SigP

I've been working on a wolf off and on the last couple of days. Seeing this one make me want to throw mine away. Beautiful work!

Welcome, Dan. Feel free to jump in and help us newbies out.

Welcome! Lots of helpful and encouraging people around here.

I was having the same problem Friday. Bent 2 blades. That screw does seem to back out easily. Guess I need some Locktite.

Welcome! Lots of friendly and helpful people here.

Thanks for the kind words. I certainly enjoyed working on it. I think I have found a new passion. Wish I had gotten a scroll saw years ago.

I used Gimp and Inkscape. Probably took about three hours. I'm still learning both programs. I did make the frame. Did that today. It is walnut with maple splines. For the pattern, I followed Travis' tutorials to learn the programs. Did a 'mix and match' to get the result I wanted. Thanks for the comments.

I finished the portrait of my wife. I learned a lot, both in creating patterns and scrolling. Critique is welcome.

Welcome, Patrick (from a fellow Texan (currently living in Florida)). Folks here seem to be very helpful. Hope you enjoy the new hobby.

Welcome, Adam. I too am a newbie to scroll sawing. I splurged on the saw an got the Excalibur 16. I don't know if they are available in the UK, but if so, they are worth a look.

Thanks for the input. The portrait will not be my first project. I got the saw over a week ago and have done little else except cut stuff. Started off looking pretty rough but doing ok now. And, if I do well on the portrait, it will make my wife happy (the portrait is of her). It's always good to keep her happy about my new toys. Scrappile: I do have a selection of blades now. I also love the spiral blades. Was playing with them today and accidentally put the first one in upside down. I was hating life for about 30 minutes. It finally broke and I put the new one in correctly. My 'A-HA' moment for today.

I am a total newbie to scroll sawing. I am about to start my first portrait but I am not sure about some details. I will use birch ply but what thickness? The pattern is about 12" x 16". Does it look bad to go too thin or too thick? Or is it just a matter of taste? Also, what are some options for backing it? I've thought about poster board (seems kinda fragile), painted ply, stained ply, and felt glued to ply. I just don't want it to end up looking cheap because of the backing. Thanks in advance for any input.

Hello from Florida. I've been wanting to try scroll sawing for a while. My saw arrived earlier this week and I have been having a blast with it. I found this site from some links on YouTube tutorials. Looks like a fun place.