ScrollerGuy

Wow! That is a BIG project!

Like the leopard but love the lighthouse. The child in the foreground really adds some depth.

Wow! Very nice!

Thanks

The size of the scroll saw really limits the size of the pieces we can cut, though spiral blades do extend the limit somewhat, but not to the extent I'm thinking about. I've never seen multi-section patterns available that, when the smaller parts are cut and then placed together, make a larger scene. Maybe six to ten or more 14–20-inch patterns that mount together to complete a scene. I imagine the parts would be cut out of rather than cut into the wood (though either could work) and one section might flow into the next section but be complete by itself if desired. One idea might have interchangeable sections where say a bird on a branch could be one of several bird patterns to choose from. Or maybe a moose could be swapped for a wolf or a bear. Maybe a scene would rise from the floor in a corner and use both walls for a corner scene. The possibilities are endless... I have some rather large and empty walls in several areas of my house that I would like to fill with some interesting scenes and wonder if any such patters exist. Any thoughts and ideas on this topic would be appreciated.

After a long, cold winter I'm again able to do some scrolling out in my scroller shed without freezing my .... Here's a Russ Beard design cut into 1/4 inch Baltic birch with Pegas 1 & 3 MGT blades. It was stained white, added a black backer and placed into a frame made from scrap 3/4 inch pine stained gray. Finished size with frame is 10.25 x 13.5 inches. I really like Russ Beard's designs and have already started another. Lots of holes, but easy to cut.

I believe the Grizzly G0969 21-inch saw is another Excalibur/Pegas clone and may be a source for parts. The parts page with diagrams for this saw is here: https://www.grizzly.com/products/g0969/parts

I bought the Grizzly 21" scroll saw last summer and was surprised to receive their 643-page catalog a few weeks ago. It reminds me of the large catalogs of yesteryear, like Sears and JCPenny used to send out. By the way, the Grizzly 21" scroll saw is an Excaliber/Pegas clone with a larger table, not a Rikon/Bauer 22" type clone. Not really much difference between the two groups, but they are distinct.

There is a series of videos on this site called "Making Scroll Saw Patterns with Inkscape". Lesson 7 shows how to design a Trinket Box. It doesn't have any text but could be easily modified. Steve Good has a video called "Editing fonts in Inkscape for use on the Scroll Saw" that shows how to modify text to make it scrollable. Learning to use free programs like Inkscape and Gimp does take some time, but in the long run it will save you time and allow you to design anything you can think up. Good Luck!

I've purchased Baltic birch both online and in store from Woodcraft and the quality was good. In the store I was told that Woodcraft is discontinuing carrying it because of its Russian origin. The 12 x 12 pieces have been on clearance for some time at good prices (1/8 inch $2 and 1/4 inch $3). They had it discounted even more until January 3rd, I believe. The larger pieces haven't been discounted. I was told they have "hundreds of thousands" of the smaller pieces to clear out. If you add some to your cart and leave it there, they will send you a discount code for free shipping.

I have the Grizzly 22 inch which has a very large table with the blade similarly further from the front. It took a little while to visually get used to the increased distance, but it became normal pretty quickly. More room in the front of the blade makes cutting large pieces a little easier because more of the weight is on the table instead of hanging off, which makes tipping of the project less likely. I would likely have purchased the Bauer saw if it was available when I got the Grizzly. The price is too good to not give it a try, especially if you can get your hands on one of the 25% off coupons.

The Grizzly is on backorder, so you can count that one out. For a quality machine Pegas would be the way to go, but for a first-time buyer I'd get the Harbor Freight Bauer 22" and see if scrolling is really something you enjoy and want to continue with. It'd only be around $250 out the door and it appears to be a decent machine. Good Luck!

If you haven't found them yet, GIMP and Inkscape are free to try. Instructive videos are here on Scroll Saw Village. The videos are geared towards portraits, but the programs can be used for other types of patterns. Good Luck! https://www.scrollsawvillage.com/village-university/ Edited to say the Inkscape video is geared more for general patterns. Both are useful programs.

Here is one of the blade charts. Lots of information, but ignore the prices. The pdf will hopefully be attached to this post SS_BLADE_CHART_2-22-2013.pdf

I'm sure your photo can be made into a pattern and one of the talented pattern makers here will likely help you with that. There are some great instructional videos on this site that can teach you how to make patterns using open source (free) software. Here's a link to them if you'd like to give it a try. It's really not very difficult once you become familiar with the software. https://www.scrollsawvillage.com/village-university/ Good luck!

With 26 views and no replies I'll start this off. Have you read the manual? Here's a link: https://www.manua.ls/excalibur/ex-21/manual?p=11 . Page 11 has your answer - unpinned 5" scroll saw blades. You can find them on Amazon and many online retailers. Your next question will be "which 5" unpinned blade should I buy?" Books could be written on the subject, so maybe a quick search of this site will get you going. I'm sure others will chime in here too. Good luck with your scroll sawing. Looks like OCtoolguy and I were responding at the same time.

Interesting. I had to look into this and found a video that shows what you described. https://hackaday.com/2017/03/23/soda-bottles-used-as-heat-shrink-for-wood-joinery/

The bigger table is a big deal to me and that's one of the reasons I ended up buying the Grizzly last summer. So far, I have no complaints about it, though I'm rather new to scrolling and have used only one other saw, the Wen 3922. The Grizzly is so much easier to use - especially when doing fretwork. Moving the blade from one hole to the next and re-tensioning is a breeze. It has only been available for a bit over a year, so how it holds up long term is yet to be learned. It was also on sale when I bought it for about the same price it is now. Like many online stores, Grizzly will send you a coupon code for 5% off if you leave something in your cart. That brings the price down another $28. It's not red, but I rather like the green color and the label on the side of the machine says it is made in Taiwan.

Thanks, Dan. Much appreciated. As I posted above earlier, I have started on my next portrait and it's coming along pretty well. Almost finished, but I keep seeing ways to "improve it", so progress has slowed. It'll have to be a larger piece to accommodate two people. I'm guessing maybe 20 inches wide, which should make for interesting cutting near the corners - probably requiring spiral blades. Also thinking about stack cutting 2 boards, one for me and one for my daughter and her husband. Here's a picture I took early on. __ __ . . . . . . __ __

Very nice job! I looked for this pattern and haven't been able to find it. Where did you get it?

Thanks, Scrappile. Yes, it is very satisfying to take a photo of my daughter and cut into a piece of wood, especially since I'm about as artistic as a mathematical equation. She happened to stop by yesterday and saw it for the first time. She was tickled pink. Surprisingly, I enjoyed making the frame despite the fact that the joints didn't butt up perfectly. Today I had another go at frame making. This time I did a better job, though not perfect. It was for this Beethoven piece I made a while back from clipart, which required very little modification.

Cut and framed. I see areas that could be improved, but overall it came out pretty good for my first try at a portrait. I even made the frame, which was another first try. There's room for improvement there too. Many thanks to those of you that helped me get this done.

Good advice. Thanks. I'd guess you don't like this one. Just playing with you.

Wow, absolutely beautiful! A few questions if I may. Which took longer, the scrolling or the pattern making? What are the dimensions of the piece? Is that Baltic Birch plywood? Thickness and blades used? I'm rather new to scrolling and pattern making and have much to learn. Thanks for sharing.