Hello from Oz

[RipCat]

hi all,

just discovered this site in my searching, great idea!

From Australia here, where scrolling is a hobby very much in its infancy; materials and supplies difficult to find locally, thank god for the internet! I discovered the scrollsaw hobby quite by accident when a friend told me about a book that I went hunting for, and discovered another book about segmentation. Managed to find a cheapy scrollsaw from Aldi of all places. Was good enough to get me going, but soon realised the limitations of pinned blades and other drawbacks. Upgraded to a DeWalt 788 (had to order one from New Zealand of all places; at the time, the only other option available in this country was a Hegner... a bit beyond my budget--at least according to my wife!--) and been happy ever since.

Got a handle on segmentation and fretwork OK, just starting out on the intarsia now... a bit daunting getting those 'perfect' cuts. Not quite there yet, but I do tend to be over-ambitious and start on complex things! Now trying to work out how to fix/hide not quite accurate cuts... some pieces seem close enough to not need a re-cut, but do need a better fit... help and advice is most welcome!

Regards to all from a new addict,

Rippy

[Clayton717]

Hi Rippy and welcome to the village. Intarsia can be very time consuming and frustrating with getting everything to fit just right. Don't give up. The biggest thing that I have found is to make sure all the edges are square(blade didn't cut on an angle) that helps alot.

[RipCat]

Hi Clayton, thanks for the welcome. My problem is cutting on the lines! Squaring is OK, I generally can manage that, but I do waver off the lines a bit. Experimenting with different blades at the moment... I'm very used to size 2/0 blades for what i've been doing so far, and has been a big mind shift to switch to larger blades; I tend to use #3 blades at the moment, might need to go to #5 for greater accuracy.

cheers

Rippy

[Clayton717]

Rippy, when I'm cutting out my intarsia i use a # 5 and a # 7 especially if I'm cutting thicker wood. The Jesus I just finished(makes 9 of them) I use 1"thick walnut. The # 7 cuts through it pretty well. Not sure if this is the "correct blade" but it works well for me.

[blame]

welcome to the village ripcat glad to see you here cant wait to see some pics

[Travis]

Welcome to the Village, Rippy! We're glad to have you on board.

 

... but I do tend to be over-ambitious and start on complex things!...

 

I completely understand this statement! LOL...I've never done intarsia before, so I thought I'd start a project that has 265 pieces in it! I'm having a great time with it, though. I'm not an accurate cutter either, but I'm OK with it. I'm really enjoying using woods I don't normally have access to. I have been using a #5 for most of my cutting. I seem to have better control with it on the thicker wood. But the wood I'm using probably doesn't go much beyond 5/8". Anyway, we'd love to see some of your work. You can set up a User Gallery to show off a little (you can find a tutorial here). Jump on in and have some fun!

[RipCat]

Wow, what a welcome! Thanks everybody.... and yes, I think my blade choice is too small for the wood and accuracy I need, erm, want! Will take some pics and get a gallery happening.

cheers all.

[amazingkevin]

welcome rippy