How Do You Decide?

[cowboyup3371]

How do you decide how to work if you are working on a project with multiple interior cuts?  I know you want to start at the inner most cut to maintain the material around it but how do you move from there?  I want to cut a Tiger face for my one daughter and although I'm not overly concerned with the question I'm curious as to hear how people approach their cuts

[kmmcrafts]

I do as you say.. center first... but to add to it.. I pay close attention to areas that may be very fragile and cut those first.. and to add to that... I also study the location where I'll be drilling the hole... as I don't want to be cutting next to the fragile area at the end of the cut.. I typically cut in a counter clock wise direction so i place my holes where I need to so the piece is more stable while doing the cutout.. Not sure I made sense to you but I know what I mean, LOL

[JimErn]

Along with Kevin's comments, I try to make sure that I cut the fragile side of the pattern and finish with the blade on the side with the most support

 

[Bill WIlson]

While starting in the middle and working your way out from there is a good, general rule of thumb, to me the real emphasis should be on cutting the most delicate areas first.  These may or may not be in the middle of the pattern.  The whole concept behind this strategy is to maintain the most supporting wood around the delicate areas, during the cut.  This would hold true if that cut was in a corner, as well as if it was in the middle.  In other words, study the entire pattern before beginning the cut.  Identify these critically, fragile areas.  Develop a planned sequence of attack, always with your focus on maintaining as much supporting material throughout the cut, regardless of where the cut is being made.

 

[Denny Knappen]

All good advise.  Like Bill mentioned study the pattern before cutting.

[MrsN]

I typically start in the middle, with the most delicate parts like the others suggested.

One other thing that I do is cut the parts that I am most likely to screw up first. Not necessary fragile but if you mess it up you totally have designer firewood. For example, if I have something with stencil lettering the o's and e's are usually the most likely to get ruined if I over cut a line. The eyes on people and animals are often critical pieces. If you over cut and make a wide stripe on a tiger, it probably wont matter much. However if you over cut and the eye gets wonky the whole piece will probably look a little off. 

[OCtoolguy]

Print out an extra copy of the pattern and do your planning on it with notes, circles etc. to guide you along the procedure. I've not done anything this fragile yet but in time I might so all this info is great for me. Thanks for asking the question.

 

[Scrappile]

I'm a little odd!! Or so I am told, over and over, by "love ones and ones not so love", but if at all possible I start at the top and work down left to right..... Sorry, habit I can not break.  There are exceptions of coarse and the advice you have received before I posted is valid and well stated,,,, unless you want to join the odd fellows club...

Edited January 10, 2020 by Scrappile

[cowboyup3371]

Thank you all.  I'll try to use everyone's advice when I work on it this week.

[Puzzleguy]

Tough one to answer , can be different from project to project 

Id say getting it smaller by cutting into smaller sections is my first action -

hard to move around something big and do it well - im great cutting

detail with less to push around the table. sometimes you just have to do the best you can to get the drag down ,

maybe wax the table or put a plastic layer on the table with double sided tape.

I did this on a RBI in the shop ( but thats getting sold this winter ) - not a fan of aluminum tops 

everything but that is cast Iron - with polished tops( even the Hegners ) 

Edited January 11, 2020 by Puzzleguy

[Foxfold]

To add to all the great advice already given, I tend to do the 'delicate' bits and then put them back into the pattern and hold them there with some tape.  It makes me feel better when the 'cut out' is back in it's hole, it seems to stop the wobble when I've filled the gap.

[LarryEA]

Delicate, tiny, middle ...

 

[Heli_av8tor]

Lots of good advice. Mostly common sense.

However, as a bottom-feeder sometimes l just cut the hole I happened to hit even if it's not the intended one. 

[JimErn]

17 hours ago, Heli_av8tor said:

Lots of good advice. Mostly common sense.

However, as a bottom-feeder sometimes l just cut the hole I happened to hit even if it's not the intended one. 

Me too