Portland, Waco or ?

[Steve Mathews]

I would like to attend a woodturning event this year for the first time. I'm aware of the AAW Symposium in Portland, OR and one in Waco, TX. Are there any others? Which one would you recommend?

[Bobby McCarley]

Just my opinion, SWAT in Waco is the best bang for the buck. Dropped off some during COVID, but is slowly making it's way back.

Bobby
Louisiana

[Jason Edwards]

Portland AAW will probably be a little smaller this year. Anytime the AAW goes to a "corner" of the US, the attendance drops off. That said, it's more international and "artsy" than SWAT. As Bobby said, SWAT is probably your best bang for the buck, but it's a lot more regional. Still, an excellent event. It's held in the same place every year and the same gang of clubs puts it on. They have all the bugs worked out. The only downside: Have you ever been to Waco in August??? Both of these events will have attendance either side of 1,000.

There are a number of other regional ones. Later this month is Tennessee Area Woodturning Symposium, just south of Nashville. It's a very nice event with about 350 attendees. Some other regional's (figure 200-400 attendees): Turn on Chicago, Rocky Mountain, Totally Turning. There's one in Florida next month. I'm sure others will chime in with others.

[Reed Gray]

Well, which one is easier for you to get to? It will be 'information overload'! First one I went to, by Sunday, my brain was fried trying to absorb everything. I have never been to the SWAT since it is on a weekend that I have had a 40+ year camp out with a bunch of friends. It is supposed to be a very good event.

robo hippy

[Walter Mooney]

Steve, in my opinion, it’s SWAT. As Bobby said, and I’ve heard numerous people say regarding SWAT vs. AAW symposium, SWAT is the best bang for the buck! And as Jason implied, it usually is hot in Waco in August. This past year, it was only 104 degrees there :-). But you go from your hotel to the convention center to the hotel, so the heat’s not too much of a problem!

Hope to see you there in August!

[Richard Coers]

I went to one AAW Symposium and never went back. It was standing room only in the demo rooms and if you really wanted to see a demonstrator, you had to get a seat about 2 demonstrators before the one you really wanted to see. I ended up spending more time in the retail sales and demonstration area. At least there you could get close enough to the demonstrator that you could ask a question. I am a much bigger fan of small regional symposiums. My favorite one now is the Midwest Penturners Gathering in Hoffman Estates, IL. Of course I am biased since I ran the symposium for 4 years and am now a demonstrator and vendor. A few over 300 attendees and you will absolutely not go home with questions. Last year they added demos of other turning projects, not just pens. Close to O-Hare if flying in.

[Don Frank]

Both if you can but I'm a fan of Swat. Very well run show and great demos. Even though it's 104 outside don't make the mistake of wearing shorts and t shirt inside. They usually have the AC cranked down to 65 lol. I wear jeans and long sleeve shirts.

[Dwayne Watt]

I was going to post the same thing as Don. I think 65F is being generous. It is typically very cold in the Waco Civic Center rooms during SWAT. The folks wearing shorts and t-shirts aren't happy campers by mid-afternoon. Funny thing is AAW in Louisville this past year was almost as bad. Neither Waco nor Louisville had any issues with standing room only. A couple of the rooms in Waco are a bit on the small side, though.

All that said, IMHO, SWAT is a good show overall. The instant galleries are similar although the AAW is a bit larger and perhaps a bit more artsy. The demo rooms are all different sizes but all have video screens to see the demos close up. The sponsoring clubs bring in their respective AV equipment, so the quality between rooms can be a bit hit or miss. AAW had standardized, single boom mounted camera in each room while clubs typically have two or three camera setups that can be better than the AAW setup. Our club sponsors one of the rooms at Waco and we limit our AV setup to a 3 camera system whereas the club's demo area typically has up to 5 cameras.

[Steve Mathews]

Portland and Waco are about the same distance from me in Kingman, AZ. Sounds like I can't go wrong with either events. I've been to Portland a number of times but never in Waco so the later would be something new to me.

[Steve Nix]

You will like SWAT, not as artsy as the AAW and a better bang for your buck, and Waco is a nice clean city.

[Don Frank]

There are lots of wood vendors at swat as well. You can find about anything you are looking for. I try to go every year. If I just didn't have to drive past Dallas to get there it would be perfect.

[Alan Heffernan]

SWAT in Waco for me. BTW, I was amused by AAW's latest magazine article about how safe Portland is now.

[Jim Barkelew]

Waco is only a 2-hour drive so we try to attend every year. If you think it's hot in August just remember that 100 years ago there was no air conditioning. Not only do you get SWAT but close are the Texas Ranger Museum, the Dr Pepper Museum, the Silos, and the Mammoth National Monument. They rearranged the room layout at the last SWAT to fix the standing room problem.