To Whom it May Concern

I have had the pleasure and good fortune of being assisted at length by Nathan Ransley and his father from Turning Point Woodworks over several years during various building projects in my Georgian house in Tasmania. All of these undertakings have met with excellent results. The most complex of these projects involved the creation of a staircase and called for the crafting of a massive handrail from a single piece of timber cut from an irreplaceable log of Huon Pine weighing over two hundred kilograms. There was no room for the slightest error and no going back once fundamental decisions had been made as to how to proceed.

The team from Turning Point Woodworks was prepared to travel a long distance to view the site of construction, to study the unique beam of timber and to converse at length about what was envisaged, what was possible in a technical sense and what was not feasible. They proved to be studious and soon demonstrated a sensitive understanding of the concepts I wanted to convey to them. The technical challenges were severe.

In conversations of this kind a balance between the vision of the owner and the skills of the tradesmen involved is always likely to be a delicate issue but Nathan, on both the technical and artistic fronts, managed to achieve perfect harmony in the sense of offering sound, insightful and important advice without detracting from the original creative impulse that drove the project. The advancement of the design became a matter of teamwork and Nathan never failed to explain in clear terms where and why changes were advisable. His input resulted in many improvements.

The detailed preparations notwithstanding, Nathan suggested the construction of dummy prototypes of inexpensive timber. These allowed the development of the complex techniques for machining the wood, which, given the size of the beam, tested the limits of the equipment available. Some bespoke specialized cutters were required to be manufactured outside of Australia and Nathan saw to this without fuss. At all stages I was kept up to date. Reasons for delays were always explained and the need for further small changes conveyed to me on a weekly or even daily basis. It is worth noting that this standard of professionalism was maintained over many months. The great Huon Pine beam had to be rested many times between dozens of cuts to ensure that the timber was not warping, a skill few craftsmen would understand these days.

The project met entirely with my expectations. At all stages the attention to detail was of the highest order. The work on the various stages of the undertaking was always completed within the anticipated time frames, although it must be stressed that the nature of this project was such that it was always going to take many months to complete. Nathan was never tempted to take short cuts, no matter how much trouble this would have saved him and the team

At various stages the work required co-ordination with the efforts of other tradesmen and Nathan always managed these situations with professionalism, courtesy and friendliness. The final installation of the bannister was seamless and the way the whole came together and married into the existing architectural features was a source of great joy to all involved. In terms of craftsmanship, artistry, friendly relationships and value for money I cannot recommend Turning Point Woodworks more highly.

Dr. James Marchant, Woodlands House, Campania

We first met Nathan Ransley at a Festival Market where he was selling his wares, we were impressed with the quality of his woodwork and bought several items.  In conversation we discovered that he also worked with kitchens and bathrooms. We invited him to visit us at our home and look at some work we had planned.

Although we did not go ahead with the renovation of our kitchen due to personal reasons we were very impressed with the thought and planning that Nathan put into the consultation.

We employed him and his father, Patrick to do some excavation work beneath the house to stop mould on the bedroom wall.  The work was completed with great thought and planning and was completely effective.Later we asked Nathan to design us a pergola for our newly landscaped garden and we requested the use of bush poles rather than dressed timber.  He provided these from his own property.The project took enormous forethought and planning in order to erect the huge poles and the finished result is everything and more than we had hoped for entirely representing our original plans.

Lastly (for now, as we intend to use Nathan again) we asked him to build us a large outdoors table for use under the pergola for meals and entertaining.  Nathan asked us to send some images of our ideas and an approximation of size and how many the table was designed to seat.  He sourced Huon Pine and King Billy timber for the project and it was delivered ready in time for Christmas as we had especially requested.  I am attaching the original image we sent and also images of the finished project to demonstrate how closely Nathan was able to interpret our request.

Nathan is always open to our ideas.  He is always ready to advise and consult with us.  His finished product always exceeds our expectations.His work is top quality with admirable attention to detail.  He keeps us informed of the progress of any project he is working on and listens to and complies with any change of plans we might have.

When he is working on our property he is always sensitive to our needs and our space so as to cause as little disruption to us as possible.His quotes and work are always on time and within our discussed budget.He is a sensitive and attentive listener.

We regard Nathan as a “treasure”.

Judith and Chris Cornish – Live History productions.

Greenwich Pastoral

PO Box 37

Hamilton Tas 7140

20/11/2013

To Whom It May Concern:

We have contracted Nathan Ransley of Turning Point Wood Works to build a new kitchen for us in 2010 and to renovate a cottage which required a timber floor and a new kitchen in 2012. In both instances the projects were delivered to our expectations, on time and to budget.

We felt confident our concepts and ideas for the projects were listened too and this was acknowledged in the design and budgets prior to commencement. We found that Nathan advised us of potential issues in the planning phases of both projects and suggested solutions and took time to discuss and explain all options available to us.

Both projects had there challenges as they were renovations in houses that did not have square walls or level floors and in both circumstances when confronted with a problem where possible it was discussed with us prior to proceeding with the solution to ensure the outcome was as we anticipated. Additional costs were advised in a timely manner.

Nathan is a methodical, careful and a passionate craftsman who measured accurately. Both kitchens were installed with minimal upheaval which we attribute to his attention to detail in his design process.

Nathan strove to have projects delivered on time and unavoidable delays were communicated in a timely manner and therefore we felt the projects were as seamless as possible in there instalments and completions.

We always felt comfortable discussing issues along the way and were listened to and in all situations the problems were rectified without fuss.

Please do not hesitate to call Mary on 0409 363 250 if you require any further clarification on the skill set of Nathan.

C & J Roberts - The Willows

189 Rayners Hill Road, Ellendale, Tasmania 7140                

Thursday 31st January 2013

It is with huge appreciation I am writing this letter of recommendation for Nathan Ransley and his business Turning Point Woodworks.

Last year I enquired as to whether or not Nathan would be interested in making the new bench tops for my kitchen. I had already sourced some weathered myrtle locally which I thought would just fit the size of bench tops required.

Nathan was most professional in his approach to the job and used caution in his acceptance until he had seen and tested the wood I had to offer. Whilst I had a clear idea of what I wanted the kitchen to look like with the finished product in place, Nathan was able to enhance the design from my rough drawings and explain very clearly what would work and what would perhaps not. He gave me an anticipated installation date which would ensure the bench tops were fitted prior to Christmas.

Nathan was extremely professional in his approach to the situation and took measurements of the kitchen walls and the cupboards and made up drawings. He tested the wood to make sure the finish would be what we thought and in a very reasonable time frame was able to install the bench tops. There was a slight hic-up when one of the slabs of wood became unsuitable due to its size and Nathan informed us he had already found a suitable replacement and had lost no time in the schedule.

Indeed the benches were in place before Christmas and looked fantastic. The level of craftsmanship shown by this young man is incredible. His knowledge and understanding of his chosen medium are exceptional and his ability is clearly reflected in the outstanding product he delivers to his clients.

I have absolutely no hesitation in recommending Nathan to any prospective client for all of the above. He is professional and polite, understanding and passionate.

I wish Nathan all the very best for the future.

Yours sincerely Carl Roberts