Pattern to Wood

[tig2k2000]

First I would like to say hi to everyone Im Paul and live in the UK Im pretty new to the world of scrollsawing so have been doing a lot of searching for info and tips
I have seen one or two ways of puttung pattern to wood my dad used to apply his patterns using carbon paper for all his fretwork and that worked well for him
On my surfing travels Ive seen where people have used a spray adhesive and stuck the paper pattern directly onto the wood my only problem with that is removing the paper from the finished piece specially if its delicate LOL I would be a little worried about breaking parts off
So if anyone could give me a few ideas as to the best ways of doing this it would be great
Cheers

[Bill Wilson]

There are several ways to attach patterns. First, look for spray adhesive that isn't permanent. Not sure what is available in the UK, but some key words to look for on the label are "temporary bond" or "repositionable". These products will be easier to remove.

You can wipe on a little mineral spirits (paint thinner) to help disolve the adhesive as well. It will soak through the paper and after a few moments, the pattern will just about fall off by itself. Much the same thing can be accomplished by using a hair dryer to heat the adhesive.

Many folks like to put down a layer of releasable painter's tape directly on the wood first, then adhere the pattern to that. The painters tape comes off easily, with no residue left behind.

There are many other ways to skin the proverbial cat and I expect others will be along to add their favorites.

[Wood Dog]

Welcome tig2k2000, as for your question, some folks put mineral spirits on the paper, let it soak in then remove the paper that way. Personally I put painters tape on the wood first, then glue the pattern on the tape, easy to peel off the tape after cutting. Good luck, I'm sure more folks will come by to tell you what they do. No one way is the right way, whatever you are comfortable with will do it.

[loftyhermes]

Hi tig2k2000, welcome to the forum, I'm also in the UK and you can use any glue as long as it's re-positionable. The spray glue I now use Bostik Fast Tac re-positionable from Wilkos (if you have one near) which cheaper and is just as good as the 3m craft mount re-positionable that I was using.
happy scrolling
Steve

[Fretnot]

Hi Tig. I am also in the UK. I am cutting 18mm thick hardwood for most of the time and this is the way i attach my patterns to the wood. I sand the wood first which is just big enough for my pattern. I then cover the wood with 2inch masking tape I get from wilko's and then using wilko's own stick glue I cover the back of the pattern and the masking tape and fix the pattern. I then cover the pattern with 2inch clear packing tape as this will prevent the hardwood from burning by causing less friction on the blade and by adding the clear tape you get to cut it that little bit faster.

[journeyman]

Hi Tig and welcome to the forum. I make a variety of different things from toys and boxes to portraits and fretwork. I use mainly use Staples glue sticks on the back of the pattern and apply directly to the wood. When I remove it I brush the pattern with Methylated Spirit, leave for a couple of minutes and the pattern peels away easily. If there is any glue residue left on the wood I just brush it again with meths and wipe off straight away with a soft clean rag. The meths evaporates in minutes.
BTW. It's nice to have another scroller from the UK. We are getting quite a club going now.
Mick

[tig2k2000]

thanks guys very helpful will check out wilos too next time Im in town
Thanks again

[ubgoofy2003]

Hi, tig & welcome to the forum. I understand your dilema of transfering the pattern to wood, & most everyone here does just as described above. I am different & like your Dad, I transfer my patterns with carbon paper. Have not had any problems with it, although it is more work. You have to go over all the lines & make sure they are clear to follow. It isn't as difficult for me, because I don't do that many projects in a short period of time. I do have the time to do the transfer's & I like not having to remove anything when finished. Nice & clean. One thing not to do, is apply clear packing tape directly to the wood piece. You will have trouble getting it off the wood. Even with heat. I have used it that way ONLY for a problem with laminated wood chipping. It was a poor quality plywood that caused the chipping of the wood while cutting it. Hope you work things out & most of all, enjoy Scrolling.

[tony coleman]

i firstly apply masking tape too my piece of wood,the use a glue stick too stick the pattern too the tape,i use this method on all my work,and never had any trouble with it,
welcome too the forum

[JimSawyer]

Hey,
I'm old school too...I use carbon paper for inlay work. And, since there is heavy sanding, the carbon is easily removed, but for some projects I us graphite paper. If you have a good eraser you can take off the lines pretty easily, maybe a touch of light hand sanding.

Another plus to doing it old school, is that I get to go over the whole design and work out any technical who's it's.. Then when I get to the saw, I'm completely familiar with the pattern it's self.
I also usually start with tracing paper, mostly because much of what I do requires me to draw in lines of the patterns as some inlays go in over others, so I need to re-position the pattern sometimes 3 or 4 times.

[w.2014.h]

I usually just tape the pattern down with clear 2" box tape (Scotch is best). If it's a larger pattern I will cover the wood in tape and then glue the pattern down.

[jim_mex]

Hi tig2k2000 - I'm also from the UK but have been living in Mexico a good while - much nicer weather than back home!

The use of painters tape or masking tape between the pattern and the wood has been mentioned but I prefer to use normal clear 2" wide Scotch of 3M packing tape. This has the advantage of not obscuring the grain of the wood at the moment of gluing a pattern to it which is useful when laying down patterns where you may want to take advantage of the grain orientation or specific grain markings. Its also a lot cheaper than painters tape. I use a spray on adhesive, 3M Super 77, and whilst its a bit expensive it goes a really long way. You can also glue to the tape using solid glue sticks as previously mentioned although I tend to find this a bit messy. The only downside to the clear tape is you have to be careful not wrinkle it when you lay it onto the wood and also make sure that the wood surface is smooth and free of dust otherwise it may lift. As mentioned, mineral spirits or normal solvent paint thinners will easily remove any stubborn traces of tape.

One point that hasn't been mentioned in the previous replies is that using tapes and in particular the clear tapes will dramatically reduce the tendency of blades to overheat and burn the wood, especially with hardwoods and will also increase your blade life. This is because the coating applied to the non sticky side of the tape to prevent it sticking to the tape adhesive is a powerful anti friction material which transfers to the blade during cutting.

[Doc58]

G'day from Australia!

I too use carbon but you can also use a laser printer to print onto freezer paper and then iron the pattern facedown onto the wood.

Great for tricky patterns that I find too hard to draw (arthritis in my hands).

Good luck whichever way you go.

Regards

Doc

[western.flyer]

I don't think anyone mentioned this yet. I seen it on Steve Good's sight and it has worked so far.

Use temporary bond spray to attach the pattern directly to the wood and cover with clear packing tape. when it's time to remove it use a heat gun it will peel up and come off fairly easily. Just be careful not to overheat it burn the wood, which I learned the hard way.

[crupiea]

spray glue is the simplest.

print out the patern, lightly hit it with spray glue.

I mean lightly. if you out too much on it it will stick too much and it is a pain to get off.

hold can about 10" away and shoot the spray for about 1 second, just barely enough to cover the paper.