Wilson142

Really nice fit and finish. Great choice of wood and nicely shaped. What's not to like?

Really like the blue pine. I, also root through the poplar at Home Depot. I love that most people set aside the green pieces and also the dark brown sort of streaky pieces.

I usually go FD 2/0 and 3/0 also. I recently tried a variety of Pegas spirals and purchased a gross of 2/0 from them. I think I'll order a gross of #1 blades and that may become my go to blade. I find the Pegas blades cut faster and last longer than the FD blades. Interesting I find that after cutting for a few minutes with a fresh blade, I have to re-tension to maintain control. I've tried the FD new spirals and the reverse tooth spirals and find I don't like them much.

I learned with spiral blades and use them for about 80% of what I cut. (mostly fretwork). I tend to buck the masses by using spirals for hardwoods and up to 2" thick free standing puzzles. I do break many blades. I am currently trying to learn to cut with flat blades because it seems I'm a bit backwards from most people who started with the flats. I often feel like I'm rolling down hill at breakneck speed with no brakes with flat blades. They do leave a much cleaner cut and are easier to cut straight lines than spirals.

"This game is played by a lit of people here in the states during holidays and football games. In other words - buy drunk people." Never played corn hole growing up in Minnesota. Horseshoes was the go to game for us. Played by the same type of people. Drunk and drinking. lol

Are the blades breaking near the clamps of in the middle? Are you using flat blades or spiral blades.

Thanks for the comments. I'm leaning towards no glass. I think the glass makes them look more commercial and less home made. I have the tools to make frames and I do cut glass because stained glass is another hobby I have. Lately I've been going to the $ store and buying plain black frames. It's challenging to take a pattern meant for 10" or 11" and reduce them to 5" to 6". I cut for my pleasure and rarely sell anything. I gift a lot and store many pieces. I live in an age restricted housing development and I think I may begin to donate pieces to the community for the activities they have. Whittle down the pile and maybe avoid me being labeled a hoarder requiring an intervention like the tv show.

I'm curious, do you use glass when framing your projects? I'm torn. I live in the desert and using glass has the advantage of preventing another dust magnet, although I feel the glass takes away from the overall look of the piece.

I love this lady's' work. I feel the simplicity really celebrates the wood. And I like the way she uses the knots to simulate the sun or moon. Really peaceful feeling.

Having lived most of my life in Minneapolis, I have to wonder if your hats hold their size so well because they are stocking hats. LOL

Really nice piece! Wood selection, fit and finish is nice as many have commented. What really strikes me is, the amount of time and thought given to making this piece 3 dimensional and giving it a look of texture. So often I see projects that fit nicely but, haven't been shaped enough (IMO), to give them any depth. They look more like segmentation than intarsia without proper sanding and using shims etc.

Cracks me up to see the 500 plus cut outs next to the ??? cut outs. Lots of drilling there. Another master of the dreaded spiral blades. lol Really like his large cat patterns.

Charles Dearing was going to stop selling his patterns but, he nearly lost everything after a house fire last winter. Bear Woods Supply company sells many of his patterns online. I hope he continues to make his patterns available. Truly a master of spiral blades. He tried flat blades and was abysmal at it. He has a video blog on you tube and jokes about trying to use flat blades.

I I use a small pair of pliers that have smooth jaws. I squeeze the twists until they are fairly flat. I allow the first end to twist as it will and use touch while tightening the other end to avoid making it look like a hockey stick. Even the "flat end" blades aren't actually flat.

FD does make a spiral with reverse teeth. Not flat end though. I don't like them much, because they tend to lift my patterns. I carefully use a 220 grit flap sander on my drill press to address the fussies. I back the piece with my fingers and use gentle pressure. I've never had a problem with this method even on very delicate fret work pieces.

I'm often confused as to who ultimately owns some patterns. For instance there is a very popular leopard pattern that I see all the time. It obviously started as a photograph and I have seen it on photography sites. I've also seen it converted to a scroll saw pattern, a wood burning pattern, a cross stitch pattern and is even reduced and used for tattoos. I have never seen any of the pattern makers give credit to the photographer for the original. Perhaps credit was given and permission obtained and it simply was not noted in the pattern. I do agree that taking credit for someone else's work is unacceptable in any circumstance.

I may go big box store cedar or oak and glue up thicker material. I'm not looking for cost effective material because the sign is a gift to someone I have not met yet. I live in an adult community and every day I past by a home on the way to the dog park that celebrates every holiday imaginable in a big way. They go all out on Halloween, Cinco de Mayo, St. Pats day etc. as well as the major winter holidays. It always puts a smile on my face when I pass by. I was told they have no other hobbies, no family etc. and rent several storage units to house their decorations. I decided I'd like to gift them the sign that says "Witch Parking Only! All Others Will Be Toad". I always liked that pattern but, I have no use for it myself. Thought it would be a nice ice breaker. I rarely sell anything I cut. I prefer to gift things. That allows me to cut the things I like instead of what I think will sell. I was widowed a year ago and needed something to keep me occupied so I bought a DW788 and have gotten back into scrolling. Great for the soul!

Any suggestions for a sign that will be used outside? I intend to paint it and possibly cover it with Marine Spar Varnish. I think 1/4" to 1/2" thick and 20" square or less.

Yep, you're a gonner. Only thing left to do is max out all your credit cards, gift any cars etc. and party on. After all, they can't come after you if your gone.

I'm a bottom feeder. I place the blade ends in a small pair of pliers and gentle squeeze them to flatten the ends. I don't get them perfectly flat but, close. When I clamp the blade in the bottom clamp, I allow the blade to turn as it wants as I tighten it, I then thread the blade through the wood and slowly tighten the top clamp. As you tighten the top clamp you can feel if the blade is flat against the screw or if it feels like it is sideways. If it feels like it is sideways, don't continue to tighten it, that is when you will bend it. Retry to place the blade in the clamp until it is flat against the screw. I some times change my tension a bit or I don't hold the blade as tightly in my fingers to allow it to line up. Seems like a lot but, with some practice it will become second nature. Although you can cut in any direction, I find that rotating the piece a bit so I am not pushing the blade sideways too much, I break fewer blades.

It can take a few tries to find which way is up on the spiral reverse blades. Although I'm not a fan because they sometimes lift my pattern. And I find flat end spirals are not truly flat, they simply have a little less twist. Flat end or not, I always use a small needle nose to flatten them more. I run far more tension with spirals and care is needed when tightening them to avoid making them look like hockey sticks. Once bent they don't last long. I'd like to be able to say, I've never broken a blade and that I'm still using the same blade that came with my saw, but...I use spirals 80% of the time on anything from 1/8" to 2 1/4" and I've broken literally hundreds of blades. I often cut free standing tree puzzles from 2" red oak with spirals. Charles Dearing uses spirals for his patterns and he's a pretty fair scroller to say the least. It's all about practice.And sometimes ignoring those who say, you can't. After all, it is only wood and time.

That's a really nice piece! I can imagine trying to join 4 sections perfectly would be extremely difficult. And cutting the ring in one piece was probably no picnic either. Did you breath a little easier after removing the pattern?

I got the joke. In fact, I have a t-shirt that has the hammer and says, "this is not a drill"...I have another that has the picture of a drill that says, "Relax folks, this is just a drill"

I just brushed some rather old dye (2 months) on some BB. The red and the yellow seem OK. The shelf life problem is mostly with the blue for some reason. I think I would sand the plywood a bit to get consistent blotch free coverage. The old dyes are still pretty vivid and still allow the grain to show through. The aniline dye I use is "Keda Dye Powder" and is mixed with both water and alcohol. It does raise the grain a bit and needs some sanding. The 5 colors that you get allow you to mix any variations you can imagine. Water clean up, no VOC's and are non toxic. I mostly use them on Japanese style puzzles made from 3/4" poplar. The ones that are of dogs or horses etc. with the pieces made of many different animals.

Very nice little piece. I use aniline dye in powder form a lot. Problem is some colors have a rather short shelf life after mixing. I think I may look into the liquid form. Seems it may be more convenient.