britetomro

Thanks again for all of the comments

Thanks again for all the great comments

Good question Scrappile, Each layer was cut with the grain running in the same direction. The change in color from the opposite corners if the effect of the light reflecting off the grain. If you were to turn the piece 1/4 turn the color would change to the opposite corners due to the change in light and its reflection off the grain. Great effect of light in contrast with the wood grain. No doubt pleased with the results. Thanks for the comments from everyone.

Alex, Was somewhat confused. I have purchased almost a dozen of your patterns and this one is what led me to you and I have cut most of them. I believe this one came out of Scroll Saw Woodworking and Crafts Magazine. Thanks for the update on the designer of this pattern as well as the comment.

I completed this project a few months back. The original pattern by Alex Fox was approximately 7" square and was designed as a single piece. Wanting more I decided to up the stakes. Wanting something to really show a presence for display I enlarged the pattern so each quarter of the pattern was 11" square. I stack cut each layer by 4 pieces with 1/8" baltic birch ply. Overall there are 8 layers to this project. The next step after gluing the 8 layers together was to sand the edges to create perfect 90 degree corners so no gaps showed where the 4 quarters of the project were glued together. The frame is made of 2" thick popular with walnut applied to the corners for a slight contrast. Overall this project measures over 24" square. Thanks for looking.

These shells are really not as difficult as they would appear. Get Steve Garrison's ebook. Watch the youtube videos and get started. Do your first one with a 2x4. If you make mistakes, so what. If the mistakes are too bad, throw it away and start again. Your first 2x4 shell can come from a simple 14" long piece of wood. My first shell was glued together without any sanding or finishing. I wanted to really understand the gluing process and was concerned with keeping the shell centered from the inside to the outside. I still have that shell and learned a lot from this process. With using a 2x4 the overall costs were almost non-existent in materials and a shell like this can usually be cut in under 2 hours. Give one a try and in the end they are no doubt unique and a centerpiece of attention. Ron

Many thanks for all of the great comments.

Thanks for the comments. The Shells are fun and no doubt require a lot of sanding. One thing about these shells is that it is difficult to find anything else like them. Once you have the right tools in place however the overall process is really not too difficult. For anyone interested in learning more or making these scroll saw shells, I would direct you to look up Steve Garrison, watch the youtube videos and purchase his ebook on this project. My first one was simply done with a 14" long 2X4. I sold one of my 2X4 shells last year for $225 and was very pleased. The purchaser just had to have it. I have one made of layers of black and white corian which measures almost 11" in diameter and that one would take almost a grand to part with due to the almost 60 hours and 103 segments. Someday it and others may leave my hands but till then they are there for my enjoyment along with family and friends.

This is my latest Scroll Saw Shell. The wood used us Sapele and I also used a Hard Maple Veneer as an accent strip between each segment. There are 44 segments total in this shell. The overall measurement are 8" wide by 8" high. The stand was also made from Sapele which were the left over pieces from the blanks used to create the segments. Each segment blank measured approximately 9" wide by 7" deep and 1 3/4" thick. The finish is a spray poly which presently has 8 coats. The photos also show all 44 segments displayed before the gluing process as well as a few of the stages of the glue up. There are many hours of sanding involved with this project and the finish is applied as the shell is being assembled. This piece of art will also be entered into our local fair this July. Thanks for looking.

Again, many thanks for all of the great comments. Amazing how you can transform an item designed as a trivet into a piece of art by simply by its presentation, by being mounted and framed. Thanks again, Ron

Hi Barb, The spiral blades were used in all of the small circles. Even though the holes were drilled, a spiral was used to clean up the edges and correct the hole size.

Charles, thanks again for a great pattern. It was fun to cut and no doubt a challenge.

Foxfold, Got me on the Phantasmagorical, however I do appreciate the word and the meaning. Thanks for the comment. Rockytime, Corian is only available to licensed fabricators and installers of the product. I live in Orange County, CA and have visited a few of these companies. Sometimes they have cutoffs or scrap pieces which are destined for the waste bin and they are willing to let it go for free. A couple of members of our Scroll Saw Association will also go to selected locations and pick up their waste by the truckload and our members will have access to what they want. The top of the corian will usually have some kind of pattern for display in the countertop. Many times I will cut the pattern from the bottom of the corian because the material is more consistent in its color without the changes in color with the pattern. Corian is a fun material to work with and many times easier to cut than wood since there is no grain lines like in wood.

Charles, Thanks for the comment. Great pattern. A true challenge to cut but well worth it in the end.

This is my second pattern by Charles Hand. The Dragonfly measures approximately 9" in diameter. I used Corian due to the possibility of using it as a trivet. After completing I knew with how fragile this piece was, the only place for it would to be mounted for display. Corian is an easy material to work with but you have to run at a slower speed in order to create less friction which can melt the cut material together and create problems. I used a #5 Polar blade and used a total of 11 blades for this project. Cutting time on this piece was 14 hours. In the end, presentation is in the display. I used maple for the frame and black felt on the back mounting bo ard. Will be doing some additional work on the frame next week along with the finish on the frame.

Amazingkevin, we have been at this for a few years. I always believe in challenging myself from one project to the next. I mention the same and always encourage those in my local scroll saw association to do the same. Thanks for the comment and support. Scrappile, I will make sure to provide an update in July when this and other pieces are entered into the fair with the results. Lucky2. the pattern designer included the number of cuts on the pattern. I used a 1/16" drill bit for all of the holes. A few of the holes were only 1/16", however a blade was also inserted into the holes and cut just to clean up the edges. This way, every opening was cut with a blade and not simply made with the bit. Thanks again for the comments from all.

Thanks again for all the great comments. Onto the next one.

Many thanks for all the comments. Frame is redwood and from a repurposed railing taken out of a home during a remodel. Yes Trackman, 35 flat blades. Find that when I seem to be pushing the wood to make the cut, it is time to replace the blade. Will be entering this piece into our local fair this year which starts in July. Thanks again, Ron

Completed this project last week. 1/8" Baltic Birch Ply stack cut x 4. 560 cuts, 2 spiral blades and 35 #5 reverse flat blades. Total cutting time is 34 hours. Glad this one is complete. Thanks for looking.

Many thanks for for all the great comments. Joined the Marines out of high school and stayed for 21 years. Words on these panels mean a lot to me as well as every service member past and present.

I do these whenever I get to volunteer at our local fair every July & August every year. They are fun to cut and give away to kids stopping by to watch. Go onto Google and type 3d scroll saw reindeer and you will find the pattern.

This is a project I completed a couple of months ago. Found the verbiage on Facebook and took a photo knowing it would be a future project for the scroll saw. The panels are made of 1/2" baltic birch ply with a backer of 1/8" painted black. The panels measure 14" wide by 6" & 8" high. I used a # #5 reverse tooth blade for the entire project. Sometimes you do not really know what you are getting into with a project till you begin. Each panel took approximately 10 to cut. Letters are one of the hardest items to cut simply due to the fact that the smallest error can be easily seen by even the youngest eyes. You really get nervous when you are nearing the end of a panel and hope all goes well and you finish with success vs having to throw the work away. I have included a photo of the complete project and also closer shots of each panel. I used two 1 1/2" wide strips on the bake to hold everything together. Thanks for looking. Ron

Dan, I have a second one framed and I am of the belief that everything I make is available for sale. If there is an interest, let me know. Thanks, Ron

Many thanks to all for the great comments. In reply to the professional framer. No, just a common woodworker. All of the cuts for the frame are done on the table saw, even the rabbit on the back side. Easier to make two cuts for the rabbit on a table saw vs using a router with multiple passes to get the debth needed. I have found however that cutting the 45 on the frame corners in most cases do not provide the best results. I cut the 45's on the table saw with the pieces about 1/4" longer than needed. I also have a dedicated tool used for cleaning up the 45's with perfect precision. It is a guillotine cutter with knifes which are ultra sharp. An arm/lever is used to advance the blade to make the cut and each cut can take a micro cut at a time. The leftover cut is very smooth and great for the glue-up. I also like to add a decorative inlay to the frame which in itself can create a problem with matching the corners during assembly. When I make a decision to make a frame for my cuttings, I will usually make about 10 frames at a time and assemble them. The setup for the machines takes a little time so why not produce more. It is just as easy to make 10 frames as it is to make 1 or 2. I will usually not apply finish till the frame is needed. Again, thanks for the comments.

I would like to extend my thanks to Lawson 56, Grampa and TD Painter for creating great patterns for of the VW van from the attached photo. Of the 3 pattern creators, I chose TD Painter, he had the detail I was looking for on this project. I still hold down a full time job so with work, this project took my a week to complete with doing a little at nights. I already had the frame made from my last setup on making a number of frames for future projects, just had to apply the finish. There were approximately 90 cuts overall and the pattern was enlarged slightly to approx 10" high by 14" long. I used baltic birch ply at 1/8" thick and stack cut 4 pieces. I also cut the 2 mats for this project and even included a dust cover on the back of the frame along with appropriate hanging hardware. The frame is made with Philippine Mahogany with an inlay if Purple Heart. The interior dimensions of the frame is approx. 16" high by 20" long. Thanks for looking and I look forward to any comments.