The Maker’s Quest
The Maker’s Quest explores the journey of making things and living a creative life. From how to be creative, design things, and bring those things to life through physical fabrication or digital mediums. Join us on our quest to explore the world of how to make things and meet other makers.
Episodes
Dive into the latest Maker's Quest podcast where Brian Benham details his epic root-over-rock chess table build and Greg Porter reveals his new guitar side-bending machine. A deep dive into custom woodworking and luthiery.
Hosted by Brian Benham from Benham Design Conceptshttps://www.benhamdesignconcepts.com/
Brian's Blog https://www.briansbenham.com/ Brian Benham on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/benhamdesignconcepts.com YouTu...
In this episode of the Maker's Quest Podcast, hosts Brian Benham from Benham Design Concepts and Greg Porter from Skyscraper Guitars delved into the often-overlooked reality of failure in the creative process—especially when turning ideas into marketable products. Both seasoned makers shared candid stories of their struggles, lessons learned, and how embracing failure is a non-neg...
We thought it would be an excellent opportunity to look back at 2024—our favorite shop upgrades, biggest projects, and lessons learned—and then peek ahead at what’s in store for 2025.
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Hosted by Brian BenhamPortfolio: https://www.benhamdesignconcepts.com/ Brian Benham on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/pro...
If you’ve ever dabbled in CNC machining or dreamed of turning your garage into a mini manufacturing hub, you’ll know that the journey is equally thrilling and frustrating. In this episode, Brian and Greg take you through their CNC journey—from their first modest machine to new upgrades.
Hosted by Brian Benham
Portfolio: https://www.benhamdesignconcepts.com/
Brian On Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@benham_design Brian On Instagram...
In this episode, we talk about influential people who shaped us into makers. Brian and Greg reminisce about people from their past who helped guide them and inspired them as they journeyed along the path of becoming makers.
Hosted by Brian BenhamPortfolio: https://www.benhamdesignconcepts.com/ Brian’s Woodworking Plans: https://www.digitaldesignconcepts.art/ Brian On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/benham_design/ YouTube: htt...
In this episode, Greg and Brian discussed their experiences mentoring interns and apprentices in their respective woodworking and architecture businesses. They discussed the potential benefits and challenges of hiring an intern, with Brian stressing the importance of fair compensation.
Hosted by Brian BenhamPortfolio: https://www.benhamdesignconcepts.com/
Brian’s Woodworking Plans: https://www.digitaldesignconcepts.art/
In this episode, Brian and Greg talk about how they set up their tools in their shop and how important it is to set up tools accurately They then share a few tips on tool setup.
Hosted By: Brian BenhamPortfolio: https://www.benhamdesignconcepts.com/custom-furniture-colorado-springs/
Brian’s Woodworking Plans: https://www.digitaldesignconcepts.art/
Brian On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/benham_design/ YouTube: https://www.y...
In this episode, we talk about people we follow for design inspiration. Some of them might surprise you, as inspiration can come from anywhere.
For a full list, check out our show notes
Hosted by Brian Benham
Portfolio: https://www.benhamdesignconcepts.com/custom-furniture-colorado-springs/
Brian On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/benham_design/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXO8f1IIliMKKlu5PgSpodQ
Greg PorterThe guys talk about staying safe in the shop, how to stay safe, wanting to look out to keep you safe, and developing good shop habits. They finish the episode by sharing some of their horror of unfortunate shop accidents; the end gets gruesome, so you've been warned!
Hosted by Brian Benhamhttps://www.benhamdesignconcepts.com/custom-furniture-denver-colorado/
Brian On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/benham_design/ YouTube: ht...
In this episode, the guys talk about their experiences at tradeshows, art galleries, and arts and crafts shows. They talk about what they do to make the show successful and things that are challenging.
Hosted by Brian Benham
Portfolio: https://www.behance.net/Brian_Benham Brian On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/benham_design/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXO8f1IIliMKKlu5PgSpodQ C...
Today, we take a break from discussing designs and making topics and talk a little about what we have going on in our shops: current projects, new projects on the horizon, and the daily grind of being a maker.
Show Notes- Brian has a large steel table base in the shop, working on new patination processes. The sheer size makes him wish he had a shop helper to help schlep it around.
- He had challenges controlling the chemicals...
Curt creates handmade pens from Titanium that are precision machined in his home workshop. He got his start from his curiosity in machining and CAD. He created a pen for himself and started carrying it around with him, and people noticed and commented on the quality. It wasn't long before he was able to quit his job and make pens full-time.
You can connect with Curt at
Website: https://www.confoundedmachine.com/
YouTube: https:...
Today, we talked with Custom Drum maker Bryan Bales. Bryan got his start in drum making from his curiosity of wanting to learn how to make drums and his love for making things.
Bryan can be found on Instagram at Bales5000, his YouTube is Bales5000, and he is active on Instructables, sharing his drum and prop builds,
When he is not building crazy experimental drums or over-the-top Halloween costumes, he works with his friend at Cal...
Is social media still a viable way to promote your business, or is the new business model to be a content creator, making products secondary?
Today, we talk about our past successes and our future strategies for getting our products out in front of people.
Show Notes- Instagram Top 9 in the hashtags, is it still a thing
- Brian says Social Media no longer sends him much passive income
- Organic growth on social media is dead
- You ha...
Tonight, we talk about how to price your work so you can run a successful business and put food on your table. Whether it is pricing a custom piece or a mass-manufactured piece, we've got you covered with a few tips you can implement today to price your work for success!
Hosted by
Brian Benham https://www.benhamdesignconcepts.com/
Greg Porter https://skyscraperguitars.com/
Greg Porter https://skyscraperguitars.com/ Greg...
This is a common issue for creatives that make things. We all have active imaginations; we can visualize lots of things. Then the distractions come into play. We are drawn to the new shiny project or derailed by a project that we have to do to make money to keep the bills paid.
https://www.themakersquest.com/how-many-projects-are-too-many-projects-ep17
Greg Porter https://skyscraperguitars.com/ Greg On Instagram: https://www.insta...
In this episode, the guys talk about the power of staying curious and how it will help you stay creative in your journey as a maker.
Show notes: https://www.themakersquest.com/how-to-stay-curious-to-stay-creative
Hosted by
Greg Porter https://skyscraperguitars.com/ Greg On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gregsgaragekc/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/SkyscraperGuitars YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/GregsGarage
In today's episode, Brian and Greg Talk about different techniques for gathering inspiration for their designs and then iterating from basic design principles to more abstract concepts and techniques.
Show Notes:
https://www.themakersquest.com/gathering-insperation-for-designs-ep15
Hosted byGreg Porter https://skyscraperguitars.com/ Greg On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gregsgaragekc/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Skys...
In this episode, Brian and Greg talk about how learning new things by learning how to learn.
Setting aside preconceived notions about what you think something is about will help you approach learning with an open mind. Then they talk about Chat GPT and how to use it to help us learn and become better critical thinkers.
Show notes: https://www.themakersquest.com/learn-how-to-learn-ep14
Hosted byGreg Porter https://skyscraperguita...
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