Rolf

Take a look at Kreg's web site they have some excellent aftermarket fences, maybe one of those will work for you. Ozark, Unfortunately I did not inherit the organizational gene from my German tool maker Dad.

Old Joe, your friend does some amazing work!! I have Dremel with a flex shaft, it is ok but I wanted something a bit nicer/ better. The air powered unit that CharleyL suggested is also available from HF. I have one of those for about 20 years https://www.harborfreight.com/pneumatic-18-in-micro-die-grinder-kit-60244.html It is a bit noisy as is the compressor I was using. So I bought a Rampower hand piece (45,000 RPM) it allows you to reverse direction , great with burrs, and I have the foot pedal speed Controller. Absolutely love it. And if you really want to go nuts you can get a Vortex F5 Ar power carver that spins at 400,000 rpm. It was a Christmas present a couple of years ago. It has a super quiet compressor, Yes my wife spoils me. The higher the speed the more control. the bits don't grab they just cut, it is like writing with a pen. you can see the size difference between the Rampower and the Vortex. The guys who carve gun stocks use the Vortex type tools. A flex shaft like the Foredom, has a lot of torque for heavier stock removal. So it really comes down what you plan on doing. I am a tool junkie.

Like the others I never cut a single layer of 1/8. And certainly not with a #3 blade. You want as many TPI on the wood, no less than 3. Even if you use an Olson 2/0 R 28TPI there is a problem. The gap where the teeth change direction is almost 1/8. It will definitely tear out the wood. I have also gone to a 28 tpi blade with no reverse teeth, and deal with the fuzzies after with a Mac mop. If you want to cut only one at least put a backer of some crap plywood under it.

I would use a RO sander and sand the rest of it off going through the grits until the surface is uniform. Like many other scroll saws it would then have a bare metal table top. Powder coating afterwards would be nice.

Mastic beach is about 8 miles east of me.

Frank when you were up here did you belong to the LIWWC?

For your information we have a Scroll saw club "Long island Scroll Saw association" L.I.S.A. it is part of the long island woodworking club. https://liwoodworkers.org/ I was the president of the group for a few years. We have a real cross section of members new and a few that have been scrolling for over 70 years. All glad to share their knowledge and skills.

Some great ideas. Blue tape works for me the few times I need it.

Why the blade?

I prefer to release the tension. I am more comfortable removing the pre-load from the bearings especially when I won't be scrolling for a while.

Yes lets keep the money in the States. I am also in the Denny camp.

I use Pattern wizard for my intarsia pattern design. They have this free font generator that may be very useful. https://online.rapidresizer.com/make-name-patterns.php You will still have to add some bridges for letters Like "o,p d" etc.

Best wishes for a successful surgery. Moving from warm to warmer?

Dragonkort, I tried all of the different methods that have been discussed here. Double sided sticky tape, (3m -ATG a very useful tool), hot glue, on the edges, blue tape on the edges, etc. All work to some degree but if you are going to do a lot of it they get to be problematic and time consuming. We all find a method that works for us.

Nice cut and love the paintwork!

Wow! An amazing accomplishment especially considering the tools he used.

You are correct! It mostly happens when we turn the wood too fast and the blade binds. Also some woods have some sticky pitch pockets, Cherry is one, that can also cause issues. Beginners need to get a feel for the saw and the blades. Also how the different woods cut.

I have never seen a hold down foot that does more than get in the way. If you have it so snug on the wood to keep the layers together it creates real drag and you risk breaking off the delicate bits on fretwork. The foot can help new scrollers until they get used to cutting as it helps with that terrifying moment when the wood starts hopping up and down scaring the stuff out of us, I love doing that at presentation, it really gets peoples attention. LOL. yes I can be mean.

I do lots of stack cutting. My ornaments are made with 1.5 mm Finish Birch ply (1/16) I stack 6 and use a pin nailer in the 4 corners. and some times in any large waste areas. When I use 1/8 BB I typically stack three or four. If it is a large project I definitely pin the waste areas in the inner areas. The stack has to be tight for the best results. For my very detailed ornament(most of them) I use a high tooth count like a Olson 2/0 28 TPI for lesser detail and more speed I will use a Pegas 2/0 15.4 TPI. Lots of folks hold the stacks together in different ways, I find tape or hot glue too time consuming, especially when I am in production mode. Just a heads up when using pins or brads make sure that they do not protrude from the bottom, or they will drag and scratch up your table. I pin on an anvil, then go back and if I feel anything on the bottom I tap it with a small hammer, again supported on an anvile.

Quality router bits make a world of difference. One thing I have done on hard maple, is I put a layer of blue tape on the edge that the bearing rides on. That offsets the bit by a few thousandths of an inch. so I will do what you did with a couple of passes. then for the final cut remove the tape. As the others have said all router bits are not created equal. There are differences in the grain structure of the carbide that affect the edge. Oak is tough. Nice project by the way.

"Left right, inclined plane blade tensioner?" Terry I am not sure what that means.

How did you get rid of the smell?

There are various plastics that are called acrylics. They do cut differently. Lexan is one type that is super tough and hard to break. I personally like using FD polar blades for plastics. I would not use a crown tooth or any reverse tooth blade. I also usually put a crap plywood backer under it. And speed is critical. The friction of the blade generates heat which will weld the plastic back together. slow down feed and speed as the others have said.

Cool stuff!

Kevin I am glad you brought that up about the New cloned Chinese EX's. How much cheaper are they than a Pegas to make it worth the risk? The Pegas is actually cheaper and it comes with the Pegas clamps.