wood for novice

[ray hampton]

this is not a complain but I can not afford to buy Baltic plywood at today pricing, will wall paneling be a good wood to start with ? I will introduce myself later if this is okay

[oily]

Use whatever you can lay your hands on. I do use some BB but I use more cheap stuff from wherever. I absolutely love found and free wood. For me scrounging stock is part of the fun.

[sawdustus]

I think wall paneling will be a bit splintery to cut and the grooves that most of it has might interfere with the patterns, but give it a try...especially if it is free. Let us know how it works out.

george

[evilbadger]

Welcome to the group.

I agree with George and Rob. Paneling will splinter on you but if you have it on hand and just want to practice cutting it will work. Just about anything will work for practice cutting, but when you feel comfortable enough to attempt a project try to find a piece of wood that will do the project justice.
Good luck and happy scrolling!

[comreno]

Welcome to the group.
I'm with oily ,any found wood is great.
It is even better when it is delivered by friends to the house.
Good luck.
Larry

[PatteM]

You'll want to be aware that it is harder to work with the thinner woods - it will seem like you have to hold it down harder than heavier wood, and your blade will zip through it more quickly so that it's MUCH harder to follow your pattern line.

I found that quarter-inch stuff was easier for me to work with - poplar is easy to work with. I would stay away from pine - you cut very easily for a bit until you get to a grain, where it slows down, so it's really hard to cut smooth curves, which need to be fed at pretty much a constant rate.

Good luck!

[sawman101]

1/4" luan plywood is cheap and the big building supply stores can cut the 4x8 sheets down to smaller pieces to fit in your automobile. Although it's not the ideal wood for most projects, you can still get some passable results, and it's a darn good wood for learning to scroll with. I have used it as the bottom piece when stack cutting fine detailed work, as a throwaway piece, and ended up sanding the luan and using that too. Just be prepared to embark on the journey into a very enjoyable, satisfying, and rewarding craft, that bring out your hidden artist.

[wood-n-things]

Found wood is really great stuff. Watch for what neighbors are tossing out by the curb. You will find old dressers, table tops, shelving cabinets etc. Be wary of free pallets, although it is good wood you never know what was shipped on them and it could be toxic chemicals. So just be careful. Have fun is the most important thing and you will be amazed at what free wood is available out there. Welcome aboard!

[HAMMER]

Watch on trash day when folks through out used furniture. dressers and such have a plywood backer on them the sides are usually 1/2" or 3/4" solid wood and the tops can be good wood also. It just takes some time to disassemble it and you have free wood. If there are doors you can get free hardware also.

[3_M]

To look for wood, I did a lot of dumpster diving. Also when there are builing a house I would go and ask the contractor for scraps. They always gave me premission to look in the trash bin,
FD Mike

[oily]

When I do order BB I use these guys. Best price I've found so far
Ocooch Hardwoods - Supplier of Wood for Scroll Sawing, Carving Stock, Intarsia wood, Plywood for scroll sawing, and more.

[Bill Wilson]

You just need to understand that wall paneling won't give you good results. It may be OK to practice with, but poor results may lead to frustration and perhaps premature abandonment of the hobby.

Another potential source of scavenged wood is custom cabinet shops. Often they have odd sized cut-offs of cabinet grade plywood that they can't use and normally burn or toss in the dumpster. If there are any handy to you, they may be willing to let you take some of their scrap.

[ray hampton]

thanks for the tips, I will try the 1/4 plywood

[oily]

Don't worry too much about the stock you use. The end result is the meter and you are the judge. There is nothing more satisfying than selling someones trash back to them. Keep cuttin' and have fun

[Dragon]

I usually buy from the sale bin. There always is some BB on sale because the sides have been damaged. Because I make small things I always manage to work around the damages.
Diane