Years ago I made the drive to north of Atlanta (as I remember) to a woodworking fair I think they called it. All of the bigger tool/machinery makers were present but also a number of small folks selling their wares.
This might have been in Gwinnett county.
I am wondering if they still have these types of events and if there is one coming up. I would like to make the trip.
Thanks
Jim
You're in luck:
I've attended this show in Baltimore and Milwaukee. Bring money ... Lots of stuff you'll want to take home.
Larry
This year I think it moves back to Sugarloaf Pkwy in Gwinett...the past few have been in Norcross. Being a southsider, I much preferred the shows at t he Atl aiport convention center ( very spacious plus plenty of parking) bu t they were only there 3 or 4 years. I remember a very early one held at th e old Atlanta fairgrounds in the halls that have now been converted into mo vie and tv production. Funny to remember some of the vendors you see year a fter year....the guy that sells Forrest blades and his trememdous weight lo ss, the Dubby guy, Keller is there sometimes showing his jig,...anyhow I'm looking forward to attending. This might be the year for an Apollo sprayer.
Has that show been better lately? I know that the show has under new ownership in the last couple of years.
Leon wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@giganews.com:
Emphatically YES it has improved.
There were many more vendors and attendees at the Indianapolis show this year than at any time since about 2008. I had noticed declining attendance and vendor participation for several years, and feared that the show might be on its way to extinction. It's still not back to where it was ten years ago -- in particular, Incra and Leigh used to be there every year, and I haven't seen either one for a long time, and several of our local businesses that used to exhibit regularly haven't been around for a while either -- but it has rebounded a lot compared to the last couple of years.
I commented on that to one of the vendors that I've become acquainted with over the past 6-
8 years and suggested that perhaps it was a sign that the economy was improving. He attributes it instead to the new ownership, saying that the previous owner had [ticked] off a lot of vendors and the new owner was working hard to mend fences.Another difference I noticed this year is that the three-hour-long classes (the ones you have to pay for) are back, after an absence of at least three or four years. There were at least two taught by Marc Adams at this year's show.
The show has definitely grown quite a bit, compared to the last few years. Still not back to where it was 12-15 years ago, but much better than 2-4 years ago.
For comparison purposes -- map of Indiana State Fairgrounds here:
The Woodworking Show *used to* fill the South Pavilion (#18 on the map). Somewhere around 2006, it had shrunk enough that it was moved to the Blue Ribbon Pavilion (#14) where it remains. Three years ago, it occupied only about 2/3 of that building, and in '12 and '13 it seemed like just a bit over half the building was used. This year, it wasn't quite full, but it was close. And on Saturday in particular, there were so many people there that it was hard to get around -- which was *very* different from last year.
BillinGA wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@googlegroups.com:
Bob Jevons (Jevons Tool), Rich Weidler (MicroFence), and Roland Johnson (FWW) are always fun to talk to.
Forrest hasn't been at the Indianapolis show for probably five years. I'll have to look for that next year.
Is he ill? Poor guy didn't look one bit well at the Indianapolis show this year, like he has some serious chronic illness. I hope he gets better, else I'll be surprised to see him next year.
GOOD TO HEAR! Thank you for that report.
In Houston the show was always at Reliant Center, held in a rather large section in one of the areas. That was true for years.
About 4~5 years they moved the show from that central location to about
20 miles WNW to the high school gymnasium in Katy, TX. The room for all of the vendors was scaled down to about 20% of what they had at the Reliant Center. Vendors were pissed and so was I, parking had to be shared with all of the high schoolers. I complained the first year to the organizers, a few women, and I was instructed that I was wrong.The new owners of the Woodworking shows contacted me and informed me of their acquisition and further indicated that the vendors were pissed.
AAMOF we did not even have that show last year, one of the gracious area woodworkers organized and held the show himself. He did that just so that there would be a show last year and indicated he would never do that again. He donated a lot of his equipment for the demonstrations.
Fortunately it looks like the Woodworking shows will be back, unfortunately the show will be in the gymnasium again. Hopefully it will one day return to the Reliant Center. The Reliant Center is a long way from where I live, actually the Katy gymnasium is quite close, but I believe the show would be better if there was more room for the vendors to spread out and room for more vendors.
I suspected that the show had been suffering from lack of interest, both culturally and commercially ... gone with the likes of the David Marks, New Yankee Workshop, Bruce Johnson, et el shows on TV, to make room for the DIY'ers in homeowner's suits.
Plus, the old geezers, who had grandiose plans of retiring and making ends meet in their old age with their instantly acquired woodworking acumen from the Intenetz, got a large dose of reality around 2008. ;)
Unless I read something wrong it is going to be in Norcross.
Thanks to all who replied.
I attended the international show a couple of time when it was in Atlanta. What a monster that was. More to see that my feet could stand.
Jim
That could have played a part but I suspect that the Houston market is as good as the other markets where attendance by the vendors and the woodworkers is much greater.
Plain and simple the move to the gymnasium was the death blow to the Houston show. The previous organizers/owners were pissing every one off and the location was terrible. Way too small, picture the show being held on something a bit bigger than basket ball court.
There is a woodworking show March 7-9, at the North Atlanta Trade Center, in Norcross, GA (off I85, just North of I285). You can find it at their site.
I've been going for the last five years. It has gotten better. The first year, the Trade Center was split with an antiques show in one half (SWMBO was happy). After that, the woodworking show took over the whole facility.
There are a lot of participants but Peachtree Woodworking seems to have a third of the floor space. ;-)
I believe it's still at the North Atlanta Trade Center in Norcross, unless there is one I don't know about. More information?
I'm a South-sider as well (South-West, off I85) but it's not a big deal to get to the other side, at least on the weekend. I wasn't here when they had it by the airport.
My bad. I thought I read it was moving back to Sugarloaf. I'm not a fan of the Norcross site. The aisles are too narrow and are easily jammed during demo's. The Camp Creek facility at the airport had lots of parking ( altho ugh they charged for it) and you could pull up to the back to pick up heavy purchases. Worst ever was one year they held it in the Inforum on Williams St downtown. Oh well...back to Norcross it is.
You mean when some of their 401Ks were halved?
Here in NJ there were 2 competing shows. And they were watering down the pool. Lot's of guys did not like one of the shows that was running things. Can't remember if it was the WOODWORKING SHOWS or the other.
Anyway, our's used to be huge, then it got smaller.. and smaller.. I thought that it would fail. I stopped going to a bunch of them, like every other year.
I also drove down to Baltimore years ago. To the cow palace.. It was much bigger than NJ's. But I have heard that got smaller too.
I think the Yankee Workshop had lot's to do with the numbers believe it or not. Once it stopped showing on HGTV WW numbers went down. Now that it is no longer being produced it has caused a lot of would be wood workers to fade away.
That's just my opinion, not based on anything but my own perception.
Could be the smoking that he does. He's a chain smoker. And the show inteferes with that.
I totally agree.
I have no interest in making any money with my woodworking. I just find making sawdust and playing with tools to be enjoyable. I fully intend to have a lot of fun with it after I retire (the next and final time). If everything goes right, that's in four or five years. Maybe more, if I'm still having fun at work. If it's less, not a huge deal either.
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