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Cut with spiral blades from a beautiful piece of mahogany that is 12" x 10 1/2" x 1 1/2" thick. Dick

Not all heroes where capes.

So here is the next cut for my “Lion Project” it had to be reduced quite a bit to fit into the greater plan. It was also not a free standing pattern I got Russ’s approval to modify the pattern to be free standing, have not done this before it was all free hand drawing on the pattern. Difficult cut due to the reduced size but when you see the whole project completed you will understand my insanity. Cut with a #1 Niqua straight pin less blade. Soaked in Danish Oil drained and excess wiped off. Ready now for detailing. At the end of the day very hay with the final result.

Sacrificial Lamb. (Russ Beard Pattern)

Trivet #2 of 8 patterns by Sue Mey. I used 1/2" Walnut approximately 8" square. Cut on the Pegas Scroll Saw using Pegas #3 MGT blades. A light sanding with the Sand Flee and Mac Mop then dipped in diluted Shellac. One coat spray Lacquer Clear Satin. Comments welcome.

This is my shop buddy Rose cooling off on the cement of my shop. She likes to come in and steal the cutouts when they fall on the floor and chew on them.

Yoda - Star Wars. (Botas Helder Pattern).

Dragon from the Game of Thrones.(Russ Beard Pattern)

Been awhile since I posted. This last project took approximately 6 weeks to complete. Pattern by Lewis A. Jewell. Size is 45” w, 36” h. This is the third one I’ve done.

I did an experiment with blades this past weekend. Pegas, Flying Dutchman and Niqua. I found the #3 Pegas RS and the Modified geometry, although very sharp to be very aggressive in its cut. The #3 was harder to control vs the #5. Niqua is a rebranded Flying Dutchman. What I have found over the last 100 projects I have worked on, that I tend to go-to the Flying Dutchman #5 Ultra Reverse as my 'every-day blade". I control it very well from 1/4 to 3/4-inch wood. it cuts clean with no fuzzies, no need to sand my cuts either, saving time. It is not as aggressive as the Pegas, which fits my slow cutting style. That being said. Get yourself a mix of blades to experiment with, you will find what WORKS FOR YOU.

I guess I'm a little different than others that have commented. I like an aggressive blade that is sharp and cuts fast. That's why I use the Pegas blades. The rate of cut is not going to be any faster than the rate you feed your material into the blade. The reason I like the sharper blades is because, in my opinion, it cuts straighter (between clamps) rather than creating a bow as you feed the material. Also, I have a tendency to use the smallest possible blade for the material I'm cutting so that I geet nice, crisp corners. I've found to get the sharp corners with a larger blade you have to "nibble" your way into the corner to make your turn.

Robert R. A couple of things, we do not criticize we comment, guide and suggest things that can be changed to improve our work. The first thing looking at you piece is , as others have suggested, use better wood and a better quality blade. That will give a you a cleaner cut with fewer fuzzies. What saw and blade did you use for your project?

So somewhere I did bad math. to get the 15,000psi a bandsaw would like, we have the equivalent of 6.72lbs on the blade, and a stretch of .002586” over the 5” blade. my hegner 22” saw has a tension rod with 1 thread per mm; one rotation changes its length by 1mm. The back portion of the arm is 19cm and the front is 40.3cm. That gives a mechanical advantage of 2.12; so 1mm of shortening the tension rod is 2.12mm of stretch on the blade. 2.12mm is .0835”. This is the max Hegner recommends. 1 turn of the adjuster yields 484,300psi for a pull of 216.917lbs 1/2 turn yields 241,860psi for a pull of 108.35lbs all based on an Olson #3 crown tooth. those little blades are really under a lot of load! It’s no wonder the blades break. so that’s it. Curiosity is satisfied

This is just my thoughts. I typically cut thick woods which are 3/4" and even thicker. I do mainly Intarsia and accuracy is the primary concern so that fit is tight. I aim at cutting half of the line. Also, some of the woods are difficult to cut. I change blades quite often as a dull blade results in inaccurate cuts. I really do not care about the price of blades. I may only cut one piece with a blade and make no attempt to reuse a blade. I use either FD Polar #3-#5 blades. I also use PS Woods SuperSharps. My saw is a Hegner I can tell when I am pushing too hard just by the feel. I have had blades go dull in just two inches. The point of all this is that the type of project makes a huge difference. I might have a difficult time knowing when a blade is dull on a fret work project or other thin wood with different blades. What blade to use and how long it lasts depends on your saw, blade type, material type and thickness, your style and a bunch of other things. One needs to experiment and carefully watch how your blades are reacting. There is no secret formula or rule.....just lots of experience.

These are a couple super heroes of one of my great grandson's that I made for him for Christmas presents. It is a lot of fun to see his face when he opens them, even though he has just turned 3 years old a month ago.. Dick heppnerguy

Any and all criticism would be truly accepted, I want to be better at this.

I've heard that proper tensioned blades make a certain note (although I don't know what note) but has anyone actually tried using a guitar tuner to see what it does? I happen to have a cheap tuner from an endeavor into learning to play the guitar that I failed miserably at. Lol I've been testing it on the hegner and from what I can tell it says E when it's tensioned right. Just wondering if anyone has tried this. I know some will ask why and some will say this is dumb but just like with the clock post I made, I like gadgets and find tinkering with stuff neat. I'd not recommend using a guitar tuner to set your blade tension every time I don't think. I'm just curious if a proper tensioned blade does make a consistent note.

I made a wrinkly old man fishing for my pond out of tree limbs I was bored well I did scroll saw the fish. Roly

Thanks Marie. I guess I should have Photoshopped it before posting.

Dick, this is beautiful. I would really like to know how you do it. Perhaps a short video or perhaps any books or web site that might show this technique. Beautifully done, Jerry

nice job

Patience of a saint..nice work Don!

Usually i cut around 60-70% speed (mainly cause I'm a newbie) but different blades will perform differently depending on material/thickness etc. Ive never cut at max speed but I'm also mainly using softer woods plywood,birch,pine,sometimes oak at 1/4,1/2,3/4 inch thickness.

Thanks Jim. The first two I’d made 22 years ago for my first grand kids are still in use and in beautiful shape. I still remember seeing the look on their faces when they received them at Christmas time; just priceless. This one I made for display at trade shows.

I think you have done a beautiful job and excellent cutting, RJ

I agree with Richard on the wood type and thickness of wood and size of blade. Easier to stack cut something like that and it will make it easier to control the blade. With those types of cuts you need to slow down a little and let the blade do the work. If I was cutting something like that I would probably stack cut two or three 1/4 inch B/B ply using a # 3 or 5 ur blade. Other than that you did pretty good. Practice makes perfect.

this is a super interesting and beautiful project. I love your idea of carving the outsides of the project subject. I am going to have to give that a try soon. Thanks for sharing your wonderful project Dick heppnerguy

From what I see you need to slow your blade speed down a bit, and also slow down how fast you feed your wood to the blade. Go really slow, let the blade do the work, do not push. Pause frequently and back up a little. Speed will come later. Blade speed you will need to adjust depending on thickness and hardness of wood. Also, try using real wood as that looks like a composite. The glue will mess you up as you learn right now. Baltic Birch plywood is another good learning wood. Start with 1/2 inch. The thinner the wood, the tough it is to control at first and you get those blowouts you see on some of your lines. The main point is GO SLOW... nail those lines splitting them perfectly. Going slow you will also get smooth lines, focus on those two things first. Plan your cuts and turns too, know in advance if you are going to back up, change directions, do a nibble cut, or sweep into the waste area and then turn back to nail a 90 degree. Note the 3rd image and how I go past my line into the waste area and nibble out an area where i can turn my blade to the opposite direction. This way I get really sharp corners. Also, if you do not have a 5x magnifier I would recommend one. (4th image) See the image below. I go REALLY slow to nail lines.

I had to take a second look, first one was nice horse, scrolled down reading then went right back up to look again, and I saw it. Clever, I like that.

An easy cut with western red cedar, pattern from Sheila Landry

#ArtisanPirate

If you are a beginner and don't know what the blade ping sounds like, this could be helpful.

The minute it feels like you have to push the wood into the blade as opposed to it "melting" into the blade, or you start have difficulty controlling the blade, time to change. And like all things there are a lot of factors. You cannot put a time limit on it. What your are cutting, What wood you are using, what type blade you are using. I Probably, and I have never timed it, just a guess, but I would say on average I may get 20 minutes out of a blade. But again I do not set a timer, when I feel in the slightest that I am having to work to get the blade to go where I want, it is time for me to change. Right now I am cutting in 1/2" Monkey Pod, a little harder than Popular, maybe, but what I am cutting I want to be precise, I am using a #1 size blade and I have probably changed the blade every 10 minutes at the most. That is just me, your mileage may vary as they say. You may not want to go by what I say,, I have broken lots and lots of blades! But I am often trying different blades, different technics, different woods..expect to break blades.

M heros don't play ball, nor are they found in comic books. They do wear dog tags, though.

I would be more curious if the right tension had different notes for different blades and different scroll saws. So many variables. I do pluck my blade every time I clamp one and before I turn the saw on, but I think I go more by the feel than the sound.

Why? that's just dumb.. Sorry I just had to since you said someone would and I wanted to be the first I remember someone posting about using one some years ago and you guessed right.. many asked why and that's stupid or overkill etc etc.. Anyway, I think I've read many different times that a proper tensioned blade should be about a "C" note... whatever that is supposed to be.. Like you, I don't have the music talent or the ears for that either. My older brothers stole all of that from the younger of the siblings as two of my brothers play in bands and actually have some music published through a recording company.. Guess they are good at it.. I wouldn't know since they've stole all the ear talents from us younger siblings NOW, with that said.. couldn't one play some music from a scroll saw.. you have the ( what's it called? Reverb bar? ) tension lever to change the tune of a single string ( blade in this case ).. I would say someone would have a lot of talent if they could play a song using a scroll saw and blade tension lever only. LOL I might suggest this to my talented brothers,