Matthew Simmons

Nice! I may have to pick up a bottle. I think I've finally gotten the wings figured out, and can see why others have skipped them: 1/16" material: I don't have a thickness sander, and doing it on the planer seems like a recipe for explodey bits, so I did it on the table saw. I made 2" x 6" pieces of walnut and cherry. I won't describe how, because honestly I'm surprised I still have fingers after all that. Cutting the wings part 1: My first attempt was to scroll cut the entire wing, but that's just madness. The blade is waay too aggressive on 1/16" material, and the wings are too small. So the first pass was cutting out finger-shaped wing pieces (imagine the nail is the wing). The only line I worried about was the lower edge of the wing (the part that that doesn't align with the bird's back). And even then I cut wide and used the strip sander to finish it up. Cutting out whole-finger-sized (or at least up to the 2nd knuckle) pieces let me keep control of the work. Cutting the wings part 2: With the lower edge correct, and no more need for a giant handle I cut the finger way back. I cut a straight line for easy control, maybe a quarter of an inch away from the highest part of the top edge of the wing. Note that during all this the pattern is still attached to the wing pieces. Attaching the wings: I glued the wing to the body, using the pattern to help with alignment. The wing piece sticks up above the bird's back. Cutting the wings part 3: I put bird+wing in the vice, and used a Dremel + sanding drum to bring the top of the wing down flush with the bird's back. Remove the wing pattern. Final touch up. Steps 5 and 6 can be swapped so you don't have bits of paper flying off when you sand. I don't have pictures yet because I'm still between steps 6 and 7, waiting for the mineral spirits to dry.

Charlie, could you explain a bit how you added color? I assume it's paint vs some sort of stain? Please use small words, as if explaining to a small child who's only ever used spray lacquer.

Nice job! Nobody loves the wings on those birds (from the pattern). Working on the same project, also inspired by @dgman's post, but I'm going to do the wings even if it kills me.

The solution to this is not to regret the bandsaw, but to see in it the opportunity to get another bandsaw. I picked up a Laguna for resawing and other large work, but kept my dinky Craftsman with the shallow blade for small stuff.

It's a really nice shop, but there seems to be a fatal flaw... How do you get drinks out of that fridge?

I mean... if you're going to stir the pot I'm going to stir it right back.

I gave those some serious thought, but the original arches were meant for candles, so I aimed for lighting in the spirit of that. That meant individual LEDs in candle-like places and with candle-flame-like plastic hats on the LEDs. It turns out that the people who sell the tea light LEDs have figured out how to source flickering LEDs that are brighter than anything I've been able to buy individually. And I've tried! So my current "best" way to get flickering LEDs is to buy a 12-count of tea lights (the ones without remote control) and rip them apart. I keep the LED, the flame-shaped hat, and the battery (because who doesn't need more 2032s), and toss the rest. The waste makes me sad, but the dimness of the flickering LEDs I can buy by themselves makes me sadder.

'Tis true. I didn't think about it until much later. It would be interesting to see numbers on what's cheaper for my use case -- keeping the entire slab at 45-50ish degrees or running the heat pump a bit harder those weeks when I do need it to make up for loss through the slab. And of course the heated slab would be of zero use the other half of the year where the heat pump's job is to keep the temperature below 80-85.

I also built a new shop -- mine in downstate NY. Well insulated, has a heat pump, but also has an exposed concrete floor (which I'm assuming acts like a heat vacuum). I've had various expensive disagreements with the heat pump over keeping the shop at a minimum temperature. I want 40-45, Fujitsu claims to have a minimum temp setting of 50, but if I don't perform the ritual sacrifices just right I end up with 60. In practice it's insulated well enough (spray foam) that it won't go below freezing except on really really cold days. That happens maybe once or twice a year. For that week or two I leave the heat pump at 60, but leave it off the rest of the year. I go to all that effort for basically the reason you gave -- I don't want to have to haul finishes and glues back and forth.

Here's a screenshot from a Volker Arnold pattern book. Note the scalloping (right word?) on the roof. This pattern book was released in 2018, which I think was before engraving lasers became as accessible as they are today. Any idea how they made the roof pattern without a laser? I will admit to a bias against laser cutters/engravers. I enjoy the scroll saw cutting process, and get annoyed at the thought that someone will look at the result and think it's like five minutes of lasering and then some assembly/finishing. Basically the part I like becomes trivial, and the part I'm not terribly fond of becomes the focus. I know, I know, it shouldn't matter what other people think, and yet. Perhaps I'm the only one who feels this way? Matt

The cutting proved to me (as if I needed more proof) that I need to refine my technique on sharp corners. Even with a #1 UR I'll chip off a little bit of the top ply far more often than I'd like. I *think* this means I'm pushing the work into the blade such that the blade rubs against (and lifts off) the top ply on the part I want to keep. The lights were .. thrilling. I started by thinking I wanted to put the LEDs in sockets, so I spent a bunch of time trying to drill the perfect angled holes, then mounting the sockets... Eventually I gave up and soldered them in. Future me isn't going to enjoy swapping them out, but I've never liked that guy anyway.

Thanks! This was my first try at something anywhere near this elaborate (and my first lit thing). I learned (hopefully) a bunch about tight corners and free-form wiring. The original plans are old enough to call for incandescent lighting, and are in German which I assume means 240V! Which, in an application like this, I don't even...

It took approximately 300 years, but I made my first candle arch. So. Much. Trial. And. Error. Debated painting vs spray lacquer up until the very end. Finally laziness won out, and they got the lacquer. I'm pretty sure the base is cherry. More photos Pattern: Regu https://www.ebay.ca/itm/262775400771

Ultra reverse?

As I understand it you can't buy 95% Everclear in California either.

@heppnerguy Sheila Landry has a bunch of layered ornament patterns like that. If you want to make some, you have many many (very fiddly) options.

@Sycamore67 cutting in sections is quite appealing, believe me, but I'm not planning to paint the result, so I think the seams would stick out. Also I ordered a few sheets of 2'x2' plywood specifically for this project, and I have to use them for something. @Wichman and @don in brooklin on those videos videos were quite helpful in showing me that the project can be done. Complicating matters, this build is supposed to be done with 1/8" plywood, as compared to the much thicker wood used on both videos. A Schwiboggan thread that touched on stack cutting and the Oak&Feather video's suggestion to use tape got me thinking. I want the thickness to slow down the cut and to reduce flexion, and I liked the tape idea to keep the cut parts of the project together while I worked on the rest. I might combine them. I'm thinking about using the large 1/8" sheet stacked on some smaller (cheaper) 1/4" plywood, held together with brads. Say the pattern is 24"x12". I'd have the 24"x12" 1/8 on top, with say three 8"x12" 1/4" sheets as the second layer. I'll leave the heads of the brad proud of the 1/8" sheet, and when I've finished the portion of the pattern that covers one of the 1/4" pieces, I'll pop the brads, move the underlying 1/4" piece by maybe an inch so support is restored, put the brads back in, and move on to the next section. This gives me the moral equivalent of the tape, but a) stronger and b) less likely to do the damage tape does to finer details in plywood. Or maybe just use tape on the 1/4" layer so I don't have to mess with the brads, as (b) doesn't matter on the bottom layer. And of course mark on top where the second layer boundaries are so I know when to expect the blade to start acting strangely.

I'd like to tackle this project from Scrollsaw Artist. It's a large (for me) village scene, with the largest layer measuring 17"x10". What's the best way to attack one of these patterns? My go to is a #1 or #5 UR, but the thought of twirling a piece of wood that large around to make all those cuts makes me nervous. How do you control a piece like that, especially on a tight turn? Is it assumed that you'll use a spiral blade for a pattern like this?

A quick comparison. 6 UR #1 blades today from MWS to NYC(ish) is 22.68+0=22.68, while the same order from WTB is 25.86+3.95=29.81. So in this case the blades *and* the shipping are more expensive WTB vs MWS. Wonder how long that'll last. I was surprised to see that neither charge sales tax. I thought everyone added sales tax for out of state orders these days.

I prefer the Flying Dutchman blades because Bill Nighy packs each set himself.

Thanks those are really helpful. It looks like you're supporting the bendy straw (for lack of a better name) externally rather than putting a wire inside it like the instructions suggest? In my case I'm discovering that small bits get caught in one of two places -- either they stop when they hit the wire (or just beyond) or they pile up at the junction where the two small hoses merge into the larger 1" (?) hose. The supplied foam insert creates a cozy fit in the 1" hose, but does so by compressing the smaller hoses, creating an obstruction. I think what I need to do next is a) figure out how to support the bendy straw externally, like you've done and b) replace the foam insert with something that doesn't crush the small hoses. Then it'll be the same diameter all the way through. Making the custom plug for (b) sounds like the perfect job for a 3d printer but for once I'm going to resist the urge to pick up a whole new hobby just to solve a small problem with an existing hobby.

Would it be possible for those with Scrollnados (especially on DW788s) to post pictures of their setups? Particularly the hose above the table. Do you bring the top hose in from above? From the side? How you keep it far enough away that it doesn't suck up (and get blocked by) tiny bits while still being close enough to get the dust?

Thanks for the help everyone! I just ordered some penguin reverse 1,3,5 and some UR 1,3. We'll see how they work. This nature scene is a whole new thing for me - all of my other projects have been about removing wood from areas (ie there's always been a waste side). The interior lines have much less margin for error. Sorry for not introducing myself. By wall clock time I've been scrolling for years. By number of hours at the saw... 10 hours? 20 at the very outside? I've done a compound Love/You sign (?), a couple of 2D ornaments, they be mine box and.. that's about it. I like scrolling because it's detail oriented and unlike work when a piece is done, it's Done.

I picked up the #2/0 thinking I needed something very narrow and nimble to be able to handle the detail cuts from the nature shadow box pattern. Maybe I was wrong? What would you use to cut the interior lines on this house? I was especially concerned about that 90 degree angle under the chimney, but looking closer at Steve's version a) his version of that curve is rounded and b) the width of his interior cuts seem wider than what I'm getting with the #2/0. What are the odds that those were made with a #3 or even my beloved #5? (The picture below is about 4"x4" IRL).

Thanks for pointing this out. It got me questioning my sanity for a moment, which led to a valuable lesson in blade sizes. Turns out they do make a #2 -- or at least one beginning with #2. It's a #2/0, which I'm now learning is the smallest possible blade they make (in UR, at least -- I haven't checked the other types). No wonder this thing looks basically like a piece of wire with some teeth attached. I guess I went straight from an easy blade to the hardest blade?