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This was today's project......took a bit longer than I thought it would........whiskers suck.....lol

A few things I have cut recently but only got round to taking pics, most of it I have redrawn from your photos to create the pattern so big thanks to you lot lol

Absolutely clean and wax that table. It will put a barrier between the table and the wood. Use Johnson paste wax. It will not interfere with your finishes like anything with silicone will.

Thought you puzzle makers would like this news story.. I seen this years ago and just ran across it again so thought I'd share..

Two Walnut and one Poplar, 3/4". Cut with Pegas MGT#3 blades. The T Rex was done for my Grandson, The Shih Tzu for my daughter-in-law and the Golden is for me.

Wife got me a woodburner for Christmas. I was trying to think of where I'd ever use one, and remembered my old bookmark that's starting to get a bit ragged (its two newspaper comic strips, back-to-back, laminated). So I picked up some 1/16 and 1/32 baltic ply from Hobby Lobby and sat staring at them blankly. I hadn't even pulled the iron out by that point. LOL So, I scrolled one. I swear they had the stuff mis-labeled at HL, this stuff cuts like it was balsa wood! Had my saw on slow speed, new blade, and will probably try using an Xacto knife for the next one I do.

I saw something similar to this project on the internet so I thought I'd try a little different variation on it. I play guitar so you will probably find lots of musical patterns on my pattern pages, and more coming up related to the guitar and music in general. I made this one for guitar players who have a dedicated room to store and play with their instruments. It's sure to be a hit if you were to give it as a gift. I cut mine from 1/4" birch ply and traced a similar backing board (after I cut it out) from MDF. Could be stained or painted, but I just painted the backing board black for a nice bold effect. Haven't done it yet, but I plan to round over the edges to smooth them out and then maybe I'll give the whole project a thick coat of clear spray (satin finish). You can get the pattern free pattern on my Free Pattern Page..

How about putting a piece of that slick cutting mat down on the table with some spray adhesive? My wife has some that is very thin and has a "teflon" feel to it. She bought it at Bed, Bath & Beyond. Easy to cut to shape of table and can be changed out easily with mineral spirits. Just an idea.

the clean part is important. mineral spirits,lacquer thinner, or acetone work great for cleaning the table

I do not agree about not needing a dust collector. You are sitting very close to where dust is being generated and closer than almost any tool. You are going to be breathing fine dust. I have a vacuum hooked to my scroll saw for dust collection. Personally, I want to reduce the amount of dust I breathe as far as possible. But everyone should do what makes them happy.

Used FD # 1 and FD Flat end # 1 Spirals 1/4" BBPLY 8 1/2" X 11"

My wife and I were talking about toys we got for Christmas many years ago and she said, as a very young girl, she got a Hampelmann puppet. (Jumping Jack) I decided to surprise her and found a picture and and cut out the pieces on the scroll saw and pasted the cut outs of the picture on to the pieces. Used 1/8" dowl for the pivots. Hardest part was locating the hole locations on the joints and the center pins where the string wraps around to lift the joints. A fun project and she really appreciated it.

He is a very talented person with a great artistic mind.

Not to crash yer party boss, but, always do yer finish sandin afore any saw work starts, always. Next, my best advice is get all yer saw work done before any stainin starts. Especially if'n yer saw deck is aluminium. Cast Iron saw decks can usually go unharmed. Apparently, it sounds like you've already tracked stain onto yer deck. From here, were I in yer boots, I'd invest in some trip!e 000 steel wool, & if'n it ain't already in yer shop, fetch a can of Johnson's paste wax. Get to workin' that triple 000 over yer sawdeck. Yes Sir, it's gonna put a polished look on yer aluminium, but it'll get that stain off'n that deck, as well. Careful not to rub to hard in one place because it may pit yer deck. After you've shined that deck up, & all the stain is gone, wax it with a good heavy coat of Johnson's paste wax. Let it dry, buff it off & you're ready to make sawdust!

Lots of comments and thoughts. If you want some real data on the effectiveness of box fans with filters read this link. it provides info about how fast and to what level a box fan filter works with different sizes particles. This data used a box fan with a better fan than the normal box fan.

I am a woodworker and work in my shop year round. I never collected dust at a scrollsaw with any device but if you are going to then that is the best way to get most of it by connecting a vac system directly to it. I am not advocating to do anything either my way or anyone elses way. you do what you feel is the right thing for you because people allergys are all different and people react to dust differently. The reason I do not bother with collecting dust at the saw is I have so many other tools running in the shop that are bigger dust makers than a scrollsaw. yes I have a dust collector system set up to collect dust at the source of these tools but a dust collector will pick up the larger particles easier than the small ones so that is not a full proof method. Thus the air cleaner hanging from the ceiling and that too will scrub the air but it takes time to circulate air and with the continuing addition of more dust as you work it will never keep up. But it does work. With my scrollsaws I have the articulating hose blow the dust away from me. the dust on top of the saw is the one you are exposed to not under the saw. After every sitting I vac up the area and if doing alot of cutting I will vac between sessions to give myself a break. I always wear a dust mask in my shop even if it is a nuisance dust mask it still will capture some dust. Have to remember if you do not clean entire shop every day after every use that dust gets on the floor. Walk into the shop and you now kicked it back into the air and the cycle begins all over again. So you are kidding yourself if you think you are collecting all sources of dust being made in a shop. Yes as I said the best attack is to have a vac at the source but that needs to be a vac with a heppa filter because small shop vacs will leak the dust back out the other end. Those filters inside are not that good. The vacs such as the fein and festool are designed to be switched on and off. Not as much as a scroll will because of the fret work we do but they are a better choice if you did the vac thing. Shop vacs like Ridgid and craftsman will not take that kind of abuse and fail. The motor on them is not designed for that kind of on off operation. Plus they do not filter the dust well either. The dust deputy and other cyclones are too not made for the kind of dust collecting you all are talking about. They will work to an extent and you will see better results with clean up but again you are fooling yourself if you think you are getting all dust. Those of you that use a fan are kidding yourself also. yes you are collecting dust in the filter but what about all the dust going around the fan and now you are blowing it into the shop all around in the air. Again you are having an effect on gathering some of the dust but not all. Any layer of dust and debris collecting you can add will make a difference but the bottom line is protect yourself at the source you breathe in. That is the final line of defense. Clean your self off when done working so you do not drag throughout the house. I like to take an air hose and blow the dust off me outside. This is one big reason I do 95.5% of my sanding out doors. Scrolling is one thing but sanding is a whole other anaimal that is 100 times worse. Good luck and safe woodworking.

A box can filter will work but not as well as the Wen or other real filter. The box fan filter does not reduce the small particles as well based on some testing that has been done. The best way to collect dust is at the source. All air filters collect dust in the air of the room and after you have had a chance to breath it. Small dust which is most hazardous will remain floating in the air for a long time and also settle on your clothes. We all have different types of equipment. It is important to do the best that we can. Our group is also on the older side and as we age our lungs have reduced capability to handle dust.

That would have taken me a week but then I only get 1.5 to 2 hours a day. It looks awesome. Marg

Wax will help. I use Johnson paste wax. You can always put a piece of plexiglass on it as i did with my 2 RBI saws. It made the top a little larger too. On my Hegner I used a piece of 1/8" BB

I would opt for the dust collection system. Reason being you already have a very effective dust filtration unit based on this vid by Izzy Swan. I don’t know what your budget is, but harbor freight has a nice, smallish dust collector that would really only need a bag to filter upgrade.

This type pattern always take me longer then I figure on, but also give me the most satisfaction when finished. Look perfect. very real like Dick heppnerguy

Hi Barb i have a system like the wren ( can't recall the name its hanging in my shop on 4 steel chains ) it works good - i also have a secondary Air filtration system which is basically a box fan with a filter paper in the front of it - which is about the same thing and easier to use ( plus its way cheaper and easy to move around ) - plus i of course have an older Dust collector ( grizzly 2 bagger ) all three of these are different in ways- technically you dont need a dust collector if all you do is scrolling ( maybe a broom and dustpan ) Where i would start is by using a dust respirator mask - 8210 plus N95 ( 3m )

Finished today a S G pattern, color not clear looks better in person.

Finally finished all my special orders, and get to make stuff I wanna make again.

Some of my customers asked me to make animal patterns of geometric shapes, here is my first one - owl. What do you think about this style? Video of making Owl Owl pattern

Ray @octoolguy was mentioning my magnetic overlay, it works, it is super slippery and even if it does not "stick" to your table, just use double side tape to secure it.

SCROLLSAW703, Not stain like wood stain, stain like when you rub something aluminum on yourself and you turn black. My project was sanded, but I've to do something now to get the aluminum black off it. octoolguy, That is a great idea! Our Bed, Bath, Beyond is closing and has been liquidating for about a month. Do you know what was the product name? Did you use permanent spray or temporary? Does it lift any? Sorry for all the questions. I absolutely never thought it would do this. tomsteve So any painting/staining solvent is ok? I've never had to clean un-finished aluminum. The motorcycle and auto's have a clear coat of some sort. Thanks all!

I have never cut anything that thin. I did a project in 1/8” and only wanted one, so I used sacrificial wood top and bottom for strength.

Buy a small package. They are SO much cheaper on Amazon

Yep, I did just that on this piece. A whole lot easier than trying to make a frame.

When I first got my ceiling hanging filtration system I was wondering if the thing even worked... filter never really got dirty like the box fan filter did.. over time ( running both ) I do see the filter get dirty.. but the majority of the dust is in fact collected at the box fan rather than this ceiling unit.. As for quality of the air in the shop after filtration.. A LOT will depend on the quality of the filter you use on the box fan.. not all filters are created equal.. The guy doing the video appears to be using a very high end filter.. Not sure how much those cost with the charcoal etc.. I use a high quality for allergy use type filters on my box fan.. they aren't really all that cheap compared to some other knock offs... But I've used both and have been impressed with the difference in how much is being collected onto the filter.. For me.. I'm not looking for such a quality of air in my shop as to ditch the dust mask I use.. I'll always use the mask.. For me it's about catching all that floating dust from covering my tool box and all my tools and the old truck I store in the other bay.. Yes I use a truck cover.. but still hate all the settled dust no matter how you look at it.. Using the box fan and the filtration system has significantly reduced the dust in my shop as a whole.. and that is why I use the box fan.. I'm thinking about adding another couple box fans.. Again, collecting that dust at the source for that short period of time that I had my shop vac hooked up to the dust port on the Excalibur really amazed me.. I just want to get a "quality " vac system that runs quiet.. and... is designed to turn on / off with the tool.. I might add this bit to the first paragraph.. That hanging filter gets dirty quite fast IF I do not turn on the box fan.. To do over again.. I might have been better off just getting a second fan..

Thanks for the video. Very informative.

There is no frame. I just left 3/4 inch border all the way around, then I taped off the cutting and painted the border. Kinda cheated, but I think it looks pretty good.

Beautiful pattern and very well done Charlie.

Thank you guy's for the ideas. I am going to try the Danish oil. I believe for the ornaments it will work out fine. If I was making a piece of furniture or something fancy I would use a top coat. I sell my ornaments really cheap. As this is my hobby the more I sell the more I get to cut. Everything is getting more expensive so if I can cut out the top coat I can keep my prices low and still pay for my supplies and have happy customers. Thanks again for all the feedback I appreciate it.

Very nice cutting.

nice piece.. I love what you are doing with it too Dick heppnerguy

Lions are such a great animal to cut as they are such a cool animal just to look at. This one is already hanging in a perfect place in your home, I bet. Very nicely done Dick heppnerguy

Excellent!

Just to add a point to what Bill said, you want BLO and not straight linseed oil. Or if you want a more water proof mix use tung oil. Natural Danish oil has dryers added to help it dry faster. But it is a forgiving finish and looks great. For items that are not handled alot it has enough top coat protective features to handle that.

Danish oil can be referred to as an "in the wood" finish. It doesn't build a film on top of the surface of the wood in the way that polyurethane or lacquer or even shellac does. It is intended to give more of a hand rubbed, low luster finish to the wood. It does contain some polyurethane, so it does have a slight film component to it, making it different than a true oil finish, like linseed or tung oil. For anyone interested and perhaps finding it difficult to get Danish oil where they live, you can readily make your own by simply mixing equal portions of BLO, polyurethane (or varnish) and mineral spirits. You can adjust the proportions to suit your needs and tastes. More poly/varnish gives more luster and slightly more of a protective coating. More oil gives more of the low sheen, hand rubbed look. More mineral spirits makes the mix thinner, easier to apply.

Depends on what you consider a top coat. Danish oil has poly in it unlike BLO. I use it all the time as a top coat and a sealer. All my oak clocks are dipped in Danish oil and no top coat added. Now if you are looking for a shiny finish then you need to top with lacquer or poly. If you do top coat make sure that Danish oil is cured not just dry or failure of top coat will happen. Again just my thoughts. I do use Danish oil alot.

It is noisy but not as bad as a shop vac. I think someone said 62 dB.

Don't care if it's permanent or not as I plan to put it on the clear laminate shelf paper I use now. It stays put and comes off easy without tearing out wood splinters. When I used blue painter's tape it would.

Nice work. You are a very good scroller. Thanks for showing. Post photos any time. be proud of what at you are doing.

Nice work, Grizz.

I get me Danish Oil at Klingspor and it cost about $35 a gallon. I pour the oil in a roasting pan. After dipping I pour the oil back in the container until next time. Trust me a gallon goes a long way.

I also dip ornaments in Danish Oil. I normally allow them to dry over night before adding ribbon or string. Danish Oil comes in tinted versions I just use the clear or natural. If I am in a big hurray I dip them in shellac. Shellac also comes in clear or tinted. Ornaments dipped in shellac are ready to string in less then 30 minutes.

Thanks for all the suggestions. It's just a hobby. I can't shoot archery anymore and fishing here is terrible so this is what I do. Been doing it 20+ years. I sell enough to replenish my supplies and give many away and have several leftovers each year. As long as I can make enough money to buy all the wood, blades and everything else I need I'm happy. I don't count the cost of my saw itself as I would spend more than that on archery and fishing goodies.