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Another little jewelry box, I took some of the features of his Heart box and the pattern of the Yin Yang box and made....a YinYang box. Wood was scrap 1/2" ply, glued four high and cut (made for a VERY tough cut, went through FDUR #7's like crazy). Top/bottom and bottom of drawer are 3/8 ply. Stained with Minwax Ebony and Ipswitch Pine. Dowel is 1/4". For the top, I put one of the "drawers" on the circle, traced the curves with a pencil, then just used a fine paintbrush to put the stain on. Either the lead, or the faint indention left by the pencil kept most of the stain from bleeding over, although there was a bit. Overall, I'm happy with the results.

This Sam Custodio pattern I cut for my granddaughter's family. She does not like bees so I did not include the bee portrait in it but substituted an angel instead. I enjoyed cutting this one and plan on doing a couple more like this Dick heppnerguy

Because shop time has been at a premium, i decided I had better get on the stick and cut a couple of new Valentine plaques for my wife to add to her Valentine decorations that she puts out every year. The heart is one that Shady Lady here in The Village posted in 2009, I always liked it buy never got around to actually cutting it. I think it is a very pretty and nicely done pattern. The ones on the right is a Steve Good pattern that I also thought was a really pretty piece so I cut her that one also. Dick heppnerguy

Took some time off after my last winter Crafts Fair. This past weekend I jumped back on the saw and got these done. The Butterfly Cross is a Sue Mey pattern. I'm not sure who designed the 2nd one. I will have to look it up.

All, Just thought I would share this. It is the first project I did where I made up a pattern, cut it out and all that is left is to put some boiled Linsead Oil. Let me know thoughts please. Anything I can do better?

Here is a pattern I made several years ago, when I was trying to learn pattern making. I found that I was able to make a pattern but at the same time I also was making a lot of mistakes that I did not catch while in the process of making them. Because I did not take the time to actually cut my patterns, I did not discover my mistakes, although a few members here helped me to discover some of them and took their time to point them out to me for correction., I appreciated their help and taking the time to show me my errors. That helped me to try to observe more closely, when I was making a pattern in the future. I cut one of my patterns and posted it last week and now I I have decided to post other patterns along with any comments of things I have discovered by doing so. Something I just noticed as I was posting this, is the left shoulder should have been an outline and not a full cutout, That is only one of the mistakes that I have come across by cutting my own pattern attempts.. I will post others as I cut them out. In this pattern of William Cody ( Buffalo Bill). I found several places where I purposely changed the pattern as I was cutting because of errors or things I thought would look better if I did so. Just to glance at this cutting and the pattern I posted in the ' people ' section of the pattern library, I don't think a lot of what I changed would stand out, but in closer observations one could see them. It is one of my better patterns, keeping in mind that they all are early stages of giving this a try, I decided to keep them to look back on should I continue to make more of them. Any comments are more than welcome, as that is what helps someone that is starting something for the first time. Dick heppnerguy

Hello Guys, Just wanted to drop a line thanking you for all the help and advice you gave me last month on purchasing a scroll saw. I found one this past weekend; it's a used but in excellent condition, DeWalt DW788. I was able to talk them down to $125 from $300. I have been using it the last 2 days and it purrs like a kitten, so much better than the very old craftsman I was using. All of your advice helped me go into this purchase with complete confidence. Thanks Again, Cheryl

I'm still sawing plywood. I found this pattern online with an antarsia tutorial. I'm still just doing segmentation and trying to get the hand of cutting. I used 1/2 inch plywood and put a couple of coats of clear satin finish. Not that proud or bragging. lol

I rarely post pics of stuff I've done, but I was kinda happy with this one, so I figured I'd share.

All, Just thought I would share this. It is the first project I did where I made up a pattern, cut it out and all that is left is to put some boiled Linsead Oil. Let me know thoughts please. Anything I can do better?

Found this picture of a bird on a fence and it made me think of how we sometimes complain about our situation when our choices are to blame. Made for an easy scroll saw project. I added some birds in the sky to show we can change if we so choose. I suppose an alternate title could be "The Birds of Alcatraz".

Staying with the key theme from last time I decided to experiment a bit. I blew up the key from the sign as a stand alone pattern and printed it out on legal sized paper 8.5 x 14" Most printers will do this, even if the tray is not geared length wise. Just slide the paper in and it will catch when it starts printing. The width is standard anyways. I cut my key from 3/4" pine and then I used my belt sander to give it some texture. I just took the key and rubbed it here and there while the belt was spinning to give the key shape and a stressed look. If you decide to try this, make sure you have short sleeves on (don't want to get caught up in all that spinning), and be careful where you put your hands and fingers (I've had a quick manicure done to my nails a couple of times because I wasn't paying attention). Of course you can just leave it as is, if you are not secure about the sander, and use hand sanding instead. When I finished I sprayed it with a black satin finish. This can be hung on a couple of small black nails extending from the wall position. Or you can use it as a stand up sign. Free Pattern

I try to stay on the line as good as I can. Always think I do an awesome job until I put my glasses on .

Just finished this lion portrait for a customer. This is the second lion, and the second portrait I have ever cut. Thanks to the tips you all gave me on the first lion, this one went much smoother, and I broke only a fraction of the blades I did on the first!

I suppose IF you're working on a portrait or a forest scene it's fine but if your trying to make a wooden gear clock there's a pretty good chance it won't run if fail to follow the pattern cutting the pallets or the escape wheel.

Have to chuckle at this topic a little bit. I try to stay on the line as much as I can. A few years ago I had cut out an ornament and missed a line and thought I could let it pass. After completing the ornament I was not happy with it. Told my wife I was going to redo it and she asked why and I told her I was not happy with it. I showed it to her and she said nobody would ever know but I did. I am blind in my left eye so it is a challenge for me to do super detailed work. I have a lot of people ask me how I do this hobby with just one eye and I just have to tell them it's just something I wanted to learn how to do. Sorry for the long reply

Hi Guys, This is Sonja and yes... I´m from Germany, Bavaria. Half a year ago I got a Scrollsaw from my Boyfriend, who is due to his job (carpenter - hope this is the right description) very familiar to woodworks, but of course in a different league After trying it out the first time, I was a little dissapointed. It did not work as I expected, so I did not spend a lot of time anymore. After searching for some help, I found a forum in Germany, where I found out, that maybe the saw blades I was using, were not the right once. Surprise... I bought others and was directly in love with this kind of work. Meanwhile I got a more high-grade saw (Proxxon was my first one, no I have a Hegner) and already did some work. Sometimes I combine it with pyrography, which was my preceding hobby in combination with wood. I´m sure it is a pleassure to have the chance to chat with experts and hope to get some inspiration for my next projects. Here 2 of my last presents I made. Pattern from Saburo Oguro. Kind regards Sonja

I think if I had enough wood to do this full size, it might be easier, the back board for this is 8x10. Tried some things I thought would work, some did; but, many did not, raising my frustration level with this aspect of scrolling. I think I will file a law suit against my ophthalmologist, when he did cataract surgery he must have removed what little artistic ability I had. BB backer with gunstock stain, mahogany, aspen, and mahogany with ebony stain

Lots of crappy little adapters to use small drill bits. Most are not worth the money. I would suggest either the Dremel or Wen three jaw chucks. They can be chucked up in a larger chuck and are quite accurate.

That's the best of the two. The only downside is that it is also the oldest. The problem with these saws is, the factory never did much in the way of putting grease in the bearings. And there are a lot of them. The bearing mfgrs just put in the barest of essentials to keep them going for the warranty period. Anyway, not to despair. It's not a big thing but does take disassembly and a bit of a learning curve. If you are at all mechanically inclined or have someone who is, this will not be a big problem. And there are many of us here to help. There is a 4 part video that was done by Gwinnette Woodworkers featuring Bob Brokaw who is the expert on these saws. They also did an updated video that is good but not as inclusive as the 4 part series. They are all on youtube. Actually here is the link to the 1st one and from there you can just follow along to the other 3. It looks daunting but if you just take your time you can't miss. You did very well on your purchase and I think in the long run you will be better served with the Dewalt saw. The situation with Hawk right now is iffy at best. They may close tomorrow for all we know. Take the time to buff the table on your saw. It is made of cast iron and will corrode if not waxed from time to time. Johnson's paste wax is what most of us use. A good coat of it every once in a while really helps to save the table and also makes your wood much easier to move around. And the brand seems to be one of the only brands that won't interfere with your finishing. Good luck with it, have fun and by all means, keep us updated on your projects. Pictures, we all love them.

Cheryl, there is a lot of info on here regarding the 788. What to look out for, what to do for maintenance etc. Is it a type 1 or 2. Makes a little difference, not much. Just mostly where and when it was made. Scrollsaws.com has a lot of info too. The main thing is bearing lubrication at some point. Very important.

Gee I surely do Thank you for going thru the trouble of locating these links. Love this Scroll Family.... I will check into them. Did at first want to buy a hand held drill, but just knew I would be breaking some bits. Gave that though up. Thanks again My Friend.... Danny :+}

Glad you were able to find a good used saw that fit your budget and works well for you. Now, be sure to join in here in the Village and share what you are making.

for me it depends on my mood. Sometimes I just want to make sawdust and will pick patterns that have a lot of wiggle room. Other times I like to be as accurate as I can and follow the line closely.

heres how you can find out for yourself: cut a portrait doing it like the fellow scroller. frame it or whatever and put it away for a month. then pull it out at look at it. see if you can find what ya didnt cut and where ya went off course on the pattern. i modified this one. a couple of the cuts i joined to make one cut and left out others. i dont know where and i doubt too many other people could tell either. theres no right or wrong way to cut a pattern. patterns are only suggestions.

Hubby just pulled out 3 of his guitars. One pick guard was closer to 1/4", one was about 1/8" and on the acoustic it was more a veneer aplique.

By and large, I make every attempt to follow the pattern. That said, on portraits, where many of the holes are sort of abstract, I don't get too shook up if I wander off the line. I will even make slight "modifications" to add bridges, where I think the pattern is unnecessarily fragile, or perhaps blend 2 small holes into one. None of these changes affect the appearance of the finished piece and I don't even think of them as mistakes. In general, I think it's good practice to strive to follow the lines, as much as practical and possible. It teaches us good habits. However, after a little experience, I think most scrollers know when & where to apply a little individual discretion.

I used to teach Scrolling 101 at our club and one of the tips I gave the beginners was - once the pattern is removed no one know where the line was. Therefore, if you come off the line just ease it back on so it looks smooth. I try and stay on the line but sometimes at my age the line sometimes the lines moves. Not my fault. LOL

I suppose it depends on the type or project you are doing. If you cutting a portrait with hundreds of cutouts that are mostly small cutouts that don’t really define anything, then it doesn’t really matter. However, if you are cutting word art or desk plaques or clocks where every or most cuts actually define something, then yes, it is important to cut as accurately as possible.

Today I was at a fellow scroller who was scrolling a portrait, as he cut I noticed that he didn't follow the pattern lines as closely as I do. So I asked him after he went quite a ways outside the lines, Why he didn't stay on the line. His answer was when it was framed no one would notice. Guess I'm not built that way. A pattern is supposed to be a duplicate of your project. My question is am I wasting to much time following the pattern to a T, or your am I correct the way I do it? Would like to know your thoughts on this subject. Thanks Mike

Well done Charlie.

Hi Danny. For years I’ve used the Dremel drill press, plunge router and flex shaft. All reasonably priced a do the job fine.

Just looked at the Seyco link and my feelings are if I have to be the Up and Down force to drill a Micro hole I just know I would break bits for sure. Thanks again

You really did a nice job on those. I ended up making 4 of those. Sold 3 and donated on to a local pistol shooting club. Two of them went to New York,,,, !

I love these. They a simple and original and yet extremely enjoyable to look at. You have a great idea here Dick heppnerguy

Sheet Metal Shears for Thin Metal Foils: are Harbor Freight Scissors. https://www.harborfreight.com/multipurpose-scissors-47877.html?_br_psugg_q=scissors These are great and cheap. I have a lot of them. They cut very well and hold there edge well. The plastic parts will sometimes break or chip off. I have never had them break, but I have lost a few.

I try to follow the line. I find it very challenging to cut "just outside" the line. Perfectionist as well. When I show I piece I also only see the faults even though the family and friends are alway complimentary.

You made a simple picture into a piece of art. You had a great vision for that piece of wood.

If you are making a detail fret work box, clock, or something similar, it will not fit together.......

I talked to you on here a while back Gary. I used to live in Mo. many years ago and we were talking bout crappie fishing. I knew you said you were going to winter somewhere I just got my geography mixed up. Memory not what it used to be Lol.

Jim , I'm betting that you'd do a great job - when i built a mandolin I used a very thin piece of wood - thinking as thin as I could get it -thinking it might of been Birds eye maple .

You need to go back and get your eyes tested again mate because thats a stunning piece of work, i love the depth to it you did a great job i would hang it with pride mate Gordon

Very nice Dick. My wife says that “baby” is not in her vocabulary.

Hi Dick. wonderful pattern and excellent cutting. I like the lines giving it a framed look. Also the way the hat extends beyond the frame.

Wonderful setup, Gary

Another one of Scott's puzzle zombies? Whats your best seller out there? Mermaids and Dinosaurs for me out there in Florida.

Patterns are guide lines go wider where necessary and smaller if needed that's what I stick too and it works for me. Roly

I found a good way to remove fuzzies is with a propane torch turned down low. Move fast an the fuzzies will come off.

The older we get the farther away the floor seems to get.

Faye and I celebrated our 51st this past new year's eve. Was a good deal I did not have to support her for the year but I could claim her as a dependent for the year on my taxes. My Mamma didn't raise no dumb kid!