Scroll Saw Village

Remember those old Erector sets you had as a kid?  You would take bits of pseudo angle iron and aluminum strips and  bolt them together to create some really cool structures.  I built mostly robots and airplanes.  Well, here’s a scroll saw created using a Czech product similar to the Erector Set called Merkur. The builder,  Tobias, writes he made the majority of the scroll saw using Merkur and added a motor to power the saw.  Looks pretty good to me!  So if your scroll saw ever breaks down, dig out your old Erector set and build your own!

It’s Wiki Wednesday! Wiki Wednesday is an ongoing series providing tutorials on how to use the wiki and highlighting interesting articles on Scroll Saw Wiki (www.scrollsawwiki.com).  This week’s highlighted article is on Clubs & Organizations.

Local clubs provide an opportunity to share your work, exchange ideas, and enjoy the company of like-minded folks.  Often times they have workshops and lectures where you can learn new techniques.  But these clubs can sometimes be tricky to find.    Scroll Saw Wiki has compiled a list of clubs and organizations to make finding a club a little easier.  Take a look.  Maybe there’s one near you.

If you belong to a club on the list, take a look at the information provided and see if its up to date.  If there is any incorrect information, or you’d like to add more information, feel free to edit the document (click the edit button on the top of the screen).  If you belong to a scroll saw club and it is not listed, please add it.  If you’re not comfortable adding it yourself, shoot me an email at scrollsawgoodies[at]gmail.com and I’d be happy to add it for you.  Be sure to provide as much information as possible to give others a good idea of what you’re club is about and how to participate.  This is a great way to promote your club or organization.

See you at the next club meeting!

Sure, you can buy hinges for boxes.  But if you want to add that extra touch of class to your next project, try making your own hinges!  Gary MacKay wrote a great article for Scroll Saw Woodworking & Crafts back in 2005 about how to create your own hinges with a scroll saw.  Don’t have that back issue?  Don’t worry, Woodcraft has made it available on their website for everybody to read.  Inside, Gary  guides you step-by-step through the process.  He includes a lot of great photos, along with detailed explanation.  He even throws in a free pattern!  How could you go wrong?  Check it out! Your scrolling reputation hinges on it!

I’m happy to announce a new feature to the Scroll Saw Village network.  Introducing, Scroll Saw Wiki.  Scroll Saw Wiki is a new scroll saw reference anybody can edit!  You can find this new resource at www.scrollsawwiki.com.

Scroll Saw Wiki operates on the same powerful software Wikipedia operates.  Anybody can edit, add info, or create brand new articles with ease.  The idea is to have a robust reference created by the scroll saw community for the scroll saw community.  It could house all kinds of information including equipment, scroll saw manufacturers, cutting techniques, different types of scroll sawing, types of wood, books, magazines, websites, blogs, and the list goes on.  If it has anything to do with scrolling, add it!

Editing and creating articles is easy to do. If the link is blue, there is an article already written. Any written article can be edited by anybody just by clicking the Edit button. If the link is red, there hasn’t been an article written, so feel free to write the article. You can do a search for a term and if it comes up empty, you’re allowed to create that article! Its that easy! And don’t be concerned with writing a brilliant article. Just write it and if it needs to be edited, someone will come along eventually and fill in the holes, fix grammar or whatever! If you need help, there’s some help pages on the wiki. I’ve also created a Wiki Talk forum at Scroll Saw Village (in the Help & Feedback section).  There you can ask questions, request articles, discuss articles, and organize tasks.

Have fun with this new resource. Hopefully together, we can create an awesome scroll saw reference that will benefit all scrollers!

I love my scroll saw, but there are other tools on my wish list too.  Like a lathe!  Wouldn’t that be fun?  It would be awesome if there was such a thing as a scroll saw/lathe combo.  Nah.  That’s just too good to be true.  Or is it? And if we make this wonder-tool ourselves, we can save the earth too!   Could it be possible?  Well, Roy Underhill can make it happen in his article Lathe from a Loft (Popular Woodworking, Oct 2000 issue). The Woodworking Magazine blog has made this article available in PDF format for easy printing and reading.  The article is a humourous approach to building this wonder-machine, but still includes detailed building instrucitons and photo illustrations.  Even if you don’t intend to build your own scroll saw/lathe combo, check it out.  Its a very entertaining read.

One thing that holds a lot of scrollers from trying intarsia is the amount of wood inventory you must maintain in order to create a project. This initial investment could be hefty, depending on the complexity of your project. Mike Mathieu of Midlothian Woodworks has made it easy to jump into this wonderful hobby, without the large investment. He offers a wide variety of intarsia kits ranging from jewelry boxes to large scale scenics. Each kit comes the plans, instructions, hardware, and all the species of wood needed to create a finished project. Check it out! Maybe the intarsia bug will bite you too.

Awhile back, a member of Scroll Saw Village (Clayton 717) put together a wonderful set of progression pictures where he created this intarsia portrait of Christ.  It was a lot of fun to watch the process.  The end result was stunning.  I asked Clayton if he’d be willing to write an article for Scroll Saw Goodies on how to get started in intarsia.  He was kind enough to share some advice on getting started in this wonderful hobby.  Once you’re done reading his article, be sure to stop by Scroll Saw Village and check out his progression pictures and descriptions.

Getting Started in Intarsia

by Clayton Baker

Intarsia is a type of woodworking/art combining several pieces of wood, (different species) to create a finished project. It is often created with varying thicknesses of wood to make a 3d type affect. By using different species of wood you get different colors and varying grain patterns that makes each project unique. There are never two exactly the same.

There are no special tools required.  I started doing intarsia with just my scroll saw and a dremel rotary tool, (used for shaping) and a regular orbital sander. There are several tools which make it easier. Now I have a oscillating spindle sander(OSS), this makes it much easier. The OSS will square up the edges after cutting, along with the shaping part. There are several sanding machines that are available, that will aid in the shaping of the pieces. I use the OSS, an orbital sander, my dremel and of course hand sanding.

If you would like to start intarsia, but don’t want to buy a bunch of patterns, check you local library for books. This is where I got my first patterns as well as some directions about intarsia. There are several intarsia artist out there. A few of my favorites are Judy Gale Roberts, Kathy Wise, and Bruce Worthington. These are just a few.  I have used patterns from them and they are very good to work from. They all have websites.  Judy Gale Roberts is www.intarsia.com – you can buy patterns, books and instructional videos about intarsia. Kathy Wise is at www.kathywise.com and she sells patterns.  And the last is Bruce Worthington at  www.intarsia.net he has patterns and a couple free ebooks for intarsia. All three have great patterns on information.

There are also several books, one that I recently had was by Kathy Wise called Intarsia Woodworking Projects. It has patterns in the book and has lots of tips and info about intarsia.

I like to glue the whole pattern to poster board then cut out all the pieces with an exacto knife, this way I can save them and use them over and over. Instead of printing or getting copies made every time I want to do the project. I then put these pattern pieces onto the wood and trace around them with a fine pencil or marker. This way I can kinda pick the grain patterns I like. Many just use spray glue to attach the pattern to the wood. No matter which way you use, NEVER use the original pattern, make copies. After all pieces are cut and I start the fitting process, I use two faced tape to hold the pieces down while getting the fit I want. On large projects(like the Christ I’ve done) there are to many pieces (122) to hold together to get the fit. The tape holds them down and together while getting all pieces to fit together. After all pieces are fit together I’ll start the shaping process, once this is done I’ll glue up small sections (for  a large project) and let them dry then I’ll glue the whole thing together. For this I use silicone, just a couple of dots on the edges, enough to hold the together, this way if something goes wrong or doesn’t fit right on the final assembly, the pieces will come back apart without having to cut new ones. The once its all together and dry I will glue to a backer board. And attach the hanger. I stamp and sign all of my work. Then I’ll hand sand any problem areas, like where I got sloppy with the silicone or glue.  Next step finishing.

For finishing I like to use polyurethane. I apply with a brush, so I can squeeze it into all the cracks. I never use stain, this way the natural beauty of the wood comes out. There are several types of finish available, this is just my preference because I can buy it almost anywhere I go.

If you have been thinking about trying intarsia, don’t be intimidated by it give it a try. I was at first, I didn’t think I could do it, now I love it. I spend most of my shop time working on Intarsia. It requires a lot of work but the finished project is worth it.

About The Author
My name is Clayton Baker. I live in NW Ohio. I have always been into woodworking and have been scrolling for about 17 years. About 2 years ago I started doing Intarsia. My first project was a pretty simple one, I just wanted to “try” it, now I am hooked. Intarsia is my favorite type of woodworking now. I am still learning this craft as I go, but have finished several different projects. Intarsia makes beautiful wooden art. My advise is to start with a simple pattern and go from there. My finished work can be viewed at www.cbaker71.myphotoalbum.com

My wife hates it when I spray finish my projects indoors.  She doesn’t like the smell and she worries about what’s floating around in the air.  Most of the time, I have to wait for her to go shopping.  Then I bolt downstairs with my spray can in one hand and an arm full of projects in the other and hope the smell dissapears before she gets home.

It would be great if I could find a way to finish my projects indoors without anybody being the wiser?  If I only had a spray booth.   Well Paul Adamson from Military Modeling has a great tutorial on how to make a small spraybooth out of materials you can find off the shelf.  Best of all, its small enough to store out of sight when you don’t need it.  He includes a detailed description of the process, along with several photographs.  Check it out.  It might be the next tool you need in your arsonal (and keep you out of the doghouse too).

photo by Ehsan Namavar

I’m not a political person in general. But there was one issue that was close to my heart. I’ve written several articles (Good News For Handmade Toys, Save Hand Made Toys, and No More Handmade Toys) about the CPSIA and their new rule to require expensive 3rd party testing on products intended for children. This ruling would force thousands of crafters and cottage industries out of business. But we can now breath a sigh of relief, at least for the time being. The CPSIA has issued a 1 year suspension of the rule so they can further explore concerns  and look for possible options. Etsy.com has a great article about the 1 year suspension that you can read here.   You can continue to keep up to date and see what you can do to help by visiting the Hand Made Toy Alliance.

David Pruett from Folding Rule blog and podcast has a really neat project that’s perfect for scrollers; a saw blade organizer! He designed this organizer for a friend that does a lot of marquetry. David’s design will hold 6 blade tubes, a Archimedes drill, and drill bits. Beautifully made of cherry and finished with shellac and hand rubbed wax. He includes some great pictures with commentary, a video overview, links to sources, and a free project plan presented in PDF format. This is a really cool, check it out!

Thanks to Handi for the heads up on this really great project!