Stagecoach

[Dak0ta52]

This is the Jim Blume stagecoach I've been working on. The darker one is 1/4 Oak ply and the lighter one is 1/4 Birch ply They were cut by stacking and using Pegas 2/0 spiral blades. I lost count on the number of blades. My upper arm does not lift and the pieces are so large I would inevitably bend the blade when trying to feed them which eventually caused them to break. The Oak was finished with Minwax Colonial Pine stain while the Birch was finished with Minwax Natural stain. Both have a 1/4 Birch ply backer painted black. Each also has six coats of clear with light sanding with 600 grit between coats. Both frames are pre-made framing material. The darker of the two originally had a rough gray finish. I gave it a light sanding and then covered it with Minwax Espresso stain. I then gave it 2 coats of clear. The lighter one is Maple stained with Minwax Natural and also has two coats of clear. Both frames have shim splines in the corners to add strength. Total time including the frames I have about 40 hours in these pieces but I feel they were worth every minute. Thanks again to Jim Blume for a fantastic pattern! By the way, the reason the Oak piece is facing the opposite direction is because I messed up when I stacked them and put the finish side face down rather than face up.

[CSull]

Wow, what great cuts!  That is a lot of patience, and a lot of holes to cut and drill.  I like the birch ply best-IMHO it really shows the detail.

[John B]

Absolutely beautiful pieces Rodney. Kudos also to Jim for wonderful pattern.
Both nice, but the lower one really pops IMHO.

[preprius]

really nice. Beautiful work.

So you got 2 pictures of same stage coach going and then coming back home.  I choose the upper one for coming back home. Just because the sky has more clouds (grain) and is a bit darker. 

That photographer was pretty good of catching the same position of action both times.  Especially with the old 1870's cameras. 

Well done. The 5412 cuts look very detailed.   

[Scrolling Steve]

Very nice work! Really like the finish on the lower one.

[FrankEV]

Very well done.  Nicely cut, finished and framed.  Overall presentation is absolutely beautiful.

Like others, I like the lower one just a tiny bit better.

You might consider using 1/8 material when stack cutting and using small blades. Just a little easier too handle.  I also dimple my drill holes on the back side with my dremel tool to make feeding the blade through eaiser.  But I still kink and break a lot of 2/0 spiral blades when cutting projects like these.  That is why I buy them by the gross.

 

 

 

 

 

[jr42]

Very nice cutting Rodney. They both look really good. I like the one out of BB a little better. 

[daveww1]

fantastic work

[Charlie E]

Beautiful work Rodney! I'd love to have that above the cowboy section of my wall but, wow that's a lot of holes.  Maybe some day. You did such a great job and I'd say turning the oak one backwards was a fortunate accident. Hard to pick a favorite as both are great in their own way but I do love how the grain of the oak adds to the background. Excellent!!!

[rjweb]

beautiful job of cutting, RJ

[Jim Blume]

Very Impressive for certain.

 

[wombatie]

WOW   Truly impressive.  Great patience too.

Marg

[Jim Blume]

I can't possibly say how impressed I am with this project, especially since you cut it on a fixed arm saw. You Da Man Rodney.

 

[Dak0ta52]

8 hours ago, Jim Blume said:

I can't possibly say how impressed I am with this project, especially since you cut it on a fixed arm saw. You Da Man Rodney.

 

Thanks so much but I can only credit it to the fantastic pattern.

[bobscroll]

Hi Rodney, Just beautiful to look at! That piece of scrolling is a piece of art! Thank you for letting us see, Bob

[rdatelle]

WoW, Thats some amazing cutting. Where do you even begin on something like that. How did you ever avoid little pieces falling out with so many tiny cuts?

 

[Scrappile]

WOW!  You caught them doing and coming!  Amazing scrolling... I'd go blind trying to cut something like that.  Great job! 

[Dak0ta52]

6 hours ago, rdatelle said:

WoW, Thats some amazing cutting. Where do you even begin on something like that. How did you ever avoid little pieces falling out with so many tiny cuts?

 

One hole at a time, Ralph. One hole at a time. Actually I had about three or four pieces that were very tempermental. After I cut them, I put a piece of tape over them to help hold them in place and also to remind me where the "tender" areas were. Since my saw has a fixed upper arm I was afraid I would knock a piece out when trying to feed blades. If I did have a piece that was really loose, I would touch it with super glue to give it a little strength. Fortunately everything ended okay.

[Denny Knappen]

Fantastic, Rodney.  Your skill really shines on this cuttin.

[Scrappile]

Had to look at this again. I'm still pretty amazed by it.. I have the pattern and would love to try it.  Not only is this a testament to Rodney's skills but also says a lot for the little Wen scroll saw I think he uses.  I wonder if one of the devices that you can buy for the DeWalt, to hold the upper arm up could be adapted to the WEN or something simular easily made could be used..  Before I got an aftermarket device for the DeWalt I had, I had a special block of wood that I stuck under the arm when I wanted it to stay up.

Edited July 30, 2022 by Scrappile

[Dak0ta52]

3 hours ago, Scrappile said:

Had to look at this again. I'm still pretty amazed by it.. I have the pattern and would love to try it.  Not only is this a testament to Rodney's skills but also says a lot for the little Wen scroll saw I think he uses.  I wonder us one of the devices that you can buy for the DeWalt, to hold the upper arm up could be adapted to the WEN or something simular easily made could be used..  Before I got an aftermarket device for the DeWalt I had, I had a special block of wood that I stuck under the arm when I wanted it to stay up.

Thanks so much, Paul. That means a lot coming from you. The upper arm on the WEN I'm using couldn't be altered. The frame itself is a fixed solid piece that runs from the lower arm, along the back, and then along the upper arm. Another issue I had with this piece is the size. The table is rather small and I had to set up a table to hold one end of the piece while cutting. I used one of those old type stools with the screw seat and adjusted it up to the appropriate height. I'd have to swing the piece off the stool to lower one end so I could feed the blade.

My little WEN does a pretty good job and I would highly recommend it for someone wanting to dabble in scrolling to see if it is something they would enjoy. For just over $100, it can hardly be beat. The only problems I've had is the blade clamps which I now buy a half dozen at a time, and the blower bellows which splits after about 10 hours of use. I replaced it once before going to a fish tank bubbler. WEN also offers a 2-year warranty which I consider pretty good for an entry level saw. My goal is to purchase either a Pegas or Seyco. If I could get my money right I would probably go with that new 30-inch Pegas... although I like the larger table on the Seyco.

I encourage you to give this pattern a go. Yes, it's challenging, but very rewarding. Like I mentioned, it took me about 40-hours including the frame but that was on my WEN. I'm sure someone on a saw with an arm that would lift would be much faster switching holes and it would take less time. There were only about 3 or 4 areas that I though were vulnerable so I just placed a piece of blue tape over the areas and continued cutting.

[John B]

On 7/29/2022 at 6:50 AM, Scrappile said:

I had a special block of wood that I stuck under the arm when I wanted it to stay up.

I still use that "Special hunk of timber" on my DeWalt

[Jim Blume]

14 hours ago, John B said:

I still use that "Special hunk of timber" on my DeWalt

John, Slightly tighten the main pivot bolt on your Dewalt which will apply slight pressure and the arm will stay up on it's own. Should need 2 7/16' wrenches. Have done that for over 25 years on my old Dewalt 788 and only needed to tweak it a couple of times over the years.

[JackJones]

You’ve cut two beautiful pieces. I would love to have either one of these hanging on my wall. I’ve considered cutting this pattern because I think it’s a remarkable pattern, but seeing it cut makes me even more excited to do it. Thanks for showing us. 

[amazingkevin]

On 7/28/2022 at 10:48 PM, Dak0ta52 said:

Thanks so much, Paul. That means a lot coming from you. The upper arm on the WEN I'm using couldn't be altered. The frame itself is a fixed solid piece that runs from the lower arm, along the back, and then along the upper arm. Another issue I had with this piece is the size. The table is rather small and I had to set up a table to hold one end of the piece while cutting. I used one of those old type stools with the screw seat and adjusted it up to the appropriate height. I'd have to swing the piece off the stool to lower one end so I could feed the blade.

My little WEN does a pretty good job and I would highly recommend it for someone wanting to dabble in scrolling to see if it is something they would enjoy. For just over $100, it can hardly be beat. The only problems I've had is the blade clamps which I now buy a half dozen at a time, and the blower bellows which splits after about 10 hours of use. I replaced it once before going to a fish tank bubbler. WEN also offers a 2-year warranty which I consider pretty good for an entry level saw. My goal is to purchase either a Pegas or Seyco. If I could get my money right I would probably go with that new 30-inch Pegas... although I like the larger table on the Seyco.

I encourage you to give this pattern a go. Yes, it's challenging, but very rewarding. Like I mentioned, it took me about 40-hours including the frame but that was on my WEN. I'm sure someone on a saw with an arm that would lift would be much faster switching holes and it would take less time. There were only about 3 or 4 areas that I though were vulnerable so I just placed a piece of blue tape over the areas and continued cutting.

You and me both have a love for the 30" scroll saws!!!