Wilson142

Really like the cutting and the frame is great. Nicely finished.

I have reached the age that it is very hard to offend me. lol I'm not an exception, I'm simply extremely stubborn. When I see something that interests me, I don't think wow, I wish I knew how to do that. I tend to think, hey, I bet I could learn that. Doesn't always turn out, but it did for scrolling, turning wood, stained glass a bit of wood carving etc. Certainly not an expert at any of that, but I can fake it a bit. I failed miserably at the guitar, painting with oils and watercolors just to name a few. I'm originally from Minneapolis but retired early (56) and moved to Panama City, Panama. From there to Mazatlan, Mexico for 6 years and finally Tucson. Never been to Casa Grande, but I'm a Blues music freak and I noticed Buddy Guy (from Chicago) is playing in Casa Grande. Got my curiosity up and I noticed Casa Grande has some pretty good looking music venues so, me visiting one day isn't out of the realm. Looks to be an hour and a half away so maybe we'll meet some day.

It's not about being right or wrong. I'm looking at it from my perspective and what works for me. For me, had I started with simple patterns, I would have become bored and quit. I learn more by pushing the envelope a bit than from sneaking up on it with baby steps. I never felt any pressure about failing. It's just wood. When I fail, quitting never enters my mind. I simply move on. I have a ton to learn and I hope I never stop trying to improve. I'm not getting any younger and I'm growing impatient. I need to reach further now than I would have 20 years ago. Time marches on and there are things I want to do while I still can.

Well done! Nice pattern. What finish did you use? I am liking oil based finishes lately because of the amber color. Wasn't that long ago, I would only use water based in an effort to avoid yellowing. I must be evolving. lol

When I 1st started scroll sawing there were no YouTube videos and not many people even had computers. I saw a scroll saw and thought it looked interesting, so I bought it. I checked out the blades available and it simply seemed to make sense to me to use spirals. That's what I started with and stuck with for many years. Now I use both types but spirals are my go to blades. I need to be challenged or I lose interest. I started doing fairly tough fretwork patterns from day one. It's only wood and some time. If I fail, big deal. I just move on. I think you should cut what you like. Don't limit yourself because someone tells you "that is too hard for a beginner". It's not as if you're going to hurt yourself or wreck your saw because you decide to challenge yourself with a hard pattern. If you will be happy with simple "beginner patterns" then by all means cut them. But if you would be happier cutting something that you aren't sure you are ready for, I say take the challenge and try to hide that smile you'll have on your face when you find out all patterns are cut one hole at a time and Wow, you impressed yourself!

I did reply, click on the "more"

I have logged virtually 100's of hours using the air models to remove burrs from tooling plate when I was running a METLSAW back in my worker bee days. Doubt if I will ever pick one up again. lol At least an electric one doesn't have that annoying howl the air models have. I bet it worked well on the mower blade though. My lawn is stones and sand and there no mowers anywhere to be seen. I do miss the smell of fresh mowed grass and trees with leaves instead of thorns.

Do you flatten the blade ends or do you let the clamps find the flat spots? What works for me is to flatten the ends and when I tighten the clamps I proceed slowly enough that I can feel, without looking if I'm on a flat spot or not. Helps me avoid hockey sticking the blade.

Nice job, I never lost faith. Spirals "aint a thing"..lol Just another tool in the arsenal. Who said "the only thing you have to fear is fear itself"?

18 blades? That's a lot. lol So you gonna spill the beans or are you holding out for a cash offer? Too funny! Nice cut though!

Maybe try some tape or a playing card to create a zero clearance fix. Is that 3-ply or 5-ply? If it's the dreaded underlayment stuff you have to take the bad with the good.

were you using a zero clearance fix of some sort? I've given my self many scroll saw manicures over the years. lol

You're doing fine. How many flat blades would you have gone through on the amount of cutting you have done so far? I run more tension with spirals and try to cut more forward and back than sideways. You'll get there. You should see me cutting with Pegas MG blades. I look like a runaway truck going downhill with no brakes. I find it hard to pivot at turns with out running way off the line. LOL

My opinion on blades is much the same as it is on wine. The best one is the one that works best (or tastes best) for you.

Looks like a nice setup. Nice pictures, nice description, but did you morph into Cockney towards the end? "After uing it for a whild I will be able to determine how well I like it. Te upper can always be returned to the bellows for blowing." Couldn't help myself.

Must be something in the water. 11 is getting pretty old for a Dane. I have owned several of those wonderful animals. My favorite was a Blue Merle named "Blue" of course. My sister-in-law breeds danes. She gets her breeding stock from Europe and she has some really beautiful dogs. She offered me a great deal on a pet quality pup but I live in an age restricted community and they prefer yipping little ankle biters. I have a 110 lb golden lab rescue much to the ire of some of my neighbors. lol

Never really thought of cat years but I found this. " At 14 cat years old, an indoor only cat would be 72 human years old, and an outdoor cat would be 120 years old. This rate of aging kicks in around the 3 year mark. Whether indoor or outdoor, a cat ages a lot the first 2 years. When a cat is nearly one year old, they are approximately 15 human years old." That makes your cat remarkable! Good looking cat.

Welcome to the dark side. I also taught myself with spiral blades back in the late 80's. Now I'm trying to use flat blades more because so many are bad mouthing spirals and singing the praises of flat blades. I do like the cut of flat blades but I struggle with pivoting them at turns without cutting at the same time. I have to concentrate to stay on the pattern and not overshoot the line. I've decided to add a couple of wrinkles while learning. I am using magnification, although this is the 3rd time I've tried. Had a problem with distortion but have gotten used to it. I'm also top loading with the flats because who doesn't enjoy trying to set the bottom clamp by Braille? I'm really having a good time trying to retrain myself. LOL

I have a fair amount of "laminate" flooring, think Pergo type that I will cut. It isn't real wood but looks pretty good for some things. Eats blades like crazy and I sure don't want to breath any of the dust. They are around 7" x 36".

Some of the laminate flooring here is actually only a picture of wood adhered to some sort of plastic looking stuff. Not at all water friendly. If scratched can't be repaired only replaced.

Weren't any nails, simply some rust stain where the nails had been. lol I guess the guy thought reclaimed meant cheaper. Takes all kinds.

Nice and cool here in the Old Pueblo, hasn't been much over 105 or so and 80's at night. It's dry heat though. lol I still say at least you don't have to scrape it off you're windshield and you don't have to shovel sunshine. Monsoon season has been a bust so far down here. I moved my saw into the laundry room and that's where it's going to stay!

Our maintenance dept. used JB 80, twice as corrosive I'm guessing. lol

I agree with Scrappile. WD 40 would probably do more harm than good. It isn't really a good lubricant and I think it would wash out the lube already in your bearings and they would become saw dust magnets. WD 40 is great for removing moisture but is far too thin to use with needle bearings.