Struggling with compound chess set.

[rustynail]

On 5/5/2025 at 1:43 AM, rafairchild2 said:

 

Nice looking set ....

[OCtoolguy]

Well done. A beautiful set. It will be appreciated, I'm sure.

[rafairchild2]

Just wanted to post the Venice-inspired finished chess set.  The only other thing I did was add 2mm thick trimmed cork to the bottom of the pieces.

FYI, I just started a neo-classical chess set using black limba for the dark, and white limba for the light pieces.  Looking at the two cut-away wood, you can see what the BL will look like when finished. I have to admit, I love the look 'dry', as the contrast is fantastic.

PS: That is my 30" Pegas scroll saw in the background.  I love it!

 

Edited May 12 by rafairchild2

[Scrappile]

14 hours ago, rafairchild2 said:

Just wanted to post the Venice-inspired finished chess set.  The only other thing I did was add 2mm thick trimmed cork to the bottom of the pieces.

FYI, I just started a neo-classical chess set using black limba for the dark, and white limba for the light pieces.  Looking at the two cut-away wood, you can see what the BL will look like when finished. I have to admit, I love the look 'dry', as the contrast is fantastic.

PS: That is my 30" Pegas scroll saw in the background.  I love it!

 

Going to be great looking.  The pieces look like they are made of Marble.

[don watson]

Wonderful choice of pieces. I like the Venetian set very much. I cut the Kings for the San Francisco set and the Canterbury set  just as an experiment to see how it would go, of course I then had to make a clamp set to hold the pieces etc. It was a very start and I may get back to it someday. I think I cut the White pieces of the Canterbury set but never found any wood to suit and then illness caught up but I am determined to get back to it.

As I said, a very nicely crafted set  Well done.

don watson

[rafairchild2]

On 5/16/2025 at 4:50 PM, don watson said:

Wonderful choice of pieces....

Thanks!  Right now I am doing the Neo-Classical.  I am using black and white Limba. It cuts perfectly, as it is 670 Janka.  I am using #5 FD UR blades for most, and also Pegas Skip #10 skip tooth. For cutting the bottoms

Here are the black Limba pieces, I am now doing the white, 4 pawns are done.  You can see by the off-cuts, that I put a finish on, how they darken up.

I am planning on selling this one.  What would be a good price?  I do add 2mm cork on the bottom of each piece too.

I go into surgery for my arm tomorrow, 3+ hours under full anesthesia with ventilation. I am looking at 3 months of recovery.  Hope to get light use back in 3 to 4 weeks.  I will be on Short-term disability for a month from work.

I will be doing some writing, I'll share in another post.

 

Edited May 21 by rafairchild2

[rafairchild2]

I think I posted this already, but this is the jig I made for cutting my chess pieces. I placed 200 grit sandpaper in a couple of places inside and added springs between the thumb nut and the jig.  I get very even pressure as I cut, no slipping.

2nd image is a close-up including the spring.

 

 

Edited May 21 by rafairchild2

[don watson]

8 hours ago, rafairchild2 said:

Thanks!  Right now I am doing the Neo-Classical.  I am using black and white Limba. It cuts perfectly, as it is 670 Janka.  I am using #5 FD UR blades for most, and also Pegas Skip #10 skip tooth. For cutting the bottoms

Here are the black Limba pieces, I am now doing the white, 4 pawns are done.  You can see by the off-cuts, that I put a finish on, how they darken up.

I am planning on selling this one.  What would be a good price?  I do add 2mm cork on the bottom of each piece too.

I go into surgery for my arm tomorrow, 3+ hours under full anesthesia with ventilation. I am looking at 3 months of recovery.  Hope to get light use back in 3 to 4 weeks.  I will be on Short-term disability for a month from work.

I will be doing some writing, I'll share in another post.

 

 

[don watson]

I don't know what these pieces would sell for as I have not sold any. I did enquire at the local chess club but they were not interested as they can only use the 'Staunton' pattern. Individual members may be interested but it would need to be on a one to one basis. Sorry I can't be more help.

don w

 

[don watson]

8 hours ago, rafairchild2 said:

I think I posted this already, but this is the jig I made for cutting my chess pieces. I placed 200 grit sandpaper in a couple of places inside and added springs between the thumb nut and the jig.  I get very even pressure as I cut, no slipping.

2nd image is a close-up including the spring.

 

 

I have made up much the same setup and it works well. I am sorry I had to give up for so long (almost 2 years) but am slowly getting back in to the scroll saw with help from a good friend. Hope you get back soon.

don watson

 

[barb.j.enders]

Good luck with the surgery.

[btseed357]

Thank you so much for posting this. I started working on a chess set a couple of weeks ago and am getting discouraged for the same reason. I am using a Pegas #5 MGT (small blades for the sharp turns) and moving very slow, but going through 4 - 5 blades per piece. I will give a #7 super skip and see how that works. I am trying to keep the blade as small as possible. My fear is that a #9 would be too large for the sharper cuts.

I have only done a small amount compound scrolling and am very determined to create my own chess set.

[Peter N White]

A very fine chess set looks incredible.

[OCtoolguy]

19 hours ago, btseed357 said:

Thank you so much for posting this. I started working on a chess set a couple of weeks ago and am getting discouraged for the same reason. I am using a Pegas #5 MGT (small blades for the sharp turns) and moving very slow, but going through 4 - 5 blades per piece. I will give a #7 super skip and see how that works. I am trying to keep the blade as small as possible. My fear is that a #9 would be too large for the sharper cuts.

I have only done a small amount compound scrolling and am very determined to create my own chess set.

I would try a 5 to see if it works. 7 is getting pretty big for tight turns.

[btseed357]

13 hours ago, OCtoolguy said:

I would try a 5 to see if it works. 7 is getting pretty big for tight turns.

I will try a 5 Super Skip before moving up to a 7.

Thanks

[Roberta Moreton]

I struggle with compound cutting.  I think this thread will be very helpful!

[rafairchild2]

On 6/1/2025 at 10:35 PM, btseed357 said:

Thank you so much for posting this. I started working on a chess set a couple of weeks ago and am getting discouraged for the same reason. I am using a Pegas #5 MGT

Rather than trying to do a sharp turn, do "nibbles" to make the sharp edges. If you look carefully at the attached image, you can see how I nibble the wood to create the 90 degrees.

[dgman]

5 hours ago, rafairchild2 said:

Rather than trying to do a sharp turn, do "nibbles" to make the sharp edges. If you look carefully at the attached image, you can see how I nibble the wood to create the 90 degrees.

Or you can do a “u” turn. Cut past the corner, make a u turn in the wast side, then line up the line and proceed.

[Bill WIlson]

 

rafairchild2 said;

"Rather than trying to do a sharp turn, do "nibbles" to make the sharp edges."

dgman said;

"Or you can do a “u” turn. Cut past the corner, make a u turn in the wast side, then line up the line and proceed. "

I routinely use both of these techniques.  Not just for compound cutting, but for general fretwork as well.  Use the waste area to your advantage.  Helps maintain better control and can give you sharper, cleaner corners.

[btseed357]

I’m new to the compound scrolling and am working on a chess set.  So far I’ve cut a few pieces that I’m happy with.  The issue is that I’m putting a lot of time and effort into making sure that the dotted line (crease) is exactly lined with the edge of the block.  Sometimes if it’s not exactly lined up, I try to move the pattern around until it is perfect or wind up replacing the pattern and try again. I am sure that there are some of you ol’ salts out there that can let me know if there is a tolerance on how close the crease has to be on the edge or an easier way to line them up.  I have this huge fear that if it is not perfectly lined up on my pieces of wood, they will turn out looking like mutants.

Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

TIA

Bob

 

[dgman]

What I do is pre-crease the pattern using a thin steel ruler. Once the pattern is creased, it makes it easier to line up onto the blank. For pieces that have interior cuts, there is really no tolerance. If the pattern is not lined up properly, the inside cuts will not line up. If there are no inside cuts, there may be a small variance in the line to the edge of the blank. 
Each year cur up to 100 compound cut mini birdhouses. Beacuse there are no inside cuts, i don’t stress on being 100% lined up. You really don’t notice if it’s off. But, if I’m cutting something with inside cuts such as windows and doors, it will be noticed.

[btseed357]

49 minutes ago, dgman said:

What I do is pre-crease the pattern using a thin steel ruler. Once the pattern is creased, it makes it easier to line up onto the blank. For pieces that have interior cuts, there is really no tolerance. If the pattern is not lined up properly, the inside cuts will not line up. If there are no inside cuts, there may be a small variance in the line to the edge of the blank. 
Each year cur up to 100 compound cut mini birdhouses. Beacuse there are no inside cuts, i don’t stress on being 100% lined up. You really don’t notice if it’s off. But, if I’m cutting something with inside cuts such as windows and doors, it will be noticed.

Thanks for the tip about using a steel ruler.  I would normally just trust my ability to perfectly fold on the dotted line prior to spraying on the glue.  I have a steel ruler right beside my saw, it never registered.  Luckily the chess pieces I am making are solid and no internal cuts.  

Thanks for your help.  Much appreciated. 
 

[BadBob]

13 hours ago, btseed357 said:

I’m new to the compound scrolling and am working on a chess set.  So far I’ve cut a few pieces that I’m happy with.  The issue is that I’m putting a lot of time and effort into making sure that the dotted line (crease) is exactly lined with the edge of the block.  Sometimes if it’s not exactly lined up, I try to move the pattern around until it is perfect or wind up replacing the pattern and try again. I am sure that there are some of you ol’ salts out there that can let me know if there is a tolerance on how close the crease has to be on the edge or an easier way to line them up.  I have this huge fear that if it is not perfectly lined up on my pieces of wood, they will turn out looking like mutants.

Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

TIA

Bob

 

I like to use a steel rule as a guide and lightly score the paper with a sharp knife. The weight of the knife is usualy enough. Once scored, the paper will bend right on the score, and it is easy to line up on the corner of the wood.

[TAIrving]

12 hours ago, dgman said:

What I do is pre-crease the pattern using a thin steel ruler. Once the pattern is creased, it makes it easier to line up onto the blank. For pieces that have interior cuts, there is really no tolerance. If the pattern is not lined up properly, the inside cuts will not line up. If there are no inside cuts, there may be a small variance in the line to the edge of the blank. 
Each year cur up to 100 compound cut mini birdhouses. Because there are no inside cuts, i don’t stress on being 100% lined up. You really don’t notice if it’s off. But, if I’m cutting something with inside cuts such as windows and doors, it will be noticed.

Dan @dgman, what do you do with all of those mini birdhouses?  

[btseed357]

33 minutes ago, BadBob said:

I like to use a steel rule as a guide and lightly score the paper with a sharp knife. The weight of the knife is usualy enough. Once scored, the paper will bend right on the score, and it is easy to line up on the corner of the wood.

Much appreciated.