of all types. He made a grandfather clock in 1985, and a 96-inch dining room table (when leaves are inserted) crafted from maple that was salvaged from an old high-school gymnasium floor.

He also has made desks with his daughter, and rebuilt Hoosier cabinets for friends and neighbors.

When asked what he is most proud of or what he considers his masterpiece, Janssen thinks for a minute and shakes his head.

"I don't think I've gotten one yet," he said. "That grandfather clock was beautiful when I made it, but I think I can do better."

Lynnette said her favorite item changes with each new thing her husband makes.

"I love what he does each time he does it," she said, before adding an important caveat.

"I have told him we have enough bowls."

 

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