Dennis W. Montville

Woodturner and builder of woodturning solutions

Sterling Heights, MI

email:  Dennis@DWMontville.com 

Good news! My work has been accepted into the Our Town show in Birmingham, MI held on October 16-18, 2008

Scroll down to see what they look like.

Artist's Statement:

"Wood is one of the most expressive fundamental elements on earth. Once part of a living organism, it still expresses the echoes of that life captured within its fibers. This is the "voice" of the material. Engineering is the "voice" that humankind uses to express itself with works of visual and functional presence. My work combines both voices to create a harmony of natural and man-made beauty"

Last update: September 27, 2008     An honest person does the right thing. An honorable person does the right thing when no one's watching.

Sometimes the best things in life are the ones that get shoved down your throat.

What's new

This is getting old. Yesterday was my last day working at Chrysler. I didn't know that going into work. I was informed of that, along with well over 200 others, before lunch. If it wasn't for the brutality the automotive engineering business would seem a bit harsh. I'm sure a number of factors entered into my being selected for culling. First, the automotive industry in the United States is facing an uphill battle for survival. Then there's the apparent approach to engine development within Chrysler where the interest is more to purchasing the next generation of engines than developing them in-house. That's not just my POV, but was stated clearly by Tom LaSorda in an interview and seems to be in practice. On top of that is I'm a member of the "55-and-out" club. There's no place for a fossil like me in the new automotive engine environment. Maybe it's all for the best. I think I'm ready for a change anyway. Of course, no one wants their hand forced, but that's often how the next opportunity in life presents itself. Don't get me wrong. I have no animosity towards Chrysler, and certainly harbor no ill-will towards my coworkers. They're the best I've ever had the pleasure to work with. It's just time to move on. I've always had things to do "when I get the time". There's no excuse now. I've got the time.

And what am I doing with this time? Well, to start you'll soon see that I'm offering classes again. I haven't updated that page yet, but by the middle of next week you'll see some new offerings pop up. I'm also building some new tools and display stands. They'll be offered either here on the site or on eBay. Stay tuned, I'll be updating the site much more often now. It'll be more dynamic than ever. I hope I can keep your interest and perhaps find some new friends. Please send me an email if there's something you'd like me to cover or have a comment on my work. I'd love to hear from you. My email is Dennis @DWMontville.com.

	Here are two videos that I just finished. The one on the left shows the use of the tool bit sharpening block. The one on the right shows the turning tool being used. They are short and should be fun. Please let me know what you think of them. I'll be posting more soon. My email address is at the top of this page.
I just made another video of my tool use. I was making a handle for a micro tool and decided to record a short video of some spindle turning. I hope you enjoy.

 Below are photos of the entries I'm submitting to the Our Town show for this fall.

I call this piece "Intrusion" It is made of black walnut, maple, purpleheart and oak. It measures 8 3/4 inches in diameter by 5 inches tall.
This one is "Path Finder" This is made of Canarywood and measures 8 inches in diameter by 2 inches tall.
This third one is called "Life Menu" This one is made of Narra and measures 5 inches in diameter by 1 3/4 inches tall. It is the same piece I show being faced off in the upper right video above. It's come a long way, hasn't it?

This is the new battery operated motorized display stand that I just made. This all started at one of the shows I was in over last summer. I had purchased two small rotating display stands from an eBay seller and had them at the show with two of my bowls on them. I wasn't happy with them because of their performance. They didn't have much power so unless the item on them was very light and they were very level they would just stop turning. I immediately started designing my own display stand in my head. Then another vendor came over to check out my turnings and saw the stands. He really liked the idea of a rotating display for his incense burning bottles. He brought one over and put it on the stand and just that weight was enough to nearly stop it in its tracks. Later, when I went over to consider buying one of his bottles he had already sold out and only had one left that he was taking back with him. However, he offered that one as a gift to me. I promised him that he'd get the first of my new display stands and the photos below show what he's getting. It is about 7 inches around and 4 inches high.
When I was nearly finished I asked him if he wanted it quickly or if he wanted to wait until I decorated the base with my own design. He said he'd wait so this is what I did to it. The switch is inset into one of the sides and can be seen in the first photo. The photo at right shows the workings. It will run on a single D cell for several days. This will rotate in either direction by simply sliding the switch in the direction you want. Click on any photo to see a full-sized image in a new window.