tbphotos

Hi Ron, I can't remember where this T-knob came from, I think it was on some piece of photography gear that I had, for some reason I saved the knob thinking that it might come in handy one day.. low and behold it did. As for purchasing a knob like this, I know that Lee Valley Tools has several models of knobs such as these, but I think their smallest size is for a 1/4-20 size thread, which might be too big for a scroll saw blade holder. Wish I could be of more help for you. Trevor

Just modified my blade holder piece. I was going through some odds and sods in my workbench drawer, when low and behold I found this black thumb knob which was exactly the same thread size as my screw. This model of scroll saw only comes with a set screw and allen wrench for changing the upper blade, so now, my scrolling life is so much easier. Here's a photo of my new setup.

On my saw, a SKIL Model 3335, I found that I had more plastic hose than what was required, so I cut a few inches off the hose and it works fine this way. Also a shorter hose should give more blowing force onto your wood. My blower worked fine from day #1, but I just decided to shorten the hose. As for the vibrating light, I made a small metal arm support coming down from the front portion of the saw arm and attached the gooseneck to this support with a nylon zap strap. Voila, no more vibrations from my light.

Nice job, eagledrum. I love the John Wayne picture, but all four of them are nicely done!

Thanks for the kind comments. I got lots of comments from my Facebook friends also, posted it there as well.

Well, I tried tapping the threads in the blade holder, used a new screw, and the same thing happened.. stripped the threads on the new screw. I took the blade holder piece off the saw and noticed that it had been very poorly machined right from the factory. Rather than trying to order a new piece from SKIL, which probably would take several weeks to receive, I decided to try another route. I took the blade holder piece to the store where I bought the saw along with my purchase receipt for the scroll saw, and spoke to one of the sales associates there. They had my same scroll saw on display, so the salesman said "Let's have a look at the blade holder on this display unit". It looked perfect, with nice clean, tight threads for the screw. He said "let's just exchange pieces and we can return this display unit back to the company.. no Problem". Whew, problem solved, thanks to good customer service at the store. I'm scrolling once again, only now I'm scrolling with a smile on my face and whistling 'dixie'. Once again, thanks to all of you who offered suggestions and tips, you're a great bunch (of bananas) LOL. Regards, Trevor

Well.. just having my morning coffee, and already several great suggestions from the great guys here at SSV. I'm heading to the shop in a few minutes, and going to run a tap through the threads and will also clean out the slot that holds the blade. The teflon tape on the screw thread is also a great tip. Many thanks to all you wonderful people.. will keep you posted how I made out. Cheers, Trevor Batstone

Thanks, Chris, that's a plan that I can try, I do have a tap set. I was actually thinking of drilling the screw hole one size larger and re-tapping, but I don't know if I'm brave enough to try that without wrecking the receiver (blade holder piece). I'll try your idea in the morning after I go to see about a bandsaw that a gentleman is holding for me. I'll let you know tomorrow evening how I made out, and by the way, I'm almost ready to cut that floatplane from the pattern that you made me. Thanks again so very kindly!

Just wondering if anyone has had problems with their upper blade holding screw or if you have made any improvement modifications to same. On my saw (Skil 16 inch, model 3335), After many tightenings of the screw tightly to hold pinless blades, the thread on my screw has worn to the point that I can no longer hold a pinless blade. I went to Home Depot and got a machine screw of the same size (8-32), but I don't feel that it will last too long before I encounter the same problem again. I was wondering if any members could shed some light as to a good fix for this problem. Any input, suggestions or ideas would be much appreciated. Thanks!

This is my second attempt at a scrolled bowl. This one was cut from 1/2" pine, dipped in orange oil and then varathaned.

OK, to answer a couple of questions on this piece: (1) The plywood is not yet framed, that was just a frame that I put on it with the computer, but hopefully will be framed soon. (2) The orange oil is readily available in the local supermarkets around here, can be found in the cleaning supplies section usually with the furniture polishes, etc. I'm having trouble finding lemon oil in my local stores here, but orange oil is plentiful and basically does the same thing. Happy New Year to all. Trevor

Nice work, Edward.. well done!

Cut from 1/4" birch plywood, then dipped in orange oil (a furniture beautifier), then a couple of light coats of spray varathene.

I'm very new at scrolling, but I always use the 3M spray adhesive which is great stuff. Then when it's time to remove the pattern I use a heat gun and all the paper lifts off very easily and quickly. No fuss, no muss. Just my 2 cents worth. Why is it that it always costs 2 cents, yet you only get a penny for your thoughts?

This is my first bowl, cut from 3/8 inch birch plywood, then dipped in orange oil to beautify (not protect) the wood. All layers and pieces cut from just 2 pieces of 6" x 6" plywood. Pattern by Steve Good.

OK, I've just updated my profile, including avatar and my website URL, for those of you who might be interested. SSV is a great community.. I visit here whenever I have the chance

Hello amazingkevin, and thank you for your kind welcoming comments, it looks like a great site. I've already created my user gallery and posted my first completed project. Sorry, but we don't have any snow here, so can't send you any. Gotta go get my coffee and then get busy. Cheers, Trevor

Hello folks, I just came across this great website, registered, and here I am. I have recently retired from my day job of 36 years with the Vancouver Transit System, and purchased my first scroll saw about 3 weeks ago. I just completed my first scroll saw project which is a pilot's clock that I am giving to my son for Christmas. I am brand new here and looking forward to coming back to the site very often. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all. Best regards, Trevor