Feature Friday // Braxton Wirthlin

This is a new segment that I have wanted to start on the blog and on YouTube for a while now called Feature Fridays.
On Fridays I will be featuring a fellow woodworker that you might not have heard of before.

This week for my first ever Feature Friday meet Braxton Wirthlin

Braxton Wirthlin is from Las Vegas, Nevada.

He has been building things from wood, metal, and pretty much anything else he could get his hands on for as long as he can remember.

He runs a custom woodworking company called Timber Manufacturing and recently started a YouTube channel featuring tips, how to’s, and build videos.

“My love of woodworking really started when I took my first wood shop class in junior high school. After that, I took as many classes as I could throughout junior high and in to high school. Even to this day, I am still taking woodworking classes through the continuing education program from the University Nevada Las Vegas. The classes are run out of a really cool studio here in Las Vegas called Wood It Is,  taught by an awesome lady named Jamie Yocono. Jamie has not only become a friend, but has also had a very big influence on my woodworking. She allows students to come down for open shop time every Saturday, and also hosts the monthly club meetings for Sin City Woodworkers in her shop.”

In addition to traditional woodworking, Braxton is  also an avid wood turner.

“I have had the wonderful opportunity of taking turning classes from a gentleman by the name of Jimmy Clewes. Jimmy is english woodturner who resides here in Las Vegas. He quickly become a friend and another very influential person in my life. I truly believe that no matter how much you know, there’s always room to learn more. By surrounding yourself with people who you not only respect, but who are also willing to share their knowledge with you, is one of the best ways to bring your woodworking to the next level.”

 

“I no longer ride BMX because of a few pretty serious injuries, but all that filming and editing I did at that time really helped towards what  I’m doing now. Currently, I do all my filming with an iPhone 6 and an iPad mini, and I edit on a 27” iMac. In addition to the filming and editing of BMX videos, I also had a small clothing company in my BMX days. During that time I learned how to create my own logos for shirts, hats, and stickers. I really didn’t think what I was doing back then would play such a large role in what I’m doing now, but it definitely did. I  whole heartedly loved BMX and wanted to make my mark on the industry. Now that I’m older, I realize how important that part of my life was. Everything I learned then, led up to this point in my life. I’ve just shifted the focus of my filming, editing, and graphic design from BMX to woodworking and Youtube videos. “

“I don’t really remember one particular project where I said ‘This is it! I love woodworking!’ I’ve just always really loved building things. Lincoln logs, legos, pipe works, tinker toys, anything I could get my hands on that you could build stuff with was what I gravitated towards growing up. A lot of times the stuff I built as i got older was out of necessity more than anything. Growing up riding BMX in Las Vegas in the mid 90’s-early 2000’s meant you either rode dirt jumps or you rode street. There were no skate parks in the area then. One upside to riding during that time was the huge boom in construction here in Las Vegas. It’s not one of the more proud moments in my life, but my friends and I definitely spent lots of nights “acquiring” plywood and 2×4’s to build our own half pipes, box jumps, grind boxes, and spines. Building ramps was where learned how to build large projects. That knowledge has allowed me to build some of the large projects I’ve undertaken lately. After our late night wood runs my friends and I would get together with no plans at all and at the end of the day we’d have our own skatepark to ride in someones backyard. In high school, I didn’t build too many decorative or furniture based projects, my wood shop teacher pretty much gave us full creative control and allowed us to build anything we wanted. More often than not that lead to building speaker boxes for the trunks of everyones cars. I also used a lathe for the first time in high school which really helped solidify my love of wood turning today.”

“Big thanks to my beautiful, loving wife for allowing me the opportunity to chase my dream of building things for a living.”