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3D Chess


Mort Tenon

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So I recently posted about an attempt I made at cutting a (very simple) 3D chess piece. It was only my second attempt at compound cutting and left a lot to be desired. This morning I am browsing Facebook, when suddenly in my feed this picture pops up. It is from the spring issue of Fox Chapel Publishing's Scroll Saw Woodworking & Crafts magazine. After the problems I encountered trying to cut what is essentially a simple outline, this kind of thing boggles the mind. 

Anyone here ever done anything like this? After my initial post on the subject, I got a lot of advice about blades for compound cutting , and I am currently in the process of trying out some that I have not used before. But this looks impossible...

 

3D-chess.jpg

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3 minutes ago, Scrappile said:

I'm going to try one of these days.  I got that pattern or one very similar off Esty just last week.

Be sure to post the result when you do.

I subscribe to the magazine, so I'll wait for the spring issue and save the pattern, but I fear it will be a long time before I'm ready to try something like this.

Edited by Mort Tenon
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2 hours ago, Mort Tenon said:

So I recently posted about an attempt I made at cutting a (very simple) 3D chess piece. It was only my second attempt at compound cutting and left a lot to be desired. This morning I am browsing Facebook, when suddenly in my feed this picture pops up. It is from the spring issue of Fox Chapel Publishing's Scroll Saw Woodworking & Crafts magazine. After the problems I encountered trying to cut what is essentially a simple outline, this kind of thing boggles the mind. 

Anyone here ever done anything like this? After my initial post on the subject, I got a lot of advice about blades for compound cutting , and I am currently in the process of trying out some that I have not used before. But this looks impossible...

 

3D-chess.jpg

Is this pattern in the upcoming issue or from last spring? I cut a couple sets 2 years ago and would like to try this one. I need to post some pictures of the ones I cut.

 

Phil

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Ha! Jokes on me!!  This is what happens when you have too many patterns.  I purchased the patterns for that chest set off of esty last month.  I read this thread again, go look and I have the Spring 2019 issue of SWWC!  There is the same patterns I just paid for..... again!  Oh well my paid for plans included plans/pattern the the chess board also,,  so I go something out of them

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I have the magazine and have the pattern copied and the king ready to put on a piece of wood. I have some pine since this will be practice. I have not cut chess pieces before but not like these. We will see when I have time to cut it out. May be a while yet before I get to it. early spring yard work going on. 

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6 minutes ago, bandaideman said:

I have the magazine and have the pattern copied and the king ready to put on a piece of wood. I have some pine since this will be practice. I have not cut chess pieces before but not like these. We will see when I have time to cut it out. May be a while yet before I get to it. early spring yard work going on. 

I have that same magazine and I am thinking about making a set of chess pieces. But, the bad part is, then I'd have to make a chess board. My table saw is not the best so it will be a real test to try to make that many truly square pieces. But, it will prove to be a good challenging project.

 

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Every intricate cut is just one-hole-one-blade at a time.  I cut some of Steve Good's 3D ornaments this past Christmas, and the hardest part was getting the patterns to stick to the wood straight.  :)  Make a jig to hold the compound piece, it'll make life a lot easier, and don't look at it as an intricate, detailed, Master-level piece.   Just look at it as one more section to cut out.

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For those who do not have this magazine, I just realized that I had it here in my pile, so I got it out and scanned the pieces. What I didn't know is that they are very big; the king is over 6 inches tall. It will still be a challenge, but at this size it should be less so than I originally thought.

On 3/13/2019 at 6:24 AM, Larry B said:

These look fragile.  What wood(s) would be best for this type of cutting?

The article recommends maple, walnut, and/or cherry. I would not recommend an open grain wood like red oak.

 

On 3/12/2019 at 5:20 PM, octoolguy said:

But, the bad part is, then I'd have to make a chess board. My table saw is not the best so it will be a real test to try to make that many truly square pieces. But, it will prove to be a good challenging project.

 

You don't make all the individual pieces though, you make strips of each color, glue them up, then cut the other direction and glue those strips. Of course the same rules apply; the strips have to be exactly the same size and cut square, or you won't have consistent squares when you're finished. That's why I splurged on a good table saw and an equally good jointer...

big-chess.jpg

Edited by Mort Tenon
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1 hour ago, Mort Tenon said:

For those who do not have this magazine, I just realized that I had it here in my pile, so I got it out and scanned the pieces. What I didn't know is that they are very big; the king is over 6 inches tall. It will still be a challenge, but at this size it should be less so than I originally thought.

The article recommends maple, walnut, and/or cherry. I would not recommend an open grain wood like red oak.

 

You don't make all the individual pieces though, you make strips of each color, glue them up, then cut the other direction and glue those strips. Of course the same rules apply; the strips have to be exactly the same size and cut square, or you won't have consistent squares when you're finished. That's why I splurged on a good table saw and an equally good jointer...

big-chess.jpg

In my past life, I had what you suggested. I have a Delta Unisaw and a good jointer and planer. But, now that I live in a mobile home, that isn't possible so I must work with what I have. I have fine-tuned my Dewalt portable saw to do the best it is capable of doing. I'm trying to find a good small jointer that I can store under my bench when not in use. I will figure out a way to do it but it just requires more thought and planning.

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55 minutes ago, octoolguy said:

I'm trying to find a good small jointer that I can store under my bench when not in use. I will figure out a way to do it but it just requires more thought and planning.

I have more room now than when I first started doing this, but I know the restrictions that go with not having a lot of space. I had a (I think) 24 in. (?) jointer/planer that in all the years I had it never cut a square or a straight edge. One of first priorities when I was able to expand (I still have only a two-car garage and have to share that with a car) was a 72 in. helical jointer. Indispensable, in my own humble opinion. If I ever have to move to a smaller place, I'll put that in the living room before I'll give it up...🙃

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3 minutes ago, Mort Tenon said:

I have more room now than when I first started doing this, but I know the restrictions that go with not having a lot of space. I had a (I think) 24 in. (?) jointer/planer that in all the years I had it never cut a square or a straight edge. One of first priorities when I was able to expand (I still have only a two-car garage and have to share that with a car) was a 72 in. helical jointer. Indispensable, in my own humble opinion. If I ever have to move to a smaller place, I'll put that in the living room before I'll give it up...🙃

You must not have a wife like mine. She won't even let me bring one of my scroll saws into my office/man cave. LOL. Anyway, if I can't find something that is useable, I'm going to build one out of my Makita 0800 portable planer. I've watched a few videos on some folks who have done it and they were very pleased with the outcome. I'm not into big projects anymore so it might just be the answer to my needs.

 

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1 hour ago, octoolguy said:

I'm trying to find a good small jointer that I can store under my bench when not in use.

 

I just picked up (amazon) a porter cable jointer, not sure what small means to  you.  I just got it set up, have not used it yet, but I am impressed, fairly quiet, when assembled it was dead on 90* and 45*.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004Q0I8YU/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

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1 minute ago, JimErn said:

I just picked up (amazon) a porter cable jointer, not sure what small means to  you.  I just got it set up, have not used it yet, but I am impressed, fairly quiet, when assembled it was dead on 90* and 45*.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004Q0I8YU/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I've heard and read good things about those Jim. I might put that on my shopping list if something else doesn't come along. I'm looking at the Sears 4 1/2" ones but trying to find one that isn't all beat to heck is tough. There is a guy on C/L right now that is selling a H/F table saw, a Ryobi 16" scroll saw and a Sears jointer for $150. Not too far away but I'm trying to either get his price down or to sell me the jointer by itself. So far, he isn't replying to my texts. We'll see what happens by next week. So far, he has had his ad up for almost a week with no takers. I'll give him till Monday and then go back at him.

 

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20 minutes ago, JimErn said:

I can not comment on any jointer, this is my first.  Going to play with it some then try something I got stuck in my mind, so who knows might be a nice anchor some day. 🙂

It looks like a great compact little unit. I used to have a Craftsman 6" jointer that weighed a ton. It sat on a stand that was open at the bottom and would make a terrible mess. I finally invested in a cloth bag that surrounded it and caught most of the cuttings. Made a world of difference. And, it actually did a great job of cutting accurately.

 

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