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I love doing special orders. Every job is different. Never boring. It is a good thing that I am not doing this for the money because I spend so much time in design and going back and forth with the customer............................It's all about passion. My customer was giving these to two new deacons in her Catholic Church Both are cut out of 1/4" red oak MDF plywood (natural) mounted on 1/2" BB stained dark walnut.

Back about a week ago I asked for help in any thing with cherries in it. Got a couple of answers, and the best one was to google cherry stencils. WOW could not believe all the stuff in the stencil area. Found a couple to use and results are attached. Hope you like them and thanks for the help jim \penquin

Earlier this year someone gave one of my nephews a wooden sword, and his brother was quite jealous and sort of complaining to grandma about the whole ordeal. Well grandma said "your aunt Katie makes lots of wood stuff, maybe if you ask her really nicely she will make you one" The orders were "Just like my brothers, but cooler" the electrical tape on the handle was on the original and was pretty important. Behind the sword is a shield made from a paint tray. I just didn't have time to whip up a full shield to go with it.

Waylon Jennings was a DJ here in Coolidge AZ before he became a star musician. John Old Dust

I was asked if I could make a Unity Cross for a young couple getting married, I drew this up. I tried to make it like the ones that you use in the ceremony but the 1/4" poplar is just too fragile, and I did not want to take the chance of it breaking during the wedding (would be a very awkward moment) so I just wrote it up a little differently for the couple. The base is a slice of my pecan firewood, or maybe oak, not real sure. EDIT: I'm still new at this craft, so please criticisms and suggestions are really appreciated - only way I can get better.

Today was week 2 of the summer farmers market here in my town and although the crowd was small, I was over average in sales. I average 27 each week and today I sold 29 and the majority were my $25 items versus the $10/$15 kids dinosaurs which continue to sell well. Very happy. This week, I experimented with changing my table setup back to the way I used to have it with the tables along the front and sides so people walk "up to" instead of "in to" my booth. What a huge difference! Much more up close traffic and it paid off in sales on a slow day. I'm just bummed I didn't have this setup last Saturday when it was so crowded. Oh well, live and learn. Snapshots of today's setup... Iggy

If cost is no object, I'd use epoxy, it will still be around long after we're gone. Russell

I was told to use regular outdoor house paint.. they say it beats any other finish.. you have to buy it plain no pigment in it.. paint stores will think you're crazy for buying just the base, LOL.. When I bought mine I explained to the guy what I was doing.. he didn't believe it would dry clear and asked if he could do a small spot sample to see.. I used it once and the project still looks great ( about 4 years now ).. If you do go that route.. The stuff looks milky white.. but will dry clear.. you have to use several real light coats though.. too heavy of coats will make it dry sort of hazy and also can have the milky white look too if very heavy coats are applied..

If the piece requires heavier hanger I cut it with a slot cutter on my router. I supply the needed hardware to mount it. Takes some planning and careful machining but works great.

I use something like this picture from the internet to hang most of my big pieces. For the wall, find a stud or sturdy drywall anchor thing. Small pieces I use command strips.

Don't know if this will help any but i just cut a piece of paper the size of the insert i want then make smaller copies at the local office supply till i get a eye ball match.. No doubt there are math formulas but at .10 a copy it works for me.. And no, i don't think it was a stupid question

Dave,they are gonna be Very Well received.Love the Cross.

Beautiful work Dave. Well done. Marg

Very well done Steve.

Very well done.

Nicely cut, a job well done.

A friend of mine turns pens and other small items. He uses CA for a finish on a lot of the stuff. Done right Tony is right. Glass like finish.

Awesome job on both as usual Dave, really love the top one. Thanks for sharing. Jeff

Dave those will be well received !....Very nice !

Reading thru a post like this is one of the many reasons that i love the Village....Just learned a few things....Thanks folks !

Real nice Dave,the Deacons should love them.

Those look great Dave thanks for sharing

Nice cuts, that one is a great seller for me, lot of fans still out there. jim penquin

I also use the larger sawtooth hangars - even for my heavier pieces - on the heavier projects I attach the hanger with screws instead of brad nails and I also bend (bow) the hangar slightly to accommodate the head of a larger wall screw - finally - include an anti-slip pad (see example below) in each bottom corner to facilitate a more stable hanging (one that is easy to level - and stays level). http://www.leevalley.com/en/wood/page.aspx?p=70272&cat=1,43456 Jay

I use the sawtooth hangers that have little spikes on them. Usually though the spikes are too long and will poke through the front of the piece so I pound them into a piece of this scrap and then glue that to the backer, i then can pound it in the rest of the way and the things wont poke out. Stays strong as its now nailed and glued down.

Great job Steve,I have made these and doubled the size..They are good sellers.

Cedar, Teak are the first things that come to mind. Those can be used without a finish. If a finish is used Spar varnish well rubbed in and use a couple thin coats. Cypress if avail might work. Cost and availability may dictate. Fredfret Wichita, ks

In my house, I use Hercules Hooks for just about everything... and we hang some rather heavy items. They work great and only leave a tiny hole in the wall. Using along with the wire shown, you are guaranteed to get it to hang straight. https://www.amazon.com/Get-Organized-HERCULES-HOOK-HANGER/dp/B001420MVU

I also use saw tooth hangers, I use smaller ones for small pictures and larger ones for the bigger ones like 11x14". edward

Thank you guys for the help on the patterns.

Nice work thanks for sharing

Nice work Steve! They are a good seller for me.

Nice work thanks for sharing

Beautiful Job on that lion. I also use saw tooth to hang most of my things. If it'd a heavy piece, I would drill the holes a little bigger on the saw tooth and use screws intead of the small nails they give you.

Great job!

Ike reminded me, I use the bags below when I'm at events in which I don't have electricity to shrinkwrap on the spot. Very cheap and they work great. Just be sure to have twist ties. https://www.amazon.com/Plastic-Roll-Bags-HDPE-Produce/dp/B01HDY34OY/ref=pd_bxgy_79_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B01HDY34OY&pd_rd_r=EHGR2FMAG7AGAXDTCEWS&pd_rd_w=EwocE&pd_rd_wg=Iqhvv&psc=1&refRID=EHGR2FMAG7AGAXDTCEWS

Thank you Bobby,Going to give it a go....

You ayr right Marg !....Bigger is eaiser to cut !

Frank, they look Awesome.Love the Eagle.I got to see the real live version at Dollywood this past week.man did he or shelook Awesome.

I agree w/jt, doug. No matter what we offered up as experienced Hawk owners for help, you were argumentative & your comments about the saw got worse. You'll find there are all levels of scrollers here. Some with the "look what followed me home from the big box store, now what do I do" syndrome, some who can't read the owner's manual before flippin' the power switch, others of us that been at this 25 years or more & can make a saw do most anything we need it to do, regardless of the color. You'll also find that when you come here with an issue, we're more than willing to help you in one way or another. Whether you choose to take that advice is up to you. I, like JT, have several saws, & have worn out a few. And am on my second Hawk. And am well acquainted with them, & the team @ Bushton where they are built. You can learn alot from a scroll saw if you allow it to teach you. First being patience. Easy does it & try not fly off the handle when things don't go just right. Learn to listen, then put the noise to use.

This is what I use also on all my projects except for shelves. They are strong. For shelves I will use keyhole system of hanging.

Nice puzzle s you cut, I'll say you got the hang of it down pat.

On my heavier projects I use a D loop hanger.. some of the lighter duty ones are more of a triangle shape.. they typically have two screw holes to screw to the back of the project. i'll see if I can find a image of what I am talking about.. as I am not certain of what they are actually called.. Kevin

Check cherry tree catalog they have a nice collection of hardware, i use a ring hanger for most times. If your lion (which look great) is real heavy maybe 2 ring hooks and a wire like hanging a large painting.. on the wall ? I would look for a stud to put my hook in

There are a few options like sparky said or with the wire or command stickers.

Looking good Frank!

Great job cutting a nice selection of patterns Frank. Jeff

FYI, I use this type of shrink wrap bag with a heat gun. Works great. https://www.amazon.com/Shrink-Transparent-Packing-Pieces-Thickness/dp/B01BA36BH6/ref=pd_sim_229_4?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B01BA36BH6&pd_rd_r=MRQJ7ZTR8E29X0FFMYD3&pd_rd_w=fu4Cn&pd_rd_wg=HSO9C&psc=1&refRID=MRQJ7ZTR8E29X0FFMYD3

I made one cross from red oak and another from white oak. Both times I swore that I would not try to cut oak any more, but I do cut hard maple quite frequently with no problems, except for the short life of the blades. The oaks just seem to fight with the blade, causing difficulty in following the pattern as well as short blade life. I think I've learned my lesson now, and will avoid scroll sawing oak in the future. This one was made from Mahogany, but the same pattern as the ones that I made from red and white oak. Charley