HANDS-ON HANDIWORK
James Klym watches his son Trevor use a lathe in Helios Makerspace, a workshop open for the public that Klym and co-director Romain Huon operate in St-Henri. It’s expanding, and holds an open house this weekend, Bill Brownstein writes.
In one corner, a craftsman is putting the finishing touches on a flute he has just built from scratch. Not to be outdone is the fellow who has just fashioned an ultra-awesome electric guitar made from the wood of — yes — 20 skateboards.
In another corner, a teenage boy is diligently working on a lathe, in the process of sculpting a pen. And in yet another corner, an electronics workshop is about to get underway.
Atelier Helios Makerspace in St-Henri is a community workshop pretty much unlike any other.
Launched five years ago by Concordia University electrical engineering graduates, it was initially conceived as a spot to focus on electronics projects and 3D printing.
But it has since mushroomed into much more, so much so that it is doubling its space from 3,000 to more than 6,000 square feet in its St-Ferdinand St. warehouse home and will be celebrating the occasion with an open house on Saturday.
Helios provides not only all manner of woodworking and electronics equipment but, through its staff, also offers mentorship and instruction in an array of areas. It is open Wednesdays through Saturdays, except for this week as it prepares for Saturday’s big event in its expanded facilities.
Clients include amateur hobbyists, from teens to seniors, as well as professionals, who are able to operate their businesses out of the space and are able to save on overheads as a result.
Clients are required to bring in their own supplies and pay monthly fees ($50; $40 for students) to take advantage of the equipment and teaching. Every Thursday, Helios does a free open house for prospective newcomers to check out the space.
Helios now boasts more than 600 clients, but its directors expect that number to grow significantly with the additional space.
James Klym and Romain Huon are two of Helios’s directors and are on hand to operate the facility and to offer instruction in their specific areas of expertise.
Huon is knowledgeable in everything from electronics to computers to 3D printing.
Klym, a musician and creator of the aforementioned electric guitar from skateboard parts, not only teaches the rudiments of guitar-making ( both acoustic and electric) but also gives courses on playing the instrument.
The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree here, either. Klym’s 13-year-old son, Trevor (the one fashioning a pen on the lathe) gives woodworking instruction to the 12- to 15-year-olds who drop in to the centre. He is moving from making pens to guitars under the aegis of his father.
Most of the amateur hobbyists at Helios focus on fashioning more simple spice racks and furniture before taking on the intricacies of guitars.
“When I first started here two years ago, we had hobbyist equipment, like the sort of stuff you could buy at Canadian Tire,” says Klym, who now operates his guitar-making business from Helios. “But we’ve since upgraded to machine-quality tools, three times the size of what we had. And we continue to add and upgrade.
“So with the guitar lessons and equipment, let’s just say we have our fair share of noise in the building. But the real beauty of this space is that it’s totally inclusive, to men and women of all ages. We also have the branching-out workshops for the LGBTQ community. We want to be all things to all people.”
First and foremost in instruction, particularly in woodworking, is tool safety. This is an area Klym takes most seriously.
A decade back, he lost a couple of fingers in a woodworking accident and spent five years in rehabilitation. But since then he has not only resumed guitarmaking and teaching, but also playing once again.
“Safety can’t be stressed enough here,” Klym says.
“Our philosophy is that we don’t do or teach anything that is dangerous,” says Huon, a former Canadian soldier who turned to electronics and computers after sustaining an injury on duty in Afghanistan. “The idea is to get people involved in cool projects that they might never have undertaken before.”
Like flute-making for example. Flautist Alexandre Lavoie has been making flutes — ranging in price from $500 to $2,000 — for the last four years at Helios. Lavoie, who graduated with a master’s degree in the field, plays jazz and classical on the side and is only too happy to pass on his insights on making and playing the instrument.
“This is quite the setup here,” says Lavoie, after playing a few bars on his newest flute. “The atmosphere is just so diverse, but so fascinating as well. It is truly unique.”