Slowing Down

[munzieb]

I have an EX-16 and just finished the Studebaker project. There were A LOT of very small holes and thin lines. Even at the slowest speed, sometimes the cutting went too fast when trying to do very fine details. With out changing the rheostat, is there a way to slow things down more that will not affect the motor or the circuitry of the saw?

[lew]

The thing I learned....from my extremely short time scrolling.....Is that it's not always the speed of the saw, but the speed of how you feed the wood into the blade. I used to cut at the slowest speed possible but then discovered that at high speed I got smoother cuts. I just needed to slow down the rate of feed.

This may not relate to the problem you're seeing....and by the way.....who am I to offer advice??!!!  I'm here to learn and enjoy all the fine work displayed!

[Bill WIlson]

I don't know anything about modifying the saw electrically to slow it down, but a couple other ideas come to mind.  The EX allows the user to turn the motor, slightly, thus altering the cutting arc of the blade and making it more or less aggressive .  There should be instructions on how to do that in your manual.

Are you cutting just a single of this pattern?  When there is a lot of fine detail like that, in thin stock, I like to at least double up and stack cut 2.  The extra thickness will help temper the aggressiveness of the blade.  Another option is to go with an even smaller blade (if possible).  And one more tip; believe it or not, I have intentionally used duller blades when cutting very delicate & fragile detail.  Any one of these suggestions will only make a minor difference, but combine them and you can significantly decrease the aggressiveness of the cut without any other modifications to the saw.

[munzieb]

1 hour ago, lew said:

The thing I learned....from my extremely short time scrolling.....Is that it's not always the speed of the saw, but the speed of how you feed the wood into the blade. I used to cut at the slowest speed possible but then discovered that at high speed I got smoother cuts. I just needed to slow down the rate of feed.

This may not relate to the problem you're seeing....and by the way.....who am I to offer advice??!!!  I'm here to learn and enjoy all the fine work displayed!

Lew, Because I was working with 1/8" BB and extremely small holes, even minor moves can send the blade in  a different direction. The bounce is the problem. Maybe I need to find a jeweler's hand saw for those cuts. Any input is always appreciated. 

[munzieb]

10 minutes ago, Bill WIlson said:

I don't know anything about modifying the saw electrically to slow it down, but a couple other ideas come to mind.  The EX allows the user to turn the motor, slightly, thus altering the cutting arc of the blade and making it more or less aggressive .  There should be instructions on how to do that in your manual.

Are you cutting just a single of this pattern?  When there is a lot of fine detail like that, in thin stock, I like to at least double up and stack cut 2.  The extra thickness will help temper the aggressiveness of the blade.  Another option is to go with an even smaller blade (if possible).  And one more tip; believe it or not, I have intentionally used duller blades when cutting very delicate & fragile detail.  Any one of these suggestions will only make a minor difference, but combine them and you can significantly decrease the aggressiveness of the cut without any other modifications to the saw.

Bill , Thanks for responding back. I have worked with motor rotation on several occasions. When I replaced the lower blade adjuster, I had to adjust the fore and aft "bite" so it wasn't too aggressive. At one time I had a blade lateral movement problem. I realized that the top and bottom friction hex screws were not properly centered and made the blade jump back and forth to the side. I had not thought of stack cutting but because this cutting was fairly large, 12 x 20", I didn't want to use up all my 1/8" BBPW. The original pattern was 8.5 x 11 and at that size it was near impossible to refine the details. It was about the biggest print I could get from the UPS Store and still be able to have it fit and be cut on my EX-16. Without thinking about it, I usually use a fresh blade for the more aggressive cuts and when it gets a little duller I move to the more delicate cuts. I'll usually replace them when it takes too much effort to make 90 deg. cuts. It will sit there and then eventually "pop" and turn. time to go then.. BTW on the Studebaker project I used the Sharktooth BLFDPZ #3/0 Puzzle blade. Probably went through a dozen to finish the project. I'll try the stack cutting next time.

[dgman]

I agree with bill about doubling up the thickness. I never cut thinner than 1/4”. You don’t have to use your good boards, use some scrap wood or scrap plywood. 

I am not a fan of slowing the saw speed down. I find at very low speeds, the blade tends to catch the wood and, at least for me, is harder to control the cut. 

I think stack cutting is the best solution. 

[lawson56]

I have never had to slow down my speed,Now slow down my feed yea I have done that.I agree with the stack cutting.I have done it many times and enjoy it.

[GrampaJim]

Agree with the above advise.  Don't change the speed of the blade, increase the thickness of what you are cutting by adding layers to the stack.  I try to never cut anything less than 3/8 thick or more.  If I am cutting 1/8" ply, I will do at least three layers.

[heppnerguy]

I hope you have a reduced the size of the table hole where the blade feed through. You probably have but just in case you over looked that  option, it makes a huge difference on pieces breaking off. 

Beautiful work on the Studebaker grill and the entire piece for that matter

Dick

heppnerguy

[Rockytime]

If your motor has brushes you can regulate the speed with a cheap router motor control from HF.

[crupiea]

I come from an industrial sewing background and its a common thing in tight spots to just walk the needle while turning the balance wheel. I really wish scroll saws had this capability.  I always slow on the slowest speed and I too use 1/8" bb.  What i have found that helps is using 2/0 jewelers blades. Lots of tpi and get really get tight into those tricky places and make supe small cuts. 

The only real downside is they dont have any reverse teeth so the backs will be a frayed mess but for my style this does not matter.

Edited May 13, 2018 by crupiea

[munzieb]

Thanks for the insight. I'll need to try that in the future. No plans for a 2nd Studebaker project in the near future.

[Woodrush]

Try using a duller blade for the small intricate cuts.