McKinley High School - President Yearbook (Buffalo, NY)

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THE ARTISAN 39 Joseph Archer Artie C. Dolen The Cabinet Shop During tl1e first few weeks ol? our junior year we became familiar with all the hand tools used in the woodworking trade. These are arranged in a shop cabinet which was made for that purpose by several of the boys in the senior class. VVithin. a very short time we were able to recognize these tools by their trade names, sharpen them and use them correctly. Our course of instruction in the shop includes bench-work with hand tools and inillwork. -W'e have a very good selection of the latest wood-working machines sowthat our work is always interesting and useful. ln co-operating with the other departments of the school we have a great variety of work. We made drawing boards for the drafting classes and bulletin boards for several other class rooms. NVQ also made shelving for the science department. All this work provides practice with hand tools. After learning to use the machines we were able to do work in larger quan- tities, using regular trade methods of production. In this way we made for the school department a number of large oak tables. Each one of these was fitted with three drawers and tinished completely including staining, shellaeing and varnishing. These tables will be sent to various schools in the city to be used by sewing classes. Wliile doing this kind of work we change around on the various operations so that each boy has an opportunity to read the blue prints, make out lists of stock required, select and ent off the lumber, measure and lay out the work, do the various operations on the diderent machines, assemble the parts together on the bench, and put on the finish. Our school cafeteria. dining tables needed enlarging to take care of the boys at noontime lunch. We took out one small table at a time and enlarged it by using the same table legs and fitting them with new rails, morticed and tenoned together and a new top with the joints dowelled and glued making a good strong table. After repainting and varnishing the tables, they were better than new ones. Maiking museum cabinets of oak was another interesting job. These were :fitted with glass tops hinged to open and finished to match the regular school

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We have the best: equipped.Machine Shop in the city , if

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40 THE AR TI SAN furniture. They are now being used in the commercial geography classroom. Wle also made for the cafeteria, a large linen cupboard, with four glass doors, hinged in pairs and rabbeted together, making it almost dust proof. Previous to the Christmas vacation most of the boys made some useful pieces of furniture to take home. The junior class made telephone stands, radio cabinets and hall trees finished in oak, walnut or mahogany. The seniors' choice of something more difficult included piano benches and library tables. George Bradford jointed and glued together some short pieces of mahogany. Out of this material he made a very nice sewing cabinet. Philip Oeehiuo made a11 end table which he stained and finished mahogany. All these projects were seen by the crowd of visitors attending our Christmas Play at the school and proved very interesting to them. YVe always welcome and encourage visitors to inspect our shop at any time. Mr. Archer, our instructor, made arrangements to take our senior class tln'ough, a local. furniture factory. Here we saw all the latest and special wood- working lnaehines and finishing processes used in the manufacture of high grade turniture. lt was interesting to see a number of McKinley Alumni from the Cabinet Shop who are employed at this plant. i p A number of our boys have learned to play instruments in our school band and orchestra. Others have helped to make the school reeordhin athletics as we have boys on several of the sehool teams, ln the school plays our class has always been well represented. ' All the boys graduating from the Cabinet Shop will continue to he inter- ested iu the future progress of lN'I.eKinley Vocational School.