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Hey everyone! In this scroll saw project video I make a beautiful Train Themed Desk Clock for my Train Room out of a beautiful piece of oak wood. The pattern is available on Scroll Saw Village, hope you all like the video! #ArtisanPirate

I posted this on the FB Scroll saw woodworking group. If you want a quick project that will amuse most that see it. this a quick one to make. Balancing Skateboard.mp4

Next week my great grandson will be celebrating his 2nd birthday and he is so excited about dinosaurs. So I talked with his mom and ask her if she thought he would like a room plaque with his name and a dinosaur on it. She told me he would be so excited to have one. I saw a post of someone's dino plaque and liked the way he designed it so I sort of took off on his fun idea and made this one. I used a different dinosaur so that it would not be an exact copy of his and I painted it to stand out a little more. I am pleased with this one and it only took about 15 minutes to cut it out. so, easy it was and hopefully it will bring a smile or two to his face. Dick heppnerguy

Done with the technique shown by @john nelson. Saved me so much work and the girls are happy with it. 8"x5" I'm doing 10 of them, one for each table.

So, just cause I can't seem to wrap my head around this, the "puzzle" is a picture that you glued to the wood then cut into the puzzle!?

Did a couple of these for friends' kids. The pieces were ~2” square and finished on the back to create a writing surface. Guests got to write the bride & groom a short sentiment and sign it before putting the pieces into a large fishbowl. Sometime later the couple assembled the puzzle, got to read what was written to them, and turned it over to see their engagement picture. Everyone loved it.

FWIW, I usually spray my puzzles and let them dry overnight then they’re ready to cut the next day. Not trying to change your mind, just offering another solution to your post.

I saw Steve's video, but you have won the kupi doll Rolf, the colours make it something to smile about. It would attract a lot of attention on a stall.

4 sanded & glued.

Yeah that is why / how I started using the mineral oil beeswax mixture years ago.. I learned that Idea from a toy making website and is actually where I learned the recipe to make the stuff. It's the same thing used for cutting boards / butcher blocks etc.. I made my own mix and made some cutting boards for myself about 12 years ago.. I don't treat the boards like I should and wash in soap and water almost daily, I don't wipe dry like they say to do either.. I just wash and let air dry. They say to wipe with the mixture every couple weeks or once a month.. I'm pretty lucky if I do it 3-4 times a year.. boards still look pretty good.. I have sanded knife marks out about 5-6 times since i originally made them.. I figure if a cutting board that gets dunked in soapy water dang near every day and has had pretty crappy care given to it and it still looking pretty good after 12 years.. a puzzle should last longer than the original purchaser will probably keep it... and for what it's worth, all my puzzles come with a warning label that it's a choking hazard and not intended for children under 5 years old. If a child is slobbering all over the puzzle and using it as a teether to bite on it's going to probably dent and exposé into the untreated topcoat anyway. The bigger concern about kids toys in my mind if they are putting them in their mouths is the possibility of bacteria and turning rancid.. Beeswax I believe fights both of these.. When finishing I melt the mixture into the wood with a hair dryer and then also apply another small amount that I buff into the surface.. this melted method allows it to soak deeper into the wood rather than just getting onto the surface. I don't know if my way of doing this is better or the best or whatever.. but in my own personal research I feel like it's the best I can offer and be comfortable knowing I did the best I could with the knowledge I had at said time. That all said.. again I don't sell these as a play toy for kids and the puzzles come with a sticker on it stating that.. It's a tedious job doing the beeswax mix and I rarely do it any more.. I mostly just use Danish oil now..

My comments above refer to the "cellulose" type lacquer. In this day and age you must read the label. Water based finishes have their own rules. They do not "burn" the previous coat and so need different techniques. Some of the "new" finishes raise the wood grain more than others. Those that do require sanding. Nuts oh for the good old days.

The original designer wants to control how their patterns are distributed. When they upload a pattern to SSV, it's saying it is a gift to the members of SSV. But I'm sure they'd be upset if that file is being shared among FB, other forums, other websites and blogs without their knowledge or consent. So, if it's not a pattern you designed yourself, you should point them to the place they can download it for themselves. Granted, on SSV, they have to be a member (membership is free) to access the Pattern Library. But I don't think that's too much to ask, especially if they're getting access to 5,000+ free scroll saw patterns. We limit access to the Pattern Library to members, because a few years back, we ran into someone on EBay stealing our patterns and reselling them. When I complained, they said it was Free and they can do whatever they want. I eventually got Ebay to intervene and shut down the theft. At any rate, sharing a link to where they can download the pattern themselves is the best approach.

So as not to hijack another post, I'm starting a new one. Recently I did a deep dive into what is actually in "lacquer, I was looking at the various brands at the Ace Hardware website (I had to go into the MSDS to find the stuff) and here is what I found. In the current world of finishing, Lacquer is a catchall for a hard surface coating that may or may not contain; shellac, polyurethane, nitrocellulose acrylic, enamel, epoxy, and/or other ingredients and/or may require sanding between coats. If you are looking for a new finish coating you may need to explore different brands to see if a particular one works for you. I am still trying to find a way to give a gloss coating for the "name and a rose" items that I am making. Polyurethane needs to be sanded in between coat and there's just no way to do that (maybe, I'm going to try an "air eraser" from HF, I'll post after I've tried it) in a timely manner. Also all the non spray coatings now have instructions that state "do not thin", I believe this has more to do with VOC rules than actual use. I am asking that if you post about a particular finish that works for you, add the brand name and if you are thinning a product, what you are thinning it with. Thanks.

Hi I am Andy from Suffolk in the Uk been scrolling for about a year now,loving it and use it to relax,mostly Baltic Birch ply with a little bit of hardwood when it comes to hand

Hello everyone, I redid wolf for the second time, but it's the last time. Frame or no frame? That is the question! Eric

Ok, most everybody has seen the votive candle holders that I've made in the past but for those who might not have, I'm including a picture of a finished one. I'm also posting pics of all the parts for the 4 that I'm currently making for my wife to give away. She likes this particular thing more than any of the other stuff I've made for her and so it has become her "go-to" gift. The original pattern called for a glass of some sort with a votive candle in it but my wife went to Hobby Lobby and found the flameless candles that just fit so she includes one of them along with the holder. The pics show all the parts both cut and still to be cut. The 8 side panels for each one take about an hour each to cut out. They are compound cuts and just take a long time to do. I've tried every way I can think of to speed up the process but it just can't be done any faster. Lots of taping and re-taping to hold everthing together while cutting. Time consuming to say the least. The other pieces are 4 tops, 4 bases and 8 supports. 4 of the supports are recessed into the tops and can't be seen but the other 4 go at the bottom and are attached to the base unit. The bases still need to have the outer edge routed. I should have done that when I routed the underside of the 4 tops but forgot. I hate routing anything because of the noise and the mess but it's a necessity sometimes. Anyway, I hope you understand what all this is about. Please don't pay any attention to the 4 base unit patterns. When I scanned them in, there was a shadow on the pattern and I could not get rid of it so it just came out this way.

I too will keep this one in mind. Still one more son to wed.

Wow what an interesting idea. I will have to remember that for the next family wedding Dick heppnerguy

What a fun pun. You made me laugh when I read your comments. Thanks for taking the time to write one. Dick heppnerguy

thanks for the nice comment. I was a quick and easy project but I think the little guy will like it too, at least I hope he does. Dick heppnerguy

Rolf, if you haven't already, check out Steve's site today, Tue. 24,! This one will get the grand kids going! Erv

very nice

Not being familiar with many finishes made for wood as I don't do a lot of "top coating" on wood.. That being said your statement saying you need a "gloss" finish and to be able to add a few coats. My experience with auto finishes and what I think you're trying to achieve I suppose if it were me I'd go with a urethane automotive clearcoat, LOL.. I know several furniture makers in my area that use the auto paints for their clear.. Spraying auto paints is different because you don't let the paint completely dry between coats.. you let the paint get tacky / sticky and then apply the next coat. I personally use this method for wood finishing too.. may not be the correct way to add coats of paint but it has worked well for me. I think the biggest reason they say to sand between coats is for those that spray a light coat and then let it dry.. If a car gets too dry while painting it yes.. we then also have to sand it. The idea is to get as much paint thickness on the item without getting runs / sagging paint. waiting to get that perfect tacky / sticky time for the next coat allows the solvent to sort of "melt" into the previous coat and bond well. Now, that all said.. doing this on wood with water base paints doesn't work out so well because the water makes the grain lift.. however.. you can sprits water on your project to get the grain to lift and do a final sanding and this will take care of maybe 95% of your grain raising issue.. sometimes it's 100% but every piece of wood is different so if you absolutely cannot sand then I'd go with a oil based or automotive solvent type paint. Lacquer base paints are really about the easiest and most forgiving paints out there in both wood finishes and automotive finishes.. but the potent solvents in these paints are not forgiving if you ever try to top coat with another type of paint.. even after several years on a car and you spray a enamel over it.. It'll curdle / bubble/ lift the paint and cause all kinds of trouble, LOL..

That was my first idea John, but some of the writing was so 'fine' it wouldn't transfer to my liking. I didn't feel like doing 10 puzzles by hand with my pyrography machine, so this was a way easier option. I imported the 'wood' image as the B/B I have is too 'white' to look like wood

Nice. You can hang a real railroad pocket watch from the picket fence.

They look very nice Ray.

That is totally awesome!

Looks great Dick! I'm sure he is going to love it.

Looking good Ray, RJ

Nice. I do like @bobscrollpatterns

A plus to the beeswax mineral oil is that it makes the wood feel silky smooth as the wax sort of fills in the pores / grain of the wood.. also the puzzle pieces are slick to slide together or fall apart .. There are tons of methods as you can already see from the comments.. The beeswax / mineral oil mix isn't the fastest method to apply to the puzzles though.

Inkscape. I took a 'wood vector image' and a 'puzzle' pattern off the internet and saved them in a folder on my computer. I then imported the puzzle, created the words I needed and put the words in the puzzle and grouped everything together and saved it. Then I imported the 'wood' image as layer 1 and added a second layer and imported the puzzle, locked the two together and pressed print. !!!

very nice

A great idea Brenda. Nicely cut Sticky beaks would like to know how you did the lettering ? I made a large puzzle for a friend of mines wedding cut into the same amount of pieces as guests and each guest signed a piece. When the puzzle was put together the face of it had a nice photo on it.

One of my neighbors has a '67 Camaro that is in beautiful condition but is considering selling it. Found a pattern in the pattern library and started cutting. I'll give it to him next week.

Love it Dick. I'm sure the little bloke will be rapt with that.

He will be over the moon with it, I can imagine his great big smile. Great work. Marg

Not a problem as long as you let it cure before cutting. I routinely spray my jigsaw puzzles before cutting and have never had a problem.

It's not cheap, especially in the pressure packs. I purchase it in 4 litre cans. It does work out not to bad a price as it is usually thinned about 2 to 0ne.

Thanks for the recommendation, the local library has a title for Flexner, I'll pick it up tomorrow. It's probably about furniture but it will help (I need information about deep, 1/2" +, fretwork).

I'm sure he'll love it Dick. Great job all around but especially on the letters.

I am just experimenting???? A few of my designs........Not sure just where this is going ??? Lol John

Thank you Frank, I agree on SSV membership, a lot of work goes into this great site and the membership contributes a great deal. Thank you Melanie and Frank for the history of this piece.