Bill WIlson

I wouldn't sweat it, Ray. These things have a way of generating a life of their own. Just the nature of the internet beast. Nothing wrong with you being happy with a purchase and wanting to pass along info on a deal. Also nothing wrong with differing opinions being offered. Compared to the flame wars I've seen on other forums, this is nothing.

Never used a puzzle blade, but have had similar experience with FD's 3/0 new spirals. They are great for cutting really fine detail, but I find them to be very fragile. Perhaps it's just my heavy hand? I end up using the 2/0 size for the bulk of the cuts and save the 3/0 for the really critical cuts. Not really an option with puzzles.

I don't think anyone is necessarily averse to saving money. It's just that we all have a different perspective on value. It's kind of like when you ask a bunch of scrollers which blade is the best.

There really is no single, proper way to apply boiled linseed oil (BLO). Whatever way you can most readily get it on the piece is fine. I've even used a pump spray bottle before. As was mentioned, it is absorbed into the wood and doesn't create a hardened layer on the surface. so you won't see flaws like brush marks, runs, etc. like you would with a film finish. You just let the excess drip off and wipe the surface. If you apply too much and don't remove the excess, it may not cure completely and could get a little gummy. The ratio of BLO and MS is also completely subjective. I sometimes don't thin it at all. It just depends on if it makes your application easier or not.

With all due respect to Rolf & Kevin, I think I would prefer that the legs be tied together. I think it would be more stable that way. I understand the issue they raise about movement and adjusting one leg to settle the stand in. I just think that if the legs were firmly bound together, that would be less of a problem. My suggestion would be to make a solid base and mount the stand to it, so that none of the legs can move independently of the other. The closer to the floor the better. To go a step further, add some weight to the base to further dampen vibration. But then again, I might be all wet.

Spiral blades are the best tool for specific applications and Stoney illustrated that perfectly with the pictures in his post. Nice work, Stoney. They aren't suited for all materials or all scrolling, just an option if you want to do certain types of projects. Like any other blade, learn what they work best for and use them for that. They take some getting used to, especially if you are already accustomed to flat blades. Just don't expect them to cut like flat blades.

Nice shop! Looks cozy. My basement shop is about the same size, but my use of the wall space isn't as good as yours. You could always add on to yours. That isn't really an option with mine.

That's pretty much the same procedure I use.

For me, the proof is really in how it holds up over time. Will it still have low vibration after a year or 2 of regular use? How long will the Velcro pad, belt and switch last? All unknowns at this point, so we're counting on you to report back.

Harbor Freight seems to be stepping up their game a bit, when it comes to tool quality. I'll be interested to hear how you like this after you've put a few more miles on it.

Band clamps for frames are great. I've used them before. Sometimes they can be a little awkward, but they work well. I have something a little different that I like to use. It's a Pony brand, 4-Corner Framing Clamp. I paid $17.00 for it, but that was about 10-12 years ago. It uses 4 pcs of 1/4" all thread stock, four plastic, right angle corner blocks and four nuts that tighten against the corner blocks to draw everything together. The thing I like about it is that I can put it together, open it up slightly larger than the frame, then glue up the picture frame parts and assemble it inside the clamp. Then I just start gradually tightening the 4 corner nuts, aligning the miter joints as I go, making sure everything is tight & flush. Depending on the thickness of the frame stock, I can shoot a couple pin nails in the corners, while the clamp is in place, to help hold everything together. I've bought extra lengths of 1/4" all thread and coupler nuts at Lowes, to enlarge it. It does a good job for me. https://ponyjorgensen.com/products/framing-corner-clamps/

While Sassafras isn't common, it is available around here. I've used it a number of times. The grain pattern is very open and pronounced, similar to oak. In fact, I substituted sassafras for red oak in a large shelf project I did once, when I ran out of the red oak. Took some trial & error to match up the stain, but once done you couldn't tell the difference, until you pick up the two sections and notice the drastic weight difference. Leaving the wood natural and not having to match it to anything else, I would suggest that you could use white oak as a substitute.

I think if the plates were the same color wood as the picture, you might as well just scroll the text into the body of the picture and not bother with a separate plaque. I like the contrast of the plaque, but it does seem to dominate the piece. Maybe if it were a little smaller?

I have an old, 5 drawer dresser that I use to store my patterns. Some are in folders. Some are loose. One drawer has mostly Christmas stuff in it. Other than that, there is no semblance of organization to them. Oh, I have several boxes of scroll saw magazines I've saved over the years. The good thing is that patterns take up a lot less space than all the wood scraps I hoard.

Yea, I can't explain why one cherry board cut fine without tape and the other one burnt like it was on fire. Some Cherry characteristics vary from tree to tree. I know the color and the rate that it changes does. I don't know if that applies to density or not. The Janka scale, while perhaps not a precise representation of an entire species, would suggest that most hardwoods reach a certain hardness and don't vary dramatically. I theorized that perhaps the trouble making piece may have been case hardened, but I have no proof of that. I think this particular cut off was from a mantle surround project I built 10 years ago. I don't recall encountering any specific difficulties with that wood that would indicate case hardening, but I have no other ideas.

Nothing quantitative (where are the MythBusters when you need them?) but I do have a fairly convincing (at least to me) subjective anecdote, from my own personal experience. I think I may have posted this once or twice before, when the topic came up, so bear with me, if you've heard this before. Last year I was using scrap pieces, that seem to spontaneously accumulate in my shop, to cut puzzles for Toys for Tots. I was using mostly 3/4" thick stuff and everything was progressing just fine. I forget what blade I was using, but when I started in on this one piece of cherry, it started to burn immediately. I put in a fresh blade and it burned as well. I tried a few different types and a couple different brands and everything burned. I had already cut other puzzles out of other pieces of cherry (along with red oak, sycamore, maple, walnut, white oak) with absolutely no problems. All the burning was confined to this specific piece of wood. Now I used to faithfully wrap all my stuff in tape, believing the advice I had received from other veteran scrollers in my club, as well as all the posters on the various scrolling forums and even in the scrolling mags. The recommendation was so pervasive, I didn't question it. That is until I got tired of all the wrapping and trying to pick the tiny bits off of my fretwork, so I found myself using it less and less, to the point where I wasn't using it at all. I had become a packing tape skeptic. Then came that one piece of cherry that defied all attempts to cut with any scroll saw blade I had. I've been scrolling for 20+ years and I've never run into a problem like this before. As a last resort and a desperate attempt to salvage this project and this piece of cherry, I wrapped the rest of it with packing tape. I went back to the first blade I was using and it cut that cherry, like butter, with no more burning. I was gobsmacked and now, no longer a skeptic. I can't explain why this particular piece of cherry was so obstinate. Perhaps it was case hardened or something. But it doesn't really matter. The fact remains that I couldn't cut it without burning, no matter what I tried, until I applied tape. The tape made an incredible difference, so, I'm convinced, there is something to it.

I'm wondering if the pine maybe has a high pitch content and the sawdust is clogging the kerf a bit? Pine is soft, but it isn't necessarily as easy to scroll as one might think.

I have to say that if there had been a Harbor Freight store in our town, back when I was first starting out, I probably would have owned a lot of their tools. The only place we had, with a good selection of woodworking tools at affordable prices was Sears. A lot of my early power tools were Craftsman and I'm still using several of them. As I got older and disposable income was a little easier to come by, my taste in tools became more discriminating. I now have a variety of "name brand" tools in all the colors of the rainbow. I spent a lot more for them and I don't use them as hard as I did when I was younger, but these days I'm looking for tools that will last until I can't use them anymore. I also appreciate tools that I can enjoy using. A quality tool (doesn't have to be the most expensive) is just more enjoyable to use. About 3-4 years ago they opened a Harbor Freight store in town here. It's only a couple miles from where I work and I pass it often. I haven't bought any of their power tools. I really don't need much these days. I did buy a couple of their roofing nailers when I re-roofed my house 2 years ago. I spent less on the pair than I would have paid for one name brand nailer. Since I don't intend to go into the roofing business at this stage of my life, these tools were a decent value and did the job. That's a niche that HF seems to fill quite well, the occasional use tool @ less than 1/2 the price of a name brand. I notice that they have greatly expanded their line of tools and seem to be marketing them as higher quality. HF still wouldn't be my first choice, but if you are comparing them to other entry level tool brands like Lowe's Kobalt, Walmart B&D, etc, then they may be a fair value.

That looks pretty clever. I made a bunch of "painter's pyramids" out of 1.5" square stock. I miter cut one end to a point and then cut them to length. I keep a couple dozen hanging in a grocery bag, within easy reach for such tasks. They really come in handy. I use them all the time.

I found that my EX was more aggressive than my Dewalt was. Now admittedly, that is my own, unscientific and subjective opinion, based on nothing more than arbitrary, anecdotal evidence. But it was the reason I tried to tune it down a little when I first got it.

Aaahh, I'm glad you said that. When I got my EX a few years ago, I played around with adjusting the motor to change the aggressiveness. I didn't find that it made any practical difference. I have read for years about how you could fine tune the cut of the saw and presumed there would be a more noticeable affect. I figured it was just me.

Are you able to adjust the motor mounting on the Pegas, to increase/decrease aggressiveness, similar to the EX?

Iggy, "I "like it", but I don't necessarily "love it". " Care to elaborate? I'm curious as to what your thoughts are and how you compare it to your DeWalt. Thanks.

I have a Makita. Actually, I have 2, plus an impact driver. Mine are a few years old and are 18v (1.5Ah). They are the white & black model. Not sure they offer them anymore. They have larger (3.0Ah & 5.0Ah) in 18V. Mine have been great and have served me well.