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Learning Curve #17: Scrollsaw Stars

Blog entry by MsDebbieP posted 734 days ago 726 reads 0 times favorited 29 comments Add to Favorites Watch
« Part 16: Router Phobia Part 17 of Learning Curve series Part 18: Scrollsaw Box »

After being inspired by some beautiful scrollsaw work recently, I thought it was time I did a little practicing at my scroll saw.

The Wood
I purchased some 1/4” thick poplar—I didn’t want to use pine because it is so fragile and I didn’t want to use walnut for two reasons: 1) it is too hard and 2) After sacrificing some walnut to make my snowman bottle holder I didn’t think I dare sacrifice some more in order to “practice”.

The Process
I put tape on the board and glued the patterns to the tape.

I then cut out the squares using the blade (not sure what type it was) that was already in the machine. I found that I could zip along quite quickly with this wood and the blade that was in it. No big dilemmas with this step -that’s a good thing.

Next I drilled a hole in each of the letter sections and using a smaller blade (after the first one gave up the ghost) I found that a slower speed worked quite well with this step. Again, not too much troubles. There were a couple spots that the blade tried to avoid following the line, and the font used wasn’t big enough for the drill bit I used (no.. it wasn’t that I used too big of a drill bit… trying to think positive here!!) and so I included the circles into the font style as much as possible. If I were to do this again I’d choose that font with the circles on the edges.

I then sanded the front/back with the belt sander and then used my Dremel to sand the edges of the stars.

And there we have it: a star for each of my family members.(not all shown in this photo). No stain or anything on them yet. Haven’t decided what I’ll use yet.

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)


29 comments so far

View David's profile

David

1982 posts in 1038 days


posted 734 days ago

Debbie -

WOW! Those are beautiful! Excellent instructions. Thanks!

-- http://foldingrule.blogspot.com

View Russel's profile

Russel

2072 posts in 839 days


posted 734 days ago

Most impressive. Pretty and personal, what more could you want?

-- Working at Woodworking http://www.VillageLaneFurniture.com

View MsDebbieP's profile

MsDebbieP

14188 posts in 1060 days


posted 734 days ago

thanks David, Russel.
:) I was pleasantly surprised at the end result

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

View Blake's profile (online now)

Blake

2768 posts in 774 days


posted 734 days ago

Looks good, Deb. A steady hand you’ve got. Will they hang on a tree next month?

-- Check out my new website! http://www.blakeweberwoodworking.com

View Lee A. Jesberger's profile

Lee A. Jesberger

3710 posts in 879 days


posted 734 days ago

Hi Ms. Debbie;

I always knew you’de make a star someday!

Nice job.

Lee

-- by Lee A. Jesberger http://www.prowoodworkingtips.com http://www.ezee-feed.com

View Karson's profile

Karson

25873 posts in 1300 days


posted 734 days ago

Going to be a festive Christmas as the MsDebbie household. Everyone will have a star on the tree.

-- What happens in the workshop stays in the workshop. No wait that doesn't sound right. Karson Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com †

View Todd A. Clippinger's profile

Todd A. Clippinger

5655 posts in 999 days


posted 734 days ago

Yeah, some of the scrollsaw work is pretty inspiring. Nice work.

-- Todd A. Clippinger, Montana, http://amcraftsman.com

View Douglas Bordner's profile

Douglas Bordner

3427 posts in 963 days


posted 734 days ago

There oughta be a new font made from these. Love it!

-- "Bordnerizing" perfectly good lumber for over a decade.

View cajunpen's profile

cajunpen

5968 posts in 965 days


posted 733 days ago

Good job Debbie, I’ve tried my scroll saw a couple of times and can attest that it is nerve racking trying to keep tight to the lines. You did a really nice job.

-- Bill - "Suit yourself and let the rest be pleased." http://www.cajunpen.com/

View Bob Babcock's profile

Bob Babcock

1808 posts in 986 days


posted 733 days ago

I like Deb. Ornaments are always fun to make. I’ve made some using the wood cut from the base of our tree. The 1st tree that we used that came from our farm started the idea. I wanted to commemorate the occasion and made both of my girls an ornament. Just simple slices of the trunk with the bark on, painted and polyed. You’ld think they were waterford crystal. They get wrapped in bubble wrap and boxed when the tree comes down.

-- Bob, Carver Massachusetts, Sawdust Maker http://www.capecodbaychallenge.org

View DAN 's profile

DAN

6468 posts in 883 days


posted 733 days ago

i like these very much. Great christmas theme.

-- work from your heart and your spirit will live forever

View Jojo's profile

Jojo

581 posts in 872 days


posted 733 days ago

Not only is a beautiful and well executed thing that you have done here but I specially love how pure an un-geeky is your approach to woodworking. I quote (sic) ”using the blade (not sure what type it was) that was already in the machine” and ”If I were to do this again I’d choose that font with the circles on the edges.”

You are like Mot’s 9 year old daughter, that child that sometimes reminds us the obvious but often difficult to achieve: to be more easy-going and less worried about the technical details, more creative and less OCD…

Keep on going “Debbie” and thank you for telling us. By the way, yesterday I listened again to the Lumberjocks Podcast featuring your interview, I absolutely loved it. Too bad there were no more episodes of the series. :o(

-- Jojo, shopless in Kyoto · http://twitter.com/kagushokunin

View sublime4life40's profile

sublime4life40

32 posts in 738 days


posted 733 days ago

Great job,looks wonderful.Stars can be tryng at times.I do alot of scrolling too.The clear packing tape is a good idea helps your blades last alot longer.I use alot of #2 Olson skip tooth blades.Their ideal for tight radius & detail .They cut fast and they have great chip removal for smooth finishes. Their .012” in thickness and great for cutting super small lines.There also pretty reasonable too. If you notice your blade is wondering.slow your feed down and keep your speed on the lowest setting. Its o.k. to get off the line for a little bit.You can easly fix a small problem by just smoothing the cut out alittle bit.Your stars look really great .

-- Rick,Neoga,IL.http://www.myspace.com/sublime_4_life_40

View MsDebbieP's profile

MsDebbieP

14188 posts in 1060 days


posted 733 days ago

thanks everyone. I’m pleased with the results. I didn’t have to throw any away! :)

Bob: isn’t it interesting that “free” stuff can be precious and expensive stuff can be – well, just stuff!

Jojo: that’s a high compliment to be compared to Mot’s daughter. She’s an impressive young lady,
re: interviews, I’ll mention this to Martin… I had forgotten about them; it was so long ago, it seems.
(and I’m glad you enjoyed my interview. My 10 minutes of fame lol.)

Rick: thanks for the tips! I picked up a bunch of blades last spring but I don’t know what I ended up getting.
Thanks for the tip re: wandering. Yesterday was the first time that I’ve ever “used” the speed to my benefit. It was interesting to feel the difference and the control it gave me.
And thanks for the kind words about my stars, since your work was part of my inspiration!

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

View gbvinc's profile

gbvinc

543 posts in 846 days


posted 733 days ago

Cool idea. One more thing for me to do prior to Christmas. Not complaining, mind you.

View barbs's profile

barbs

135 posts in 985 days


posted 733 days ago

Hi Debbie-
I haven’t been able to keep up here much, but I sure like your new stars! Great scroll work. Nicely done!

-- BarbS, Wenatchee WA

View MsDebbieP's profile

MsDebbieP

14188 posts in 1060 days


posted 733 days ago

thanks GB and Barb.

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

View Mark Mazzo's profile

Mark Mazzo

343 posts in 812 days


posted 733 days ago

Debbie,

I just saw these. Very cool idea. I sometimes try to get my kids involved in the shop using the scroll saw because it is a relatively safe tool to use under supervision. These may be a great project to try for Christmas. Thanks for posting!

-- Mark, Webster New York, Visit my website at http://thecraftsmanspath.com

View MsDebbieP's profile

MsDebbieP

14188 posts in 1060 days


posted 733 days ago

ok I have to laugh.. here I am so proud of my achievements on the scroll saw and you are going to have the kids make them.. sigh… darn kids – they make everything look so easy ;)

(remembering back to my first “oops” with the DowelMax… and Mot’s daughter not having a problem..sheesh)
oh my ego, my ego.
:D

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

View Mark Mazzo's profile

Mark Mazzo

343 posts in 812 days


posted 733 days ago

Debbie,

Sorry if that came across poorly ;-)

I didn’t mean to imply that my kids efforts will be near as nice as what you’ve created, just that I thought it was a really nice idea for a project to try with them. Your efforts with the scroll saw on these were great! I really like the lettering you used. I think we’ll be lucky if we can get halfway nice looking stars maybe with something painted on the front but, it will be time well spent with the kids.

Great work!

-- Mark, Webster New York, Visit my website at http://thecraftsmanspath.com

View MsDebbieP's profile

MsDebbieP

14188 posts in 1060 days


posted 733 days ago

haha no problem lol
I am inspired by the abilities of our young woodworkers.
Go, young’uns, go…. AND .. please post the end results so I can pick up a trick or two :)

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

View mrtrim's profile

mrtrim

1698 posts in 780 days


posted 733 days ago

ok debbie practice time is over , how about one for each lumberjock !!

View Bob #2's profile (online now)

Bob #2

3056 posts in 921 days


posted 733 days ago

Deb, you keep that up and we’ll have to name you resident Elf!

Good on you and you are getting better too.

Bob

-- A mind, like a home, is furnished by its owner

View MsDebbieP's profile

MsDebbieP

14188 posts in 1060 days


posted 732 days ago

haha MrTrim—2074 stars… I don’t think I have that much patience!! lol

Thanks Bob.

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

View Jiri Parkman's profile

Jiri Parkman

603 posts in 712 days


posted 711 days ago

I like it.

-- Jiri

View rikkor's profile

rikkor

11335 posts in 774 days


posted 711 days ago

That is cool. I wish I had seen these a month ago. So little time….

View MsDebbieP's profile

MsDebbieP

14188 posts in 1060 days


posted 711 days ago

Mark: have your kids made some yet??

Rikkor: they certainly didn’t take long to do; that’s for sure!

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

View SPalm's profile

SPalm

952 posts in 782 days


posted 711 days ago

I’m a little late to the party, but wanted to say what a nice idea.
I would recommend to leave them a natural finish.

Good job,
Steve

-- Stevethepeeve -- I'm no rocket surgeon

View MsDebbieP's profile

MsDebbieP

14188 posts in 1060 days


posted 709 days ago

thanks Steve :)

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

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