Wichman
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Everything posted by Wichman
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How does one decide when to change blades (as in dull)
Wichman replied to Robert R's topic in General Scroll Sawing
For me and the blade I use the most ( FD Polar #! ) I use the following criteria: 1. feed rate slows down 2. blade won't track right 3. blade won't make tight turns 4. blade "wanders" 5. when changing holes the blade is either bend front to back or has a noticeable kink side to side 6. when changing hole I will gently run my finger against the teeth, if I can feel a difference in the sharpness from where the blade is cutting and what does not cut. -
MarieC, I cut the whole thing from a single 1/2" thick plywood plaque. I stained the various pieces "ebony", "dark walnut" and "natural" using Minwax stains.
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Just finishing this one up. Pattern from an old magazine. 1/2 plywood plaque (9 layers), I cut two stacked, FD Polar #1, Ebony for the dark stripes, dark walnut for the body, natural for the face and background. I saved all the dropouts (taped them back in place while I cut the rest of the pattern) stained them separately and then glued them back in place, the dark stripes were glued just pround of the surface (toothpicks for spacers 5/64" )
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I have both the Dremel plunge router base and the Dremel bench top router table. The router table is ehh, okay. The clamps to mount the router are kinda clunky, so if you choose this, get a second Dremel and just leave it in the table. The only problem I had with using it as a router was the collect was worn out and I ruined a couple of pieces before I figured out what was wrong. The Dremel is still a dangerous tool, 40,000 rmp gives no reaction time at all, by the time your brain realizes anything is wrong the damage is already done. I would give a router sled a shot, as least look at the option. Maybe scale a sled down for the Dremel. Remember, the Dremel is a light duty tool. Link to a router sled:
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It just hit me out of the blue.
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.027 The size listed for Pegas 2/0 spiral blades at Bear Woods and Klingspor .024 The size of the Flying Dutchman 3/0 spiral blades at Bear Woods and Mikes Workshop .0236 The size of the Pegas 2/0 spiral blades at Artcrafters I find it interesting the the Pegas has two different dimensions for the same blade ( probably different production runs ). Sorry, my CDO ( Compulsive Disorder, Obsessive; this way the letters are in alphabetical order, As They Should Be ) kicked in.
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A couple of weeks ago at the Farmers Market a family came up on their bikes. One girl, about 10, had a recently broken arm and was "in a mood", just was not having a good day. I was the second booth in from the edge of the market, so I asked if she wanted to see some "woodworking magic". I had one of the reindeer cut out but still in the block, so I showed them the block, pointed out where I had cut both side and then took the 3D reindeer out of the center of the block. I didn't make a sale but it broke the girls bad mood and she (and her family) were able to enjoy the day at the market. That got me thinking. Now when I prep the deer for cutting I drill a pilot hole in both sides pf the block and then cut out the reindeer. I remove the deer from the block and brush off as much sawdust as I can and remove the small waste pieces from the legs and antlers. put it back together and sell the item block and all. And they are selling better than the deer by itself.
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Talked to CS today, they are putting a replacement in the mail today. Just wondering if it was a one off, or widespread.
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I just received the fall 2023 issue 92 magazine. When I removed the center pullout it was in two pieces (not torn) with some of the graphics missing ( about 1/2 inch). Has this happened with your copy?
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In addition to Bill's suggestions. On artcrafter.com all the MGT blade had the reverse teeth, these will pull some of the sawdust back into the kerf. Try their skip and superskip blades. increase your tension slightly slow your cutting speed, sometimes the blade will try to follow the hard grain (thin line in the wood) especially in softwood, most especially in redwood. slowing your cutting allows the blade to cut and not wonder so bad. increase the saw speed slightly How old is the wood and what type of wood is it. This does matter.
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Here are the stats for now. This my cutting style and speed, not everyone will be this slow 4.5 hrs working on the project. 2.5 hrs saw runtime. The areas in red are what I cut today. There was additional time for taping each piece back in place after cutting and with the learning curve of threading the blade through the slot in the table for inside cuts. Pattern from a magazine. 1" thick plywood ( 2, 1/2" thick plaques ) 18 plies total. FD #1 Polar blades.
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Tell you what, scince I have two clocks already, on my next project I'll have one clock on the foot switch and one on the overall time and give both values ( at least as it applies to me and my rate of cutting (slow).
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If you are "just a hobbyist" and want to make a special gift, it is nice to know about how long it will take to make the item.
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I've got more than one clock, so If I need to cut something in the middle of a longer project I can still keep track of the hours I also started keeping track of times so that hopefully I can start extrapolating how long a project will take based on the inches of cutting in the pattern (inkscape: select the object(s). go to extensions > visualize path > measure path... ), this will show you how many inches of lines are in a pattern. For me, its about 25 seconds an inch, for fretwook and that includes blade changes. My clocks. Thrift store finds.
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I've been using a similar setup for years now, I plug the clock, foot switch, and the light into a power strip. When I start a session I turn on the power strip when I finish a session I turn the power strip off. I use the clock to time maintenance of the saw, how long a project takes, and just personal curiosity.
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Note: The woodworking band saws at HF are Central Machinery not General Machinery and as such are not allowed on the 20 to 25 % off coupons. "sorry" I have the 9 inch (smaller) band saw. For a light duty saw it works just fine, I was cutting some lilac wood (2" cubes) and it didn't bog down at all. I don't have any experience with the larger 14" band saw.
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In no particular order I would: Contact your blade source and see if there is a bad batch that they know about check the linkage on your saw and see if anything is binding (If a pivot point binds the blade tension can release just long enough for the blade to kink and then break) check to see if the tension is being held. Run the saw for 10 to 15 seconds and then check the tension again (plucking). If the tension is not being held, that a whole nother discussion.
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where are the blade breaking? at the top clamp. the bottom clamp, the middle, or various?
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I found the group on FB and asked. We'll see if they give a response.
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Barb, Good thing I have a video of one of my boxes time stamped at Jan 2019. I had stopped cutting these because I kept losing the pin, the magnet was put in out of desperation, one day it just hit me, "magnets".
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The best tool/jig I have found for getting close to 90*(I still use the "cut a line and check the backside for fine tuning) is a pair of 1-2-3 blocks; these blocks are machined out of a block of steel and are within .0002" of squareness on all 6 sides, they are about as simple as you can get.
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A puzzle box with a twist; there's a magnet in the bottom of the hole for the pin, with panel nails in the pin to hold against the magnet. And you need a magic wand to open it. The pin was originally a standard heart, I flattened the heart so I could cut the pin in the shape of a key. Wood: 1 1/2 X 1 1/2 inch oak Blades: FD Polar #1 for the pin and sliding dovetail, Polar #5 for the inside void, the outside of the heart shape and to rip the 1/8" bottom. The only tricky part of the puzzle box is the order of cutting must be followed. 1. rip the bottom piece, 2. cut the pin, etc...
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Here are some pictures of the Lilac wood that I have. I'm not sure what kind of lilac it is, a friend brought me some pieces. The pieces have no discernible smell ( I was hoping for ) It cut ok on my HF small bandsaw, but when I was trying to sand it smooth it changed colors, I think the oils in the wood were burning as the whole piece turned darker. I have sanding belts up to 1000 grit and this wood polished up very well. These first three pictures are to show the grain and color the first is without any treatment, the next is fresh BLO and the third is BLO after a day to dry: The next two are just to show color:
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Scrappile, when I get done with the market tomorrow I'll sand the end off of some lilac wood I have and show the color, whatever that turns out to be. I worked with some fresh cut lilac years ago and the lilac scent was so strong I got an unintentional buzz!
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How big a piece of wood do you need? Is this a one off for an intarsia? A small fretwork box? There are two wood types that should grow in your area ( Wash st ) Box elder (mostly streaky) and Lilac (you would need larger specimens that are being removed or larger limbs being removed. I don't know of any commercial wood that would have the light purple.
