Leaderboard

Here is the Hummingbird I cut for my spouse for Christmas. The frame was what I liked the most. The birdhouse was for my Granddaughters. They love to fish with me and love the dock I built them so I added a birdhouse to it.

I can at least pull for Martin Truex one more time.

I may have missed it in previous postings, but consider a solid core door for building material. I've seen them at our local Restore store between $50-70. And there is always the long shot where there is a laser forum out there and somebody has a set of plans on hand. Ya never know.

I miss his show.

I built this work bench over 30 years ago and I still love it. It is an easy build and not overly expensive depending on what vises you decide to use. I modified the design to add another vise. The design is great in that the top surface is easily replaced after years of scrapes, glue, stain etc. extremely sturdy yet not too heavy to move. Norm Abrahms work bench

Very Nice. I realalize you said first project, but FWIW, a #7 blade is really large. I'm an avocate of using the smallest blade possible for the kind of cutting you are doing and the thickness of the material you are cutting. You might find a #3 or even a #1 blade would be eaiser to work with for this kind of cutting and materil thickness. Just my two cents.

I adapted a free image of a metal wall hanging to create a nom 10 ½” x 14” Intarsia pattern. Wood used: Aspen, Basswood, Poplar (textured with a wire wheel and enhanced with Green Acrylic paint applied with an Air Brush), Padauk, Walnut, Wenge, Yellowheart, and a Tan mystery wood for the island. The backer is a nominal 5/8” thick Premium Pine panel that was lightly painted using an Air Brush to create a sea to sky background while allowing some of the strong Pine grain to show through. The rails of the Walnut fixed frame are 1 ½” wide forming a 15” x 19” panel. Finish is rattle can spray Clear Gloss Acrylic Finish. Comments and critiques are always welcome. EDIT 2: Yep the sun WAS in the water!!!!! Did not see it until I looked at the original photo with this post. The glue had not curred fully and I was able to remove the sun completely without much visable damage to the background. I'll be deleting the sun from the pattern. With my interpretation of the Island, I feel it is no longer needed. Kind of looked wrong even without the colored background.

I also often use mat boards with success. Luckily I have a friend who recently retired and gifted me a whole heap of it.

I get it, I was just razzin' ya a little Ray.

Looking forward to a full report as to how it worked.

I use mat boards as a backer. As a framer, I have access to many different colors. My next project is the Heron on the front cover of SWWC. I will use a mat board on that project.

I have not used cardboard from boxes. I have used flat black poster board as a backer on many pictures I have cut. Have never had a problem.

The technique described is a plastic dissolved in a hazardous solvent. Spread it on your work and, when the solvent evaporates, you have a thin layer of plastic (of unknown quality) as a finish. You can get that in a rattle can at the local DIY store, they call it polyurethane. You can get it in clear or color of your choice, gloss, semi-gloss or matte. I think the people who make it paid more attention to the quality of the residual plastic finish than did the guy who made the video. Ditto the nature of the hazardous solvent. Or you can get shellac, lacquer, tung oil, etc. I could go on, but you get the idea.

Love the frame! The bird house is really cool.

They are all on YouTube.

Very nice artistic bird house. An A frame head with 1 eye. Another hole in the chest for a block body. First thought I had was the term "block head". Almost a robot feel. Pretty soon you will see birds perched on the wooden arms and hands. Good job.

There are entire kits out there that have all the parts you need if that is the way you want to go.

Ray, look at it this way the #19, got the pole, RJ

I read that as being a backer like many paint or use as a contrasting color wood to enhance the piece.. As for a sacrificial piece that'll be cut as a sort of support for the actual wood panel it might work well but I think it'd depend on the type of cardboard you use.. I don't think you'd want to use the corrugated? like a shipping box as I feel like the bottom would fray and be catching and ripping on the edges of the saw table.. Now the type that say a cereal box or case of your beverages come in type of cardboard might work well for this.. I use the old cereal boxes to do test runs on the laser or to make a outline mark for say ornaments that are already made but I need to line it up to engrave a name or? on them so I know where to place the ornament to get it straight etc.

A long time ago I was told that you can cut off a finger on the scroll saw, but you would probably have to change the blade halfway through. Tom

Well, he’s made it into the race!

Cardboard will show ridges. I tried it. Didn’t like it. You want it to look smooth.

Ray, sounds like a good idea, I have never tried that though. Tonight quaifying to see who's on the front row, RJ

Great work. I like both...nothing much more to say!

Great whimsey kids will love it frame and bird look great.

I vaguely remember seeing something like this several years ago. While the idea is conceptually interesting, I can't ever see myself trying it. In the big picture, finishes are a fairly small percentage of material cost for most of us hobbyists. At least for me they are. The potential risks of trying this method really outweigh any theoretical benefits.

As a custom framer, that method is quite spectacular. Mighty nice projects.

Great work!

Beautiful projects, really like the frame, never seen anything like that before, but will have to try and make it, RJ

Really, really nice. Jerry

awesome work

Both are great. Love the whimsy of the bird house.

I tossed mine 20 years ago. Not needed.

Very nice. I too like the frame. I've never seen that method of reinforcing miter joints before. I've used splines on the surface and on the edge before, but nothing quite like that. I'll likely steal that idea on a future project.

I never use the blade guard.

Removed them from every scroll saw I've had before I even plug it in.