hippygirl

Oh, my saw is just a Skil. I just got the WEN pinless blade holders and they're MUCH better than others I've tried (I no longer have to crank the bolt down almost to the point of stripping the threads OR my allen wrench!). I have FD UR blades (sizes 3, 5, 7, and 9) and some Olson's I bought back when I first got my saw. If this goes well, I plan to upgrade my saw at some point...we'll see.

Thanks for the welcome (back...LOL!).

Hello all! I joined several years ago, but I got discouraged and stepped away from my SS. I've recently decided to give it another go and, for SOME reason, I seem to be able to actually follow the lines now...go figure! Anyway, just wanted to say hello and look forward to being part of the forum again!

That's lovely! I especially like the look of the "silky oak" (never heard of it before)!

Yup...it's metric. Thing is, the description said it was steel, but I think that refers to the screw itself, not the handle. My knee-jerk reaction is to classify these handles as junk, but considering it's somewhat hard to close the clamp even with the original hex head screw, I could be wrong. Anyway, I'm ordering a replacement blade clamp hoping MAYBE it'll be easier to close and less hard on my hands.

Well, so much for that...BOTH of the handles (the handle part, NOT the screw that goes through the blade clamp) have stripped or something! When the first one failed yesterday, I was sawing away, practicing curves, and the blade suddenly came loose (scared the bejeezus outta me, too!). I thought I might not have had enough of the blade in the top clamp, so when I went to unscrew the thing to open the clamp, it wouldn't "catch". Finally got it out, took the screw and spring out of the end of the handle so I could get a look...sure enough, several of the teeth seemed to be stripped. OK, so this is why I got TWO of them, so I popped the other one on and it worked fine for the rest of my session...loosened the tension at the top-rear of the arm, and called it a day. This afternoon, I decided to try out my new FD Jeweler's blade, removed the old blade, put in the jeweler's blade, started to close the clamp and whammo...it stripped (que "hurling obscenities into the cosmos" thing) So I'm right back where I started. I don't know if the blade clamp that came on my machine is defective or something, but even with the original hex head screws, it's pretty hard to close the clamp...I guess that's what stripped them. I'm going to order a replacement blade holder (only costs $4.18+$5 shipping from M&M Tools) with the hope it might close more easily, but I'm finished with this handle business...time to start saving for another machine. In the meantime, practice, practice, practice.

YAY! I actually made a deposit rather than a withdrawal!

If you're using WIndows, you can DL their snipping tool and capture anything on your screen (see pic below...Birds of Paradise font at DaFont). I'm using Win10 now and it comes with the tool, but when I was still using Win7, I downloaded it from Microsoft with no problems.

UPDATE - new blade clamp "handle" for Skill 3335...IT WORKS!!! It wouldn't pull the clamp together at first (and, yes, I almost went into "hurling obscenities into the cosmos while flinging the offending item wildly across the room" mode), but once I ran the threads over some beeswax it worked like a charm and is holding tight! Now I can start drilling some holes!

Nope...I say it all the time as well (I have NO recollection of where I got it from, though!).

Ended up ordering a 2-pack from Amazon (like the one in the first pic) for half the price as shown above, tossed in the clear test tubes for blade storage, and a $5 bowl scraper to get the order at/above $25 for free shipping. I also had a $10 credit so the entire order cost $17. I did go to HD again for extra parts, but ended up with the same result (screw wouldn't close the clamp with the wood knob attached), so I'll return the unopened items tomorrow. Now I can quit "fretting" over it!

Well looky here...TWO options at McMaster-Carr. Saw a reference online to "cam levers" and "cam handles", did a search and voila! I "think" the first one is the safer bet (it is, after all, a screw), but I'm going to call them tomorrow, tell them what I'll be using it for, and see what they can tell me about the clamping "force" of the 2nd one shown.

...but, for some reason, it won't close the clamp enough to hold the blade. To add insult to injury, the SAME screw WITHOUT the knob assembly DOES close it. Went to HD today, picked up a few different screws of the same size (M4-0.7), extra nyloc nuts, fender washers, 2-part epoxy, and a 1/2" piece of poplar (I'm determined to get this to work!). I can tell you one thing for certain...if I can learn to make my cuts as cleanly/neatly as what I've seen here and enjoy doing it (fighting with a piece of equipment sucks ALL of the joy out of a project!), I won't have this problem with my next SS...I don't care if it takes me a YEAR to save up for it!

Been there...no luck. I have the Skil 3335-01...it uses an M4-0.7 socket head screw to clamp the blade which means I have to use an allen wrench to release the top of the blade. What I'm trying to find is an alternative to that screw so that I can quickly and easily release the top of the blade (no allen wrench needed). The Skil 3335-07 (I assume it's a later version) has a tool-free clamp, but, IIRC, the threads are M6...won't fit my saw. I "did" cobble together a version of Steve Good's wooden knob...M4-0.7x35mm hex-head screw (not a socket head and I figured I'd need extra length to accommodate the wood, washers, and nyloc nut), 1/4" pine...it's VERY secure in the wood and does NOT slip, but it will NOT close the clamp enough to secure the blade. Both the screws are M4-0.7, but they are different materials (the one I bought today is zinc coated...the socket head is, I think, black oxide), so perhaps...somehow...magically, that's the problem. WHO KNOWS!!! Anyway, I'm going BACK to HD tomorrow and get the M4-0.7x40mm socket head (started to get it today instead of the hex head, but nooooo), a handful of the nyloc nuts, the epoxy resin (because now I'll have to inset the screw head) and have at it again using 3/4 pine. Anyway, here's a couple of pics of what I made today...

Thanks for the help...gave me a few different directions and options. You guys are great!

Well, I did manage to find this online at Grainger a few minutes ago...same size as what I have (M4-0.7x25mm)...looks like it'll work... As for the DIY wooden knob, love the idea, but I don't have any forstner bits, but I could use a spade bit (as you can see, I'm thinking this mess through as I type ).

I have a Skil 3335 SS and have been looking for an easier/quicker way to release the top of the blade (it uses an M4-0.7x25mm pan head screw and hex key...PAIN IN THE BUTT!). I can find them all OVER the place for M6 and up and in standard sizes (not metric), but the M4s that I've been able to find so far have been too short. Any ideas? Lowes and HD have regular thumb screws in standard sizes in stock locally, but I'd have to re-tap the hole, but that blade clamp is an awfully small part to tap (not a lot of wiggle room, so to speak). Thanks.

The blades I have are Olsen's (all I've tried so far), but based on a few recommendations I read online, I ordered a pack of #3 Flying Dutchman Ultra Reverse to try last night...we'll see if they're any better!

I kept the first thing I scrolled (a simple 3x4 piece of 1/4" ply with a star cut out)...you wouldn't BELIEVE how crooked my "straight" cuts were! NOT that they're orders of magnitude better NOW, mind you, but they "are" getting better.

Thanks for the welcome! I'm eager to get busy!

Hi all! I actually joined back in 2014, but life got in the way of my hobbies (read as "there was stuff I HAD to do before I could do the stuff I WANTED to do")...I can't believe 4 years have passed! Anyway, things have settled down and I can finally get back to the stuff I WANT to do, so here I am! Blew the dust out of my shop, de-junked, got everything all neat and organized (I predict it'll stay that way for about a week!), and am picking up where I left off...basically at scroll saw Ground Zero. Made a few test patterns, stuck them down on some 1/4 ply, and away I go. Look forward to talking to you all! Sherry

I've read that, once tensioned, a blade should not flex side-to-side more than about 1/16"...does the same hold true for front-to-back? Thanks!

Being a metalwoker of sorts (silver jewelry...all metal, no wire or beads), you're right about the potential for some molten metals to burn wood on contact...and I have quite a few burn marks on my jeweler's bench to prove it. There are a number of faux finish options available such as metallic paint, leafing (faux gold, silver, copper, brass), waxes/burnishes, even clays that look like metal after baking in nothing more than a toaster oven. Of those, the most labor-intensive or "fiddly" method is the leafing...but, IMO, it's the most realistic. I'm a TOTAL NOOB at scrolling, but crafting...not so much. I can see the use of faux finishes on scrollwork. I've never used Krylon metallic on wood, but, if it were me, I'd grab a can of gray primer and a can of silver or even chrome paint and give it a whirl. If you don't like it, I'm sure eventually you'll find a use for the remaining primer and paint.

Thanks for the help...I think I got it now.

Again, THANK YOU ALL for the warm welcome! As tomorrow is Day One for me (the blades arrived, got the saw set up, built a stand...but got a LOT to do TODAY), get ready for the Qs!