JTTHECLOCKMAN

Wow this thread really took off into a whole different direction from tensioning blades. Now we are talking about cars. I hope that you all pay attention to other tools as you do the scrollsaw. Blades on tablesaws and bandsaws need cleaning every so often. Those tools also need love and care too as well as any tool that has motors and moving parts. I am done. Oil do not oil I could care less. No more advice from me. I had to go back to reread my comments of what turned the spear on me and I do not see it other than I mentioned Ray oiling every 10 hours but I did mentioned that is his thing so be fine. I did not say do not do maintenance on anywhere in that post. I mentioned I never oiled my RBI saw as long as I had them so that is me. If your manuel says oil and whatever thing it tells you to do then follow those recomendations. . I stand behind my thought that if a saw needs oiling every 10 hours than it is not worth the money they ask for them. Why not put an oiler on it then too? This question was about tension left on the blade when done scrolling. Again book recommends take it off and yet other say they left on. Does it have an ill effect on the saw who really knows. As far as cars goes I am too old to work on cars any more. I have a great mechanic that can take any engine apart and rebuild it. I trust him.

They are called sealed bearings my friend. Every 10 hours could be like every other day you are oiling. I change my oil every 7,000 miles which comes out to twice a year. I am retired. My saw is RBI's If Hegner says oil then oil. Just seems excessive. I understand the pivot points Kevin eludes to and I watch them what can I tell you my pivot wedge does not move. the tension handle will wear with or without oil. I did spray dry lube on it when I replaced it 5 years ago. Oil changes in cars is subjective. i do not work on cars any more but between 6 and 7,000 it gets oil changed. Why did they do away with all the grease fittings on cars today. They build them differently today. Today they tell you it is a bad idea to let cars sit and idle especially warming them up like we use to. It wears things down faster than getting and driving. Oil is dispersed faster that way. Hey do what you want but you can not tell me oiling every 10 hours is normal. Sorry.

I see you are a skeptic at heart. that is fine. What is nice about things is we do what we feel is fit for us. Whoever this guy is and I have not read or do I ever follow anyone on FB and never will, but he was suggesting to keep those saws running true it would be wise to apply some maintenance to them every so often Oiling it as much as Ray said is ridiculous but it is his thing so nothing wrong with that. I am sure Kevin can break down all the fault parts on all saws because from what I have read here for a few years he takes them apart and puts back together. I have had my 2 RBI saw and have never oiled or done any maintenance on them other than clean the dust off. yes I had to replace the front tension lever but that is something no matter how much oil you dump on it it will wear out. There are natural wear points on all tools ever made. A little tender love does not hurt so do it or don't do it. As far as releasing tension I am in the release camp because I have no idea when I will be using again and with the front tension lever it is too easy. My bandsaw is something else. It is always been told to release tension for a couple reasons and they are forming a indent on the rubber tracks if left tensioned and also strain on the bearings resting in one place. I have wanted to install a quick lever set up on that but just never did. If I ever buy a new bandsaw I will either have that installed or get one that comes with it.

Sorry won't be me. never use it for that and never will. I wish someone would show a photo or 2 of where on a scollsaw piece of work it might be used.

Go for it. I am all about quality in everything I make.

definetly overkill. If you could feel the surface on my work you would love it. Not bragging but I have gotten lots of compliments how the wood feels, Projects like my horn project next to the praying hand clock can not sand outside edges and yet the cut from the blade actually shows off the flecks in the oak. I kid you not. Anyone sands wood past 220 grit is wasting their time. Do not forget you have to build to get to 400 grit. You just do not sand with 400 grit. You are all about time I am surprised. Listen I am not saying you are wrong in what you are doing , it just the way you have been doing it so continue. But you can cut time for sure in the sanding dept.

Kevin rarely do I have a problem sanding those areas with my bloc sander because I round over the edges. If I ever have to sand something like that I just wrap some sandpaper and do it by hand. When you scroll the wood should be sanded ready to go. That is the beauty of scrollsaw blades. You do not sand inside your fret cuts so why do you need to sand the outside edges because you used the same blades. I need to sand because I route and no router bit can match the smoothness of a scrollsaw blade. But a few minutes with my porta Cable bloc sander and I am good to go When I route my bases and put a decorative edge I just hand sand with sandpaper rolled up. I have never used my detailed sander on a scrollsawn piece in my life. As I said if I need a small area sanded I hand sand. Takes less time than break out a detailed sander. To me they are not worth the money for scrollsawing. Other jobs yes they are needed. just my opinion. People using those flap sander on fret work I would be afraid to breaking pieces. That would never happen with my work. Flap sander are great for intarsia work or even puzzles that many make.

Not really. As I said they all come with a triangle sanding head and that point of the triangle gives you 3 positions to sand tight corners and because it oscillates it does all the work. They are handy but I have been using the flat blades more as Ray talked about. https://www.acmetools.com/fein-multimaster-mm-500-start-q-oscillating-multi-tool-72295264090/400229002982.html?msclkid=243c2d88356511b0a7a448eab787da31&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Shopping-National-Search Only-Profit Margin Target-41-43&utm_term=4579946971265060&utm_content=Profit Margin 41% - 43%

A detailed sander is a sander that can reach in tight areas and sand the fine details of a project that are hard to get at with a larger palm sander. They almost always have a triangle shaped head to get right into a 90 degree corner. Not sure why you really needs this for what a scroller does but that is what they are. I have a Fein oscillating detail sander now I use it mainly for flush cutting blades.

This may help. https://www.scrollsawvillage.com/forums/topic/36503-xmas-reindeer/#comment-403783 This is what started it. https://www.scrollsawvillage.com/forums/topic/31960-looking-for-christmas-reindeer-pattern/#comment-356849

Carter was famous for his stamp puzzles he would give away. He would send them out in match boxes. I know somewhere and man have no idea but I have a couple of his puzzles stamps. he did basically Christmas cards into puzzles and just any paintings. loved his work. Can not forget Sylvia (JR. Ranger). I basically stuck with the big names when I was scrolling full time. Rick and Karens work is what propelled me into this and could remember the limited page black and white, brochure he sent out with his plans and that grew over the years . Then if you joined his scrolling club every month you would get sheets of new patterns. Not sure if you remember The White Buffalo. Forgot his name but that was what he went by. I have many of his patterns. He did basically alot of occupational themes and spelled out their occupations. Such as Electrician, Chiropractor, Architect and so forth. he would incorporate a scene relating to what they did within the names. Very cool. Wow you brought up some old names from those MSN sites that I forgot about but clicked when I saw the names. Good times with those sites. You really have to take your hat off to Steve Good for his patterns every single day a new pattern. they are not the most complicated patterns to do but lots of great ideas. I wrote to him a few times trying to get him to do a line of occupational desk clocks. It is something I always wanted to do and he never did get around to them and I stopped pestering him for them. So I had a few designers here make me a few over the years and they did great. I would list but know I will leave someone out and that is not fair. In fact you Kevin even jumped on a few that were made. Sharing our work is a big deal these days because as I said and you can see from this list being compiled of great pattern makers many are passing away and this hobby is slowly dwindling.

I love it. Those old timers sure knew what scrolling was all about. Foot powered saw. Today we complain when our electric saw breaks or needs repair. That story reminds me of another that I am very vague on the details but do remember there was a husband and wife who use to scroll together and they both used hand held fret saws. They did an article about them but do not remember what magazine it was in. They showed their work which was amazing. Todo it all with a hand saw was truely a wonder. I wish I could remember all the details. I want to say they were from Germany but could be wrong. Maybe someone here remembers the story. Stories like that should be documented somewhere to preserve for future scrollers

I do not want to flood the topic with my photos but was just trying to show the sheen I can get with different methods of finish. Back when I started I did not have a digital camera. Everything was rolls of film and now trying to transfer to digital has proven not in my wheelhouse so lot of my projects will not get seen except for those holding my photo albums. I use to bring them to shows and show them to customers to get ideas of what I make.

Thought I would get a conversation going about some of the past and present scrollsaw pattern makers we all have encountered. I will start with my story and this will probably be long because I have been scrolling for over 50 years now. Started on an old 2 speed Dremel saw back in the day and then bought a hegner 18" and a Dewalt 788 that basically fell in my lap when Home Depot was selling them out. Paid $80 brand new with stand. How do you pass that up. Then it was on to 2 RBIs. 220VS and 226VS and the rest is history. I started following Rick and Karen Longabough and did hundreds of his patterns over the years. Then it was Dirk Boelman and his beautiful patterns. Then it was Dan and Ray Wilckens and man their work was beautiful too. I also followed John Nelson and in fact I worked on many projects for him testing his designs for Steebar Corp. back when the owner was a great guy. when he passed that company went down hill but many of my projects are still featured in his catalog. I have done many of Sue Mey patterns as well. I have done a few of Steve Goods patterns over time. I never did many of Pat Spielman patterns. Must mention the great pattern makers here on this site that have helped me over time also. Shout out to them. I bring this up for a reason because I ran into an old thread on another forum where we talked about a couple of these greats. here is the thread and interesting read. I have to say the clock that Dirk Boelman had many scrollers complete was a site to see as he use to bring it to the scrollsaw picnics they use to hold every year. those that are old enough and go back to those days remember what I am talking about. Walk down memory lane folks. Check the photos out. You will notice I mixed the artists up and was questioning others about it and then it became clear. https://forum.scrollsawer.com/forum/scroll-saw/general-scroll-saw/848105-put-those-minds-to-work

I always share any knowledge I can whenever a subject comes up that I have info on. Any questions asked of me and I will answer straight up. Now many times there is many more ways than mine to do certain things but I will share the ways that I do things over the years. Glad to help.

I now official hate you all. (just kidding) You made me go looking for the praying hands pattern. Kevin had it right. It is in this book. On page 82 under Religious clocks. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0963311263/ref=x_gr_bb_amazon?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_bb_amazon-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0963311263&SubscriptionId=1MGPYB6YW3HWK55XCGG2 It is by Rick Longabough. I can tell his work anywhere for I made sooooooo many of his patterns over the years. You guys made me look in my filing cabinets that has 6 drawers filled with patterns. And within those there are a ton of patterns that I wanted to do over the years and as I looked through some I just kept shaking my head.

In the finishing world too it is a no-no to put lacquer over poly or vice versa too. But in the case of using lacquer over Danish oil is not a problem because the amount of poly in Danish oil is minimal. As I said unless you start using more than one coat because now you are building up the poly on the surface. The poly on the first coat is absorbed into the wood. I used this method all the time because I use Danish oil as a means of so called popping the grain as opposed to using just BLO. If you are afraid to use Danish oil and want to top coat then you better off using BLO and top coat with whatever you prefer. When I say I use waterbase lacquer, the product I only use is this. Been using it for years and love the look. What makes it nice to use is the ease to clean the gun. Just run water through it and when done I spray some denatured alcohol to dry the interior workings better. I spray all my desk watches with waterbase lacquer. https://www.targetcoatings.com/product/emtech-em6000-wb-production-lacquer/ Now I think I must explain my method of finishing projects like your praying hands clock and most of my projects including my shelves, mirrors, magazine racks and all clocks basically. But I make so many different items and there are some that I do differently. But for the majority I have always done this. Now this is my method of doing this stuff and have done it since I started. I cut as you do. I sand entire project with 220 grit paper. Blow dust off with air compressor. i do not assemble as you do. I dip in a large container of Danish oil. I let sit for about 5 to 10 minutes and pull item out and let it drip on a container lid lying flat so all fluids do not pool in all the fret work. Then I wipe for the first time and set aside on plywood with stickers under the piece so they are not laying flat. They stay that way until I am ready for final wipe down with clean cloth and again set on plywood the same way but they are now there to dry for ood. After about 3 days I am ready to wax them and the 3 days is approximate because of what I have planned or whatever else I am working on. I then coat each project with a light coat of Watco wood wax. I let sit again over night. next day a quick wipe down and polish the pieces and now they are ready for assembly and price tags and for sale. The waxing is an added step I have been doing because of the feel and the look of the soft sheen is tremendously appealing when people pick up and touch. Many people have commented on this. Now when using exotic woods for bases I use a different method. I again cut, sand and dip in Danish oils and wipe dry and wait till dry. I then use lemmon oil with Micromesh sanding pads to polish them. I do this because with exotic woods such as rosewoods they are closed grain woods that are oil filled. Yo use that to the advantage of putting a high gloss sheen on the wood by polishing it. After I MM it I will take it over to my buffing wheel and really put a sheen on it with buffing wheel using the white diamond and also a wood wax. These steps for finishing sets my work off compared to others work I have seen out there and believe me I have seen some others work. Does it mean anything in the long scheme of things, maybe not but to me it was the way I learned woodworking. Not to cut corners and present the best product I can. I have included a few photos that maybe you can see the different sheens of what I am talking about.

I will never use poly on any projects. I am a lacquer guy. Both Nitro and waterbased lacquers. It brings the depth of wood out more so than poly, I think. When I was making alot of those desk watches I would make them in batches too and then break out the big compressor and my HVLP spray gun and shoot them all with a waterbased lacquer. Doing things in bunches does help when doing production work. Now there is poly in Danish oil but it is so little it really just seals the wood and does not build unless you do more than one coat. I only dipped once. It left that soft sheen and the wood was so nice to feel in the hands because I would always finish sand with 220 grit. That is another product I went through alot. All projects sanded with 220 grit paper. I did not top coat much either. just certain projects needed it.

Yea that was an easy cut. This photo brings back memories as I did the same thing dip in Danish oil and let sit. Have so many different projects set on plywood I had set up in the garage. So many times I would do this. Went through alot of gallons of Danish oil over the years. Watco was and still is my choice today. They did change the mixture over the years but still does the job. I remember when Watco decided to stop making Danish oil and Home Depot was selling all they had for dirt cheap. I was like a kid in a candy store. I hit every Home Depot in the state of NJ just about. Couple gallons at each store. They had such a backlash from customers complaining that they brought it back with a few changes in formula. They said it was the same but anyone using it saw the difference in it. This made for an interesting discussion as it trended. I am sure they will all find a good home and be appreciated.

I have 15 routers and have them dedicated for various things. I have 3 of those Bosch Colt routers and they are great. I use one dedicated for my lathe all the time. I have a large router table set up in the shop but many times when I was doing those type clocks and scrollwork that needed profiles on edges I would take my small Craftsman table with router mounted in it outside and have at it. Did not worry about dust or chips. That router is a Porta Cable 690. Another workhorse. My lathe with router.

For just about all my sanding needs over the years, including sanding projects as your praying hands clock I always sand them with my Porta Cable 330 Bloc sander. It is a industrial grade sander and has been my workhorse for so many years. they do not make this sander any more and you can still find on ebay or garage sale but before they went out of business I bought a couple. I had burnt one up from use so now have 2 around that I always reach for. All you need is a good palm sander. I have the PC random orbital palm sander too and use that at times but as I said the 330 is my go to sander and always will be. Sanding those round corners is a matter of just using the edges of sander. Those clocks you made I always put a round over edge on the with my router and then I sand. Gives them a more finished look. Same thing with the base. A square base to me looks unfinished. Has to have some sort of edge weather it just be round over or a chamfer edge or a more routed detailed edge. It is something I always strive to make a finished product that has some details. Now I am not saying yours are not, just the way I do it and have since I started 40 years ago. I Have all kinds of sander and have used in certain situations. Have a Fein triangle detailed sander for tight corners. The latest sander I picked up and never thought I would ever find a use for is a hand held mini belt sander. but in my pen turning hobby I use this to sand down watch dial faces in the back so that I can make them a little thinner to be able to bend them easier to wrap around a pen tube for casting. love that thing. I am a tool nut. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B072Q2FTLY?th=1&linkCode=li2&tag=cleverhandymen-20&linkId=c1ec59fbce60aad7c3e9caeff3576d8f&language=en_US&ref_=as_li_ss_il https://www.amazon.com/PORTER-CABLE-330-Speed-Bloc-Sheet-Sander/dp/B0000222Y9/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8

Jerry, you are absolutely correct. I believe 99% of scrollers are hobbyists . That 1% who sell as a business has to be lucky and really needs to drive the business and or have a backup plan as a second income because to make a living doing this in this day and age is not going to happen. prices of materials has gone up as well as demand is down. Many years ago back in late 80's and early 90's when I started I had grand visions of going full bore into this as a business. As I look back now I am so glad I did not but I did enjoy the path I took because I did see the good times and living the bad times now and have shifted my hobby focus basically totally to pens. This also can be a hard sell and a tough business because many pen turners out there because it is an easy item to make and sell. But like all these selling sites there are the cut throats and you have to compete with that. Doing a few shows a year and making a few bucks just makes sense to help support the hobby. Unlike golf or hobbies like that there is no return for your efforts. Scrolling there is. Getting stressed out about making deadlines and quantities is a job and most are past that time. This is an older generational hobby for sure and we a dwindling. You are 100% correct, there is no right or wrong way. just find your way and enjoy the ride. A Happy Thanksgiving to you as well. Keep the saws humming.

I will do. I have about 20 different pens I am working on right now plus I am casting a bunch of blanks to give away as prizes for our annual pen turning contest on another forum that I belong to. Members enter different skill contests and compete for prizes. It is a fun time and these contests run the whole month of Feb.

This turned out to be an interesting conversation. All nice videos. As I said it is always interesting to watch others scroll and see what their habits are and how they approach different situations. None are wrong, just different. I think beginners can learn alot by just watching others do it. I know I am that way. Just show me and I can easily pick things up. I know scrolling items such as puzzles are alot more difficult to do speed wise because of all the twists and turns and the small blade used. When I cut most my projects it is always a #5 double tooth reverse FD blade. Just love those blades. People also become obsessed with how their cuts look and sometimes try to be too perfect. Many times if a cut is not a direct straight line then various oops means nothing. That is what is nice about scrolling. Besides it does become mesmerizing after awhile. Thanks all and Happy Scrolling.

Interesting watching other people's techniques to scrolling. Couple things I noticed. The stop and start of the sawing. I never stop until that portion is cut out and even when backing out. I find it helps to keep saw running when backing out. Also and this would be a great poll question, I cut the opposite way. Wonder how many people cut left to right and how many right to left. I keep the teeth against the good part of pattern. Easier for me to shave if I have to. One other thing I would do is position the pattern on the bottom to a finished edge. this way I always know that the bottom is true on both sides of the pattern so when screwed to base there is no gaps between the pieces and less cutting on the bottom of the pattern. Little things that probably mean nothing in the grand scheme of things. But techniques and tricks we pick up as we advance our scrolling hobby over the years. So now we know it is possible to cut in 20 minutes and there was no real extra pushing hard to hurry the sawing. 1 down and 24 more to go. Nice job.