Exhibit Prototyping: Skills Days for Beginners, 2 days

1-2 October 2019, 10am -7pm both days

Edinburgh

£100 for members, £130 for non-members

Lunch is on your own

Book your place here

Do you have an idea for an exhibit or demo that you'd like to make, but feel that you don't have the confidence, the skills or the facilities to make it? In this two day skills event, we'll show you how to use hand tools and woodworking machines to turn your idea into a useful prototype.

In this Skills Day offering, we’ll spend two days in the workshop of the Edinburgh Tool Library working on our own projects. This event is aimed at people with little or no workshop experience, but independent working will be required. There will be experienced staff available to help you get the most out of the workshop and the two days. (If you already have some experience, check out our Intermediate-level event in July.) 

The workshop is equipped for woodworking; drilling and hand-sawing metal is also possible. Don't worry if you haven't used some or all of the woodworking machines before - everyone will be given an induction on safety and machines’ capabilities.

Preparation: Although this event is aimed at people with minimal experience, everyone should come with an exhibit or a demo idea in mind. You'll get the most out of the event if you do as much of the thinking as possible beforehand, so that you can get stuck into making straight away. We will discuss your idea with you in advance so that we can advise on any details that you're unsure of. This will help you arrive with an idea that has the best chance of being completed in the time available.

In addition to tools and machines, we'll provide the basics: a collection of reclaimed timber, wood screws, and all the tools you'll need. For other materials and components, Screwfix and B&Q are not far away, but it will save you time if you do your shopping in advance.

*Machines available:
Band saw
Chop saw ( 2x )
Planer
Rail saw
Router table
Pillar drill press ( 2x )
Belt sander
Lathe 

Tools available:
Drills
Drivers
Chisels
Sanders
Routers
Jigsaws
Circular Saw
Heat gun
And all the basic DIY tools (saws, hammers, screwdrivers etc) 

About the session leader: Ben Craven
Ben is a vision scientist by training, but now makes his living teaching Product Design Engineering at Glasgow School of Art, and gentle maths and stats for the Open University. He also does freelance work in informal science communication, and arranges efficient networking events.