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Something I whipped up on my own

Welll the dragon house sign is pretty much finished now. Its not as challageing or complex as the stuff you guys make but I like it lol and it will I think look nice once we are able to hang it up outside.... Im not sure what kind or size the wood is. I think its an old piece of plywood used to make the flooring of a shead. Its thiner then 3/4 inch but thicker then the 1/4 inch wood. I have no idea what size blades I used either there all just jumbled up in a container and I just grabed one as I needed to but they were not the really small blades. I used several different dremil cutting tools to carve out the details. WARNING there are a LOT of pictures!!! This first picture is after I put the weather proffing on it. The next 2 show the white gold and sliver painted parts. I ws a little concerned at this point that the gold and sliver wouldnt show up very well.The next 2 are with the light green was put on. then with both shades of green. And then the numbers sign beinging gllued under the dragon. The last 2 are after the expocy resion was put on on one side spike took the last 2 pictures. I dont know why the one picture looks like the expoy resin bubbled up, I went in and checked it out and thank God its still nice with no bubbles!! It will take a couple of days to dry and then I will turn it over and with Gods help put expoxy resin on the other side with hopefuly no bubbles!!! Spike will eventually hang it up outside by the mail box on a hanging plant rod but that will have to wait until after the snow melts and the ground is a bit softer. tomarrow i can start transfering some patterns to wood for projects for the stock and give away boxes.. I relized after I could no long scroll or do my other crafts for so long that I didnt realy have anything Id made for me! So i spend some time here and there making some things for me now lol

This weekend I made several simple jigsaw puzzles for the grandkids using extra thick and durable MDF board from Home Depot. I used a FD UR1 which worked super well making the pieces reasonably easy to fit together for them. They all loved them. So, today I made a 165 piece puzzle for us grownups. I decided to cut the adult puzzle pieces to be about one inch in size which ended up being 165 pieces (using Steve Good's book of puzzle patterns) I cut up an old calendar and attached one of it's pictures to 1/4" BB with spray adhesive. BTW, I suppose using a calendar image is an OK thing to do since it is for personal use rather than for sale. I glued the puzzle pattern to a sheet of dollar store foam board and taped the two together. I started out cutting it with Pegas MG 2/0 but they snapped too often no matter how I tensioned them so I went to my trusty old FD PSR 2/0 which worked excellent . Anyhow I was able to cut this 165 piece puzzle as a one day project and am pretty happy with how it turned out.

I'll see if I can make one..... I kinda made it by hand without a pattern. I'm not a pattern maker, but I will make you one to the best of my ability.

Nice!!! And we DEFINITELY need a pattern for this one if you have it.

The cutting and coloring look nice. Fortunately you did not add why and am very glad you did not. For that reason I hope this presentation does not lead to any political discussions/opinions being posted in this forum! I have been very pleased that to this date this forum has not participated in such.

If I was relying on a saw for production work, I would invest in a Hegner or a Hawk.... Hegner would be my first choice because of the customer service and parts availability... I don't read that Hawk is very good in those area... I could be wrong..

If you were going to purchase a new saw for production cutting 5+ hours a day 5 days a week what would you buy. Does anyone use the Pegas saw for this type of cutting if so how is it? Dewalts seem to be wearing out on me bought a new one December 2019 and its about done already. I know they can be rebuilt but don't want it to be a yearly thing. I'd like something that I'd get 3-5 years at least of heavy operation out of before having issues.

very nice job

I think that says it all lol

I have been going to cut a puzzle piece for about 20 years but I have never gotten around to it, maybe I will one day. Great work with hours of fun for the family, well done. Marg

Yes we are! Very nice piece you've done. I like it.

I have a 20+ year old Delta Q3 40-650 saw that cuts a little more aggressively than the DeWalt, New Delta, Pegus, Seyco and similar design saws that are now available, and I would still use it now if I was doing any kind of production cutting today. It has a C frame design with the blade ends connected across the gap to the ends of the C. When running, the C frame rocks back and forth, so the blade cutting angle is varying slightly forward and back as it moves up and down. This speeds the sawdust clearing from the cut and increases the cutting rate possible at a given saw speed, much like when you hand saw a board and change the blade cutting angle as you make each stroke. What it doesn't do is make a perfectly vertical cut as you reach and need to turn a tight corner, unless you pause at the corner long enough for a couple of complete blade strokes before making the turn and continuing the cutting. So this Q3 saw cuts a little faster, but it isn't quite as precise as these newer saws. It's a trade-off of speed for accuracy. It will depend a lot on what you are cutting as to which saw is better for the purpose. Experiment more with different blades and manufacturers to find the blade that does the job faster for your project, and you will find that for some projects you may want to switch the blade type several times during the project, as some blades work better for very tight turns where others do better for the longer and more gradual turn cutting. Spiral blades do great for clearing tiny areas, but following pattern lines is much more difficult when using them. Larger blades cut faster, but leave rougher edges that require sanding later. Skip tooth blades tend to work better for finer work where clearing the sawdust from the cut becomes a problem. Learn what works best for each area of your project and don't hesitate to switch to the best blade for cutting each area. I have a magnet on the side of the upper arm of my saw where I temporarily park blades that are in use, but dull blades never get put away. Any remaining used blades at the end of a project get trashed. At approx. $0.20 per blade I'm not going to risk the quality of my next project because I used a dull blade on it. Significantly increasing the speed of the saw may increase the cutting speed, but the blade will overheat, turn blue, and loose it's sharpness quickly. It will break sooner as well. It also burns the edges of the cut, making the project look more like it was cut with a laser. There is an optimum trade-off speed for each blade, where it cuts well and yet doesn't over heat, so it continues to cut well for a longer time. I frequently lubricate my blades by cutting into an old candle or block of paraffin or just by rubbing the wax candle or block against the sides of the blade as it's running. This keeps the blade cooler and the cuts cleaner as well. You should set your saw speed to just below where the blade heats and burns the wood. Watch the blade color for signs of it turning from black to blue. Gray is Ok, but not blue. Lubricate the blade with wax often, and once set at this ideal speed it will make the fastest and cleanest cuts possible. The blades have very tiny teeth, so they can only remove as much wood as their teeth gullets will allow with each blade stroke, so pushing the work harder to cut faster will not work very well. As the blade dulls, and you begin to see any burn marks, it will be necessary to slightly reduce the saw speed, or replace the blade to continue making clean cuts as fast and accurately as possible, regardless of what saw that you use. Scroll sawing is more of a journey and achieving precision, than it is a destination. It is nothing like any other kind of woodworking. Slow down, strive for precision, and you will enjoy the process much better. Let the laser cutter guys do production and burn their way through their work, making nasty looking, burned edge, but fast production work. Strive for precision, but at the ideal speed for what you are cutting. You will enjoy the journey much better, and your work will sell faster, because it will look much nicer. A tip for even more precision and speed is to feed and steer your project as your cutting it by using your fingers, with your wrists and palms resting on the front of the saw table or that area of your project. Feeding the work with your elbow muscles isn't nearly as accurate, but is the way that most people try to do it. You will be able to follow the lines, especially in those tight close work areas, much better. If you haven't been working this way, the elbow feeding habit takes some time to break, but it's very worth the effort. When I teach scroll sawing, I try to get my students to work this way from the beginning. Those who have scroll sawn before my class find it more difficult to switch, but everyone has agreed that doing it this way has helped them considerably. Charley

Knocked this out before 9am. Gonna be a good day. Customer wants to paint it. About 26” wide.

Looks great. Looks like 1/4 inch B/B with a walnut backer and shelf.

That came out good. I use a lot of Steve Goods puzzle patterns but I never tried to do any free hand. Not sure if I can do that.

And your ability's are astounding!!! Clever design and hope to see more of your creativity to wow SSV!!!

When we get it hung i'll take another picture and i'll see if spike wants to get a post to hang it on...not sure how hed hang it on the flower post. lol The wood i think was out door plywood like you use for flooring, thats one of the reasons i chose it. lol i also put weather proofing on it before painting it and last the expoxy resin. Should hold up for a year or two or more lol id like to turn our yard into like a fairy land but spike hates to have to move a lot of things to mow and of course most everything that cant be mowed he weed wacks around so we'll see how much stuff he'll let me make for outside lol

I have made three clocks that were published by SSWWC magazine. Two were designed by Brian Law the third by Alfred Mifsud. I will say that all wooden clocks require attention to detail and some mechanical aptitude and patience to get them running correctly. The first one was is a pendulum clock that is weight driven. Most of the shafts are brass except for the main shaft which is now steel. The second one is more complex and is more of a novelty /fascination than a time keeper. It has a spring in it. I take that one to shows as it really draws people into the booth or our clubs display table. The last is the most accurate and and in my opinion the easiest to build. The gears don't really mesh so cutting them is a bit more forgiving. It has a electromagnetic drive. and a weird "daisy wheel" reduction that is hard to wrap your head around. Fox Chapel has a book "Making Wooden Gear clocks" And I have been selling a metal hardware kit for the gear clock, for those that don't have the resources to to make some of the metal bits. There are lots of clock designs out there and building one and then getting it to run is incredibly satisfying! At least it was for me. At some point I will build a Clayton Boyer clock.

very nice

awesome job, they're beautiful

They are lovely. Great work. Marg

Very nice cutting! The color makes everything more interesting.

The pieces don’t have to look alike, as long as you have good keys and slots.

Wow, Interesting.. I will play around and see if I have what it takes

They look great Ken but, save yourself some steps and cut the pieces free hand. You don’t have to attach a pattern if you cut free hand. My avatar is my first puzzle. It was cut completely freehand, no pattern. It is also a calendar page. When I decided to do this puzzle, I practiced on a scrap piece of 1/4” BB. Once I got the hang of it, I went for it. I think it came out great!

From what can be seen in the photo the cutting looks real good. Having never tried to cut a puzzle, I'm curious. What is your cutting procedure? One piece at a time or row by row? Do you tape the rows together as you go?

Beautiful.

Looks great Ken. And I know the kids and the adults will enjoy putting them together.

I also built a wooden gear clock from Wooden-Gear clock. Out of Altoona Wisconsin if I’m not mistaken. I thoroughly enjoyed making it. Unfortunately, I was not able to get it to work. I was thinking of starting over and re-make it from the beginning. I would highly recommended using brass dowels instead of wood if you do decide to make one. And like Wayne said, Baltic Birch is what I would suggest

Nice project and I would bet a lot of people are in agreement with you right now. Thanks for sharing and God Bless! Spirithorse

Wow! That is excellent. I like this!

Have always like and admired he ones I have seen built. I do understand they are tricky to get right so they run correctly. Most of the gears are made from BB and is highly suggested for wear and stability. Maybe someday I'll make one.

Kevin you are very sweet. This was an easy project, just the painting is very time consuming.

I stopped by Hobby Lobby and found the same planks under a different brand name and they were $3.47. Did not buy, however I did buy the circles pictured. Same price just more bang for the buck. Plus I had a 40% off coupon so not too shabby.

I've been using an Excalibur EX-21 for years ( before they were made in China ) and have had very little problems. It gets used 7 days a week and about 6 to 8 hours a day. Sometimes more then that. If I was to buy a new it would most likely be a Hegner. There a lot of folks up here with different saws, some run as a business and others as a hobby. I'm sure you get a lot of different opinions. I have also heard a lot of good about Seyco. Good luck in your research it's almost like buying a new car. One last thought, make sure you are comfortable with the saw, if you can find different ones to try out that would be the best thing. I know not really possible unless you have access to them.

I'm thinking if you rebuilt the DW with quality bearings and new sleeves.. good quality synthetic grease you should be able to get your 3-5 year time from it.. I would try that first before jumping in on a new saw.. If you are used to cutting on a DW.. they are a bit more aggressive cutting saws than the other saws out there.. You can tune a Pegas and other types of saws to cut more aggressively which when tuned they cut pretty good and fast.. However the top speed SPM ( strokes per minute ) is only 1500 on the Pegas and like saws.. and the DW is 1750. As for quality saws.. built to last and production cut.. I'd agree with Paul and say a Hawk or Hegner with out last any of these other saws by a long shot.. however they are a bit slower at cutting as they do have a more straight up down blade movement.. Hawk has a adjustable blade angle which does help but you get it too far out there and it won't cut nice square corners as Charley mentioned about C arm saws. I personally went with a Hawk when I upgraded as I do just as you are.. "production cut" and I wanted the blade angle adjustment option because speed does somewhat matter for production cutting.. and I don't think Hegner offers that option.. But as others have stated.. repair parts from Hawk can take a long time to get if they don't have the parts on hand.. They are a very small family run business and they also Farm and run a couple other small business's so the parts could be a few months out before you get them.. If you go with Hawk.. a good idea to buy ahead of time some common wear parts. Most business's that production cut shouldn't rely on just running one saw anyway in my opinion.. I have 3 Hawks and a Excalibur. I have the Ex tuned to be a fast cutting machine for those " in a hurry to get done orders " Hawks are tuned to run precision.. funny thing is.. there is very little difference in the time it takes to cut the same projects from one machine to the other.. The DW has a noticeable difference in cutting time.. but it comes with the wearing out fast poor quality machine factor that only you can weigh your options.. Iggy sticks with his DW's and he has had a Hawk and a Pegas.. didn't like either saw very well so he just replaces a DW every year or so.. IF I was that stuck on DW I'd take the time to rebuild one or even pay someone to do it if I wasn't able to myself.. provided they would use quality parts and grease.. I got 4-5 years on my DW after rebuilding it once... I sold the saw because I got the EX.. but wish I had kept it instead.. But honestly, once getting used to the cutting style of the Hawk.. It's really my go to saw.. Been running it pretty hard for 3 years now.. not needed any parts yet.. and still running very smooth and quiet.. To do over again.. I'd still buy the Hawk.. or Hegner.. Even if you buy a new saw every year.. you still have time setting up a new saw.. and the hassle of having to take time to shop for another every year etc..

I have a Pegas on order, expected to ship at the end of the month. Obviously, I haven’t used it yet, but I expect it to perform and last better than my DeWALTS have.

Being a fighter would be a much cooler story than being too dumb to get out of the way of a double play.

I went back to my dollar tree and found what you were talking about, they look like they are bass wood, not very big I could get 3 or 4 decoration out of some of them. but I can buy 1/8 BB plly at less than $1 per sq foot, so it's not a very good deal for me, for some body else they would be a good deal. That is if the price has not risen like other wood at the big box stores. IKE

Family Dollar is owned by Dollar Tree, my have some luck checking those stores.

Great looking project well done!!!

nice also my fav film of all time i use quotes from it all the time lol nice pattern for your first time design you did well keep it up, and good job on the cutting mate

In another post under “Scrollers Q&A” I asked about what projects I should/could do with some beautiful Walnut and Soft Maple I just acquired. A box, made of a combination of Walnut and Maple, was suggested in a number of the replies. The walnut plank was 3/4” X 17” X 8’ but had a large knot hole in one end. I was able to cut about 14”off the end with the hole and cut the cut off up into a number of pieces. I was able to cut up the cut off into the various sized pieces I needed for this project and actually re-sawed them into 1/4” thickness on the table saw. (I do not have a band saw so, not the best way, but my only choice). This nominal 5" X7" Tribal Box is a Steve Good pattern which I followed, but not really. I did not cut the boxes from thick material but instead formed them from the 1/4” material I salvaged from the cut off pieces. I did use the fret work patterns except that I stack cut and only cut half of the top pattern and opened it like a book to apply to the top. I also stack cut the bottom scroll work also. The top projecting pediment was the only piece that was a single layer. I mitered the corners of the boxes and bottom fretwork at the vertical belt sander and used my strap clamp to hold it square while the glue dried. I rounded the corners of the boxes and the Maple top and bottom slabs at the sander. After some hand sanding with 100 and then 600 grit paper I applied a coat of Lacquer sanding sealer, then finished sanding with1500 grit paper and finally applied multiple coats of spray clear gloss Lacquer. OK, so does anyone know what a Tribal Box is used for?

Gator gator gator, your a sleeper to have slipped these in on us

Hey all Bought a new in the box DW788 off a guy that bought it and never got around to using it about 6 months ago. Needless to say no warranty. Today I'm scrolling along and it just quits. First I figured maybe the foot peddle. Plugged in direct and no go. Discovered the 3 amp fuse had blown. Got a new package of them and they blow soon as I hit the switch. Any thoughts? Possible burned up motor already? Picture for attention.. Thanks in advance!

Boy i miss my scooter in the stores to shop a while and enjoy the comfort of home ,sitting on the scooter.