A Visit to Kalamazoo Cooperage
A Trip to Kalamazoo Cooperage Recently I visited Kalamazoo Cooperage and spent a morning with Ben Aldrich and Gerren Young. What an exciting visit this was for me. When I arrived I knew right away this was an unusual place. The mountain of saw dust next to the building was the first clue. The wisp of smoke on the morning air and the smell of charring white oak barrels really peaked my interest. I have been coopering for more than 20 years. Much of that time has been spent teaching coopering at Tillers International. I love the craft of coopering; I’m always enthusiastic to visit other shops. I first met Ben in one of my coopering classes. He wanted to learn coopering and what a great student he was. Ben was a natural cooper. His skills with hand tools are outstanding. When I asked him about that he explained that for 18 years he was a pipe organ builder. A trade that required mastery of many tools and techniques. However, pipe organs are kind of going the same direction as buggy whips; not entirely gone but not in much demand. Another victim of the digital revolution. However, Ben is still busy before Christmas and Easter each year tuning pipe organs around the area. For several years Ben made his living as a cabinet maker and finish carpenter. Gerren is equally as interesting. Gerren started out in woodworking making wooden drums. What a great introduction to coopering. His drums are fantastic, with amazing woods and incredible tight joints. They are usually turned on a large wood lathe that he has. I first met Gerren at our woodworking club meeting. He learned about my shop [...]
