chippygeoff

Hi DeenaKay. Over here in the UK we have a company called Trend, I am not sure if they sell their stuff where you are. They specialise in routers and everything else to do with routing, they make probably the best router tables going. Clayton very kindly sent a reply to my post saying he had good results using a round over bit in his Dremel on oak so I am going to give that a go and if it works out okay I will buy the Dremel router table. If this had not worked out for me I was going to buy a router table insert plate that is made by Trend. Basically it is a plate made from something like bakerlite, it is certainly very tough. It comes with some inserts that sit flush with the surface so you can choose one to suit the router bit being used. I suppose the plate is something like 12inches long by about 8 wide and maybe 3/8 thick. Any router can be fixed to it. The idea of this plate is to make your own router table, if you were going to use say 3/4 MDF for the table itself you would rout out a recess to the thickness of the plate and then just insert it and hey presto you have one router table. It all depends on what you want to use it for, in my case it is just for rounding over square edged timber, if you want fences and guides it may better to get a proper router table.

Thanks Clayton. Going on what you said i will try a dremel router bit, they are not expensive to buy. From the information I have so far I can get a dremel or equivalent router rounding over bit but it will only round over about 1/8th of the thickness and on something that is half an inch thick I think it would look better with a bigger bit so i will do some research and see what i can come up with.

Thanks Wolfmoon. I have been looking at the router bits available for the dremel and they are very small. I think my next step is to buy a small router table insert plate and make a very small router table as I already have a nice outer that is just sitting on the shelf.

I have bought a Dremel 300 that I will find many uses for in my scroll saw work. Another piece if equipment that I need is a router table and its main use would be to round over the edges on things like trivets and coasters etc. I have a small workshop and space is limited and I have just seen a small router table that is made by Dremel. This would be perfect as it can be clamped to my bench and the table size is just 8 x 6 but would my 300 be up to the job as they have low torque. I am using hardwoods from 1/4 to a half inch. I just need to round over the edges to make the trivets etc look more attractive to the customers at the craft fairs. I would be grateful for any feed back on this. Geoff.

I have had my Excalibur for two weeks now and it is a fine piece of kit but there is one thing that drives me mad and that is changing the blades. It is such a pain in the rear end. I am working on some animal portraits at the moment and on each one there are many cut outs and I am a bottom feeder. Getting the blade in the top clamp each time is a real test of my nerves and sometimes I have to walk away from it otherwise I would surely take a hammer to it in my frustration. I feel I have done absolutely everything possible to try and rectify the situation but everything I have done so far has failed. I push the top of the blade in and meet resistance from the screw bolt although I have undone it three or four turns, you would think with that big wide gap the top of the blade would fall into place. I have adjusted the grub screw till it is flush with the inside of the clamp. I don't know if I can file away the top of the screw bolt so it has a chamfer on it. If only the blade changing was as easy as it is on my Dewalt. I think it is a bad design the blade clamps on the Ex-21. They are far to big and the blade has a way to travel before it is by the clamp screw and I cannot see into that void without a torch. Any ideas from you good people will me much appreciated. In the mean time I will hide the hammer but if I cannot come up with some solution the ex-21 will go into early retirement.

We all have our own ideas as to what suits us best when we are spending hours at the scroll saw. My idea was to have a solid bench with a thick top to house my Ex-21 and Dewalt 788 along with some other machines. I spent a while on the internet tracking down my ideal bench. It was expensive but exactly what I wanted. The bench is made up of thick steel plate, has a 2inch thick wooden top and a top layer of 1/4 inch metal. On top of this I placed two rubber mats, about 1/8th thick and then bolted my saws down tightly. How does it all work. I am disappointed to be honest. Anything over half speed on the scroll saws and i get bad vibration. I am trying to figure out a solution and I think if I get one of those thick industrial rubber mats about a half inch thick this may solve the problem. I found the on/off switch on the Ex-21 to be really small and annoying to turn on and off and like you I fitted a foot switch and apart from the vibration is really good.

Hi Marge. Yes, there were a few things that needed to be addressed with the ex-21 when I got it. When changing blades the arm needs to stay up, mine was loose. It was simple enough to add a bit more tension. The there was too much backward/forward movement of the blade so I had to loosen the bolts that hold the motor in place and slowly turn it. I had a square piece of wood with a pencil line on it and ran the saw at its slowest speed and got it just right. I then went into the kitchen to make a coffee and when I came back there was a nut and bolt laying on the floor. It had come out of the lower arm. It was just as well as the factory had omitted to put two washers on the arm and it was sods law I did not have the right washers so it was a trip into town to get some. Then there was the problem with the blade clamps. It took several attempts to actually get the blade into the right position every time and it is difficult to see into that deep void where the blade goes. After a couple of days this was driving me made. I got a powerful torch and I could see at a glance what the problem was, the grub screws. The bottom one was half way out and the top one was in to far. I got a piece of steel the same thickness more or less that the opening and slid this in and tightened each grub screw until it was just touching the steel and what a world of difference this made, blade changing is now straight forward and a piece of cake to do. I saw a video on you tube of a guy who had just bought an ex-21 and he had a glass of coke of the table and ran the saw at full speed and there was not a murmur with the coke. With mine I am getting vibration at anything over half speed. It is firmly bolted down to a 2inch thick bench. I just don't know how to stop this. I have a thick rubber tap washer on the bolt head where it touched the saw but I don't think this would cause vibration? any ideas how I can reduce it.

I finally got my head round the blade changing problem on the excalibur and I really should have thought of this when i first got the saw. I undid the T bolt and then slid a piece of steel into the opening, which was a nice snug fit. I then wound up the grub screws until they were just touching the steel and the problem was solved. Blade changing is no longer a problem and I get it right every time now. Both grub screws were set differently, the lower one was way off the mark.

Hi Everyone. I did another craft fair yesterday and although I did well I don't think I will ever come to terms with what sells and what does not sell. Last week I took some welcome signs in Welsh that Birchbark very kindly designed for me. I think I took ten, I sold out of them by lunch time. So, During the week i thought I had better make some more so I made 20. Yesterday I did not sell one. I had four of them in different places in my booth but still did not sell a single one. I took several children's puzzles along as well. With some I thought I would make just one, with others that I thought would sell well I took a half dozen. The ones I had made most of did not sell and yet the one offs I sold out by 11-o-clock. Last week I sold Christmas tree decorations steadily throughout the day, Yesterday i did not sell one. I find this really strange. I have another craft fair next week so between now and then I am working all the hours God made to make a half dozen of several puzzles but I think I will leave off cutting any more welcome signs for now.

Hi Todd. I have a Dewalt 788 and unfortunately there is not a lot you can do with the fore and aft movement of the blade, it is one of the quirks of a scroll saw. I also have an Excalibur 21 and on this one you can adjust this movement. You can play about with the blade clamps on the 788 by checking the the end of the T bolt is square and not burred over and set the grub screws on the other side correctly. I slide in a piece of steel thats a snug fit and then tighten the grub screws so they just touch, do this top and bottom and it may help a litle bit. Geoff.

Hi Marge. I have an ex-21 and I have a dewalt 788 as well. My last saw was a Hegner. I would add that when people buy the Ex-2 they need to "TUNE" it before they use it. The fore and aft movement needs to be adjusted, the tension that holds the arm up. I was having terrible problems with blade changing and when I had a good look at the clamps i could see why. The grub screws to the left of the arm need adjusting. I have had my Ex-21 a week now and at last I am very happy with it, probably the finest saw in the world today. In America people who buy from Seyco have the saw tuned before they get it but here in the Uk and other countries there is no such service, we get it straight from the factory where it was made. Geoff.

Happy Thanksgiving Jim. Hope your day has been a great one. Many thanks for your e-mail. I tried to find a way to reply but failed. The foot switch I use was sent to me by a friend. We have a supplier here in the UK that is popular with most people called Axminster Tools, I suppose it is similar to your Lowes or Home Depot, they sell everything connected with wood working and more besides. They do a foot switch but it is very expensive, I paid my friend the equivalent of $8 for it. The only problems I found on the excalibur were the very small on/off switch, hence the foot switch and the other problem is the blade changing, it is a lot different to the Dewalt, which I find excellent. I rang the importer today and he said i was the first person to comment on the blade changing. I will try it with the grub screw tightened right up Jim and see how that goes. There were several things loose on the saw when I first had it. I have the same problem as you with the clamp screws, I do not over tighten them but sometimes they are very difficult to undo. I saw the idea Steve has for the clamps and made one for the top clamp on the dewalt and it works fine. Hegner do a round metal knurled knob for their saws and in practice it works very well. I have been trying to get them for the excalibur but have not seen any yet so in the mean time I will adopt Steve's idea. Thanks again Jim.

I have had my Ex-21 a week now and it is a fantastic scroll saw. I also have a Dewalt 788. When I first got the Ex-21 I found the on/off switch very small so I have fitted a foot switch and find this much easier. The arms on the Ex-21 are identical to the Dewalt and I had assumed that the blade clamps would be the same but they are not. I am finding that changing the blade is a real pain and quite time consuming and when I do pieced work it often have to have two or three attempts before I get the blade in just the right position. I have to holt the top of the blade against the outside of the clamp to make sure the top of the blade is in line with the top of the thumb bolt and then slide it into what seems a very deep void so I cannot actually see the blade but have to rely on feel, sometimes i get it first time but usually I have to have several tries before I get it right. If I go just a little higher with the top of the blade then it wont reach the bottom clamp and then sometimes I tighten the top clamp and the blade starts to bend. It really is frustrating so any advice would be gladly welcomed. Geoff

Hi Kruzer. I am cutting a variety of hardwoods at the moment, mostly on signs so they stand up on their own. I am cutting up to 3/4inch in ask and oak and I have found that I am using two blades in the main, both Flying Dutchmen scroll reverse. For the long sweeping lines I am using a number seven blade as this gives me immense control on following the line on the outside of the pattern and for the inside lettering I am using a number five blade which is just nice on tight corners etc.

Hi Marge. I am quite new to the village and to scroll sawing but have followed everything with much interest. I loved the signs you made. I was wondering if you could point me in the right direction. You said you made your own pattern, can you tell me where I can get an oval shape like yours so I can make my own signs. I am not very good on the computer but my son is and he has just installed photoshop CS5 for me, He dreads coming over at weekends because he knows I will have a computer problem. I would be very grateful Marge. Geoff

Re-the comment from Tigerhellmaker. That guy on the UK Workshop site is a con artist. I would not take on board anything he has to say. He posted about 150 pieces of scroll saw work onto the site and claimed it was all his own work when in fact it was items of work done by many other highly skilled scrollers. I am sorry to have to post this. I get on well with everyone but this guy just made me see red. I doubt if he even has an excalibur, he just post things on different sites. He is in Poland and I think he must be bored. Geoff.

This is a difficult one. Over here in the Uk we normally only get one 6ft table so I have to make the most of the space available and the only way to do isis to go up. Like you the tables are provided. I am disabled and cannot lift much but the other crafts people at the craft shows are a really nice bunch of people and I have plenty of help. Back to you question. You have three 8ft Tables, that is a lot of display area and I feel I would be hard pushed to fill all the tables. You will find that the people that go on a regular basis have quite a range of items. If I were in your shoes I feel I would have something on the middle table that would be a focal point, like a Christmas tree and you could hand a few things on it and maybe even have some lights, this would be sure to attract people and then around the base of the tree you could have a few Christmas items. You will then have two tables to put your other things on but I have a feeling you need to come up with more ideas and make some other things to compliment what you already have. Christmas decorations will be a best seller at this time of year and at the moment I am stack cutting to get the numbers. I am also doing children's names, house numbers,Merry Christmas signs. If you do some children's names i would do three girls and three boys and then take orders for them, the price should include shipping and you can tell the people you can send it in a week, this gives you time to make them. These are a good seller for me and one guy I know makes a living just by making name signs. Geoff.

Hi. I feel i could write a book on craft shows. I can understand how you feel, I was just the same when I did my first one. I learnt a lot from the first two I did and I made some big mistakes from the first one. First of all you really need six of everything you make as a bare minimum. Imagine a 6ft table with all your things on it, could you fill the table and still have things in reserve to replace the things that sell. I feel the most important thing is display. A stand is essential. I have two, a big one and a small one, both have three shelves. On the big shelf unit I have added additions like poles and on these I hang my Christmas decorations. On the under side of the shelves I have hooks to hang things on. Most of the things I make on the lathe and the scroll saw are made from light wood so i have a black table cloth to show off the beauty of the wood. When someone stops by your booth and they look at something strike up a conversation like, "thats made from so and so wood," this breaks the ice and the customer is then more relaxed. I like to wrap things up for the customer so i bought some tissue paper in light green, it is so much better than news paper. Don't be disappointed if you only break even, you are on a learning curve, while you are at the craft show look at what other people have on display and see that they are selling. At my first craft show a guy near me was selling door stops by the dozen but to my mind they were not very well made and the guy knew that and was selling them real cheap. I had never thought of door stops so a day or two later I made 50 door stops over a few days but I put a little wooden mouse on each one with a leather tail and little leather ears and cute black eyes. I sold them all and at a much higher price than the other guy was selling his for, people just fell in love with them and now I am in the middle of making another 50 as I have another craft show in three weeks. Spread your things over the table and don't have to many of the same item on display, if you have two of something on the table people will think thats all you have and it will prompt them to buy but if you have six of everything people may not look at them in the same light. I really hope you do well and if I can help you further just ask. Geoff.

Hi Everyone. Being a newbie to scroll sawing I am on here a lot asking questions and I am very grateful for the help and advice you more experienced scrollers have given me. Another question. On my DeWalt 788 I have 1mm of play between the blade clamp and the arm. I would like to know if this is correct or should it be tight, there are two allen bolts holding the clamp to the arm. many thanks. Geoff.

Hi Guys. I thought I would just add my bit. Over here in the Uk the power supply is not perfect and srcoll saw motors being what they are and maybe a bit on the fragile side I use a surge protector, the same as you would use on your computer and I have never had a problem since using them. Some years ago I had the motor on my scroll saw replaced three times and then the dealer suggested I use a surge protector and it has been great ever since. Geoff.

Hi everyone. Purely for something to do, and I hope you all find this interesting, I sat down earlier and just wrote down some figures and at the end of it all I found it staggering. As many of you know I have only recently got back into scroll sawing and some would say all you really need is a scroll saw and a piece of sandpaper, that may be true for some people but in my workshop at the moment I have a Dewalt 788 scroll saw, a band saw. a compound mitre saw. a drill press, several rolls and packets of silicone carbide abrasives in various makes and grit grades. a shelf full of various wood and a large range of finishing items like sealers and waxes. Because I am so hooked on scroll sawing, it is like a disease and gets worse with each passing day, I find I need other things now like an air filter, a vacuum dust extractor, a belt disc sander, a Dremel with various attachments. a work light. $200 of blades from Mike, a foot switch for the scroll saw, Oh, and an Excalibur 21. I am fortunate that I shall be able to get these items in a couple of weeks and then there is my wish list for Christmas. A bench top thicknesser, a stack of rare wood and a hard drive full of new plans for the coming year, not much to ask for but when you add up all the cost it is mind blowing.I will have to attend craft fairs for the next couple of years to pay for it all.Having stated all of this there are many scrollers out there with far less than me producing really good work while there are yet still others that have every conceivable tool and don't know what way the scroll saw blade goes in. Its a funny old world we live in.

Hi. I thought I would add my bit. There is only one blade you need for general scroll saw work and that is a Flying Dutchmen number five ultra reverse from Mikes workshop. I would bet some money there is no finer blade. Geoff.

Hi Peter. I can understand that you must be feeling a little nervous and there are a few things to bear in mind with craft fairs. On my first one I made a loss, on my second i made a little profit and now they are going well. I learnt a lot very quickly. I saw how the other stalls were laid out and how the sellers interacted with the customers. I have found using a black or dark table cloth shows off wood work to great advantage. Don'e have everything flat on the table, items need to be raised up to eye level so take a small shelving unit if you can but by all means have items on the able as well. Your aim is to get people to come to you. If someone is looking at an item you have made start a conversation like what wood it is made from. Have the shelving unit at one end of the table at an angle so it hits people as they get near, at the other end of the table have a stand or two. If you have say 12 of one item then have two out on display and the rest in reserve. I print my prices on lovely card with a nice hand written type print and many people comment on these signs. When people are at your stall i have found it is bad practice just to sit there and say nothing, even if it is only "Good Morning," You have broken the ice and people will feel more at ease. Whatever the outcome at the end of the day do not be disheartened. Look at the other stalls to see if someone else is selling wood work, see what is selling. Have some business cards on the table so people can take one. What is a good seller is children's names. Make three for girls and three for boys and take them along and if people want one they can order from you and you can ship it to them in a week or so. Include shipping in your price though and make a sign stating this. You could have another sign saying "Commissions undertaken." Please see a member of staff. Anyway Peter. If you want to know anything else just let me know and I wish you well at your first craft fair. Geoff.

It's Geoff again from across the pond. I am really happy today as my blades arrived from Mikes workshop and I am so pleased with them. I cannot say anything that has not already been said except to say they are simply brilliant. I also filled the car up today with hardwoods from 1/4 thick up to over half an inch thick that a friend prepared for me and planed both sides super smooth so I am already to go starting off with simple designs at first just to get into the swing of things, made a couple of small things already and very pleased with the results. Now, to the point of my post. I have been reading a lot of the post and have seen a lot of the work that has been done and many of you use a Dremel and I would very much like to get one. To save on really high shipping cost here I would like to order the various burrs and cutters etc with the Dremel but the problem is I do not know what I need. I know I will need some sanding drums. I think they will be essential. What I would like to do with some of my scroll saw work is to add some text and also some texturing to certain pieces to add that little something extra. I feel it would also be useful to highlight features. We have a really big tool supplier here and in their catalogue I can see they do 7 different tungsten carbide burrs for about $7 each. They also have a range of high speed steel cutters with lots of different shapes on the ends and then we have some TCT rasp by Proxxon which are very expensive. Finally there is a 7 piece set by a company called Dura-grit, not sure if you have these there, they are even more expensive, about $180 for the set. Any advice you can give I would be very grateful. Thanks Everyone. Geoff

Hi Saltydog. I had the same question as I have just got a pre-used 788 and I downloaded a manual. There is really no need to do anything except to check the bushes in the motor from time to time, I think the manual said that if they go down to 3/8th of an inch to replace them but to use genuine parts. All other moving parts use self sealing bearings so you are okay. I hope your saw provides you with many years of trouble free service. Geoff.