Dave M Posted January 19, 2010 Report Share Posted January 19, 2010 Hi guys and gals, I'm Dave from Massachusetts. I have seen some scroll saw pages and work while trying to learn pyrography. I'm not an artist by any measure of the word but decided to try my luck at cutting. My wife and daughters bought me a Craftsman 18" saw which I've made two cuts with but haven't gotten any "lessons" first and have already learned some things here. I now know I should have cut from the middle outside instead of the out in. My first cutting was an eagle in which the eye snapped off while trying to take the tape off. I watched a Steve Good video and he used a heat gun to loosen the glue on the tape, hmmm another lesson, bought a cheap heat gun for future use. I saw a couple vids on YouTube about cutting Christmas decorations so I headed to the local craft store and bought a couple thin pieces of plywood, tried a stack cut but learned that the plywood chipped and the decoration doesn't look good. Headed down to the craft store again and got a piece of basswood to attempt my next ornament. Now to find time to get out there and cut!! LOL So I guess my first question to everyone would be...How do I stop the chipping of the plywood, or is there a minimum thickness to avoid this? Another question I have is...Is there anyone in Western Mass that is part of the group and may let me come watch a project being made? I am definitely a hands on type learner and less of a book learner. Thanks and thanks in advance for any tips!! Dave M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Posted January 20, 2010 Report Share Posted January 20, 2010 Hello Dave and welcome to the village. There is so much knowledge and helpful folks here, you're sure to find the answer to your questions. Here's my thoughts on chipping plywood. Are you using the blades that came with the saw? Those are good blades to get started, but they may be too big for the work you're doing. Blades with fewer teeth per inch will chip thin plywood even if you stack them. You should probably use a #3 or possibly a #5 blade. Aslo, if I remember, the blades that come with the saw don't have reverse teeths. Reverse blades have a few teeth at the bottom that cut on the upstroke to clean the bottom of the cut. This reduces "fuzzies" (one of our technical terms). You can get blades from a number of places but I get great blades and great service from Mike at http://www.mikesworkshop.com/. He also has some info to help decide what type of blade to get for the type of work you're doing. Well, I've rambled enough. Hope this info helps and enjoy the addiction. Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave M Posted January 20, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 20, 2010 Hi Dan and thanks for the welcome. The blades are some from the saw and some I purchased after reading some sites online. I do have reverse teeth but I will have to check the size. Thank you. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Travis Posted January 20, 2010 Report Share Posted January 20, 2010 Hi Dave. Welcome to the Village. We're glad you found us. I think you'll have a good time here. Lots of friendly folks to chat with and pick their brains. As far as chipping, the first thing I'd look at is your blades. Most of the blades you find at a hardware store are not very good. They're intended mostly for construction type work, not for hobbiests. The three big brands are Flying Dutchman (a lot of folks buy from Mike's Workshop), Olson, and Pegas. Quality blades make all the difference in the world. You'll also want finer teeth. The bigger the teeth, the more tear-out you'll get. My favorite blade is the Flying Dutchman Scroll-Reverse #3 for plywood 1/8"-1/4". A #3 or #5 will work nicely on 1/4"-3/4". The next thing to look at is the plywood you're using. Birch plywood, especially from the home improvement stores, aren't very good. The stuff at hobby/craft stores are probably OK, although overpriced. Basically you want cabinet grade baltic (or finnish) birch plywood. These are solid without voids and all-around a good quality plywood. Sloan's is a good place to find plywood for scrollers. Ebay is another great place. You can check out our Wood Finder here on this site that lists plywood available on eBay. I buy mine from a lumber store that specializes in wood for cabinet/furniture makers. A couple of other things that might help. You can use Blue Painter's tape on the bottom of your cutting as well. This will add extra support to the wood fibers and reduce tearout. If you're working on delicate cutting, you may want to get a zero-clearance insert for your saw. This will close up the hole in the saw bed so your work is supported even better. I usually just poke a hole through a business card, thread my blade through it, then tape the card to my saw. You can also drill a hole through some plywood and tape that to your saw bed as well. Anyway, there's a few ideas that might help. Please let us know if you run into problems. It is a very rewarding hobby that will impress your friends. Welcome to the hobby! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave M Posted January 21, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 21, 2010 Thanks Travis, Great tips and one's I will definitely try. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuLLdoGG Posted January 21, 2010 Report Share Posted January 21, 2010 welcome to the village dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amazingkevin Posted November 13, 2012 Report Share Posted November 13, 2012 Glad to have you on board ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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