New Scroller

[Ghornet54]

Deleted by Author

[lucky788scroller]

congrats on saw

http://www.foxchapelpublishing.com/p...ls.cfm?PC=1026 Thats the book you want! Many others will agree. The only thing that you will need besides that book is lots of practice. welcome aboard, Ask any questions you have, someone here surely will help you out. Dale

[Minnesota scroller]

Welcome to this big happy scrolling family. You came to the right place for answers to your questions. When I started, I bought a book titled "Scroll Saw Handbook" by Patrick Spieman. You can go to half.com and find one starting at .75. I'm sure others will have other recommendations. I thought this book covered things pretty well for a beginner.

As far as the wood bouncing around, first make sure the blade isn't in upside down. The teeth must face down. Also, keep your fingers exerting slight pressure on the wood, close to the blade, but be sure to move your fingers before the blade makes contact.

What saw are you using and what wood are you working with?

We also like to see a person's first name in your signature. This is an easy place to make friends. No matter what happens, don't get discouraged. It all takes practice and ask as many questions as you like. That's what this forum is designed for - scrollers helping scrollers.

Good luck

P.S. Where are you from?

[Ghornet54]

Deleted by Author

[CanadianScroller]

Once you have drawn first blood there is no turning back

Another good resource is Rick Hutcheson's site
He has put together some wonderful videos that will show you hints and tips.

Feel free to ask any questions about scrolling here, There is lots of good advice. You will surely feel at home here.

Carl

[Gill]

Don't worry about having no artistic skills. You don't need any; just an ability to follow a pattern line, which is a manual skill that can be learned quite quickly. It's not unusual for newcomers to have problems when they start cutting, but with a little practice you'll be amazed at how rapidly your skills improve.

Gill

[Iamdusty]

Welcome Charles
I have only been scrolling a couple of months and would heartily second the suggestions you have already received. Especially helpful to me was to use the John Nelson lesson book Dale recommended. I also have the P. Spielman book and like it as well. You will enjoy this forum greatly as I have.
Dale M.

[Ghornet54]

Deleted by Author

[CanadianScroller]

I honestly find that blade breakage is usually due to tension on the blade. Either the blade is too loose or too tight.
You are correct in looking for blade tension, sharp turns and type of wood.

If the blade is too tight even slight heat or sideways pressure can cause the break.
If the blade is too loose then it can cause the arms that hold it to bounce with a whipping action. The bounce will then apply even more tension when the two arms move apart slightly.

Tension has to be the hardest thing to learn in scrolling. Some people say pluck the blade till it rings, well there is a whole range of ringing tones.
Others say tighten it till you only get 1/8 of an inch deflection. I kind of do both.
You may also want to slow the saw down initially. That will help too.
I was fortunate that I had someone show me the correct tension when I started.

You may try and find someone close to you who can let you listen to a taut blade.
Maybe even a high school shop.

Hope this helps a little

[Minnesota scroller]

Here is an interesting site that will explain the tension with the actual sound the blade should make. http://www.intarsia.com/ScrollSawTension.html

[sawdustus]

sawdustus of hiawatha

Charles,

Welcome aboard. This is a great fraternity (sorority) of informative, nice people. Great advice on the books to find and the blade tension to seek. The bouncing could be due to your blade being in upside down. Been there, done that. Make sure that the teeth are facing down towards the table. If you are using a reverse tooth blade, then the bottom 3/4" or so of teeth will face up but most will still face down. Other reasons for blade breakage when your tension is set well are:

1. Size. Using too small a blade for the thickness of the wood. I like a
# 5 or # 7 for 1/2" wood. Basically, the thicker the wood, the bigger
the blade.

2. Speed. The thinner the blade, the slower the speed of the saw. The
thicker the wood the faster the speed. Both within reason.

3. Force. The harder you push the wood, the more likely to break the
blade. Let the saw do the work.

Happy scrolling.

George

[Marcel in Longueuil]

Hi Charles,

Welcome to the group.

One reason for blade breakage can be side pressure, when cutting you may inadvertently be applying lateral pressure that can snap the blades.

When cutting a straight line, depending on your brand and model of blades, you may need to align your cut at an agle when facing the saw.

Which means that if you are squarely facing the saw, you could nee to cut at a front right to back left angle in order to follow the line, this is normal in some cases. But be carefull not to push sideway on the blade too hard at the same time, it doesn't seem easy to do, but it's actually harder to explain than to do it

Do visit Rick H.'s website, it is full of valuable information

Good luck to you,
Marcel

[Ghornet54]

Deleted by Author

[Minnesota scroller]

I definitely like scrolling, but haven't tried any hard patterns yet. I might change my mind when I do.

Charles in Kentucky

Charles, we don't want to hear that. The main difference between hard patterns and easy ones is the amount of patience required. The rest just comes with practice.

It's nice to see someone from Kentucky on this site. I've never been to your state but next summer my wife and I are driving down there for our 30th anniversary. I've heard it's beautiful country and the smallmouth bass and crappie fishing is outstanding. Keep pushing ahead with your exciting new hobby and keep posting and maybe I'll look you up when I get there.

[lucky788scroller]

Also, it wasnt mentioned, but many times blades get broken because of the way its being inserted into a fret hole.If you are feeding the blade down through a hole it doesnt happen much, but if a bottom feeder like me (feeding the blade up through the frethole when changing holes), if the wood isnt placed on the table correctly, you can kink the blade slightly, weakening it.If bottom feeding,undo the blade from top clamp, then feed it up thru the hole, and pinch the blade end tween your thumb and index finger and pull up on the blade, and let your wood selfcenter itself as you set it on the table. Then rehook the blade at top clamp and tension it. I do believe a lot of your trouble is the blades themselfs.watch for Mike M (3-M) on here and explain your dilemma, perhaps he could suggest the perfect blade for your particular scrolling. Dale