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Hi All, I would just like to say my new Axminster 535SS Scroll Saw arrived yesterday along with the stand (and a free pack of various Pegas blades). Instructions for assembling the stand are pretty pathetic and I will need some time to fathom it out but there's no rush. I will need a couple of helpers to unbox and fit up the saw s it weighs in at 28 kilos. I will need to re-organise the workshop a bit so it may be a while before it is up and running. Just thought I would have a brag about my good fortune and good luck to all my fellow members on here who need it. take care and stay safe.

Jaeheon Yun is a fun designer and I had fun cutting all of them for the book. I used a smaller blade than Denny (Pegas MGT 3) as I wanted a smaller kerf for the pictures. The larger(thicker) #5 is better. it makes it easier to take apart. Non of these were meant to be "tray" puzzles. But a neighbor asked me if I could turn a couple into tray puzzles to keep all of the pieces together. Cuddly kittens, that also had two different woods for contrast. A bit tricky after the fact. The kittens picture shows how I packed them to send out to FC A few of them needed color so I got to play a bit. Two favorites. And the Kittens are mahogany and maple.

I am playing around with different designs of Welsh Love Spoons, James got me started when I saw his, and now I am just going nuts! I really like the cedar as it is really nice to cut and carve. And of course the smell. These are about 11" in length. The 2nd image I just cut out using spalted maple. (The backside is in the 3rd image) I had some Pegas skip tooth blades I wanted to test, I used 3 blades for the maple one. I saw a piece and just hand-drew this pattern. The penciled-in areas will be where I do the over-under/deep carving. I am going to try a rough carve and finish, sort of the 'Ol Rugged Cross thing. I had some scrap walnut and did a smaller pattern (two blades), you can see the backside in the 3rd image. I am not too keen on the Pegas skip tooth blades. They seem like a faster cut, but I do not like how the cut edges come out. The FD Ultra Reverse finish is so much better, and I have better control. Perhaps the Pegas lasts a little longer though. I figure with a couple of pieces already cut out, I can then sit down and do all my carving, shaping, sanding, and finishing at once. I really like making these Welsh love spoons. Now I have 3 pieces to carve and finish.

Paul Simon in 1/2" white oak.

I am probably a LOT SLOWER than you are... Mollassas on a mid-winters night slow. But in reality, it fits me perfectly. I can be very precise on my lines, not feel that I need to rush and bring out the true art. It won't look like CNC/Laser perfect, but one can tell it was hand-crafted perfect.

Herd of Alpacas pattern by Jaeheon Yun and found in his book 20 Minute Scroll Saw Puzzles. I used 3/4" Hard Maple approximately 8" square. Cut on the Pegas Scroll Saw using Pegas #5 MGT blades. After sanding with a Mac Mop, dipped in diluted Shellac and then lightly snded again. Comments welcome.

This is true as there is a cost which must be passed along one way or another. However, there is such a thing a outrageous shipping costs.

I have many heros... way too many to post here, LOL This one is my top pick though so i'll just post the one.

That’s great, RJ

Awesome job!

Seems to dry quicker.

Here are the stats for now. This my cutting style and speed, not everyone will be this slow 4.5 hrs working on the project. 2.5 hrs saw runtime. The areas in red are what I cut today. There was additional time for taping each piece back in place after cutting and with the learning curve of threading the blade through the slot in the table for inside cuts. Pattern from a magazine. 1" thick plywood ( 2, 1/2" thick plaques ) 18 plies total. FD #1 Polar blades.

Thanks for the info. I think I understand.

My heroes, though spelled differently, are edible.

My Hero is the person pictured in the center picture. He and many others gave us the freedoms that the other two pictures represent. Our Freedom to do as we choose whether it be who we vote for, pray to and live our everyday lives. Those are my hero's.

A couple I've made for gifts or fun over the years.

This pattern was made by Sasho.

Yip the Insane Dust Maker ( Don Bedggood) is at it again, had to get the right size and keep everything in proportion on this one which makes it harder to cut because of the reduced size, but you will understand my madness when all the animals are cut and added to the Lion in a 3D arrangement. I will have to make changes to the outer cutting of the pattern because there must be no wood back round visible just the Buffalo profile.

Both pieces lovely. I like the frame with the horse's Might pinch the idea for a pattern I am trying. Hope that is ok with you.

Well done! The horses reminds me of a painting "ghost riders in the sky" by Leno Prestini

Just some clarification, Flying Dutchman are rebranded Niqua blades. So, if you use FD, you are using Niqua. A few years before Mike from Mike’s Workshop died, he sold his business to The Wooden Teddy Bear with the stipulation they followed his business model of low prices and free shipping. So, if you order from Mikesworkshop.com site, you get free shipping for blades. If you order from WTB, you pay for shipping. As for Pegas blades, Denny at Art Crafters has the best price and fastest service. I use both brands plus Olson blades with FD UR blades the most.

Thanks! This was a super helpful comment. Exactly what I was asking about and wanted to hear. I ended up going with Mike's this time around but I'll keep what you said in mind for the next order, makes a lot of sense.

I use to buy FDs from Mikes then wooden Teddy bear took that over, so I use to figure it out which one I would say between those two. Mikes or Wooden Teddy bear, because they each had different pricing. Then I just decided it was not worth the effort to save a dollar and just started going straight to WTB. that is where I order all my FD blades, and Artcrafters for my Pegas blades and my drill bits. I use both brands.

I went with Flying Dutchman and free shipping. We shall see if there's a difference that I can notice.

At age 80 I am not to interested in keeping track of time spent on my scrollsaw and see a timer as just another gadjet to fuss with

I use both pegas and niqua from Garnet Hall (Sawbird) as he is local to me ( Saskatchewan, Canada)and shipping costs are reasonable, then so is Denny at Artcrafters as he also sells Pegas and has reasonable shipping and is a fellow scroller. I think Niqua blades are made in Germany they seem more flexible, Pegas sharpness lasts a bit longer but are more brittle. Bearwoods are a good supplier as well but bigger companies have higher overhead.

You probably won't bring anyone to blows with this topic, but you may get a lot of varied opinions. I usually buy my blades from Wooden Teddy Bear (Olson and Flying Dutchman). They will let you mix & match sizes within the same brand, if you buy a gross, to get a better price, (maybe mix brands as well, not sure). I've watched the trends of blade preferences over many years. When I started scrolling some 25+ years ago, I used Olson. Guys in my scroll saw club started migrating to Flying Dutchman about 15-20 years ago. The past few years have seen a similar move to Pegas. I did notice a fair difference between Olson and FD, at least in some of the sizes/types. I've tried a few Pegas and frankly haven't noticed a big improvement in speed, durability or cut quality over FD, but that is only my general impression with a very limited sample size. Many others swear by them. It is very much a matter of personal preference, as I am not aware of any sort of controlled testing that has been done that would objectively prove one was better than another.

You might try a better grade of plywood.

I can't get used to these bloody phones. Sometimes when I upload the pics I have taken on my phone to the computer they appear upside down in the thumbnails, but when I pull them into some editing software etc they magically turn the right side up. It's all from another dimension I think

I'm 81. I lost track of it a long time ago. Finding it was like finding an old friend.

I have all kinds of little jars and boxes with little things in them. But never any thing I need at any one time. I always end up at a store to pick up what I really need that i really thought I had some of but I guess I really didn't have any or I just really couldn't find it. It really get frustrating.

Buying Plywood. When Sloan closed its doors many years ago and I have had to seek other places to order. Amazon I thought was a Great place to buy. Little did I realize UNTIL after a project or three that the wood they sent Just couldn't be Baltic Birch. Their adds suggests using it for CNC projects. I experenced many times the THIN LAYER Of the top or bottom pulling or just falling off after the cut. LSS.... Buy from a Reputable Company that Many Scrollers have been using for a long time. Live n Learn.