Russ Filbeck lives in San Diego, CA. Retired from the United States Navy’s Submarine Service. He is a graduate of San Diego State University with Bachelor and Master degrees in Industrial Studies.
Russ is an Associate Professor in the Cabinet and Furniture Technology Division at Palomar College located just north of San Diego in San Marcos, CA. His classes include: beginning, intermediate and advanced furniture making, beginning and advanced wood finishing, Classic American Chair Designs (Appalachian Ladder Back and Windsor chairs), wood bending, and tune-up and sharpening of woodworking tools. He also has a furniture repair and refinishing business (Wood It Be Beautiful!).
He is a member and past president of the San Diego Fine Woodworker’s Association. Russ is an avid chair maker, building Appalachian Ladder Back chairs, Colonial Windsor chairs and the occasional Maloof style rocking chair. Each summer, Russ travels to Missouri and Kentucky to harvest oak, walnut and cherry logs, bringing them back to San Diego. His chair making students then have the fresh, riven (split) material needed to make the Windsor and Ladder Back chairs. He also harvests the hickory bark from fresh cut logs to weave the Ladder Back chair seats.
Russ donated two of his Appalachian rocking chairs to the New York City Fire Fighter’s families and the Pentagon families following the 9-11-01 bombings. His most recent rocking chair donation was to President Carter’s annual fund raising auction benefiting the Carter Center. He also donates two chairs to the MS Societies annual fund raising auctions.
PROFESSIONAL ARTICLES, PUBLICATION &
TV APPEARANCES
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Professional Refinishing Magazine issue #1 (Furniture Repair)
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Wood Magazine issue September, 2002 (Award Winning Oil Finish)
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Wood Magazine issue #164 September, 2005 (The Enduring Locked Tenon and Socket)
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Wood Magazine Issue 175, March 2007, "Bend Wood to Your Will" Steam bending process
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Fine Woodworking’s Tools & Shops, Winter, 2002 (Spoke Shave design)
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Taunton Press’ The Workbench, A Complete Guide to Creating Your Perfect Bench, by Lon Schleining (Shaving Horse/ Workbench by Russ Filbeck)
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HGTV's Modern Masters Episode #808 features Russ building his signature rocking chair, July, 2003
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Modern Masters is currently in rerun on the Fine Living channel
- Wood Worker West, January - February 2006, Craftsman Profile
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