Bill WIlson

Thanks guys. Lots of good input. I considered the Pinewood Derby thing. His pack already had their race a few weeks ago (grandson took 3rd ) However, given the age and the fact that they are not permitted to use power tools, I think I'll look into something else. I think the timing will work out that this will take place in late April or early May, so a Mother's Day themed item would probably go over well. Whatever I go with, I'll make one as a demonstration, then have enough already cut to give each boy one. They can take them home and color/paint them.

My grandson is a Cub Scout and I've been invited to do a presentation on scrolling for his troop. I did something similar for his sister's Brownie troop a couple years ago, but I was only allotted about 10 minutes of time, so I kept it very brief and only described what a scroll saw was and showed them a few projects I had made. For the Cub Scout meeting, I've been given free reign to use as much of the meeting time as I wanted, so I need to come up with some more material. Now I can talk all day about scrolling techniques, history, patterns, blades, etc, but I'm sure I would bore those poor lads to death if I went into too much detail, so I have to think about what would be of interest to a 7, 8 or 9 year old boy. I'll take my saw to do a real time demonstration of how it works and I'll take several examples of finished projects, but beyond that, I'm not sure what else would hold their attention. I'm open to suggestions from anyone who has worked with boys that age before. Any help is appreciated. Thanks in advance.

I too see some light at the end of the tunnel. Not sure whether it's a wholesale resurgence in DIY, but there are signs that the trend is turning in the right direction. Look at all the DIY shows on TV. There are whole networks devoted to nothing but DIY. Sure, a lot of the stuff you see may questionable, but there is no doubt that the popularity of these programs has helped bring back some interest in DIY home repair & remodeling. Also YouTube is about the greatest thing since sliced bread for learning how to do basic and not so basic DIY stuff. My two sons-in-law spend a lot of time researching how to do something on YouTube. They both use it to learn how to do all sorts of things. There are YouTube videos for just about any task or project you can imagine. Some are better than others, but this generation knows enough how to find the good ones. I've been duly impressed, on several occasions, at the stuff they're willing to tackle, after simply watching some videos. Never fear, there is still hope. We haven't completely lost that pioneer/can-do spirit.

Either way will work. You'll find plenty of scrollers who use either method. I think it depends on how comfortably you can work at the saw, whether on a bench or a stand. Good ergonomics are important. Consider all the factors at play; whether you are going to sit or stand, proper height, clearance for swinging larger pieces around, stability and vibration dampening, etc.

The Winfield Collection has a rocking cow plan. I can't post a link from this computer, but it's listed under Rockers in the Child & Toy Projects section.

Try Woodfinder to search your zipcode for local lumber yards. www.woodfinder.com

Also a long time subscriber to SSWC. They have a tough job of trying to please their subscribers who have a very diverse range of tastes and preferences. They will swing back & forth, featuring different styles of scrolling that in a given issue may or may not appeal to everyone. I've gotten several issues over the years that contain few or no patterns that really appeal to me, but I still feel my subscription is worthwhile. Sometimes I go back through old issues and find patterns to cut that I initially wasn't interested in. There is also other content in the magazine that I enjoy reading, so I don't base the value of the magazine solely on the number of patterns I cut.

Well, Johnstown is a little more of a trip, but you would certainly be welcome, if you choose to pay us a visit. Sarver is a small town, north and east of Johnstown, near routes 28 and 356. It's probably around a 1.5 hour drive.

Randi, I'm from Butler. Our scrollsaw club meets near Sarver, which is not too far off of Rt 28, north of Pittsburgh. Several members are from the surrounding area, but we have folks who are from as far away as Monroeville, North Versailles, New Bethlehem, Valencia.

Welcome Randi! Since you are a "yinzer" you may be interested in our scroll saw club, the Blazin' Blades of Western PA. We're love getting new members, especially beginners. Let me know if you would like more info.

Scrollsaw Woodworking and Crafts magazine.

My instincts are to always recommend finding a local supplier. Develop a relationship with them and it may open up opportunities for you not previously considered. I know that in some regions of the country, this is not a viable option. A quick Google brought up a place called Hughes Hardwoods in Rancho Cordova. Looks promising, perhaps worth a road trip to check them out?

I've been butchering wood, in some form or fashion for about 40 years. Working wood started out as a means to an end for me. To a large degree, it still is. I worked in the building trades as a young man and have been around tools and sawdust all my life. My first projects were functional items (crude but functional). I made them more out of necessity than out of any real passion for woodworking. As the years went by, I built my own house and gradually branched out a bit and tried to make things other than what I could bang together out of cheap pine and nails. For years, I got by with only the most rudimentary tools and I gradually felt more & more limited by them. My first "real" furniture project was a china hutch for my wife on our 20th anniversary. I made it out of oak hardwood and oak plywood. It was my first project out of all hardwoods. I didn't even own any carbide blades or router bits until then. That project was a catalyst for me. I understood that I needed to upgrade some of my tools and tooling to be better able to make those types of projects. It has taken many years, but I'm pretty well set in my shop now. I still have many of the tools I started with, but have added many more in the past 10-15 years or so. I'm reaching a point now where I'm upgrading some of my existing tools in order to carry me through my golden years. After all these years of making sawdust, I've realized that this is my one and only lifelong hobby and I need to prepare now in order to be able to carry on for another 20 -25 years or more. As for scrolling, again, it also started out as a means to an end. When my kids were in grade school, I started making Christmas ornaments for them to give to all the teachers, coaches, etc they had. My first few attempts were with my rather rudimentary tool set making very simple items. I realized I needed something like a scrollsaw if I was going to keep this up. I've been making ornaments for over 20 years now. It has become a deeply ingrained part of the Christmas tradition for me and my family and friends. I've curt thousands of ornaments. I'm on my third scroll saw. Scrolling opened up a whole different avenue of woodworking for me. For the first time, I was really making stuff just for the enjoyment of it, not just to serve a specific purpose. I want to continue woodworking for as long as possible, but I'm glad I discovered scrolling, because I believe I can probably continue it longer than making furniture. The point of all this is, a hobby should serve your purposes. How serious you take it depends on what you are getting out of it. A hobby should be about the choice to do what you like and want to do. As soon as it isn't, then it isn't a hobby, it's a chore. If you feel that your hobby is becoming a burden or you aren't getting satisfaction from it, then it is time to step back and re-evaluate. Maybe you are taking it too seriously. Maybe you've outgrown it. Maybe you just need a break or some other diversion. Each of us has to figure out what motivates us to do our hobby and try to stay focused on the positive aspects it creates for us. Otherwise, what is the point? Sorry for the long reply, but you did ask for it.

I bought an EX-21 last year. Don't remember the exact total, but as I recall it was pretty close to $1,000 delivered. I understand that folks don't want more expensive saws, but I don't see this as being out of line, provided they have made some improvements and added some features.

Excellent! That is a fine piece of craftsmanship, befitting the noble 45.

If you capture the plaque in a frame, you might not need to glue it to the backer at all.

An absolute masterpiece Tom! I love the added touches, like the directional flooring and the wall decorations. Those are things that most people wouldn't notice, but one of the measures of a true craftsman is the effort and attention he puts into details that others may never see. Your work speaks volumes and you should be quite proud. Well done!

I doubt the glue joint would be successful, long term. Essentially you would be gluing the plaque to the flocking and not the backer. Best practice is for glue joints to be bare wood to bare wood. If the pattern allows, I would suggest taping off as many areas as practical, where the plaque covers the backer. Once you've flocked the backer, remove the tape and you would have bare wood to apply glue to.

Sorry to hear of your troubles. My first suggestion would be to try a skip tooth blade, such as an FD Polar. They are a little better suited for cutting hard, thick material. Slow your feed rate down. I know you probably already are, but bending & twisting the blade sometimes indicates you are pushing harder than the blade can cut. With a skip tooth blade, you might be able to get away with a smaller size than the #9, which may help making tight turns. As for the Paduak bleeding into the maple, that's a bear. Not sure how to remedy that. Hopefully someone else will chime in on that one. The feed rate changing during the cut may be due to the wood itself. I've never cut Paduak, so I'm not familiar with it, but in some woods, there are harder & softer parts of the grain that will create a noticeable difference in how the blade is cutting as you cross over different densities in the grain. I'm not sure if Paduak is like this, but it's a thought. I know that, a while back, there used to be a lot of complaints on the forums about some Dewalt's tendency to over or under cut from top to bottom. I haven't heard much about that lately, so don't know of Dewalt recognized a flaw in their manufacturing or what, but there were a few modifications that folks were trying to line things up a little better. I think there may be some advice on Rick Hutcheson's website about that problem. Good luck, hope this helps.

Just taking my 3rd opportunity to say how awesome this project is. Very creative and finely executed.

Travis, I know they aren't on the market quite yet, but have you considered the new Seyco saw?

My random orbit sanders get the lion's share of the power sanding duties in my shop. I have 3 of them. IMHO, they are essential to every woodshop. But sanders have become so specialized that there is a sander designed for just about every specific application. Along with my 3 ROS, I also have at least 5 or 6 other power sanders that get varying amounts of use. I consider sanding to be a necessary evil and try to minimize its impact on my hobby activities by having the tools to make the job easier. Tool manufacturers are pretty good at coming up with new gadgets and convincing us we have to have them.

That is a lovely box, John very well done! Hope to see more of your work posted here. I really like Pedro's patterns. I haven't cut any recently, but have done a few in the past.

One man's archaic view is another man's traditional value.

They're not scrollsawn, but they are 2 of the largest and most meaningful projects I've made. One is a buffet I made for my oldest daughter. It wasn't quite finished in this pic. The pine frame around the top was replaced with a cherry border, after the tile was finished. The other one is a TV stand I made as a wedding present for my youngest daughter. Both are meaningful, because they are something that my kids will have long after I'm gone and will hand down to my grandkids. Making stuff for my kids and grandkids is probably the most rewarding aspect of my woodworking. I don't have a picture of the one I made, but the Lords Prayer plaque here is the same pattern I cut a couple years ago as a housewarming gift for very good friends. They are now in their 3rd house, since I gave them this, but they make it a point to tell me that one of their first priorities is to find a suitable place to hang it. The one I made was a little different. I mounted the scroll work on a rectangular oak ply backer and then framed it in red oak.