First of many questions...

[jprincer]

Just joined and looking forward to starting scrolling.  I bought a used scroll saw this summer.  Another scroller (is that a term?) told me, after I bought it, it's older and may have some vibration issues but it'll work to give it a go.  I am still making room for it in the garage.  I am wondering what other tools I may need to get started. I do not have a drill press for making guide/starter holes but thought I'd try to find a used Dremel for that.  Any thoughts or advice for a beginner just starting out would be greatly appreciated.  Ideas for wood sources?  Blade choice/use? Thanks!

[Iguanadon]

Hi Jason, 

Welcome.  Ask all the questions you want and folks will chime in.  Most of what you'll learn will be by trial and error... types of wood, thickness of wood, which blades, what to make... It's truly endless.  My bit of advice is start simple, get familiar with the saw and how it cuts, then experiment with different types of projects.  Intricate fretwork likely isn't the place to start as any tiny false move and you'll have a mess and it'll just frustrate you.

Personally, I buy my wood from Lowe's and Home Depot but be sure to check out hardwood specialty stores in your area.

Take a look at the website Wooden Teddy Bear for tons of options of things to make.  http://www.woodenteddybearonline.com/x/  There are also plenty of free patterns available here and other sites.

Enjoy the adventure.

Iggy

[crupiea]

Your regular drill bits and such should work when you are starting out.  As for wood think about what you want to do.  For portraits like people do the easiest is baltic birch. The most common thicknesses are 1/8" and 1/4" so either one will be fine.

For things like puzzle like those animal type puzzles you see just use some basic pine boards.    

no sense getting too wrapped up with too much money when first starting out.

You will need some blades, its possible to go through a lot of them at a single sitting so spend a few bucks on getting a lot of them.  Flying dutchman, olsen, pegasus are a few that people use. i prefer flying dutchman and many will agree on these.  They are sold by size so look up a size chart, easy to find online.  An example would be a #7 would be for thicker stock, the numbers will go down the thinner the wood gets so for starting out on a pine board that is 3/4" thick you will be fine with a #5 blade, for thin wood use a smaller number.

 

Its best to but them online as most stores just dont carry them and it will drive you nuts looking for them. woodenteddybear is pretty much the outlet for flying dutchman blades.

you will see a bunch of types as well. i use fd-sr, flying dutchman, they have reverse teeth so they cut on the up and down strokes so it leaves a smooth finish without a bunch of burrs. also fd-ur will work great.  

 

 

 

[bandaideman]

Welcome and all here have been where you are now so ask the questions someone has had the same experience and solved it. When I first started I stayed with no hole projects and got used to the saw just cutting little things like teddy bear shapes, hearts. cats Letters with large inside cuts etc. then I would paint them. My wife thought the were cute. The first saw had 2 speeds low and high and used pin in blades so as mentioned above delicate fret work did not happen. After time on the first saw a few months I had opportunity to buy a Dewalt. I was making holes with a hand drill since I had to only fret out big areas and could use a bit large enough for the pin end blade. The time spent was worth it to get the hang of the saw and the cutting. Patterns from coloring books sometimes are good starters. As for wood I started with what ever was laying around or out of dumpster diving. Stuck to plywood (cheap), poor quality pine, old used wood. As I got better and practice I started to use Oak, walnut cherry and purchased some but much of my wood came from friends that I gave what I made and they would say I have this old piece or oak from a dresser or something. Best score was a doctor I worked with who had built his own barn from trees on his property to house his vintage John deere tractors. He gave me things he couldn't use like 10 to 12 foot pieces of walnut and oak. Just keep your eyes open and I just have issues turning down free wood. May help to know type of machine you have. Blades i have used Flying dutchman for years but the blade is what you are comfortable cutting with does the best cut and lasts for you. Try a variety and you will find yours.

[WayneMahler]

Welcome to village and the addiction. Some really good advice has been given. Get used to the saw and blades with simple outside shapes. Try them in various thicknesses to see how it all reacts. There a lot of places to get free patterns, here at the village is one of them, Steve Good is another. You can also just google line art images of what ever you want, letters, dogs, cats etc. Be patient, go slow and ask questions. As for something to start out understanding some things about the blades. Olson has a great chart for free, you can find it here and maybe print it out. Personally I use Flying Dutchman but everyone has their own opinions. Have fun and enjoy it.

[Gonzo]

Two books you might want to look into to help you. Scroll Saw Workbook by John A Nelson. And/or, Big Book is Scroll Saw Woodworking by Scroll Saw Woodworking & Crafts magazine. (Said magazine is pretty good too. Actually damn good in my opinion). Both of those books may help you get started. 

[SCROLLSAW703]

welcome to the forum & the greatest addiction since diesel smoke!;);) Like Mr. Wayne said, it'd help us more to know the breed of your saw. 

When you start lookin' at blades, don't let all the types & sizes intimidate ya. You'll learn that as you go along.  Ya don't need a drill press to get started. If you've got a cordless drill & small bits(1/16" - 1/8") will suffice. Personally, were I you, I'd stick to outside cuts for now until you get to know your saw, & figure out the vibration. Maybe we can help with that from here. I mainly use Flying Dutchman & Olson blades, but there are many other preference here.

Edited August 21, 2017 by SCROLLSAW703

[ike]

Tools tools tools every body needs tools. Drill Press I have a craftmans $ 150. An awl to inlarge the staarting hole $ 5,  sander I love my Mouse. $ 40, You can get these on cregslist for a lot cheeper That is the 3 basic tools yu will need. Blsdes They sell a virity pack of sizes Some buy these and then decide what size you need but I use Olson's baldes in the 2 main sizes #5 & #7 Mostly #5 m R ( 7 reversed teeth at the bottom to clear away the chips.  That would  be a good start. There is other tools that you will get at a later date.

IKE

[redwine]

Welcome to the addiction of scrollsawing! The way I got started a few years back was with a Dremel saw picked up at Home Depot at half price and what few blades that was included. I already had a Dremel tool for drilling and some thin scrap wood on hand so I took a pencil and drew a bunch of wiggly lines and some circles, drilled some holes and proceeded to see if I could follow the lines. It took a while getting used to a tool that I knew not one thing about not to mention that I was not a wood worker in any shape or means. By the end of the day I was fairly comfortable with the saw and had tried different blades and speeds. Do start out at slower speeds to get used to what your saw will do and to be able to control the wood and follow the line. Don't over think what the saw is doing, just go slow and easy and it will come to you as to what you want to do. The main thing is to have fun and be safe.

Erv

 

[MTCowpoke22]

Get ready to go down the rabbit hole. Good advice above. Sounds like you've got most of what you need already. Only thing I'd add would be small set of riffler files. You should be able to find some reasonably cheap on-line or at your local hardware store. They are handy for removing the fuzzies and burrs from the bottom of your cuts.  

[WayneG]

biggest tips I can give you are this. 

Guide the piece of wood into/around the blade just think of it like holding and guiding a steering wheel of a vehicle, don't push it, let the saw work.

When doing a piece with inside cuts, drill the holes then flip the board over and take a counter sink bit and slightly drill each hole to form a depression in the wood. Saves hours and your back, the blade is easy to thread then.

Practice techniques of making sharp corners, they help immensely and I use different techniques in different scenarios.

Do 98% of your sanding prior to ever touching the piece of wood with your saw or drill (press)

Lastly when you get frustrated and you will when you challenge your scrolling skills, step away and go do something else for an hour, day or more. Then you will come back fresh.

Have fun, wood is awesome you can do anything with it

[Sparkey]

Welcome Jason. I prefer to drill my holes with the Dremmel over my drill press. I buy my plywood at Lowes. I can buy a 4 by 8 sheet of 1/4" maple and oak for $29 and underlayment for $19. The underlayment has one side that is very nice, I have used a lot of it. They will also cut it into smaller pieces for free so I can fit it in my car and not have to take my truck. As far as blades you will probably have to try a lot of different ones to find what you like. I like the FD new 3/0 spirals and not many others like spirals at all. We all like to see pictures so post them as you cut them out.

[jprincer]

Thanks for all the advice and encouragement.  I hope to get set up and started Sunday.  Someone asked what saw I was using.  It's a Tool Shop MQ60 Variable Speed 22" Scroll Saw.  It takes pinned end blades.  I've been in touch with the folks at Wooden Teddy Bear about blades. I am going to pick some up locally because I want to tinker Sunday.  I'll also be looking for some scrap wood.  I only wish I had a manual for the saw. I'm still looking online.  I've designed a project using Publisher I'd like to do for my wife but it's probably too ambitious right away.  Years ago I was a graphic deisgner working in advertising so I am also interested in working on designing some stuff.  Thanks again for all the help!!

Edited August 25, 2017 by jprincer

[amazingkevin]

On 8/20/2017 at 4:22 PM, jprincer said:

Just joined and looking forward to starting scrolling.  I bought a used scroll saw this summer.  Another scroller (is that a term?) told me, after I bought it, it's older and may have some vibration issues but it'll work to give it a go.  I am still making room for it in the garage.  I am wondering what other tools I may need to get started. I do not have a drill press for making guide/starter holes but thought I'd try to find a used Dremel for that.  Any thoughts or advice for a beginner just starting out would be greatly appreciated.  Ideas for wood sources?  Blade choice/use? Thanks!

Let us know what brand an model you bought used .You have good taste to chose a dremil plunge tool for your pilot holes,very fast and convenient to use and your not limited to 9" like a drill press.Its a good thing to have your holes at 90 degrees.

[jprincer]

Hah! Found a manual.  Different model/name but same saw with a slightly different RPM range on the dial. Yeah!!

[Dimork]

I need a manual for the tool shop mq60 scroll saw as well, any ideas?

[Dimork]

On 8/24/2017 at 9:35 PM, jprincer said:

Hah! Found a manual.  Different model/name but same saw with a slightly different RPM range on the dial. Yeah!!

 

[scrollingforsanity]

Welcome to the scroll saw world, I am sure you will enjoy it. I may be wrong but I believe you will have to get Olson blades to get the pinned end version. I would think a #3 or #5 would be a good place to start. This will limit how delicate of work you can do due to the drilled hole size for the pinned end blade. The good news is there are lots of projects to cut using the pinned end blades. Have fun and don't get discouraged if all your projects don't turn out perfect. A lot of ours don't either. Just keep sawing and you will be surprised what you can create.

grizz

[Dimork]

Hi there, I  bought the same saw as jprincer bought. Tool shop 22" mq60 240-2059. He said he found a manual similar to it. Wonder if anyone could find out what manual he talked about. Having a hard time finding manual. Please help, thanks diane. Looking forward to scrolling.

 

[OCtoolguy]

I just did a little bit of detective work and it appears to me that Grizzly is selling the same saw or one very much like it. 
Here ya go......
https://cdn0.grizzly.com/manuals/g0537_m.pdf

 

Good luck.

 

Edited September 29, 2018 by octoolguy

[dgman]

Do you guys realize the original poster hasn’t been on in over a year?

[Dimork]

Thank you so much for the help. It looks almost identical. It helped me out a great deal. Now I  can start scrolling sooner, than later.

Thanks, diane

[Dimork]

1 hour ago, dgman said:

Do you guys realize the original poster hasn’t been on in over a year?

I did know that. I just took my chances and it paid off

 Thanks again, diane

 

[OCtoolguy]

4 hours ago, dgman said:

Do you guys realize the original poster hasn’t been on in over a year?

Thanks Dan for that. Ha!. I forgot to check the dates. Oh well.....at least Diane got something out of it. I wonder what became of him.

 

[Frosti_Robin]

I just inherited a Tool Shop Variable Speed 22" scroll saw, MQ60 from my dad.

Where can I find a manual.

online search shows none